The 16-mile-long Clinton River Trail, which passes through the cities of Sylvan Lake, Pontiac, Auburn Hills, Rochester Hills, and Rochester, is a recreational multi-use path across the center of Oakland County. It joins the Macomb Orchard Trail to the east and the existing West Bloomfield Trail to the west. Source: Clinton River Trail Friends
Rochester Hills’ 4.5-mile Clinton River Trail has rest areas with benches, drinking fountains, and restrooms. This route is an unequaled resource for the larger Rochester Hills community due to activities including biking, hiking, animal viewing, fishing (DNR laws apply), kayaking, and canoeing. Pets must be on a 6-foot leash and in your direct control when using this trail; alcohol may not be carried or consumed, and motorized vehicles may not be used.
Description Of The Clinton River Trail
The Sylvan Lake, Pontiac, Auburn Hills, Rochester Hills, and Rochester communities are all along the 16-mile Clinton River Trail, a recreational path built on an old rail line. Downtowns, businesses, houses of residence, and parks can all be found nearby. The Clinton River Trail is roughly paralleled by the route, which also crosses it frequently. To the west, it continues as the West Bloomfield Trail, and to the east, it is the Macomb Orchard Trail. To get to Lake Orion in the north from Rochester, join the Paint Creek Trail via the Rochester Riverwalk. The Clinton River Trail is mostly on an old railroad grade, but it also has a 4-mile on-road section that goes around a void in Pontiac’s ownership of the train route.
Access to parking and trails
In Sylvan Lake, parking is available at Beaudette Park (Dawson’s Mill Pond), which is accessible from Orchard Lake Road.
Park at the trailhead in Pontiac, where it crosses S. Opdyke Road. In Rochester Hills and Rochester, there is a tiny parking lot on S. Livernois Road and under the S. Rochester Road/State Route 150 bridge.
Major Upgrades Are Coming To The Clinton River Trail
West of Bagley Street on the Pontiac Clinton River Trail
The Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. Trails Maintenance Fund of the society Foundation for Southeast Michigan has awarded a grant to Friends of the Clinton River Trail (FCRT) in collaboration with the Community Foundation of Greater Rochester. For a total project budget of $600,000, this award will be paired with matching funds from the cities of Pontiac and Sylvan Lake, FCRT, the Pontiac Funders Collaborative, and other private sources. The money will be utilized to plan, engineer, and build important improvements to the Clinton River Trail between Pontiac Drive and Bagley Street in Sylvan Lake and Pontiac (approximately 1.75 miles).
The Clinton River Trail (CRT) runs through the towns of Sylvan Lake, Pontiac, Auburn Hills, Rochester, and Rochester Hills for a total distance of 16 miles. The CRT connects to a number of other trails and is a major section of two interstate routes: the Great Lake to Lake Trail Route 1 from South Haven to Port Huron and the Iron Belle Trail Biking Route connecting Belle Isle and Ironwood. For 16 years, the CRT has improved the region’s health, vitality, and standard of living.
Description of Friends of the Clinton River Trail
Friends of the Clinton River Trail is an all-volunteer organization committed to enhancing the safety and pleasure of the trail for all users. The group’s Steering Committee, which represents about 450 people, collaborates with each of the five communities that the route goes through to establish a common standard for the trail’s aesthetic and upkeep. In 2019, the Friends group celebrated the CRT’s 15th anniversary for an entire year.
Michigan’s Rochester Hills, Bloomer Park
Because of its size, beauty, and variety of scenery and activities, Bloomer Park, a lovely 206.9-acre park in Rochester Hills, ranks among my top five favorite places to cycle and hike in the metro Detroit area. More specifically, I liked Bloomer Park because it had nice, paved concrete pathways that led into woodland trails that were still leisurely enough for biking. And the woodland trails I rode my bike on were stunning. They were frequently encircled by tree tunnels that you could ride through (see photo collection), as well as other places where you could pedal alongside rivers and big hills. Even though you are on a pleasant bike track with occasional passing traffic, it feels like you are exploring the woods. To put it another way, you are not in a little state park where there is little to explore before you end up wandering in circles, nor are you in a vast state park where there is much to do.
Then, when you ride your bike through the forest, you can come across some fun sledding or tobogganing hills that are great in the winter. If you keep riding your bike, you can exit the forest at another location and come upon a top-notch, global velodrome for bikers.
The adventure will lead you to a new sort of track that opens up, is wider, straighter, and covered in finer gravel. Re-enter the woods, continue biking, and your journey will take you there. I reached this point, started pedaling this new route, and after a few miles of now traveling straight forward in a less wooded area, I had to stop and inquire with a bystander as to whether I was still in Bloomer Park.
Utilize The Great Lake-To-Lake Trail To Explore Metro Detroit.
When you visit the Detroit metropolitan area next, unleash your inner trailblazer! Southeast Michigan has a growing network of trails that you may explore on a bike, on foot, or on skates. These metro Detroit routes are part of the Great Lake-to-Lake Trail Route 1 that runs from South Haven to Port Huron, allowing you to extend your trip from one coast to the other.
1.) Michigan Air Line Trail,
This 6-mile trail traverses Wixom, Walled Lake, and Commerce and is named for the illustrious Michigan Air Line Railway. In order to protect the security of bikers and pedestrians, the trail is intelligently equipped with crossing signals.
2.) West Bloomfield Trail On this 7-mile section, you’ll go over streams and encounter deer, bunnies, turtles, and birds. Along with numerous lakes and ponds, this trail has a wildlife sanctuary and MotorCities Wayside Exhibits.
3.) Clinton River Trail
On this 16-mile recreational trail, stroll through downtowns, businesses, homes, and parks. Enjoy this asphalt and crushed stone pathway while riding a bike or walking near the Clinton River.
4.) Paint Creek Trail
Despite being the state’s oldest non-motorized route, Paint Creek Trail has been attractively updated and well-maintained to remain open to the more than 100,000 people it receives each year. Don’t forget your fishing gear; this trail requires you to cross a creek that is stocked with trout several times.
5.) Polly Ann Trail
You pass through various towns and a variety of landscapes on this 34-mile circuit. The scenery, wildlife, and sense of success after a long ride make the difficult portion of the Great Lake to Lake trek worthwhile.
6.) Macomb Orchard Trail,
This 24-mile paved path, which is named in honor of the apple and peach orchards in southeast Michigan, features stops along the way where you may pick your own strawberries, cherries, apples, and peaches. As you travel along the Clinton River, savor the breathtaking countryside before arriving in Richmond’s downtown.
7.) The hike-bike trail in Stony Creek Metropark
The 6-mile paved track is perfect for bicycling or inline skating around Stony Creek Lake. The stunning 500-acre Stony Creek Lake is surrounded by the sprawling 4,461-acre Stony Creek Metropark. In addition, there are beaches, boat launches, a disc golf course, and an 18-hole regulation golf course in the park.
Spillway Path Of The Clinton River
This small, nearby trail in Harrison Township is just off 16 Mile Road and runs alongside the Clinton River. This beautiful route is perfect for jogging, running, or strolling. However, it is primarily utilized by cyclists. The two-mile path joins the Metro Parkway Trail, which is significantly longer and extends all the way to Metro Beach. The pathway offers a pleasant view of the river and even has narrow passageways that can be used to descend to the water. Smaller woodland trails that lead you through the vegetation for quick, off-the-beaten-path adventures branch off of these asphalt routes. Access to a bridge that crosses the river is provided by the trail that runs below 16 Mile Road. Through Shady Side Park in Mount Clemens (Barbara St. and Shadyside Dr.) and a tiny park at 26784 Ballard Street, you can access this trail.
Hillary River Trail
A 16-mile rail trail called the Clinton River Trail winds through suburban, urban, and rural areas of Detroit’s northern suburbs. This trail, which runs alongside a railroad line through Sylvan Lake, Pontiac, Auburn Hills, Rochester Hills, and Rochester, includes a variety of surfaces, including crushed limestone and pavement. With the West Bloomfield Trail to the west and the Macomb Orchard Trail to the east, the Clinton River Trail joins.
Trail, Polly Ann
The 14.2-mile-long Polly Ann Trail links the Groups Orion Township, Oxford Township, the Village of Oxford, Addison Township, and the Village of Leonard in northern Oakland County. It travels through some of the most stunning and unspoiled countryside in northern Oakland County via the abandoned P.O. & N. rail route, hence the name Polly Ann. The trail is only permitted for non-motorized usage and is open daily during daylight hours. Users of all ages participate in sports like walking, hiking, jogging, cycling, horseback riding, and cross-country skiing in the winter.
Trail Of Paint Creek
Through five communities in northern Oakland County, this 8-mile crushed limestone path follows Paint Creek. The trail’s northernmost segment starts at Lake Orion Village and travels through Orion Township, Oakland Township, Rochester Hills, and Rochester before coming to an end in Rochester Municipal Park. The Clinton River Trail can be reached by continuing along the paved Paint Creek Walkway through downtown Rochester, close to Second Street.
Apple Trail
The Orchard Route, a multi-use non-motorized trail on 19.5 miles of decommissioned railroad in central and northern Macomb County, is named after all the orchards in the area. From Shelby Township, the trail travels through the towns of Washington, Romeo, Armada, and Richmond. Through Shelby Township, the Orchard Trail—which is paved—connects to the Clinton River Trail, Bloomer Park, and Stony Creek Metropark.
Trails In Clinton River Trail Park
The picturesque Clinton River and many parks in Sterling Heights are home to the Clinton River Park Trail. The multi-use path is currently an out-and-back path that travels in both directions. A number of trailheads mark all locations where singletrack segments start or stop at paved paths. All references to begin and end refer to the direction of travel after departing from the Main Trailhead.
Columbia River
Native Americans traveling north along the Saginaw Trail used to sleep overnight by the Clinton River before making the crossing the next day for hundreds of years (near the intersection of Saginaw Street and Water Street today). The river was known as the Nottawaseppi by the French and Native Americans. Nottawa, which in Algonquin means enemy or snake, and sippi, river, maybe a reference to the Iroquois who lived to the east of Lake St. Clair. It was known as the Huron River of St. Clair by the British. To avoid confusion with another Huron River in southeast Michigan, the Michigan Territorial Council called it the Clinton River in 1824 in honor of New York governor DeWitt Clinton. Much of Pontiac’s early success can be attributed to the Clinton River. Timber, flour, and millennium were all made by the river’s mills. Pontiac became a national leader in the production of carriages thanks to the number of local mills and timber resources. The end of the 19th century saw the production of cars, trucks, and buses by these carriage manufacturers. The Clinton River can be seen running through downtown on the map of Pontiac from 1872 (click to enlarge).
Columbia River (Michigan)
The river’s main branch rises in the Independence, Brandon, and Springfield Townships from marshes and coldwater tributaries. West of Pontiac, a succession of tiny lakes is created by a series of dams, the last of which is Crystal Lake. The Pontiac River emerges to the east of downtown after being piped under. North and middle branches of the main branch rise in Clinton Township, northern Macomb County (which was named after the river in 1824). From its headwaters in Harrison Township, the main branch travels 83.0 miles (133.6 kilometers) to Lake St. Clair.
A total of 760 square miles (2,000 km2), comprising the majority of Macomb County, a sizable piece of Oakland County, a tiny portion of Lapeer County, and a minor portion of St. Clair County, are drained by the Clinton River watershed. The watershed is home to more than 1.4 million people in more than 60 communities. Most of the time, only the waters close to Mount Clemens’ city limits are passable by boats.
Common queries concerning the trails in Clinton River Park
Where in Clinton River Park is the finest area to go Biking?
The Clinton River Park Loop, which has a 4.4-star rating from 763 reviews, is the finest hiking trail in Clinton River Park, according to AllTrails.com users. The elevation gain for this 9.2 km trail is 21 m. Hiking typically takes 1 hour and 41 minutes.
Which trail in Clinton River Park is the longest?
The Clinton River Park Loop is the park’s longest path, according to AllTrails.com. The estimated length of this trail is 9.2 kilometers, and the average hiking time is 1 hour and 41 minutes.
What is the number of trails in Clinton River Park?
One trail can be found in Clinton River Park. Seven hundred sixty-four community evaluations on All Trails have an average rating of 4.4 stars for these trails.
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