Chelsea
Parks and Recreation Areas
Chelsea ·
Dexter ·
Saline
Cavanaugh Lake County Park
One-acre roadside picnic area on Cavanaugh Lake Rd., four miles west of Chelsea. Open year round dawn-dusk.
Chelsea State Game Area
entrance on Dexter-Chelsea Rd
(517) 522-4097
About 799 acres around Four Mile Lake. Shore fishing, waterfowl hunting, small-boat launch.
Chelsea city parks
Pierce Park is a municipal park on S. Main with a small playground, picnic tables, and a large pavilion. Timber Town Park, on F. A. Weber Dr. off Sibley west of N. Main, has a huge, volunteer-built wooden play structure and a veterans memorial footbridge. Veterans Park, next to Letts Creek at N. Main and Sibley, has picnic tables, a small playground, 2 softball diamonds, and a play structure. Weber Fields, on the corner of Main and Sibley has several softball diamonds.
Esker Cedar Lake Trail
Cedar Lake public access road, off Cavanaugh Lake Rd. west of Pierce. Trailhead on north side of road.
Hiking and cross-country ski trail provides panoramic views of Cedar, Doyle, and Little Cedar lakes.
Park Lyndon County Park
North Territorial Rd. 1 mile east of M-52
(734) 971-6337
Thise 335-acre park's two miles of marked hiking trails go past marsh, lake, prairie, fen, and forest and the Embury Swamp Natural Area Preserve, the ecological gem of the county park system. Open year round dawn-dusk.
Pierce Lake County Park
1175 S. Main [
map]
(734) 475-5858
Golf course, boardwalk, nature trail. Open Apr. 1-Nov. 1 dawn-dusk, and weekends in winter for cross-country skiing.
Pinckney Recreation Area
8555 Silver Hill Rd. [
map]
(734) 426-4913. Campground reservations: (800) 447-2757
Campground reservations: (800) 447-2757. This 11,000-acre state park north of Chelsea has many lakes for swimming, boating, canoeing, and fishing, modern and rustic campgrounds, and trails for hiking, mountain biking, horseback riding, cross-country skiing, and birding. Hunting in season, snowmobiles permitted on a 4-inch base in designated areas. Recreation Passport required: state residents $10/year ($5 for motorcycles); nonresidents $8/day, $29/year. mich.gov/dnr
Potawatomi Trail
Along with the connecting Silver Lake and Crooked Lake trails, this 17-mile loop is hilly and picturesque for hiking and mountain biking. It's open for cross-country skiing when there is a base of at least 6 inches of snow (the trail contains exposed roots, rocks, and steps). Maps available at Pinckney State Recreation Area headquarters (see above).
Waterloo Recreation Area
16345 McClure [
map]
(734) 475-8307. Campground reservations: (800) 447-2757
This sprawling 20,500-acre state park west of Chelsea has miles of hiking, bridle, and cross-country ski trails, an 18-hole disc golf course, a public beach, and 10 lakes open for fishing. Rustic cabins, rustic and modern campground, and a rustic equestrian campground. Hunting in season. The Gerald E. Eddy Discovery Center (734-475-3170) has hands-on exhibits, natural history programs, general information on the park, and displays of local ecology, wildlife, and Michigan rocks and minerals. Snowmobiles permitted on a 4-inch base in parts of the park. Recreation Passport required: state residents $10/year ($5 for motorcycles); nonresidents $8/day, $29/year. mich.gov/dnr
Waterloo-Pinckney Trail
This 35-mile hiking trail passes pine plantations, open meadows, marshes, kettle bogs, forests, and 14 lakes. Good for cross-country skiing, it runs through the Pinckney and Waterloo recreation areas.
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