A Weekend at The Clinton River Park

This is one of those places that I continue to come back to because of how local it is but it’s also an area where I spent a good portion of my youth. So writing about this is giving me all the feels right now.

Located in Sterling Heights Michigan this trail is approximately 4.5 miles long. It should be noted that the Clinton River Park Main trail is paved asphalt. However; there is a mountain bike/ hiking trail that offers a more rustic and natural setting for those who prefer that sort of thing.

This map was obtained from https://nuxx.net/blog/2012/07/11/clinton-river-park-trails-mtb-map-complete/

This spot here is one of my favorite areas to come to when I went to mediate outdoors. There’s something about swamp water, well water in general that I find calming. Of course given the pandemic I haven’t had any opportunities to do so.

I’m not sure how long this old crane has been around but by the amount of rust you can tell it’s been here for awhile. Teenagers often gather around here and hang out with their friends and engage in all sorts of teenage activities. At least I think that’s what they do? I tend to not stick around when groups of people under the age of 25 gather.

In recent years it would seem that someone is constructing these tree forts/houses. One of these was around in a different area of the park for about a year before it was taken down, probably due to safety concerns or someone camping illegally in the park. But the latter comment is speculation; as far as i know no one camps within this park.

Things are getting greener and the flowers are out but this past weekend was quite cold. The high was only around 40 degrees Fahrenheit but a little cold weather won’t slow me down.

There are several adjacent parks that connect with the Clinton River Parks Main Trail. The trees above and the photo below this paragraph were taken at Dodge Park, which is how my father refers to the area despite the fact that he never parks at Doge Park but usually enters from a different area.

In the summer and you can often find people feeding mallards and other water fowl along the banks of the Clinton River. Fishing along the river has also gained some popularity in recent years. Canoeing and kayaking has also become an attraction to the area as well. Some people also swim in the river but I’m not much of a swimmer so i would not recommend doing so.

I hope you enjoyed the photos and this post. I’ll be sure to update with more content soon!