Jackson, MI Birding Trails and Maps

590 Reviews

Looking for the best Birding trails around Jackson?

Find the top rated birding trails in Jackson, whether you're looking for an easy short birding trail or a long birding trail, you'll find what you're looking for. Click on a birding trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.

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Activities
Length
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Type
45 Results
Activities
Length
Surfaces
Type

Falling Waters Trail

11.25 mi
State: MI
Asphalt

Fieldcrest Pathway

3 mi
State: MI
Asphalt

Granger Meadows Park Trail

1.9 mi
State: MI
Asphalt

ITC Corridor Trail (Canton)

2.97 mi
State: MI
Crushed Stone

ITC Corridor Trail (Novi)

4.66 mi
State: MI
Asphalt, Boardwalk

Island Lake Trail Connector

0.8 mi
State: MI
Crushed Stone

Kensington Metropark Trail

9.5 mi
State: MI
Asphalt

Kiwanis Trail

8 mi
State: MI
Asphalt, Concrete

LAFF Pathway

2 mi
State: MI
Asphalt

Lower Rouge River Recreation Trail

3 mi
State: MI
Crushed Stone

Matthaei Botanical Gardens Trail

2 mi
State: MI
Asphalt

Michigan Air Line Trail

6.8 mi
State: MI
Asphalt

Mike Levine Lakelands Trail State Park

38.2 mi
State: MI
Asphalt, Ballast, Crushed Stone

Milford Trail

4.2 mi
State: MI
Asphalt

Portland Riverwalk

9 mi
State: MI
Asphalt

Sycamore Trail

2.1 mi
State: MI
Asphalt

Wabash Cannonball Trail

64.1 mi
State: OH
Asphalt, Ballast, Cinder, Crushed Stone

Wayne County Metroparks Trail

16.3 mi
State: MI
Asphalt
Accordion

Angola Trail

7.4 mi
State: IN
Asphalt, Concrete

Battle Creek Linear Park

25.9 mi
State: MI
Asphalt

Border-to-Border Trail

33.13 mi
State: MI
Asphalt, Boardwalk, Crushed Stone

Calhoun County Trailway

5.3 mi
State: MI
Crushed Stone

Huron Valley Trail

13.5 mi
State: MI
Asphalt

I-275 Metro Trail

31.7 mi
State: MI
Asphalt

Island Lake Pathway

4.3 mi
State: MI
Asphalt

Lakes Community Trail

4.4 mi
State: MI
Asphalt, Boardwalk

Lansing River Trail

25.3 mi
State: MI
Asphalt

Lohr-Textile Greenway

4.2 mi
State: MI
Asphalt, Boardwalk

Martin Luther King Equality Trail

4.3 mi
State: MI
Asphalt

Northern Tier Trail

6.6 mi
State: MI
Asphalt

Paul Henry-Thornapple Trail

31.1 mi
State: MI
Asphalt, Cinder, Crushed Stone

Ram Trail

1.8 mi
State: MI
Asphalt

Valhalla Trail

1.3 mi
State: MI
Asphalt

Albion River Trail

1.6 mi
State: MI
Asphalt

Baw Beese Trail

8.2 mi
State: MI
Asphalt

Chelsea Community Wellness Path

1.5 mi
State: MI
Asphalt, Woodchips

Jerry Russell Trail

1.4 mi
State: MI
Asphalt

Platt Road Greenway

2.25 mi
State: MI
Asphalt

Riverbend Preserve Rail-Trail

0.1 mi
State: MI
Dirt

Litchfield Nature Trail

2 mi
State: MI
Dirt, Grass

Grand River Arts Walk

1.2 mi
State: MI
Asphalt

Main Trail

0.5 mi
State: MI
Dirt, Grass, Gravel, Woodchips

Michigan Avenue Connector

1.1 mi
State: MI
Asphalt
Trail Image Trail Name States Length Surface Rating
Overview Jackson County's Falling Waters Trail serves as an important community connector, linking the outskirts of the vibrant City of Jackson to the picturesque Village of Concord, which brims...
MI 11.25 mi Asphalt
The Fieldcrest Pathway stretches 3 miles in the Green Oak Township, a suburb of Detroit. The trail follows Fieldcrest Drive from Lee Road south to Silver Lake Road. The paved recreational trail...
MI 3 mi Asphalt
The Granger Meadows Park Trail forms a loop around the 76-acre park in DeWitt Township, just north of Lansing. The park was built and donated by Granger III and Associates, a local trash and recycling...
MI 1.9 mi Asphalt
This trail is actually composed of two trails: the 2-mile Rouge River Gateway Greenway and the 17.5-mile Hines Park Trail, which create a seamless 19.5-mile connection between Dearborn and...
MI 19.5 mi Asphalt
Canton's ITC Corridor Trail makes use of a power-line utility corridor, converting this space that previously served as a barrier between neighborhoods into a means of connecting various parts of the...
MI 2.97 mi Crushed Stone
Clocking in at over four and a half miles, the ITC Corridor Trail in Novi is a fantastic recreational asset for the community, providing a paved pathway that connects neighborhoods and recreation...
MI 4.66 mi Asphalt, Boardwalk
The Island Lake Connector Trail allows cyclists, pedestrians, and other residents of Green Oak Township to connect to the Island Lake Recreation Area. The trail sits on a converted railroad bed, and...
MI 0.8 mi Crushed Stone
Overview The Kensington Metropark Trail forms a paved loop around Kent Lake in western Oakland County.  About the Route Kensington Metropark, which features 4,481 acres of hilly terrain...
MI 9.5 mi Asphalt
The Kiwanis Trail occupies an old railroad bed between Adrian and the southern edge of Tecumseh. The trail is currently the only open component of a much longer proposed regional greenway trail. In...
MI 8 mi Asphalt, Concrete
The LAFF Pathway is a proposed recreational trail project connecting the communities of Linden, Argentine Township, Fenton, and Fenton Township in Genesee County. The first phase of the LAFF...
MI 2 mi Asphalt
Overview The Lower Rouge River Recreation Trail closely follows the river for 4 miles through the town of Canton, located between the urban centers of Ann Arbor and Detroit. The compacted crushed...
MI 3 mi Crushed Stone
This trail runs from the Matthaei Botanical Gardens two miles south to Parker Mill Park. It was conceived in response to the need for a safer alternative for non-motorized travelers. Dixboro Road only...
MI 2 mi Asphalt
Overview The Michigan Air Line Trail stretches nearly 7 miles across the communities of Wixom, Walled Lake and Commerce Township in Oakland County. About the Route At its western end, the...
MI 6.8 mi Asphalt
Overview The Mike Levine Lakelands Trail State Park is a 38-mile trail that runs through forests, fields, and wetlands between the community of Whitmore Lake and the city of Jackson. About the...
MI 38.2 mi Asphalt, Ballast, Crushed Stone
The Milford Trail connects the Village of Milford with the popular Kensington Metropark in Oakland County. The winding trail offers plenty of scenery as it travels through woodlands and...
MI 4.2 mi Asphalt
The Portland Riverwalk ushers visitors around the charming town of Portland on 9 miles of paved trail. Also known as the Rivertrail Linear Park, the trail connects a handful of parks, scenic views...
MI 9 mi Asphalt
The Russell Street to Patterson Street Trail links the two roads via a former railroad corridor in Tecumseh. Located in a residential area nearly equidistant between downtown Tecumseh to the north and...
MI 0.4 mi Asphalt
The Sycamore Trail, which opened in October 2014, provides an important connection between two other trails in Delhi Charter Township, on the south end of Lansing. At the trail’s northern end, it...
MI 2.1 mi Asphalt
Overview The Wabash Cannonball Trail is a 64.1-mile multiuse trail in northwest Ohio. Running along a former railroad, the rail-trail surface is a mix of paved asphalt and hard packed cinder...
OH 64.1 mi Asphalt, Ballast, Cinder, Crushed Stone
You won’t find this trail’s name on the ground: the continuous stretch is actually made up of the scenic trails within Oakwoods Metropark, Willow Metropark and Lower Huron Metropark, as well as a...
MI 16.3 mi Asphalt
Accordion
For more than 7 miles, The Angola trail winds through the heart of its namesake city, which sits in the northeast corner of Indiana, just 10 miles from the bordering states of Michigan and Ohio. The...
IN 7.4 mi Asphalt, Concrete
The Battle Creek Linear Park trail encompasses nearly 26 miles of connected trails in Battle Creek. Residents use the loop trails to put some snap, crackle, and pop in their exercise routines, while...
MI 25.9 mi Asphalt
Overview The Border-to-Border Trail is a work in progress, which when complete, will stretch across Washtenaw County from its border with Livingston County in the northwest to Wayne County in the...
MI 33.13 mi Asphalt, Boardwalk, Crushed Stone
If you’re looking for a rustic escape form the din of everyday life, consider the Calhoun County Trailway. The Trailway weaves through three of the county’s four parks. The 5.3-mile trail kicks off in...
MI 5.3 mi Crushed Stone
Overview Paved and mostly flat, the 13.5-mile Huron Valley Trail links several suburban communities, parks, and a large recreation area while providing connections to a growing network of...
MI 13.5 mi Asphalt
The I-275 Metro Trail began back in the 1970s as the Michigan Department of Transportation's response to the then-fuel crisis. The original trail linked Wayne, Oakland and Monroe counties along a...
MI 31.7 mi Asphalt
The Island Lake Pathway runs east–west through the densely-wooded landscape of the Island Lake Recreation Area southeast of Brighton. Although relatively short, the paved trail may prove a challenge...
MI 4.3 mi Asphalt
The Lakes Community Trail is a multi-use pathway in southwest Oakland County. The walking-and-biking path stretches four miles and links to parks within four adjacent communities; the City of Wixom,...
MI 4.4 mi Asphalt, Boardwalk
The Lansing River Trail traces the course of three waterways for more than 25 miles across Michigan’s capital city. Visiting all four main points of the compass in Lansing, the trail provides a route...
MI 25.3 mi Asphalt
Lohr-Textile Greenway is an asphalt sidepath stretching more than 4 miles. The path has two segments—one north-south along Lohr Road between West Ellsworth and Textile Roads. The segment continues...
MI 4.2 mi Asphalt, Boardwalk
The Martin Luther King Equality Trail, formerly called the Jackson Intercity Trail, follows the old rail bed of what was once the Michigan Central Railroad for 4.5 miles north through the southwest...
MI 4.3 mi Asphalt
The Northern Tier Trail winds through East Lansing on the outskirts of Michigan's capital, offering miles of paved pathway through tree-lined areas and wetlands. The 10-foot-wide trail connects...
MI 6.6 mi Asphalt
Overview The Paul Henry-Thornapple Trail is a 31-mile, multi-use recreation trail, extending from Grand Rapids to Vermontville.  The trail passes through farmlands, woodlands, and small towns,...
MI 31.1 mi Asphalt, Cinder, Crushed Stone
The Ram Trail is a close to 2-mile trail beginning at Holt High School where there is access to tennis courts, soccer fields, softball and baseball diamonds and playgrounds. The trail runs eastward...
MI 1.8 mi Asphalt
The Valhalla Trail runs for just over a mile in Delhi Charter Township, a southern suburb of Lansing. Its northern half is wooded and winds through Valhalla Park, which offers a swimming beach,...
MI 1.3 mi Asphalt
The pleasant little Albion River Trail runs along the south bank of the Kalamazoo River through the town of Albion. The trail runs between McClure Riverfront Park on the west end and Victory Park on...
MI 1.6 mi Asphalt
The Baw Beese Trail, named in honor of a former chief of the local Potawatomi population, connects the Michigan communities of Hillsdale and Jonesville. The paved trail is a model of efficient land...
MI 8.2 mi Asphalt
The Chelsea Community Wellness Path weaves through a large campus home to many of Chelsea’s amenities. Although the total length of the trail is less than 2 miles, it is divided into three separate...
MI 1.5 mi Asphalt, Woodchips
The Jerry Russell Trail is a mile-and-a-half of walking and biking trail located in the City of Jonesville. It is named for the former Superintendent of Public Works, who was passionate about nature...
MI 1.4 mi Asphalt
The Platt Road Trail is located on the east side of Platt Road and connects users to Lillie Park, where they can relax by the pond, picnic in a pavilion or take a stroll along its woodchip and...
MI 2.25 mi Asphalt
The new Riverbend Preserve in southern Washtenaw County features 58 acres of wetlands on both sides of the Raisin River. The area is a common resting place for migratory birds on their trek across the...
MI 0.1 mi Dirt
The Litchfield Nature Trail meanders through scenic property owned by the City of Litchfield, in some places adjacent to the St. Joseph (St. Joe) River. At one point, the trail passes through...
MI 2 mi Dirt, Grass
Planners in Jackson Michigan had originally wanted to build a rail with trail, but when they face resistance from the local railroad, they took a different route, one which gave us the Grand River...
MI 1.2 mi Asphalt
The Main Trail runs for just 0.5 mile along an east–west corridor through the Whitehouse Nature Center. The trail links a series of loop trails through the nature center and begins at the visitor...
MI 0.5 mi Dirt, Grass, Gravel, Woodchips
A shared-use path parallels Michigan Avenue between Warner Road and Platt Road. The path connects to local government offices, the Pittsfield Township Farmer's Market as well as Prairie Park. It also...
MI 1.1 mi Asphalt

Recent Trail Reviews

Lohr-Textile Greenway

Noisy & Hilly

November, 2024 by clonetrooper5373

The trail is mostly smooth (barring the odd bump) but can be somewhat hilly, so get ready to possibly shift gears. Both roads that comprise the trail are highly trafficked, maybe bring some earplugs?

Platt Road Greenway

Pretty Decent

November, 2024 by clonetrooper5373

The trail is smooth and mostly flat, with a round trip of about 3 miles. Be cautious as you travel, as the trail intersects with several neighborhood entrances/exits.

Valhalla Trail

Short and Boring

October, 2024 by clonetrooper5373

There isn't too much to say about this trail except that it's an admittedly smooth ride for bike riders, but other than that, Valhalla doesn't offer interesting to either see or do; so if you aren't a local, I wouldn't bother. The experience is not even 3 full miles (round trip), so it's over before it even begins.

Accordion

Jerry Russell Trail

Decent but short

October, 2024 by clonetrooper5373

This brief trail is a mix of a brief segment of nature that quickly gives over to an urban setting, linking with the Baw Beese trail. The trail is mostly smooth, with a few plant roots breaking through the asphalt. It's best used as a walking trail, as it ends too quickly on a bike, unless you head down the Baw Beese trail as well.

Wabash Cannonball Trail

Wabash Cannonball Trail

October, 2024 by jaded1

On recumbent trikes, we recently rode about 15 miles of the North Fork; 5 non-paved miles on the far west end, and 10 paved miles on the eastern end. We did not ride the middle section around Wauseon. We also rode the 10 paved miles of the South Fork. The unpaved west end of the North Fork was in very good shape, much better than many parts of the C&O Canal Trail. Any bike with wider tires should be able to enjoy it.

No one has commented on the number of road crossings on all the trail sections. In the 62 miles of trail, there are more than 75 road crossings! Just when you get pedaling up to speed, you come to a road crossing. Some road crossings are very busy, with lots of cars coming fast. Others are not. You have to slow for each one to be sure.

A very nice trail and very worth riding.

Falling Waters Trail

One of the better trails we have used

October, 2024 by tim36r

Started at the Jackson end of the trail using the Weatherwax road trailhead.
Short trip down a connecter trail to the actual trail start.

The trail was in great shape with many new paved patches and crack fills, looks like the recently address the "roots" mentioned in the 2022 reviews.

12 foot wide provided lots of room.

The view was terrific as the trail bisects Lime Lake.

We drove a couple of hours to ride this trail and I would definitely do it again in the future.

Litchfield Nature Trail

Walk, Don't Cycle

October, 2024 by clonetrooper5373

The trail is pretty rough the entire time, never once being smooth, and unless you have a fat tire bike, you're going to feel every tree root (which are plentiful) and branch. This isn't worth the effort unless you're a local or intend to walk it. Nothing worth even seeing on the trail.

Michigan Air Line Trail

smooooth

October, 2024 by lrcb40

Nice ride - part way - from Haggerty to Wixom Rd and return. Planning on riding the whole length soon

Border-to-Border Trail

Hilly Far West Leg

October, 2024 by loraleecanfield

This week we took the farthest west leg of B to B. Beautiful paved trail that mostly runs right along M-52. It is far enough off the actual street that it feels safe—though loud at times. We parked our vehicle at Timber Town Park and then got on our bikes. We made a left out of the parking lot and soon found the bright yellow “bike crossing” sign that signaled the trail. Then we headed northwest on the trail. We prefer rides that are mostly wooded but nevertheless wanted to try out this leg. The whole bike trail is well maintained. It is a very hilly ride—lots of up and down. Therefore it took us a bit longer than normal. Heading out is more uphill, while the returning ride was more downhill.

I-275 Metro Trail

Smooth pavement except about a 1/4 mile around 6.5 under an overpass. Very comfortable and easy ride. Trail ends abruptly and is hard to find the connection back to it, but otherwise a nice place to put in some miles.

September, 2024 by nacourtright

Smooth pavement except about a 1/4 mile around 6.5 under an overpass. Very comfortable and easy ride. Trail ends abruptly and is hard to find the connection back to it, but otherwise a nice place to put in some miles.

Kensington Metropark Trail

A smooth ride!

September, 2024 by lrcb40

I haven’t been here in a few years and purchased an ebike to help tackle the elevation changes (I’m 70 and haven’t ridden in a while). I was delighted to discover that my ideas were correct and that a small amount of assistance helps, but otherwise, pedaling a somewhat heavy ebike (47lbs) is fine. My Trek carbon fiber bike is 25lb and should fly. Now to recover. I ache!

Huron Valley Trail

Well-paved

September, 2024 by mlasp32

Would give it a 3 1/2 stars. It’s flat, well-paved, clearly marked. Drawbacks - it runs along several roadways; many you have to drive over ( well-marked crossings). So the noise is there. But there were some really lovely spots that almost gave you the feel of Up North. We stopped at Applebees for lunch which was not too far off trail. Would like to ride it next time to Milford. We road it on a Friday so maybe weekend ride would be a more peaceful.

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