Waterloo State Recreation Area
Managed by Michigan Department of Natural Resources
4,659 acres37.7 mi of trail
Winn LoopGreen Lake LoopBig Kame LoopWaterloo-Pinckney Trail+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
A+Outdoors
Outdoors in Lyndon Township
More than half of Lyndon Township’s land is conserved: 52%
52% of Lyndon Township’s land is conserved, about 10,591 acres. 10,198 acres are parks and preserves, 3,830 per 1,000 residents. 78 miles of mapped trail cross Lyndon Township, 2.4 per square mile of land.
Among the top 1% of U.S. towns · #1 of 701 in Michigan. What drives it
Conserved land
52%
10,591 acres · of 32.0 sq mi of land
Trails
78 mi
2.4 per sq mi of land
Park land
10,198 ac
3,830 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
90%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
7.3 mi
7.3 mi paths
Highest peak
1,129 ft
Cassidy Kame
Lakes & rivers
31
3 beaches · 8 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is Lyndon Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Lyndon Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Lyndon Township is among the top 1% of U.S. towns, #1 of 701 in Michigan. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; park acres per resident rank highest, the share of residents near a park lowest.
A+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Lyndon Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land52% of the land · typical MI town 5% · U.S. 4%A+Trails2.4 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (78 mi) · MI 0.3 · U.S. 0.4A+Park land3,830 acres of park per 1,000 residents (10,198 acres) · MI 33 · U.S. 13A+Parks close to home90% of residents within a half mile of a park · MI 50% · U.S. 72%B+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Among the top 1%
LessMore
Michigan towns of 2,500+ (701)#1 of 701
Water is 9% of Lyndon Township’s area (3 of 35 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 48%.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would still be 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 Waterloo State Recreation Area, with 37.7 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Pinckney State Recreation Area
Park
5,275 acres29.4 mi of trail
Waterloo-Pinckney TrailGorman Lake TrailPotawatomi TrailBill Baker Trail+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Park Lyndon County Park
Park
332 acres4.9 mi of trail
Waterloo-Pinckney TrailYellow TrailRustic TrailGreen Trail+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Unadilla State Wildlife Area
Nature preserve
125 acres0.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Who protects it
10,591 conserved acres
52% of Lyndon Township’s land. Water is left out: Lyndon Township has 32.0 square miles of land and 3.1 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Lyndon Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Other state land5,080 ac
State parks4,530 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits385 ac
County336 ac
State fish & wildlife125 ac
State natural resources93 ac
State Department of Land82 ac
State Recreation Area · 9,514 acLocal Park · 336 acAgricultural Easement · 327 acPrivate Recreation or Education · 248 acState Conservation Area · 125 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 247 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pinckney Recreation Area State Recreation Area | Other state land | 4,891 | Open |
| Waterloo Recreation Area State Recreation Area | State parks | 4,623 | Open |
| Park Lyndon Local Park | County | 336 | Open |
| Dr. Shurley Camp for the Handicapped Private Recreation or Education | Land trusts & nonprofits | 136 | Open |
| Unadilla State Wildlife Area State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 125 | Open |
| Camp Munhacke Private Recreation or Education | Land trusts & nonprofits | 112 | Open |
| Chelsea Rod & Gun Club Private Park | Private owners | 61 | Open |
| Castle Creek, parcel m Unknown | State Department of Land | 46 | Open |
| Castle Creek, parcel n Unknown | State Department of Land | 12 | Open |
| Castle Creek, parcel k Unknown | State Department of Land | 9 | Open |
2 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
30 places to go in Lyndon Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Lyndon Township
3 beaches without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Swimming spots in Lyndon Township
1 swimming spot without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Playgrounds in Lyndon Township
5 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Boat launches in Lyndon Township
8 boat launches without a name on the map.
Scenic views in Lyndon Township
1 scenic view without a name on the map.
Peaks in Lyndon Township
Cassidy Kame1,129 ft elevation · In Waterloo State Recreation Area
DirectionsBig Kame1,076 ft elevation · In Waterloo State Recreation Area
DirectionsSugarloaf Hill1,073 ft elevation · In Waterloo State Recreation Area
DirectionsStofer Hill1,053 ft elevation · In Pinckney State Recreation Area
DirectionsProspect Hill1,043 ft elevation · In Pinckney State Recreation Area
DirectionsRiley Hill1,040 ft elevation · In Waterloo State Recreation Area
DirectionsShanahan Hill1,040 ft elevation · In Pinckney State Recreation Area
DirectionsKame Hill1,017 ft elevation
DirectionsCampgrounds in Lyndon Township
Blind Lake CampgroundFee · In Pinckney State Recreation Area · Michigan Department of Natural Resources
DirectionsBruin Lake CampgroundIn Pinckney State Recreation Area
DirectionsGreen Lake Rustic CampgroundIn Waterloo State Recreation Area · Michigan Department of Natural Resources
DirectionsThe Woodlands at Bruin Lake
DirectionsTrails & water
25 named trails and 31 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 41.8 miHorses · 2.1 miUnpaved · 40.3 mi
Waterloo-Pinckney Trail7.8 mi
Winn Loop7.3 mi
Green Lake Loop4.9 mi
Big Kame Loop4.6 mi
Sugar Loop2.4 mi
Gorman Lake Trail2.2 mi
Potawatomi Trail1.8 mi
Friends Lake Trail1.4 mi
Bill Baker Trail1.2 mi
Big Kame West E-Route1.1 mi
15 more trails
Winn South E-Route
1.1 miO Brother, where art thou? Trail
0.9 miWaterloo-Pinckney Trail Spur
0.9 miYellow Trail
0.8 miRustic Trail
0.8 miGreen Trail
0.7 miGreen Lake E-Route
0.5 miPotawatomi Trail Connector
0.5 miBlue Trail
0.4 miWinn North E-Route
0.4 miBig Kame East E-Route
0.3 miSugar North E-Route
0.3 miSugar Middle E-Route
0.2 miTrail
0.2 miChelsea Road Lot Connector
0.1 miLakes & rivers tap for directions
Avery LakelakeBlind LakeBoyce LakelakeBruin LakelakeBurkhart LakeCanfield LakelakeCassidy LakelakeClark LakelakeClarks LakeEagle LakeEllsworth LakeGorman LakelakeGreen LakelakeHankard LakelakeIsland LakelakeJoslin LakelakeLake GenevieveLong LakelakeMclaughlin LakelakeMirror LakeMud LakeSnyder LakeSouth LakelakeSpruce LakeSugarloaf LakelakeSullivan LakelakeSullivan LakesTwamley LakelakeWild Goose LakelakeWinnewana ImpoundmentreservoirWinnewana Lake
Biking & sports
7.3 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
7.3 mi
off-road bike paths
Winter GroomingBike route
11.6 miWinn LoopBike route
7.3 miGreen Lake LoopBike route
4.9 miBig Kame LoopBike route
4.6 miEmergency AccessBike route
4.2 miPoto-DTE ConnectorBike route
3.4 miSugar LoopBike route
2.4 miCourts & fields
2Volleyball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
September is the best month for walking in Lyndon Township
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) | 9.4 | 10.5 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.6 | 15.3 | 15.0 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.7 | 9.1 |
| High (°F) | 31 | 34 | 45 | 58 | 69 | 79 | 82 | 80 | 73 | 61 | 47 | 36 |
| Rain (in) | 2.2 | 1.8 | 2.2 | 3.2 | 3.9 | 3.8 | 3.4 | 3.4 | 2.9 | 3.0 | 2.6 | 2.0 |
February is the driest month (1.8 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 3.9 inches fall in May, the wettest month. The climate in Lyndon Township →
Next door
Lyndon Township and its neighbors
Lyndon Township has the most mapped trails of the 5 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Lyndon Township78 miDexter Township62 miWaterloo Township55 miSylvan Township27 miUnadilla Township5.7 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lyndon Township | 52% | 2.4 | 3,830 | 90% | A+ |
| Waterloo Township | 20% | 1.1 | 2,036 | 70% | A |
| Dexter Township | 27% | 2.1 | 808 | 51% | A |
| Sylvan Township | 15% | 0.8 | 843 | 52% | A |
| Unadilla Township | 19% | 0.2 | 1,257 | 62% | A− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Lyndon Township
Where can I hike in Lyndon Township?
The longest trail networks: Waterloo State Recreation Area, 37.7 miles; Pinckney State Recreation Area, 29.4 miles; Park Lyndon County Park, 4.9 miles; Unadilla State Wildlife Area, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Lyndon Township is conserved land?
52% 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 Lyndon Township’s trails?
Waterloo State Recreation Area and Pinckney State Recreation Area don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Lyndon Township?
7.3 miles of bike routes are on the map: 7.3 of off-road paths. Named routes: Winter Grooming, Winn Loop and Green Lake Loop.
Is there public land near Lyndon Township?
44,818 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Lyndon Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 10,200 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Lyndon Township have?
Among the top 1% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #1 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 Lyndon 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 →