Kent: Discover parks, trails and waterfront landscapes

Kent offers travelers a diverse selection of parks, trails and waterfront landscapes. Kent County Parks manages more than 100 miles of trails, from easy walking paths to paved regional trails between communities and parks. There are also routes for cyclists, winter activities and places with historic character. When planning your trip, it’s worth first considering whether you’d like to focus on riverfronts, forests, a particular activity or culture.

Trails and routes for a range of interests

Millennium Park extends partly into Grand Rapids, Walker, Grandville and Wyoming. It covers 1,400 acres and includes six miles of shoreline along the Grand River. Its trails are about 18 miles long and are mostly open to pedestrians, bicycles, rollerblades and other non-motorized forms of transportation. This combines an extensive trail network with a distinctive river landscape. For mountain biking, Luton Park is a dedicated option: its 9.7 miles of interconnected trails were designed for this activity.

Regional connections are also part of the trail system. Kent Trails is a paved, non-motorized trail that runs south from John Ball Park and Millennium Park to Byron Center. The Fred Meijer M-6 Trail runs through the southern part of Kent County and connects Kent Trails in the west with the Paul Henry Thornapple Trail in the east. Visitors who want to link nature trails with other destinations can take the Ada Trail, which connects Seidman Park to the center of Ada, Roselle Park, Cannonsburg State Game Area and other places.

Riverfronts, lakes and waterside activities

At Johnson Park, the park follows the banks of the Grand River for nearly 1.5 miles. A paved multi-use trail there connects with the Fred Meijer Millennium Park Trail Network and Kent Trails. There are also two boat launches on the Grand River along Veterans' Memorial Drive, between Butterworth Drive and Riverbend Drive. In this park, trail connections and access to the water are side by side.

Kayaks, pedal boats, canoes and stand-up paddleboards are available to rent at Millennium Park; availability may change, so check in advance. The park also has a six-acre sandy beach and a large splash pad. For a different kind of waterside experience, Wabasis Lake Park offers the only public boat launch on Wabasis Lake, as well as a large sandy beach for swimming that is free for visitors. Access rules may change, so it’s a good idea to check the current conditions before your visit.

Forest trails and winter activities

Pickerel Lake Park combines lakeside and forest landscapes: a 900-foot-long boardwalk crosses part of the lake, and more than four miles of interconnected trails wind through forests, wetlands, a tamarack swamp and small sandy areas. In winter, cross-country skiing and snowshoeing are possible there. Provin Trails Park offers a different setting: its natural-surface trails wind through a forest with sandy soil and are used for hiking and skiing. Cross-country skiing and snowshoeing take place there on ungroomed trails.

Visitors interested in a variety of landscape types can also include Seidman Park in their plans. It covers more than 400 acres of forests, fields and wetlands. White Pine Park preserves one of the county’s few remaining pure stands of eastern white pine. Equestrian trails through pine groves, deciduous forests and fields are available at both Cooper Creek Park and the adjacent Spencer Forest.

Historic places and an annual event

At Fallasburg Park, several historic buildings from the original village of Fallasburg are preserved on the east side of the Flat River. The Fallasburg Festival for the Arts is also held there every year. The program includes more than 100 artists, food stalls run by local nonprofit organizations, and performances by local and regional musicians. Since specific event dates can change, check the dates when planning your visit.

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