Michigan

Waterloo-Pinckney Hiking Trail

in Michigan · centroid 54 mi from Detroit

Waterloo-Pinckney Hiking Trail is hiking trail in Michigan maintained by Michigan DNR. This page summarises what we have from public sources (OpenStreetMap and trail-association data); always verify current conditions and trail status with the maintaining organisation before heading out.

States: Michigan
Network: Regional (rwn)
Maintained by: Michigan DNR
Reference: WPT
Centroid nearest city: Detroit, MI · 54 mi · ~1.6 hr drive
Centroid coords: 42.3585°, -84.1044°
OSM relation: 14293308

From Wikipedia: The Waterloo-Pinckney Trail is a 38-mile-long hiking trail which runs through Waterloo State Recreation Area and Pinckney Recreation Area in southeastern Michigan, United States. Part of the trail also passes through Park Lyndon County Park. The trail travels through glacial features such as eskers and kettle lakes as well as swamps and open meadows remaining from abandoned farmlands. Forest types include oak and pine. The trail tops out at 1,128 feet (344 m) on Sackrider Hill, 208 feet (63 m) above surroundings, the largest elevation gain. Other hills and ridges give 50-to-150-foot rises. The trail is blazed with blue triangles and at some points shares trails with the Potawatomi Trail and the nature trails around the Eddy Discovery Center. Part of the trail is open to mountain biking and horseriding and hunting is allowed in most areas along the trail. The trail has several nearby campgrounds allowing it to be hiked as a 2, 3 or 4 day trip. Side trails to the campgrounds make the entire trip 40.5 miles (65.2 km). The trail was first developed in the 1960s and the last link across the county park was completed in 1986. Excerpt from the Wikipedia article on Waterloo-Pinckney Trail, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Plan your hike

Practical notes

Maps + permits: long-distance trails like this often require permits for through-hiking, backcountry camping, or specific sections (especially in National Parks). Check with the maintaining organisation listed above and the relevant land manager before booking travel.

Water + supplies: water sources vary seasonally on most U.S. trails. Carry a filter and consult current trail-condition reports — through-hiker journals (PCT-L, AT Reddit, etc.) and the maintaining organisation publish regular updates.

When to go: hiking seasons vary widely with elevation, latitude, and snowpack. Through-hikers traditionally start the AT in March-April (Springer northbound) and the PCT in late April (Campo northbound). High-elevation western trails (CDT, JMT, Wonderland) generally aren't passable until July.

If you've hiked Waterloo-Pinckney Hiking Trail and have current notes (water sources, trail closures, permit changes), tell us at /contact — we update pages as we learn.

Stay nearby

Affiliate · disclosed

Driving in? The nearest documented metro is Detroit, MI — 54 miles away (~1.6 hr drive). See accommodation in Detroit on Booking.com → RoamFound earns a small commission if you book through this link, at no extra cost to you. How we handle affiliate links.

Other trails within 50 miles

3 nearby

Michigan · 17 mi

Potawatomi Trail (Hike)

7 miles from this trail's centroid

Michigan · 5 mi

ITC Corridor Regional Trail

30 miles from this trail's centroid

Michigan · 16 mi

Chief Pontiac Trail Conventional Hike

31 miles from this trail's centroid

Sources

Public data + curation

Trail data on this page is compiled from OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), the maintaining organisation's public-facing materials, and Wikipedia (CC BY-SA where excerpts are quoted). Distance, terminus, and descriptive text for nationally-designated trails are hand-curated from federal land-manager websites and trail-association sources. We do not modify the underlying data; this page presents what is already publicly recorded. To suggest corrections, see our methodology page.