Prepared for
The Michigan Department of Natural Resources
Overview
Michigan offers a wide range of outdoor recreation activities from the traditional (e.g., camping, hunting, fishing, snowmobiling, and off-road vehicle [ORV] trails) to the new and emerging (e.g., adventure racing, disc golf, white water paddling). Recreation opportunities can be found in the hundreds of state-owned parks, recreation areas, forests, campgrounds, and trails, as well as the thousands of community playgrounds, parks, trails, nature preserves, and beaches, and more than 30 federally owned parks, lakeshores, heritage/historic areas, scenic trails, forests, wilderness areas, wildlife refuges, and marine sanctuaries. Some of these facilities are highly developed with modern infrastructure, and others are more natural, remote places. They are located all over the state, in rural communities as well as in the heart of some of our urban centers. Every community in Michigan is within 50 miles of a State Park or Recreation Area, and even closer to numerous local and regional parks
or recreation spaces.
All of these resources play an important role in Michigan’s expansive outdoor recreation system, both individually and collectively. They provide numerous social, health, economic, and environmental benefits and are places that continue to attract residents and out-of-state visitors alike.
A copy of the full report is available below.