Michigan Mountaineers January Gathering

“We kind of mentioned this on the jcfreak4life thread, but we do have a second Saturday dayhike coming up in January, and as of yet come to no conclusions about where it should be. I think we should pick something in the Detroit Metro area considering the two previous hikes have taken place in northern and western Michigan.

Some ideas include Indian Springs Metropark, Pointe Mouillee SGA and Island Lake Rec. Area. Pointe Pelee NP is out because of the border crossing. If anyone wants to do an urban hike, I know a great 10 mile route along the Huron River in Ann Arbor. It's surprisingly wild and rugged. And then we can hang out in Michigan's greatest city.

Anyway, if you have suggestions for good future second saturday hikes, just post them here.”

“heh.. we keep this up, and we will have to have separate areas by hiking clubs.. :)”

“RL - I don't know of many trails in this area that are real good. I'd go on any of the three that you mentioned. I'll really hike anywhere, doesn't matter to me.....”

“I guess "real good" is subjective. There is some darn good hiking near Detroit. But there are very few good sources of information. You really have to hike the trails to find out about them.”

“Yes, I agree. I would like to get my hands on a real good trail book or two. I have a couple of decent ones, but the good maps I have now I'm finding on the internet and putting together my own trail book. Too bad the MI DNR doesn't put one out of all of there trails.”

“I'll go anywhere w/ you great people!!”

“....even Metro Detroit (if unavoidable).”

“Michigan Mountaineers?????? Where, pray tell, are these mountains?”

“Let's see, there's Mt. Pleasant...”

“Mt Morris...”

“Mt. Clemens...”

“Mt. Brighton, Mt. Holly, Boyne Mountain, Mt. Bohemia, Porcupine Mts.,

Shall I go on Dr. Laura?”

“You know, honestly, after a while it's hard to say that one mountain, lake, ocean view, etc. is better than any other. I've been fortunate enough to visit/hike in 40 states. After a while you are just as happy hiking in Michigan and Florida as you are in Washington and North Carolina. Every place has its own unique aspects.

Michigan is great because there are enormous amounts of public land. We have large national forests, 4 million acres of state forest, 100+ state parks, 50 or 60 state game areas, 3 national parks, 2 national wildlife refuges, several bottomland preserves. Add to this the millions of acres of lake to canoe in summer and walk on in winter and you have a great place to hike. The best part is that it's really only been discovered by Midwesterners. I only rarely see other people when I hike. And usually that's by choice.

There is also something to be said about knowing your home environment really well. You can have a nice hike on the other side of the country, but it almost seems out of context. You can't make sense of it without being there for a longer period. If you are out hiking every few days in your home area, however, you see all the changes that happen. Then, the beauty shines through. I'd rather know my own place really well, than know a little about a lot.

Oh, and the feeling after climbing Mt. Pleasant! Wow! What a feeling!”

“Well said, RL!”

“Dont forget the HILLS too...Bloomfield,Farmington,Auburn...”

“I just returned from a trip to Mt. Holly today. The top of the mountain was encased in a thick fog. Or was it a cloud. Yeah, must have been a cloud, since Mt. Holly is so large....”

“Any altitude sickness?”

“Can I get in on this?:)”

“Heck yes! We do have honorary memberships for out of staters LOL. Seriously, join us!”

“Thats great....I want to get in please?Send me info.

Thank you...:)

Happy hiking

Mike”

“All I know is I spent three years on the high slopes of Mt. Pleasant while going to CMU and suffered frequent bouts of giddiness and disorientation, as did my climbing partners. Upon completion of studies in those rarified atmospheres, we managed to come down to a more oxygen-rich environment.”

“iluvbackpacking - There is nothing to email...

The info you are looking for is in this thread. Just keep checking back for a destination, directions, time, etc.”

“GREAT NEWS FELLOW MICHIGANDERS!!!!!!

I finally spoke to the supervisor of Waterloo. She would love to get together with some/all of us to discuss our goals and her needs. No training is offered but during our scheduled maintenance times a liason is provided as are some tools. She seemed grateful that we are interested in helping out.

Now we just need to hammer out what our goals are. First BAN HORSES AND MTN BIKERS...kiddin'. Seriously we need to think of what we are going to " bring" to her and the recreation area that is her responsiblity.

Adding a hike in only camp between big portage lk and the horse camp?

Better signage at intersections of trails?

Reroute around especially muddy/over used trail sections?

Boardwalks over seasonal "wetlands"?

Strong backs?

C'mon lets get crackin'!”

“Ok sounds good to me.....:)”

“Wow, great work, Trail Czar Birch!

Big Goal for Waterloo: Connect west end of Waterloo-Pinckney Trail to Lakelands Trail SP. This would require several miles of trail on state land and a crossing of the Haehnle Audubon Preserve.

Another Goal: Comprehensive trail maps of Waterloo. Right now there is a hodge-podge of maps.

Another goal: Clear views from Sackrider Hill and Pond Lily Overlook. The view of surrounding area is obscured by trees. It sounds funny, but cut a few.

Maybe we should take a little scouting expedition to the area. January trip? Maybe we could invite the superviser to hike with us.

BTW, is there a trailbuilding moratorium on right now? I read something like that on the MMBA website.”

“Mike, I love the idea of bringing her with us. And kudos on the connector trail and map ideas. Havent heard about trail building moratoriums but I havent looked into it.”

“Sounds like a plan for the January hike! All in favor say " H@LL YEAH!!"”

“One thing that I noticed when I hiked the trail from Headquarters to Horsemans was that the trail markers were very poor. Some posts where knocked down and such. This is such great news! I know you guys are more experianced in what to do, so just point me in the right direction. I'm just geeked to make a difference and help out! I like that place a lot.”

“I'm in, just as long as I'm not over booking myself that month. I'm starting to lose track of the events, which might be a good thing :)

I know I've gotta work one Saturday that month and I now have a wedding to go to so I can't make the Blachard trip, but this trail is so close I could still work and meet up with you guys. I'll wait until the dust settles a little before I can give a "fer sure".”

“Laqtis, hopefully you will make it. Speaking for myself I am NOT experienced in this stuff at all.I look forward to learning what to do and how to do it. I also look forward to hanging out with you knuckleheads and getting to cut up stuff with saws! LOL

I agree with you on the trail markers. There are a few spots that are poorly marked. Near the gravel pits around the pond lily lookout, just across m-52 from green lake there is a downed post that causes trouble as well as a missing marker about 1/2 of the way to sackrider from Big Portage lk, and a general lack of trail blazes just east of sackrider across the road.. I am just curious as to what we will be permitted/encouraged to do.”