Waterloo State Recreation Area
Managed by Michigan Department of Natural Resources
11,290 acres46.3 mi of trail
Waterloo-Pinckney TrailRidge TrailCodyville Pines Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Dwight Burdette · CC BY 3.0AOutdoors
Outdoors in Waterloo Township
Waterloo Township has 6,033 acres of parks, 2,036 for every 1,000 residents
20% of Waterloo Township’s land is conserved, about 6,119 acres. 55 miles of mapped trail cross Waterloo Township, 1.1 per square mile of land. The biggest trail networks: Waterloo State Recreation Area (46.3 mi).
Ahead of 95% of U.S. towns · #28 of 701 in Michigan. What drives it
Conserved land
20%
6,119 acres · of 47.6 sq mi of land
Trails
55 mi
1.1 per sq mi of land
Park land
6,033 ac
2,036 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
70%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
3.3 mi
3.3 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
17
1 beach · 4 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is Waterloo Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Waterloo Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Waterloo Township is ahead of 95% of U.S. towns, #28 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 Waterloo Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land20% of the land · typical MI town 5% · U.S. 4%ATrails1.1 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (55 mi) · MI 0.3 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land2,036 acres of park per 1,000 residents (6,033 acres) · MI 33 · U.S. 13A+Parks close to home70% of residents within a half mile of a park · MI 50% · U.S. 72%B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 95%
LessMore
Michigan towns of 2,500+ (701)Ahead of 96%
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from A 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 Waterloo State Recreation Area, with 46.3 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Clear Lake Park
Park
6 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Munith Community Park
Managed by Munith Lions Club
1 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Who protects it
6,119 conserved acres
20% of Waterloo Township’s land. Who manages Waterloo Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State parks5,207 ac
State natural resources569 ac
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service273 ac
State fish & wildlife120 ac
Private owners68 ac
County11 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits9 ac
State Recreation Area · 5,738 acResource Management Area · 273 acState Conservation Area · 157 acPrivate Park · 68 acLocal Park · 11 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Waterloo Recreation Area State Recreation Area | State parks | 5,699 | Open |
| Waterloo State Wildlife Area State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 157 | Open |
| Jackson County Waterfowl Production Area Resource Management Area | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | 137 | Restricted |
| Jackson County Waterfowl Production Area Of Mi Resource Management Area | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | 136 | Restricted |
| Waterloo Golf Course Private Park | Private owners | 68 | Restricted |
| Waterloo State Recreation Area State Recreation Area | State natural resources | 39 | Open |
| Siegrist_Gary Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 9 | Closed |
| Portage Lake Park Local Park | County | 6 | Open |
| Clear Lake Park Local Park | County | 5 | Open |
Things to do
11 places to go in Waterloo Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Waterloo Township
1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Playgrounds in Waterloo Township
4 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in Waterloo Township
4 boat launches without a name on the map.
Campgrounds in Waterloo Township
Farmlane Campground
DirectionsPines CampgroundIn Waterloo State Recreation Area · Michigan Department of Natural Resources
DirectionsTrails & water
3 named trails and 17 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 2.1 miHorses · 24.9 miUnpaved · 27.5 mi
Waterloo-Pinckney Trail11.5 mi
Ridge Trail1.6 mi
Codyville Pines Trail0.3 mi
Biking & sports
3.3 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
3.3 mi
off-road bike paths
History along the way
History →1 place on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
Siebold Farm/Ruehle (Realy) FarmBuilding · listed 1973
About itWhen to get out
The best walking months in Waterloo Township: 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 | 14.6 | 15.3 | 15.0 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.7 | 9.1 |
| High (°F) | 31 | 34 | 45 | 58 | 70 | 79 | 82 | 80 | 74 | 61 | 47 | 36 |
| Rain (in) | 2.2 | 1.9 | 2.2 | 3.2 | 3.9 | 3.8 | 3.3 | 3.5 | 2.9 | 3.0 | 2.5 | 2.0 |
February is the driest month (1.9 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 3.9 inches fall in May, the wettest month. The climate in Waterloo Township →
Next door
Waterloo Township and its neighbors
Waterloo Township has the second most mapped trails of the 7 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Lyndon Township78 miWaterloo Township55 miSylvan Township27 miGrass Lake Township24 miLeoni Township7.2 miHenrietta Township3.6 miStockbridge Township2.6 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Waterloo Township | 20% | 1.1 | 2,036 | 70% | A |
| Grass Lake Township | 11% | 0.5 | 493 | 43% | A− |
| Lyndon Township | 52% | 2.4 | 3,830 | 90% | A+ |
| Henrietta Township | 8% | 0.1 | 19 | 16% | C+ |
| Sylvan Township | 15% | 0.8 | 843 | 52% | A |
| Stockbridge Township | 3% | 0.1 | 3 | 35% | C− |
| Leoni Township | 11% | 0.1 | 162 | 34% | B |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Waterloo Township
Where can I hike in Waterloo Township?
The longest trail networks: Waterloo State Recreation Area, 46.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Waterloo Township is conserved land?
20% 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 Waterloo Township’s trails?
Waterloo State Recreation Area and Clear Lake Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Waterloo Township?
3.3 miles of bike routes are on the map: 3.3 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Waterloo Township?
46,916 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Waterloo Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 6,033 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Waterloo Township have?
Ahead of 95% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #28 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 Waterloo 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 →