Riverview Park
Managed by City of St. Joseph
115 acres1.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Photo: ShadZ01 · CC BY-SA 4.0AOutdoors
Outdoors in St. Joseph Township
11% of St. Joseph Township’s land is conserved, and 96% of residents live within a half mile of a park
11% of St. Joseph Township’s land is conserved, about 453 acres. 5.9 miles of mapped trail cross St. Joseph Township, 0.9 per square mile of land. 366 acres are parks and preserves, 37 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 91% of U.S. towns · #63 of 701 in Michigan. What drives it
Conserved land
11%
453 acres · of 6.7 sq mi of land
Trails
5.9 mi
0.9 per sq mi of land
Park land
366 ac
37 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
96%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
1.0 mi
0.9 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
1
1 boat launch
What kind of outdoors town is St. Joseph Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does St. Joseph Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, St. Joseph Township is ahead of 91% of U.S. towns, #63 of 701 in Michigan. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; the share of residents near a park ranks highest, park acres per resident lowest.
A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of St. Joseph Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land11% of the land · typical MI town 5% · U.S. 4%A−Trails0.9 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (6 mi) · MI 0.3 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land37 acres of park per 1,000 residents (366 acres) · MI 33 · U.S. 13A−Parks close to home96% of residents within a half mile of a park · MI 50% · U.S. 72%A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 91%
LessMore
Michigan towns of 2,500+ (701)Ahead of 91%
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 Riverview Park, with 1.3 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Hickory Creek Preserve
Managed by Southwest Michigan Land Conservancy
35 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
All 8 parks & preserves
Riverview Park115 acres · 1.3 mi of trail · City of St. Joseph
DirectionsEaton Park28 acres · 0.4 mi of trail
DirectionsCarronde Park19 acres · 0.2 mi of trail · St. Joseph Charter Township
DirectionsHickory Creek Preserve35 acres · Southwest Michigan Land Conservancy
Maiden Lane Community Park28 acres
DirectionsSouthwest Michigan Underwater Preserve23 acres
Oakridge Baptist Church Park and Pavilion6 acres
Napier Park1 acres
Who protects it
453 conserved acres
11% of St. Joseph Township’s land. Who manages St. Joseph Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city316 ac
Private owners105 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits31 ac
Other state land5 ac
Local Park · 305 acPrivate Park · 105 acLocal Conservation Area · 41 acConservation Easement · 5 acLocal Recreation Area · 1 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Riverview Park Local Park | Town or city | 114 | Open |
| Berrien Hills Country Club Private Park | Private owners | 105 | Restricted |
| St. Joseph Township Park Local Park | Town or city | 57 | Open |
| Carronde Park Local Park | Town or city | 43 | Open |
| Maiden Lane Community Park Local Park | Town or city | 34 | Open |
| Hickory Creek Preserve Local Conservation Area | Land trusts & nonprofits | 31 | Open |
| Eaton Park Local Park | Town or city | 25 | Open |
| Hickory Creek Park Local Park | Town or city | 15 | Open |
| Benton Park Local Park | Town or city | 11 | Open |
| Washington Avenue Community Center Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 10 | Open |
2 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
7 places to go in St. Joseph Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in St. Joseph Township
6 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in St. Joseph Township
1 boat launch without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Trails & water
1 lakes & rivers
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
1.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
0.9 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
18Tennis
9Baseball
2Pickleball
2Basketball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in St. Joseph Township: May to July and 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 | 14.5 | 15.2 | 15.0 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.7 | 9.1 |
| High (°F) | 33 | 36 | 45 | 58 | 69 | 78 | 82 | 80 | 74 | 62 | 48 | 38 |
| Rain (in) | 2.3 | 2.0 | 2.2 | 3.6 | 3.9 | 3.8 | 3.5 | 3.9 | 3.3 | 4.1 | 2.9 | 2.5 |
February is the driest month (2.0 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 4.1 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in St. Joseph Township →
Next door
St. Joseph Township and its neighbors
St. Joseph Township has the second most mapped trails of the 7 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Lincoln Township11 miSt. Joseph Township5.9 miBenton Harbor2.9 miSt. Joseph2.2 miRoyalton Township1.5 miFair Plain0.3 miShoreham0.0 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Joseph Township | 11% | 0.9 | 37 | 96% | A |
| St. Joseph | 7% | 0.7 | 19 | 99%+ | A |
| Shoreham | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Fair Plain | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Benton Harbor | 3% | 0.7 | 17 | 96% | B+ |
| Royalton Township | 2% | 0.1 | 39 | 7% | C |
| Lincoln Township | 10% | 0.6 | 82 | 62% | A− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in St. Joseph Township
Where can I hike in St. Joseph Township?
The longest trail networks: Riverview Park, 1.3 miles; Eaton Park, 0.4 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of St. Joseph Township is conserved land?
11% 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 St. Joseph Township’s trails?
Riverview Park and Eaton Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in St. Joseph Township?
1.0 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.9 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near St. Joseph Township?
4,459 acres of parks and open public land lie inside St. Joseph Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 366 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does St. Joseph Township have?
Ahead of 91% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #63 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 St. Joseph 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 →