DNR to Host Kirtland's Warbler Tours

Kirtland's warbler (photo from MI DNR)

a news release of Michigan DNR

Want to learn more about one of North America’s rarest songbirds? The Michigan Department of Natural Resources is hosting two free tours of the Kirtland’s warbler and its jack pine habitat this spring in Grayling.

The outings will take place from 7-10 a.m. on Saturday, May 30, and again on Saturday, June 13. The events start and end at the DNR’s Grayling (Michigan) field office, 1955 Hartwick Pines Road.

The tours will start with a short presentation detailing the Kirtland’s warbler history, past and current conservation status, and future management strategies. Once nearly extinct, the gray and yellow Kirtland’s warbler remains a state-threatened species, with about 95% of the bird’s world population nesting in northern Michigan.

Tour participants will then make a short drive to tour the jack pine habitat and observe the Kirtland's warbler. This involves a walk of about half a mile on a trail road. Bring sturdy footwear, binoculars, water and bug spray.

The events will take place rain or shine.

RSVP to DNR wildlife biologist Tim Riley at rileyt6@michigan.gov or (989) 370-7313.


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Hartwick Pines Visitor Center Reopens

Events Calendar

renovated Hartwick Pines Visitor Center (photo from Hartwick Pines)

compiled from various sources

Hartwick Pines Visitor Center, Crawford County, Michigan, is reopening this weekend, January 17-18. Phase 1 of the renovation is complete, and normal winter hours will resume. The Visitor Center will be open Saturdays & Sundays, 10am-4pm through April 30. The center will close again in May to finalize these improvements. Visitors can still access the park using the lower parking lot, with additional parking available at the Logging Museum and day-use area.

The restrooms are open on the weekends and snowshoes are available to borrow.

Phase 1 included major renovations like a new roof, exterior paint, accessible doors, and new carpeting. The former auditorium has been converted into a larger classroom space to better support all our workshop and activity needs. Phase 2 will begin soon, focusing on updates to the exhibit area and displays.

These improvements, among others, are supported by a proposed $3.25 million in federal relief funding from Gov. Whitmer's Building Michigan Together Plan- the American Rescue Plan Act.

Hartwick Pines State Park, located in Grayling, is named for its 49 acres of majestic, old-growth pine forest - some of the last remaining in the state. One of the largest state parks in the Lower Peninsula, Hartwick Pines features rolling hills overlooking the valley of the East Branch of the AuSable River, a handful of spring-fed lakes and unique timber lands.

The 9,335-acre park is home to a modern campground, two undeveloped boating access sites, a rustic cabin, picnic areas and 21 miles of trails, including the accessible, 1.25-mile, paved Old Growth Forest Trail. The park is a destination for hiking, paddling, mountain biking, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, hunting, fishing and birding.

The American Rescue Plan Act funded numerous upgrade and maintenance projects in Michigan over the past two years.

See Hartwick Pinces State Park


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Century Lumber Days Sept. 24-26

Hartwick Pines Museum

a news release of Michigan DNR

Step back in time to the 19th-century at Hartwick Pines State Park's Logging Museum Sept. 24-26 and listen to a brass band, smell the aroma of food cooking over an open fire and watch as lumberjack re-enactors prepare for logging season. The annual "19th-Century Lumber Days" offers visitors the chance to experience what life was like at logging camps in the 1890s. The program takes place Friday 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. with a reopening for a special event from 6:30 to 9 p.m., and Sunday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The Dodworth Saxhorn Band is America's premier 19th-century brass band. They have performed at the National Baseball Hall of Fame, the White House and many other venues across the United States. The band brings America's past to life through music, song, audience participation, drama, poetry, dance and theatre. They will share their music through informal, strolling performances all weekend and through hour-long concerts on Friday, Sept. 24 at 1 p.m. and 7 p.m. and Saturday, Sept. 25 at 11 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. at the Logging Museum.

Food historian Susan Odom will present a selection of the wide variety of food that camp cooks served to the lumberjacks, and will discuss how important that food was to the men and the livelihood of the camp. Odom has demonstrated historic cooking at many historical museums and historic sites throughout the Midwest, including Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore and Greenfield Village. Cooking demonstrations will be ongoing throughout the weekend.

A Saturday-only special event, "An Evening in the Logging Camp" takes visitors back to 1896 to meet members of the Salling, Hanson and Company's "Section 9 Camp" as they prepare for the winter logging season. Visitors are invited to gather at the Visitor Center and walk by lantern light along the quarter-mile trail to the Logging Museum, where costumed interpreters will portray several members of the camp. Visitors will meet Karen "Bessie" Michelson (later Karen Hartwick), a local boardinghouse owner, the landlooker, the camp clerk, camp cooks, a teamster and the shanty boys. These camp members will talk with visitors about life in the camp, the variety of work that was done and the dangers of the job. This special event takes place Saturday, Sept. 25. Visitor Center doors will open for this event at 6:30 p.m.

Hartwick Pines State Park is located at 4216 Ranger Rd. in Grayling. The Logging Museum is administered by the Michigan Historical Center. This event is free. However, all motor vehicles entering a state park or recreation area must display a 2010 Motor Vehicle Permit, available for purchase at the park entrance or on-line through the Michigan E-Store at www.michigan.gov/estore. Cost is $24 for a resident annual and $6 for a resident daily. A non-resident annual is $29 and a non-resident daily is $8.

See Hartwick Pines Logging Museum
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Winter Trails Day, Jan 20 at Hartwick Pines

snowshoeing at Bowman Lake

a news release of Michigan DNR

Hartwick Pines State Park will celebrate Winter Trails Day, Saturday, Jan. 10, in conjunction with the national event, now in its 14th year, that encourages the public to get outdoors in winter and spend a day on the snow.

Winter Trails Day at Hartwick Pines will run from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Snowshoeing equipment and instruction will be available at the Michigan Forest Visitor Center, so advance registration is recommended.

In addition to free snowshoe rental, activities will include guided snowshoe hikes; clinics on winter wildlife; winter fitness, survival and first aid; children's activities and free giveaways. The Cross Country Ski Shop in Grayling is helping sponsor the event by providing snowshoes for the day's activities.

"Snowshoeing is a great activity to get people outside in winter and is a healthy activity besides being fun," said Rob Burg, Hartwick Pines historian and local organizer for the Winter Trails Day event. "This also is a great way to enjoy the park's famous old-growth forest that so many people come to see in the summer from a different perspective."

According to SnowSports Industries America, a national nonprofit trade association, snowshoeing is an excellent form of low-risk, low-impact aerobic exercise that can help improve or maintain cardiovascular fitness as well as burn calories.

"It's a great way to work off those extra pounds that people usually put on over the holidays," Burg said.

Hartwick Pines State Park has more programs scheduled this winter. Cross-country ski nights will be held Jan. 3, 17 and 31 and Feb. 14 and 28. Guided snowshoe hikes will be Jan. 24 and Feb. 7 and 21. A two-day evening snowshoe-building workshop will be held Feb. 28-March 1 and the park's Winter Lecture Series returns Jan. 18, Feb. 15 and March 8. All programs and events, except the snowshoe-building workshop, are free; however, all motor vehicles entering a state park or recreation area must display a Motor Vehicle Permit, available for purchase at the park entrance. Cost is $24 for a resident annual and $6 for a resident daily.

To learn more about Winter Trails Day and register online, visit Winter Trails Day. Information also is available by contacting the park at (989) 348-2537 or by e-mail: Rob Burg
See Hartwick Pines State Park.
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Hartwick Pines to Host Snowshoe Hikes

Snowshoers pause in the forest to listen to their guides, historian Rob Burg and park interpreter Craig Kasme

Snowshoeing is a growing popular winter activity. Whether you are a novice or an experienced shoer, join us for a hike through the Lower Peninsula's largest stand of old-growth white pines. Saturday, February 2, 2008 and February 16, 2008, 1 to 3 p.m. Please call ahead for snow conditions.

Don't own a pair of snowshoes? Some snowshoes are available to use for free - check for availability when you register.

Your afternoon begins at the Michigan Forest Visitor Center with:
     -an orientation and introduction to Hartwick Pines and
     -a short talk on winter survival and equipment.

Then, you will head into the woods, guided by either a park interpreter or a historian. Each one-mile hike, limited to 20 participants, features:
     -a discussion of the forest in winter and how winter was important to Michigan's 19th-century logging industry.
     -stops at deer beds and
     -looking for signs of porcupines and other animals that use the forest in the winter.

The hikes end at the logging museum, where participants can:
     -warm up around the "camboose," the museum's elevated fire pit
     -enjoy a cup of hot cider and
     -hear stories about "shantyboys" enduring a winter in the woods.

Participants may return to the visitor center on their own or explore other trails in the park.

This event is free of charge; however, registration is required. Please telephone the Hartwick Pines visitor center at (989) 348-2537, or TDD (517) 373-1592.

Guided snowshoe hikes also are offered on January 19 and on March 1, 2008. Cross-country ski by lantern light at Hartwick Pines on January 12 and 26, and on February 9 and 23, 2008.

Hartwick Pines Logging Museum-part of the Michigan Historical Museum System-is located eight miles northeast of Grayling, in Hartwick Pines State Park; a Michigan State Parks motor-vehicle permit is required for park entry. Here's more information about how to find Hartwick Pines.

a news release of the Michigan DNR, Jan 29, 2008
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