Tallmadge Woods Nature Preserve
Managed by Saugatuck
120 acres1.8 mi of trail
Crow's Nest Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Navigation Structures at Saugatuck Harbor · Photo: Andrew Jameson · CC BY-SA 4.0B+Outdoors
Outdoors in Saugatuck Township
Saugatuck Township has 329 acres of parks, 93 for every 1,000 residents
24 miles of mapped trail cross Saugatuck Township, 1.0 per square mile of land. The biggest trail networks: Tallmadge Woods Nature Preserve (1.8 mi), Saugatuck Wilds Nature Preserve (1.7 mi), Lawrence A. and Mary Bell Wade Memorial Nature Sanctuary (1.2 mi). 47% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 74% of U.S. towns · #245 of 701 in Michigan. What drives it
Conserved land
4%
581 acres · of 23.1 sq mi of land
Trails
24 mi
1.0 per sq mi of land
Park land
329 ac
93 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
47%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
2.5 mi
2.4 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
2
7 beaches · 4 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is Saugatuck Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Saugatuck Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Saugatuck Township is ahead of 74% of U.S. towns, #245 of 701 in Michigan. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
B+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Saugatuck Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land4% of the land · typical MI town 5% · U.S. 4%BTrails1.0 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (24 mi) · MI 0.3 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land93 acres of park per 1,000 residents (329 acres) · MI 33 · U.S. 13AParks close to home47% of residents within a half mile of a park · MI 50% · U.S. 72%C+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 74%
LessMore
Michigan towns of 2,500+ (701)Ahead of 65%
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 Tallmadge Woods Nature Preserve, with 1.8 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Saugatuck Wilds Nature Preserve
Managed by City of Saugatuck
169 acres1.7 mi of trail
Red Pine TrailMayapple Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Lawrence A. and Mary Bell Wade Memorial Nature Sanctuary
Managed by Michigan Nature Association
65 acres1.2 mi of trail
North TrailSouth Trail\Bayou Point TrailSouth Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
River Bluff Park
Managed by Saugatuck Township
36 acres0.9 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 8 parks & preserves
Tallmadge Woods Nature Preserve120 acres · 1.8 mi of trail · Saugatuck
DirectionsSaugatuck Wilds Nature Preserve169 acres · 1.7 mi of trail · City of Saugatuck
DirectionsLawrence A. and Mary Bell Wade Memorial Nature Sanctuary65 acres · 1.2 mi of trail · Michigan Nature Association
DirectionsRiver Bluff Park36 acres · 0.9 mi of trail · Saugatuck Township
DirectionsAllegan State Game Area234 acres · Michigan Department of Natural Resources
DirectionsAmelanchier Park5 acres · Saugatuck Township
Southwest Michigan Underwater Preserve2 acres
Saugatuck Harbor Natural Area2 acres · Saugatuck
Who protects it
581 conserved acres
4% of Saugatuck Township’s land. Who manages Saugatuck Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Land trusts & nonprofits216 ac
State fish & wildlife160 ac
Private owners120 ac
Town or city51 ac
Other state land31 ac
State Conservation Area · 231 acConservation Easement · 175 acPrivate Park · 120 acLocal Recreation Area · 41 acLocal Park · 10 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 177 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Allegan State Game Area State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 160 | Open |
| Clearbrook Golf Course Private Park | Private owners | 118 | Restricted |
| Lawrence A. And Mary Bell Wade Memorial State Conservation Area | Land trusts & nonprofits | 71 | Open |
| Pine Trails Camp Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 41 | Open |
| River Bluff Park Local Park | Town or city | 10 | Open |
| Mi Ro Country Club Private Park | Private owners | 2 | Restricted |
| Saugatuck Dunes-Singapore Dunes LLC 2 Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 1 | Open |
Things to do
15 places to go in Saugatuck Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Saugatuck Township
7 beaches without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Playgrounds in Saugatuck Township
2 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Dog parks in Saugatuck Township
Tails n' Trails Dog Park
DirectionsBoat launches in Saugatuck Township
Hacklander Boat Launch
DirectionsPlus 3 boat launches without a name on the map.
Scenic views in Saugatuck Township
Crow's Nest OverlookIn Tallmadge Woods Nature Preserve
DirectionsTrails & water
8 named trails and 2 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 4.7 mi
Crow's Nest Trail1.7 mi
Red Pine Trail1.0 mi
Mayapple Trail0.5 mi
North Trail0.4 mi
South Trail\0.4 mi
Bayou Point Trail0.2 mi
Saugatuck Harbor Natural Area Trail0.1 mi
South Trail0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
2.5 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
2.4 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
2Tennis
1Equestrian
1Pickleball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →1 place on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
Navigation Structures at Saugatuck HarborStructure · listed 2001
About itWhen to get out
The best walking months in Saugatuck Township: June to September
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) | 33 | 35 | 45 | 56 | 68 | 77 | 81 | 80 | 74 | 61 | 48 | 37 |
| Rain (in) | 2.3 | 2.0 | 2.1 | 3.6 | 3.9 | 3.6 | 3.2 | 3.4 | 3.2 | 3.9 | 2.9 | 2.5 |
February is the driest month (2.0 in) and July the warmest (highs of 81 °F). 3.9 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Saugatuck Township →
Next door
Saugatuck Township and its neighbors
Saugatuck Township has the second most mapped trails of the 6 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Laketown Township36 miSaugatuck Township24 miGanges Township14 miManlius Township11 miSaugatuck9.1 miDouglas0.8 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saugatuck Township | 4% | 1.0 | 93 | 47% | B+ |
| Douglas | 15% | 0.4 | 25 | 78% | A− |
| Saugatuck | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Manlius Township | 26% | 0.3 | 1,692 | 41% | A− |
| Laketown Township | 9% | 1.7 | 213 | 56% | A |
| Ganges Township | 8% | 0.4 | 583 | 35% | B+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Saugatuck Township
Where can I hike in Saugatuck Township?
The longest trail networks: Tallmadge Woods Nature Preserve, 1.8 miles; Saugatuck Wilds Nature Preserve, 1.7 miles; Lawrence A. and Mary Bell Wade Memorial Nature Sanctuary, 1.2 miles; River Bluff Park, 0.9 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Saugatuck Township is conserved land?
4% 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 Saugatuck Township’s trails?
Tallmadge Woods Nature Preserve and Saugatuck Wilds Nature Preserve don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Saugatuck Township?
2.5 miles of bike routes are on the map: 2.4 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Saugatuck Township?
41,997 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Saugatuck Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 329 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Saugatuck Township have?
Ahead of 74% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #245 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 Saugatuck 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 →