The Huron–Clinton Metroparks system is a

regional park A regional park is an area of land preserved on account of its natural beauty, historic interest, recreational use or other reason, and under the administration of a form of local government. Definition A regional park can be a special park distri ...

system in

Metro Detroit The Detroit metropolitan area, often referred to as Metro Detroit, is a major metropolitan area in the U.S. State of Michigan, consisting of the city of Detroit and its surrounding area. There are varied definitions of the area, including the ...

in the

U.S. The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territor ...

state of

Michigan Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...

. The park system includes 13 parks totaling more than arranged along the

Huron River The Huron River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed November 7, 2011 river in southeastern Michigan, rising out of the Huron Swamp in Springfield Township in nort ...

and

Clinton River The Clinton River is a river in southeastern Michigan in the United States. It is named in honor of DeWitt Clinton, who was governor of New York from 1817 to 1823. The main branch of the river rises from wetlands and coldwater tributaries from ...

forming a partial ring around the metro area. Plans are in development to finish the ring by building hike/bike trails to connect all the parks as a

green belt A green belt is a policy and land-use zone designation used in land-use planning to retain areas of largely undeveloped, wilderness, wild, or agricultural landscape, land surrounding or neighboring urban areas. Similar concepts are greenway (lan ...

. The parks draw about 7.5 million visitors a year, down from a peak of 10 million in 2009.Metroparks address visitor decline with first ad campaign in 20 years
''Crain's Business Detroit'', July 1, 2019. The park system is primarily tax-funded with a $50 million annual budget. The system provides employment for 200 full-time and part-time employees year-round and 1,000 additional summer workers. The rivers are prime

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques ...

and

canoeing Canoeing is an activity which involves paddling a canoe with a single-bladed paddle. Common meanings of the term are limited to when the canoeing is the central purpose of the activity. Broader meanings include when it is combined with other ac ...

streams with Delhi Metropark including a short rapids, which while runnable, is the only point other than dams on either stream normally

portage Portage or portaging (Canada: ; ) is the practice of carrying water craft or cargo over land, either around an obstacle in a river, or between two bodies of water. A path where items are regularly carried between bodies of water is also called a ...

Parks

The park district encompasses Wayne,

Oakland Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast of the United States, West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third ...

, Macomb, Washtenaw and

Livingston Livingston may refer to: Businesses * Livingston Energy Flight, an Italian airline (2003–2010) * Livingston Compagnia Aerea, an Italian airline (2011–2014), also known as Livingston Airline * Livingston International, a North American custom ...

counties. The park system was authorized in 1939 and funding began in 1942 with local property taxes providing for most of the budget. Additional funding comes from vehicle admission fees and fees for golf, boat launching, bike and boat rentals, swimming pools and other activities. The Huron-Clinton Metropolitan Authority (HCMA) is the body that administers the Metropark system and is governed by a seven-member Board of Commissioners. Two members are selected by the state governor and the other five members are selected, one from each of the five member counties. The Metropark system exists independent from other park systems in the area which include city, township, county and state parks. The park system has its own police force. * Delhi Metropark, , opened 1957 * Dexter-Huron Metropark, , opened 1952 * Hudson Mills Metropark, , opened 1957 *

Huron Meadows Metropark Huron Meadows Metropark is a park in the Huron-Clinton system of metro parks. The park covers along the Huron River The Huron River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , ...

, , opened 1984 * Indian Springs Metropark, , opened 1982 *

Kensington Metropark Kensington Metropark is a unit of the Huron–Clinton Metroparks system located between Milford and South Lyon, Michigan, USA. The park covers 4,543 acres (18.13 km2). It has wooded hilly terrain and surrounds Kent Lake (a dammed section ...

, , opened 1947 * Lake Erie Metropark, , opened 1980 *

Lower Huron Metropark Lower Huron Metropark is a park in the Huron-Clinton system of metro parks in Metro Detroit. The park covers along the Huron River The Huron River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe ...

, , opened 1947 * Lake St. Clair Metropark, , opened 1950 *

Oakwoods Metropark Oakwoods Metropark is a park in the Huron-Clinton Metroparks system, located along the Huron River near Flat Rock, Michigan. The park consists several miles of bike trails, numerous nature trails, horse trails, a canoe and kayak launch, and a Natu ...

, , opened 1975 *

Stony Creek Metropark Stony Creek Metropark is a Huron-Clinton Metropark located in southeast Michigan in the outskirts of metro Detroit. The park is predominantly in Washington Township and Oakland Township, with a small portion in Shelby Township. The park covers ...

, , opened 1964 *

Willow Metropark Willow Metropark is a park in the Huron-Clinton Metroparks system, located on the banks of the Huron River between Lower Huron Metropark to the northwest and Oakwoods Metropark to the southeast. The park consists of a wide variety of trails and r ...

, about , opened 1970 * Wolcott Mill Metropark, , opened 1989 The park system features 84 miles (135 km) of paved hike/bike trails at nine Metroparks for

walk Walking (also known as ambulation) is one of the main gaits of terrestrial locomotion among legged animals. Walking is typically slower than running and other gaits. Walking is defined by an 'inverted pendulum' gait in which the body vaults ov ...

ing,

bicycling Cycling, also, when on a two-wheeled bicycle, called bicycling or biking, is the use of cycles for transport, recreation, exercise or sport. People engaged in cycling are referred to as "cyclists", "bicyclists", or "bikers". Apart from two ...

and

in-line skating Inline skating is a multi-disciplinary sport and can refer to a number of activities practiced using inline skates. Inline skates typically have two to five polyurethane wheels depending on the style of practice, arranged in a single line by a ...

. Activities in the parks include

picnic A picnic is a meal taken outdoors ( ''al fresco'') as part of an excursion, especially in scenic surroundings, such as a park, lakeside, or other place affording an interesting view, or else in conjunction with a public event such as precedi ...

king,

swimming Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, or other liquid, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Locomotion is achieved through coordinated movement of the limbs and the body to achieve hydrodynamic thrust that r ...

hiking Hiking is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century.AMATO, JOSEPH A. "Mind over Foot: Romantic Walking and Rambling." In ''On Foot: A His ...

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping ...

and

disc golf Disc golf, also known as frisbee golf, is a flying disc sport in which players throw a disc at a target; it is played using rules similar to golf. Most disc golf discs are made out of polypropylene plastic, otherwise known as polypropene, which ...

horseback riding Equestrianism (from Latin , , , 'horseman', 'horse'), commonly known as horse riding (Commonwealth English) or horseback riding (American English), includes the disciplines of riding, Driving (horse), driving, and Equestrian vaulting, vaulting ...

and boating, biking,

geocaching Geocaching is an outdoor recreational activity, in which participants use a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver or mobile device and other navigational techniques to hide and seek containers, called "geocaches" or "caches", at specific ...

and

. Winter activities include

cross-country skiing Cross-country skiing is a form of skiing where skiers rely on their own locomotion to move across snow-covered terrain, rather than using ski lifts or other forms of assistance. Cross-country skiing is widely practiced as a sport and recreatio ...

sledding Sledding, sledging or sleighing is a winter sport typically carried out in a prone or seated position on a vehicle generically known as a sled (North American), a sledge (British), or a sleigh. It is the basis of three Olympic sports: luge, sk ...

and

toboggan A toboggan is a simple sled traditionally used by children. It is also a traditional form of transport used by the Innu and Cree of northern Canada. In modern times, it is used on snow to carry one or more people (often children) down a hill ...

runs,

ice skating Ice skating is the self-propulsion and gliding of a person across an ice surface, using metal-bladed ice skates. People skate for various reasons, including recreation (fun), exercise, competitive sports, and commuting. Ice skating may be per ...

and

ice fishing Ice fishing is the practice of catching fish with lines and fish hooks or spears through an opening in the ice on a frozen body of water. Ice fishers may fish in the open or in heated enclosures, some with bunks and amenities. Shelters Lo ...

. Lake Erie Metropark has a

wave pool A wave pool is a swimming pool in which there are artificially generated, large waves, similar to those of the ocean. Wave pools are often a major feature of water parks, both indoors and outdoors, as well as some leisure centres. History T ...

. A couple of the parks have youth group camping or canoe camping areas. Ten parks have historical interpretive centers,

farm A farm (also called an agricultural holding) is an area of land that is devoted primarily to agricultural processes with the primary objective of producing food and other crops; it is the basic facility in food production. The name is used ...

learning centers or nature centers. Lake St. Clair Metropark has 320 boat slips available for stays of up to 5 days. Kensington has a boat launch and 108 boat slips which are rented on a year-long basis as well as a 49-passenger excursion boat on

Kent Lake Kent Lake is a reservoir in western Marin County, California formed by the construction of Peters Dam across Lagunitas Creek. Built in 1954, the lake is the most recent lake of the Marin Municipal Water District, as well as the largest. It lies ...

, an impoundment of the Huron River. The park system has seven 18-hole golf courses and one par-3 course. Park system trails also connect to or are part of larger trail systems like the Washtenaw County

Border-to-Border Trail The Border-to-Border (B2B) Trail is a partially constructed non-motorized trail in Washtenaw County, Michigan Washtenaw County () is a county located in the U.S. state of Michigan. At the 2020 census, the population was 372,258. The county ...

and the Michigan

Iron Belle Trail The Iron Belle Trail is a set of two trails that will span the state of Michigan. The two trails, one for hiking and one for biking, connects Ironwood in the Upper Peninsula and Belle Isle State Park in Detroit. When complete, the hiking trail w ...

. An overpopulation of

white-tailed deer The white-tailed deer (''Odocoileus virginianus''), also known as the whitetail or Virginia deer, is a medium-sized deer native to North America, Central America, and South America as far south as Peru and Bolivia. It has also been introduced t ...

in the parks in recent years was handled by a controversial special archery hunt. In 2019 the system conducted prescribed burns on 115 acres of land.Prescribed Burns Taking Place At Area Metroparks This Spring
WHMI, April 15, 2019.

Location map

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Huron-Clinton Metroparks Parks in Detroit Parks in Michigan Metro Detroit Protected areas of Oakland County, Michigan Protected areas of Livingston County, Michigan Protected areas of Macomb County, Michigan Protected areas of Washtenaw County, Michigan Protected areas of Wayne County, Michigan Protected areas of Metro Detroit Tourist attractions in Metro Detroit

Parks

Location map

See also

References

External links