Cavanaugh Lake County Park

One-acre roadside picnic area on Cavanaugh Lake Rd., four miles west of Chelsea. Open year round dawn–dusk.

Chelsea Hockey Association

Leagues and instruction for ages 5–18. $120 registration fee, call for program fees. Board meets third Tues. 7 p.m. info@chelseahockey.net, www.chelseahockey.net

Chelsea State Game Area

About 650 acres around Four Mile Lake. Shore fishing, waterfowl hunting, small-boat launch.

Esker Cedar Lake Trail

Hiking and cross-country ski trail leads up the esker and provides panoramic views of Cedar, Doyle, and Little Cedar lakes.

Park Lyndon County Park

Two miles of marked hiking trails go past marsh, lake, prairie, fen, and forest. The 335-acre park contains the Embury Swamp Natural Area Preserve, the ecological gem of the county park system. Groups of 15 or more can take a guided tour with a naturalist (reservations required). Open year round dawn–dusk.

Pierce Lake County Park

Golf course, boardwalk, nature trail. Open Apr. 1–Nov. 1 dawn–dusk, and weekends in winter for cross-country skiing.

Pinckney Recreation Area

This 11,000-acre park extends from a few miles north of Chelsea into Livingston County. Many lakes for swimming, boating, canoeing, and fishing. Boat launches at Half Moon, Bruin, South, North, and Joslin lakes (Half Moon and Bruin connect to a chain of seven lakes). Rowboats, paddleboats, canoes, and kayaks for rent at Silver Lake. Public beaches at Half Moon and Silver lakes. Modern campground at Bruin Lake; reserve in advance for summer dates. Rustic campgrounds at Blind and Crooked lakes. Trails for hiking, mountain biking, cross-country skiing, and birding. Some areas open to hunting. Snowmobiles permitted on a four-inch base north of Patterson Lake Rd. and east of Kelly Rd. State park motor vehicle permit required for entrance: residents, $6/day or $24/year ($6/year for seniors age 65 & over); nonresidents, $8/day or $29/year. www.mich.gov/dnr

Potawatomi Trail

This 17-mile loop is hilly and picturesque for mountain biking and great for cross-country skiing, along with the connecting Silver Lake and Crooked Lake trails, when there is a base of at least six inches of snow (the trail contains exposed roots, rocks, and steps). Trails begin across from the Silver Lake beach parking lot. Maps available at Pinckney State Recreation Area headquarters (see above).

Waterloo Recreation Area

Campground reservations: (800) 447–2757. This sprawling 20,500-acre area west of Chelsea extends into Jackson County and is great for birding, boating, cross-country skiing, fishing, hiking, and swimming. Waterloo has a public beach for swimming, miles of hiking and bridle trails, and 15 lakes open for fishing, with boat launches at Big Portage, Cedar, Crooked, Doyle, Green, Mill, Mud, and Walsh lakes and Winnewana Impoundment. Overnight options include rustic cabins, a rustic campground at Green Lake, modern campgrounds at Portage and Sugarloaf lakes, and an equestrian campground. Most of the area is open for hunting in season. The Gerald E. Eddy Discovery Center (475–3170) on Bush Rd. has hands-on exhibits, natural history programs, general information on the park, and displays of local ecology, wildlife, and Michigan rocks and minerals. A network of ungroomed cross-country ski trails starts at the Eddy Center. A four-mile mountain bike trail is reachable off Maute and Trist roads west of Clear Lake Rd. Snowmobiles are permitted on a four-inch base in parts of the park. (See Pinckney Recreation Area, above, for fees.) www.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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