Rolling Hills Park
Park
363 acres11.1 mi of trail
Rolling Hills MTB TrailNorth Meadow Trail LoopNorth Meadow Trail ConnectorBemis Road Connector+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Photo: Dwight Burdette · CC BY 3.0AOutdoors
Outdoors in Ypsilanti Township
Ypsilanti Township has 36 miles of mapped trails, 1.2 for every square mile of land
11% of Ypsilanti Township’s land is conserved, about 2,138 acres. The biggest trail networks: Rolling Hills Park (11.1 mi), Hewen's Creek Park (6.3 mi), Ford Lake Park (2.3 mi). 89% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 90% of U.S. towns · #78 of 701 in Michigan. What drives it
Conserved land
11%
2,138 acres · of 30.0 sq mi of land
Trails
36 mi
1.2 per sq mi of land
Park land
1,657 ac
30 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
89%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
41 mi
9.7 mi lanes · 30 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
4
2 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is Ypsilanti Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Ypsilanti Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Ypsilanti Township is ahead of 90% of U.S. towns, #78 of 701 in Michigan. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; trail miles rank highest, park acres per resident lowest.
A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Ypsilanti Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land11% of the land · typical MI town 5% · U.S. 4%A−Trails1.2 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (36 mi) · MI 0.3 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land30 acres of park per 1,000 residents (1,657 acres) · MI 33 · U.S. 13B+Parks close to home89% 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 90%
LessMore
Michigan towns of 2,500+ (701)Ahead of 89%
Water is 6% of Ypsilanti Township’s area (2 of 32 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 11%.
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 Rolling Hills Park, with 11.1 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Hewen's Creek Park
Park
190 acres6.3 mi of trail
Yellow Trail (Central Loop)Main PathRed Trail (East Loop)Orange Loop+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
North Bay Park
Managed by Charter Township of Ypsilanti
75 acres1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Ford Heritage Township Park
Park
104 acres0.6 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Appleridge Park
Managed by Charter Township of Ypsilanti
32 acres0.6 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Lakeside Park
Managed by Ypsilanti Township
17 acres0.5 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 25 parks & preserves
Rolling Hills Park363 acres · 11.1 mi of trail
DirectionsHewen's Creek Park190 acres · 6.3 mi of trail
DirectionsFord Lake Park86 acres · 2.3 mi of trail
DirectionsNorth Bay Park75 acres · 1 mi of trail · Charter Township of Ypsilanti
DirectionsFord Heritage Township Park104 acres · 0.6 mi of trail
DirectionsAppleridge Park32 acres · 0.6 mi of trail · Charter Township of Ypsilanti
DirectionsCommunity Center Park31 acres · 0.6 mi of trail
DirectionsLakeside Park17 acres · 0.5 mi of trail · Ypsilanti Township
DirectionsClubview Park10 acres · 0.5 mi of trail · Charter Township of Ypsilanti
Loonfeather Point Park11 acres · 0.4 mi of trail
DirectionsNancy Park8 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
DirectionsNorth Hydro Park37 acres · 0.2 mi of trail · Ypsilanti Township
DirectionsSouth Hydro Park14 acres · 0.2 mi of trail · Ypsilanti Township
DirectionsWest Willow Park3 acres · 0.2 mi of trail · Charter Township of Ypsilanti
DirectionsJanice Anshuetz Highland Preserve16 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsHarris Park9 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsRambling Road Park3 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Huron River Park37 acres
Fairway Hills Park5 acres
DirectionsLakeview Park5 acres
DirectionsSugarbrook Park3 acres
Bud & Blossom Park2 acres · Charter Township of Ypsilanti
Burns Park2 acres
Big Island Park2 acres · Charter Township of Ypsilanti
Tot Lot Park1 acres
Who protects it
2,138 conserved acres
11% of Ypsilanti Township’s land. Water is left out: Ypsilanti Township has 30.0 square miles of land and 1.8 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Ypsilanti Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city1,153 ac
Private owners406 ac
County366 ac
Other state land232 ac
Local Park · 823 acLocal Recreation Area · 696 acPrivate Park · 333 acConservation Easement · 232 acPrivate Recreation or Education · 72 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 232 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rolling Hills County Park Local Park | County | 366 | Open |
| Hewen'S Creek Park Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 191 | Open |
| North Bay Park Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 185 | Open |
| Washtenaw Sportsman's Club Private Park | Private owners | 166 | Open |
| Eagle Crest Golf Club Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 166 | Restricted |
| Green Oaks Golf Course Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 153 | Open |
| Pine View Golf Course Private Park | Private owners | 129 | Restricted |
| Ford Heritage Park Local Park | Town or city | 105 | Open |
| Ford Lake Park Local Park | Town or city | 88 | Open |
| Detroit-Greenfield KOA Private Recreation or Education | Private owners | 72 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
57 places to go in Ypsilanti Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Public pools in Ypsilanti Township
Wave PoolIn Rolling Hills Park
DirectionsPlaygrounds in Ypsilanti Township
Children's Healing Center
Directions50 playgrounds are on OpenStreetMap in all; the list shows named ones from the first 30.
Dog parks in Ypsilanti Township
2 dog parks without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in Ypsilanti Township
2 boat launches without a name on the map.
Scenic views in Ypsilanti Township
2 scenic views without a name on the map.
Trails & water
13 named trails and 4 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 9.2 miUnpaved · 18.1 mi
Rolling Hills MTB Trail4.2 mi
Yellow Trail (Central Loop)2.2 mi
Main Path1.7 mi
Red Trail (East Loop)1.5 mi
North Meadow Trail Loop1.4 mi
Orange Loop0.5 mi
North Meadow Trail Connector0.4 mi
Yellow Trail (South Loop)0.3 mi
Bemis Road Connector0.2 mi
Sassafras Trail0.2 mi
3 more trails
Shortcut
0.2 miWoodland Trail
0.1 miCanoe Portage
0.1 miLakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
41 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
9.7 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
30 mi
off-road bike paths
1.4 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
34Tennis
24Baseball
18Soccer
11Basketball
6Pickleball
5Volleyball
2Beach volleyball
2Football
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Ypsilanti Township: July 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 | 15.2 | 15.0 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.7 | 9.1 |
| High (°F) | 32 | 35 | 45 | 59 | 70 | 80 | 84 | 81 | 75 | 62 | 48 | 36 |
| Rain (in) | 2.0 | 1.9 | 2.3 | 3.2 | 3.7 | 3.4 | 3.3 | 3.3 | 3.1 | 2.7 | 2.5 | 2.0 |
February is the driest month (1.9 in) and July the warmest (highs of 84 °F). 3.7 inches fall in May, the wettest month. The climate in Ypsilanti Township →
Next door
Ypsilanti Township and its neighbors
Ypsilanti Township has the second most mapped trails of the 6 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Superior Township36 miYpsilanti Township36 miPittsfield Township25 miVan Buren Township20 miYpsilanti5.8 miAugusta Township2.7 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ypsilanti Township | 11% | 1.2 | 30 | 89% | A |
| Ypsilanti | 4% | 1.4 | 8 | 99% | A− |
| Superior Township | 13% | 1.0 | 122 | 93% | A |
| Pittsfield Township | 11% | 0.9 | 36 | 95% | A |
| Van Buren Township | 7% | 0.6 | 42 | 55% | B+ |
| Augusta Township | 1% | 0.1 | 19 | 10% | C− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Ypsilanti Township
Where can I hike in Ypsilanti Township?
The longest trail networks: Rolling Hills Park, 11.1 miles; Hewen's Creek Park, 6.3 miles; Ford Lake Park, 2.3 miles; North Bay Park, 1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Ypsilanti 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 Ypsilanti Township’s trails?
Rolling Hills Park and Hewen's Creek Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Ypsilanti Township?
41 miles of bike routes are on the map: 9.7 of painted or protected lanes, 30 of off-road paths and 1.4 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Ypsilanti Township?
18,339 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Ypsilanti Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 1,657 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Ypsilanti Township have?
Ahead of 90% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #78 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 Ypsilanti 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 →