Mackinaw State Forest - Gaylord Unit
Managed by Michigan Department of Natural Resources
1,660 acres8.6 mi of trail
Jordan River PathwayForestgrove CourtJordan Valley Pathway
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
C−Outdoors
Outdoors in Star Township
Star Township has 37 miles of mapped trails, 1.1 for every square mile of land
The biggest trail networks: Mackinaw State Forest - Gaylord Unit (8.6 mi). 7% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 20% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
under 1%
103 acres · of 34.3 sq mi of land
Trails
37 mi
1.1 per sq mi of land
Near a park
7%
of residents within ½ mile
Lakes & rivers
1
What kind of outdoors town is Star Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Star Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Star Township is ahead of 20% of U.S. towns. Trail miles hold the grade up; park acres per resident pull it down.
C−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Star Township’s overall grade.
Conserved landunder 1% of the land · typical MI town 5% · U.S. 4%C−Trails1.1 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (37 mi) · MI 0.3 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land0.0 acres of park per 1,000 residents (0 acres) · MI 33 · U.S. 13DParks close to home7% of residents within a half mile of a park · MI 50% · U.S. 72%D
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 20%
LessMore
NoteFew parks or trails are mapped in Star Township. OpenStreetMap is mapped by volunteers and coverage varies from town to town, so a town with unmapped parks scores low on them.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from D to C. 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 Mackinaw State Forest - Gaylord Unit, with 8.6 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Who protects it
103 conserved acres
under 1% of Star Township’s land. Who manages Star Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service205 ac
Federal Other or Unknown · 205 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jordan River National Fish Hatchery Federal Other or Unknown | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | 205 | Restricted |
Things to do
1 places to go in Star Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Campgrounds in Star Township
45th Parallel Back Country Campgroundairbnb.com
DirectionsTrails & water
5 named trails and 1 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 5.3 mi
Snowmobile Trail4.5 mi
Jordan River Pathway1.7 mi
Forestgrove Court0.8 mi
Kitchen0.5 mi
Jordan Valley Pathway0.4 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
0.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Courts & fields
2Tennis
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Star Township: May to 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) | 9.1 | 10.3 | 11.8 | 13.4 | 14.8 | 15.6 | 15.3 | 14.1 | 12.5 | 10.9 | 9.5 | 8.8 |
| High (°F) | 26 | 28 | 39 | 52 | 66 | 76 | 79 | 77 | 70 | 56 | 42 | 31 |
| Rain (in) | 2.4 | 1.7 | 1.9 | 3.1 | 3.2 | 3.5 | 3.2 | 3.3 | 3.9 | 4.3 | 3.1 | 2.7 |
February is the driest month (1.7 in) and July the warmest (highs of 79 °F). 4.3 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Star Township →
Next door
Star Township and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Hayes Township203 miMancelona Township130 miChestonia Township77 miWarner Township53 miStar Township37 miLakes of the North23 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Star Township | under 1% | 1.1 | under 1 | 7% | C− |
| Hayes Township | 1% | 2.9 | 3 | 14% | C |
| Chestonia Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Warner Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Mancelona Township | 1% | 1.8 | 6 | 33% | C+ |
| Lakes of the North | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Star Township
Where can I hike in Star Township?
The longest trail networks: Mackinaw State Forest - Gaylord Unit, 8.6 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Star Township is conserved land?
under 1% 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 Star Township’s trails?
Mackinaw State Forest - Gaylord Unit doesn’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Star Township?
2,562 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Star Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), almost none of it inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Star Township have?
Ahead of 20% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade. 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 Star 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 →