High Country Pathway - Michigan

“Sassafras and I did our long planned "semi-solo" trip to the High Country
Pathway. There are two parts to this report.

Part One: That Trailhead That Never Was.

We left SE Mich at about 4:30pm. Destination was the Town Corner SFC
near Atlanta, MI. Figured we'd get there 'round 8pm and be on the trail
by 8:30 or so. The directions in Hiking Michigan SUCK. We never
found the SFC. We drove in circles through all sorts of back roads.
Some that weren't on our map. Some that were incorrectly signed.
There are two songs that come to mind when I think back to that
evening... one of which we actually heard later that night:
CSN's "Deja Vu" and U2's "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking
For" ? LOL. It was after dark and we were, at this point, very low
on gas. We'd driven around for close to 2 hours (2 full CDs and part
of another) and finally gave up. Headed back to Gaylord (that was a
bit challenging, too) to gas up and go north on 75 to Vanderbilt
where we HOPED to find the Elk Hill SFC. We ended up at the Round
Lake SFC at 11pm. 6 1/2 hours after leaving home. So, our plans to
get a few evening mile in were thwarted. Set up the 'Mid and climbed
in our bags w/ a beer by 11:30. We woke up to a chilly, but
beautiful morning. The nights temps were cold enough to freeze the
water in my platy tube and part of a beer I didn't finish.
Fortunately, we had hats and gloves to wear in the morning. We
sampled some Enertia breakfasts, got back in the car, and headed for
the SF Headquarters to begin our hike.

Part Two: The Trip Report.

Day One: We got around the trail around 10am after chatting w/ a
couple nice fellas who were also just headed out. We went north on
the Shingle Mill Pathway and did a majority of that loop until it
dropped us on the HCP south of Sturgeon Valley Rd. And, continued on
a couple more miles. Our hike took us through tons of pine and
followed a lot of the Pigeon River, as well. It was opening day for
Trout Season so we saw loads of fisherman near the two campgrounds.
Once we got 1/2 mile away from the campgrounds, our only other
company on the trail was one set of mountain bikers and two
dayhikers. A scenic highlight of the hike was the Section 4 Lake.
It's one of many sinkholes in the area. The color of the water was
an amazing blue/green.... like the Caribbean Sea. We lunched in an
opening just south of Grass Lake, soaking in the rays through our
long sleeve shirts. Around 4pm, we found a nice field and set up
the 'Mid about 15 feet inside a stand of pines. We were hoping the
field would afford us an Elk spotting, but we wouldn't be so lucky.
It was a bit chilly but the sun was shining brightly so we lounged
around (napped) on our pads in the warm sun. I was very lucky the
sun was shining today as my platypus had leaked into my pack near
the beginning of our hike and my sleeping bag had gotten wet. I
hiked the day w/ the hood hanging out of the sleeping bag
compartment of my pack, but it was still damp when we got to camp.
Fortunately, it was dry by the time we went to bed. Anyway - The sun
kept hiding behind the pines, so we moved our pads out to the field
and made dinner there. Then, had a tiny fire for an hour or so and
hit the sack before dark. Weather was in the 50s during the day.
Total miles: 12

Day Two: The next morning was, again, very pretty... and, again, a
bit chilly. So, we stayed in our bags in the 'Mid and cooked
breakfast and coffee from there. Took our time w/ the morning camp
chores before heading back on the trail. Headed back north on the
HCP and then finished the two miles of the Shingle Mill Pathway that
we hadn't done the day before. We were not really interested in
rushing back to the car, so we dilly dallied a bit. We spotted a
great field on which to camp next time we're in the area. We tip-
toed around when we heard what we hoped would be an Elk. We walked
by a huge pine that was calling to us and proceeded to climb it.
Spent about 30 minutes w/ the tree. Basically, we took our time.
When we got back to the car, the same two fellas that had started
hiking when we started, were just getting back as well. So, we spent
some time chatting w/ them before driving off. Stopped at the Big
Buck for lunch where we ran into the same two fellas, AGAIN! We
enjoyed a tasty lunch and began the drive home. Today's temps were
slighty warmer. Prolly high 50s or low 60s. Sun was still shining,
too. Total miles: 4

It was a great weekend for a hike. The weather cooperated completely
and it was fun to hike some trails that neither of us had every
hiked before.

Can't wait to get back there and check out some more!


pics”

“You look like a monkey in the trees.”

“WHO looks like a monkey?! lol
Thanks alot Binks. =P”

“Good trip report and the pics were oh so pimp!

The HCP is a great place to backpack.I kow the feeling about not finding trailheads it can sometimes get nutty.

It looks like the trip was a blast.

8)”

“Looks like you guys had a lot of fun! I have to do that trail one day. I'd like to do a week or so. Isn't the whole thing 73 or so miles? That lake looks like it would be a great place to take a dip in the summer (and get eaten alive by bugs). Why is the lake that color? That camera looks like a good gear purchase!”

“Nice report, ladies! Nice pics too!”

“Q, That particular sinkhole had a sand bottem, and was icy cold (spring fed?) I'm guessing the color is result of the white sand floor, and reflection from our lovely MI skies. But, that's just a guess.”

“Yes, Q, 70 mile loop. The terrain is fairly easy. We could get it done in just a few days.

And, my camera rocks. I'm very happy w/ it!”

“four days comfortably. I wanna go back and do it all at once.”

“70 mile loop in 4 days! 17.5 miles a day? You guys are darn ambitious! I was with ya until that point!”

“It's not hard hiking at all. Nice and flat.”

“I did 11 miles with my pack on Saturday, and I was pretty tired after. BUt, I haven't carried my pack since Thanksgiving, and I really haven't been hiking much at all. Guess I could work my way back up to it.

So, are we planning a trip, Q?”

“love the pics of the lakes--beautiful colors!

and the beer truck......yummmmmm. didn't see in the report that you hung out there at all. wat wit dat?”

“the fisher boys were all on the river at 10:30 am so no beer was being served. trust me, if they had been serving, we would have stopped for more than just a photo! lol”

“You could do 20 miles a day that would be good for that trail.


8)”

“How about 25? Anyone for 25?”

“lol

I would be happy to do the whole thing in four days. When???”

“Amazingly enough, every weekend in June looks OK. I must be forgetting about something.”

“I can't commit to anything this side of fall, sorry. Love to do the HCP, one day I will. My spring/summer time will be spent trying to get Max ready for hiking N. Manitou in August. I hope he can do it.”

“Great trip report Tara. Can't see the pics until I get home. I'm up for that trip Smiley, and would wait for fall to hike with you again q. Good luck with your hiker in the oven!”

“Hang on just a sec.

Let me get this straight.










You left a beer unfinished?



tsk tsk tsk. For shame.





j/k, great trip report and pics! The first one should be a in an ad for backpacking.”

“I would be down for 25!

8)”

“then we'll just meet ya at the end, mike.”

“Early start late finish is the way to go to get the whole thing done.

I would love to do that whole trail.

8)”

“CMB - Have fun. Do a trip report!

Smiley - I'm not too interetsed in doing much hiking in June. Maybe one trip. Otherwise the next few months are dedicated to paddling... till the temps cool down a bit.

bit - yes, I did. It was a little chilly out and I was trying to avoid the middle of the night pee. Didn't work. Shoulda finished that beer after all!”

“I think the fall is going to be a good time to do that trail.


I am going to get something in the works so I can do it.

8)”

“The best time might be when the elk are in the rut. Wouldn't it be cool to hear them bugleing? Of course, maybe having a 1000 pound animal interested only in sex bearing down on your campsite is not such a great idea.

Anyway...”

“That would be so very cool!

8)”

“How long will it take Mike??”

“3 days=25 miles a day.
4 days=18.75 a day.

Its a very nice place to hike the forests there are very cool.

8)”

“Oh ok..for some reason I thought it take laonger..Must be thinking of a different trail up your way”

“Is there a trail you want info on?

8)”

“Not sure which one you told me about..but if I think of it Ill let you know”

“Thats cool!



8)”

“We had a herd of elk just down the street from me. The bugeling was cool, for the first few nights, but that got old pretty fast.

Cool pictures. Great report. Too bad someone wasn't around to help you find the trailhead :-)

I've done several little sections of the HCP. I'd love to thru hike it someday... maybe this fall?”

“I'm planning to get back into school this fall - so anything past September is going to be tough for me.”

“We did just fine on our own! ;) It was an adventure and a test of our patience and flexibility.”

“Things worked out perfectly. No complaints. Driving around on Friday night was actually a fun adventure. :-)”

“Just kidding, ladies. A little joke between friends. You two are the most capable women I know, and I admire you both immensely.”

“Why thanky! (blush)”

“Ah, good recovery, le subtil! :-)”

“While talking with Kerry last night, she said that if everything is going well, I could make a trip to the HCP as soon as early fall. I'm still planning on going with Max to N. Manituo, tho. Should we/I start panning something or should I think about another trail? :)”

“Plan it and we will come. =)

October? Maybe halloweenish?”