Goodells County Park
Managed by St Clair County
341 acres2.8 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
B−Outdoors
Outdoors in Wales Township
Wales Township has 989 acres of parks, 310 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: Goodells County Park (2.8 mi). 20% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 3.7 miles of mapped trail cross Wales Township, 0.1 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 50% of U.S. towns · #442 of 701 in Michigan. What drives it
Conserved land
5%
1,145 acres · of 37.4 sq mi of land
Trails
3.7 mi
0.1 per sq mi of land
Park land
989 ac
310 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
20%
of residents within ½ mile
What kind of outdoors town is Wales Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Wales Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Wales Township is ahead of 50% of U.S. towns, #442 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 Wales Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land5% of the land · typical MI town 5% · U.S. 4%BTrails0.1 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (4 mi) · MI 0.3 · U.S. 0.4CPark land310 acres of park per 1,000 residents (989 acres) · MI 33 · U.S. 13AParks close to home20% 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 50%
LessMore
Michigan towns of 2,500+ (701)Ahead of 37%
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from C to B+. 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 Goodells County Park, with 2.8 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Pine River Nature Center
Managed by St Clair County Regional Educational Service Agency
113 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Edna S. Newnan Nature Sanctuary
Managed by Michigan Nature Association
84 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Who protects it
1,145 conserved acres
5% of Wales Township’s land. Who manages Wales Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
County534 ac
Private owners525 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits87 ac
Private Park · 436 acLocal Park · 348 acLocal Recreation Area · 185 acPrivate Recreation or Education · 89 acPrivate Conservation · 87 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Goodells County Park Local Park | County | 348 | Open |
| Smiths Creek Hunt Club Private Park | Private owners | 224 | Open |
| Pine River Nature Center Local Recreation Area | County | 185 | Open |
| Leaning Tree Golf Course Private Park | Private owners | 99 | Restricted |
| Family Fun Archery & Paintball Private Recreation or Education | Private owners | 89 | Open |
| Edna Newnan Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 87 | Open |
| White Oaks Golf Course Private Park | Private owners | 64 | Restricted |
| Friendship Rod and Gun Club Private Park | Private owners | 49 | Open |
Things to do
2 places to go in Wales Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Wales Township
2 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
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
3Equestrian
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Wales 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) | 9.3 | 10.5 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.6 | 15.3 | 15.0 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.7 | 9.0 |
| High (°F) | 31 | 33 | 43 | 56 | 69 | 78 | 82 | 80 | 74 | 61 | 47 | 36 |
| Rain (in) | 2.3 | 1.9 | 2.2 | 3.1 | 3.6 | 3.4 | 3.3 | 3.3 | 3.1 | 3.0 | 2.6 | 2.2 |
February is the driest month (1.9 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 3.6 inches fall in May, the wettest month. The climate in Wales Township →
Next door
Wales Township and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Columbus Township9.7 miKimball Township7.0 miWales Township3.7 miKenockee Township3.0 miRiley Township0.6 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wales Township | 5% | 0.1 | 310 | 20% | B− |
| Kenockee Township | under 1% | 0.1 | 39 | 10% | C |
| Riley Township | 1% | under 0.1 | 9 | 8% | D |
| Columbus Township | under 1% | 0.3 | 4 | 8% | D |
| Kimball Township | 7% | 0.2 | 122 | 27% | B |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Wales Township
Where can I hike in Wales Township?
The longest trail networks: Goodells County Park, 2.8 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Wales Township is conserved land?
5% 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 Wales Township’s trails?
Goodells County Park and Pine River Nature Center don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Wales Township?
10,856 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Wales Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 989 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Wales Township have?
Ahead of 50% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #442 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 Wales 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 →