Escanaba River State Forest - Gwinn Unit
Managed by Michigan Department of Natural Resources
511 acres1.4 mi of trail
Bushy Creek Truck Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Photo: Andrew Jameson · CC BY-SA 3.0B+Outdoors
Outdoors in Ishpeming Township
Ishpeming Township has 277 acres of parks, 81 for every 1,000 residents
97 miles of mapped trail cross Ishpeming Township, 1.1 per square mile of land. The biggest trail networks: Escanaba River State Forest - Gwinn Unit (1.4 mi). 2% of Ishpeming Township’s land is conserved, about 897 acres.
Ahead of 73% of U.S. towns · #254 of 701 in Michigan. What drives it
Conserved land
2%
897 acres · of 86.3 sq mi of land
Trails
97 mi
1.1 per sq mi of land
Park land
277 ac
81 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
68%
of residents within ½ mile
Lakes & rivers
14
1 beach · 1 boat launch
What kind of outdoors town is Ishpeming Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Ishpeming Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Ishpeming Township is ahead of 73% of U.S. towns, #254 of 701 in Michigan. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; conserved land pulls it down.
B+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Ishpeming Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land2% of the land · typical MI town 5% · U.S. 4%C+Trails1.1 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (97 mi) · MI 0.3 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land81 acres of park per 1,000 residents (277 acres) · MI 33 · U.S. 13AParks close to home68% of residents within a half mile of a park · MI 50% · U.S. 72%B−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 73%
LessMore
Michigan towns of 2,500+ (701)Ahead of 64%
Water is 6% of Ishpeming Township’s area (5 of 91 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 2%.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from B to A. Trails and many small parks come from OpenStreetMap, mapped by volunteers, so coverage varies from town to town; the half mile is a straight line from each census block, so a river or highway in the way isn’t counted against it.
PAD-US, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), Census 2025 Gazetteer and 2020 blocks; details in Sources below. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →
The map
Conserved land, trails & bike routes
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.
Easements protect land from building but are usually private.© OpenStreetMap contributors · USGS PAD-US
Places to walk
Pick a walk
The longest trail network is Escanaba River State Forest - Gwinn Unit, with 1.4 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Escanaba River State Forest - Gwinn Unit (North)
Managed by Michigan Department of Natural Resources
511 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Forests for the Future #16 Reserve
Managed by Upper Peninsula Land Conservancy
37 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Ishpeming Township Recreation Area
Park
4 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 5 parks & preserves
Escanaba River State Forest - Gwinn Unit511 acres · 1.4 mi of trail · Michigan Department of Natural Resources
Escanaba River State Forest - Gwinn Unit (North)511 acres · Michigan Department of Natural Resources
Forests for the Future #16 Reserve37 acres · Upper Peninsula Land Conservancy
Ishpeming Township Recreation Area4 acres
Deer Lake Boat Launch2 acres · Michigan Department of Natural Resources
Who protects it
897 conserved acres
2% of Ishpeming Township’s land. Water is left out: Ishpeming Township has 86.3 square miles of land and 5.2 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Ishpeming Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Other state land650 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits199 ac
Town or city48 ac
Forest Stewardship Easement · 650 acPrivate Conservation · 192 acLocal Conservation Area · 38 acLocal Recreation Area · 10 acState Conservation Area · 7 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 650 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Braastad Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 178 | Open |
| Ishpeming Township Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 32 | Open |
| Bushy Creek Preserve Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 13 | Open |
| Ishpeming Township Recreation Area Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 10 | Open |
| Myrtle Justeson Memorial State Conservation Area | Land trusts & nonprofits | 7 | Open |
| Central Upper Peninsula Lands Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 6 | Open |
Things to do
17 places to go in Ishpeming Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Ishpeming Township
1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Playgrounds in Ishpeming Township
3 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in Ishpeming Township
Deer Lake Boat Launch
DirectionsWaterfalls in Ishpeming Township
Big Pup Falls
DirectionsBushy Creek Falls
DirectionsLittle Pup Falls
DirectionsLower Big Pup Falls
DirectionsYellow Dog Falls
DirectionsPlus 7 waterfalls without a name on the map.
Trails & water
14 named trails and 14 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 2.7 miHorses · 0.6 miUnpaved · 16.5 mi
Bushy Creek Truck Trail4.7 mi
North Country Trail3.1 mi
Deer Lake Trail3.1 mi
Wilson Creek Truck Trail2.2 mi
County Road Ggf1.4 mi
Alder Creek Truck Trail1.2 mi
Danja Trail0.7 mi
Baby Lake Trail0.7 mi
Twin Lake Trail / Twin Tires0.5 mi
Olympic Trail0.4 mi
4 more trails
County Road GMC
0.4 miTeal Lake Trail
0.2 miDeer Run Single Track
0.2 miCounty Road Gmb
0.2 miBiking & sports
0.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Al Quaal LoopBike route
2.4 miCourts & fields
10Tennis
2Pickleball
2Basketball
2Baseball
1Football
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Ishpeming Township: May and August
NOAA’s 1991–2020 normals for the town and the daylight at its latitude. Outlined months have long days, highs of 59 to 86 °F and little rain for the place.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 8.9 | 10.2 | 11.8 | 13.5 | 15.0 | 15.8 | 15.5 | 14.2 | 12.5 | 10.8 | 9.3 | 8.6 |
| High (°F) | 21 | 25 | 36 | 48 | 62 | 72 | 77 | 75 | 66 | 52 | 38 | 26 |
| Rain (in) | 1.9 | 1.6 | 1.9 | 2.8 | 3.1 | 3.3 | 3.5 | 2.8 | 3.6 | 3.6 | 2.5 | 2.2 |
February is the driest month (1.6 in) and July the warmest (highs of 77 °F). 3.6 inches fall in September, the wettest month. The climate in Ishpeming Township →
Next door
Ishpeming Township and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Powell Township253 miMarquette Township212 miChampion Township164 miEly Township107 miIshpeming Township97 miIshpeming72 miTilden Township39 miNegaunee Township37 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ishpeming Township | 2% | 1.1 | 81 | 68% | B+ |
| Powell Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Champion Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Ishpeming | 2% | 8.2 | 17 | 73% | B+ |
| Negaunee Township | 1% | 0.9 | 55 | 11% | B− |
| Ely Township | 6% | 0.8 | 2,656 | 24% | B+ |
| Marquette Township | 20% | 3.8 | 502 | 56% | A+ |
| Tilden Township | 10% | 0.4 | 5,095 | 6% | B+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Ishpeming Township
Where can I hike in Ishpeming Township?
The longest trail networks: Escanaba River State Forest - Gwinn Unit, 1.4 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Ishpeming Township is conserved land?
2% of its land, against a typical 5% for a Michigan town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Ishpeming Township’s trails?
Escanaba River State Forest - Gwinn Unit and Escanaba River State Forest - Gwinn Unit (North) don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Ishpeming Township?
4,472 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Ishpeming Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 277 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Ishpeming Township have?
Ahead of 73% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #254 of 701 in Michigan. The grade combines the share of land that is conserved, miles of mapped trail per square mile of land, park acres per 1,000 residents and the share of residents within a half mile of a park. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
Trail talk
Conditions, parking and favorite walks from Ishpeming Township neighbors.
Share a tip
Sources
Where this page comes from
Conserved and public land: USGS Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US), service updated July 2026. Parks, trails, playgrounds, beaches and other places: OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL), map data as of 2026-10-28. Land and water area: Census 2025 Gazetteer. Residents near a park: 2020 Census blocks. National Register: National Park Service. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →