OT: Best places for hiking in Michigan?
I've gotten into hiking/back packing the last few years and have been traveling some to find some cool trails. I don't know if anyone on here does much back packing but I thought I'd ask if anyone can recommend some places in Michigan? Myself and a friend would like to do a 2-3 hike somewhere so we are looking for anything like that. Thanks for any info!
Pictured Rocks is pretty sweet, and not too difficult (though certainly not easy). I've looked at the Porcupine Mtn's a lot, but honestly not sure if I'm quite ready for that much just yet.
Isle Royale is supposed to be incredible, but not easy to get to and the weather can be unpredictable.
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The Chapel Loop at Pictured Rocks is a long day hike or a nice overnighter. The views from the top of 100-200ft high cliffs are absolutely stunning! This is a MUST do hike in Michigan.
was going to suggest the loop that involves Chapel Falls & Mosquito Beach as well; you can do a simple three day (2 night) hike starting at the trailhead to the Chapel Rock area backcountry campground (stay the night), then hiking along the gorgeous shoreline cliffs for a day to Mosquito River campground (stay the night), then hiking back to the trailhead the next day.
used to lead intro-hiking trips with 6th graders on that loop, and it is both very simple, and stunningly beautiful; Lake Superior is cold, but swimmable at Mosquito beach too.
Isle Royale is amazing to hike...but not for novices. The hike on the southern periphery is very challanging due to the rock formations and moving up to the top most part can be tough. However, you can't beat it for pure natural beauty. It can also be expensive, since the only way to the island is by ferry.
If you do go, save your back the pain and don't pack a tent. Plenty of sturdy lean to sleeping quarter that are meshed (bug protection).
a 2-day and a 3-day hike in the Porkies, besides a couple of day hikes there, and doubt I've covered even 1/3 of the entire length of trails there. I highly recommend it if you have time---even the drive there from downstate is a long "hike"---but choose carefully what trails you want to tackle and most importantly, have proper footwear. I was somewhat a novice when I enjoyed the 3-day hike which included (on day 3) the climb up the escarpment to the rim above Lake of the Clouds. Very rewarding to make it to the top, but my shoes (which were made for much flatter terrain) weren't very well broken in prior to the trip--- that climb killed my feet. Learned the hard way a lot that I didn't know about hiking prior to that trip, but rather than get discouraged, I used that experience as a springboard to being a smarter hiker from that point forward.
That hike was 30+ years ago, so I can't begin to tell you by name which trails in the state park we did, just that it was some kind of loop that included following the Presque Isle River past several rapids and waterfalls, a short stretch along Lake Superior, and a lenghty flat stretch through virgin hardwood forest that was just awesome!
The two-day hike was at the very beginning of fall colors, we were about 7-10 days too early for peak colors but beautiful nonetheless.
Here's a couple of links to interactive panoramic 360-degree views of Lake of the Clouds and the Presque Isle River. I played with both a bit on my soon-to-be-replaced laptop and started to get the hang of it except for my computer freezing up off-and-on.,
Good info, thanks. And yeah, I hear you on the footwear issue. I learned that one the hard way too, along with several other rather painful lessons in gear. My gear is now all first rate stuff, it's just tough to make the time to get away these days...
Someday I will get to the Porkies though.
Killing it with those recommendations. Those are absolutely the top three locations for true distance backpacking in the state and I have been pretty far and wide. North Manitou is also top-notch and also much closer. Nordhouse is nice yes, but small.
I suppose not a 2-3 day hike, but Isle Royale.
You could look at hiking from Ludington State Park north into Nordhouse Dunes and the Manistee National Forest.
Nordhouse Dunes wilderness area is a good place for wilderness backpacking. Dunes, good views of Lake Michigan, and bluffs to camp on overlooking the lake.
up into the Manistee State Forest and along the Manistee River (hike on the south side of the river, it's better IMO) to Hodenpyle Dam. That's quite a LONG way (40 miles 1-way?) but a possibility if you have 2-3 days and a car to park at each locale. You would get both Lake Michigan dunes plus the inland Manistee River and forest.
North Manitou Island works for a 2-3 day trip as well, but that would just be beach hikes. Would have to take a ferry over there.
About 40 miles of trails there.
Nice.
we're going to be at tahquemenon on friday for a day hike. we've done the paved trail to the falls several times, but finally have time to explore other parts of the park. any recommendations?
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headed up to lake superior tomorrow. sans passport, unfortunately. we'd love to get to some of the more remote regions of the UP, especially the porkies, but the central UP was about as far as we could go from A2 this time. this thread just provides further motivation to make the effort in the near future, though.
we're staying in brimley, so munising is an option, but we want to balance time in the car with actually being somewhere. looks like the area north of newberry you're referring to is the newberry state forest area?
I'd recommend Manistee River Trail/North Country Trail, starting in Mesick (Cadillac-ish area):
http://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/hmnf//recarea/?recid=18710&actid=51
There's dispersed camp sites along the trail (and you can wilderness camp too!) as well as campgrounds at the top and bottom ends. The two trails are on both sides of the river so you can go down one side and up the other so it's less boring. It's about 20-25 miles round trip. It's way easier to get to than Pictured Rocks but it's probably not as good.
Another suggestion is to head out to one of the two Manitou islands - you take a ferry out to the islands and you can backpack camp there. There's plenty of trails/shipwrecks/ruins to check out:
http://www.nps.gov/slbe/planyourvisit/southmanitouisland.htm
http://www.nps.gov/slbe/planyourvisit/northmanitouisland.htm
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When I lived in Grand Rapids, this was a great weekend hike 3 out of 4 seasons (I've never done it in winter...). It was close enough so we could drive up Friday night after work and camp at Red Bridge. There's only about 6 campsites, but I've never seen it full. We'd bring a cooler full of beer and eggs for breakfast.
Then, we'd hit the trail the next day, hiking up the North Country Trail on the west side of the river up to the Hoedenpyle (sp?) dam. After crossing to the east side of the river on the Manistee River Trail, we'd start looking for an open campsite along the trail. All-in-all, it's about a 22-mile loop back to the trailhead (about 1/4 mile west of Red Bridge). Cap it off by stopping for a frosted root beer at A&W in Manistee!
As an alternative, you can kayak from the Hoedenpyle dam downriver to the next dam (not sure what it's called). It's about a 4-6 hour kayak trip, but it's worth spending a night on one of the islands after the river opens up south of Red Bridge.
Unfortunately, I don't live in MI anymore to enjoy this trail, but it's one of my favorites!
which is the Pigeon River country; lots of great forestland there, and ample fishing opportunities. this guy pieced together a ~22 mile three day hike... http://www.trimbleoutdoors.com/ViewTrip/497189
but there are lots of trails you could take...http://www.michigantrailmaps.com/member-profile/3/84/
North Manitou Island in the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Park. You can catch a ferry out of Leland for about a 10 mile trip to the Island. There is nothing out there but trails, a Park Service facility, and a few ruins. The Dunes are spectacular. Beware though: no campfires allowed in the National Park.
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If you have the family and just want a good ride through Sleeping Bear NP, take the Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive. It's a 7-8 mile ride throught thick woods and dunes. You can stop at the high point and run down to Lake Michigan. 450' vertical drop, so it's a good hike back up. I have seen people get sick climbing back up on a hot day. It's a bigger climb than you think. And the rest of the park has an excellent trail system. It is a popular park so you have to deal with crowds a times. Best in the fall or spring.
The Jordan River has a nice two day hike (near East Jordan).
The Porkies and Isle Royale would both be tough in 2-3 days, but are both well worth a weeklong trip.
If I were only doing 2-3 days in the Pictured Rocks, I'd take two cars and leave one in Munising and then put in somewhere around Beaver Lake. That might be aggresive for 3 days, depending on your experience level. Instead of Munising, you could leave your 2nd car in the Chapel Falls area. That middle chunk was my favorite part of the trip.
I haven't been, but North Manitou Island might fit your needs. I've hiked South Manitou and it's probably not enough of a challenge to fill more than an overnight.
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Love it! Love Michigan!
It's great to be....
Statue , piss on it , then to
Midgets steps and crap on front porch
You can take a hike with me to the nearest liquor store.
How about down here at the pawn shop?
It's the only way to shop.
Can't believe no one mentioned the Waterloo-Pinckney trail. It's literally a stone's throw from Ann Arbor but feels so much further away than that. Now I'm a crazy sort and run ultramarathon so just last week I ran the entire 34.5 miles of the trail in 7.5 hours, started at Big Portage Lake in Waterloo Recreation Area and ended at Silver Lake in Pinckney Recreation Area.
You can easily make it a 2 or 3 day hike depending on how strong of a hiker you are. There are various campsites you can stop at along the way. If you need more info feel free to ask.
The most commonly used campgrounds are Sugarloaf, Green Lake and Blind Lake campgrounds.
And I didn't say it was a wilderness experience, but a great hike through various terrains and it is easily the most beautiful and only multi-day trail in SE Lower Michigan. It's a hidden gem of the area and easily overlooked. Yes Manistee, East Jordan are all good choices as well, one's that I'd recommend as well, but Waterloo-Pinckney is a great hiking trail.
Peach Mountain is in that area!
The North Country Trail/Manistee loop is a great overnight hike. Another option is the Hoist Lakes Foot Travel area north of Glennie in Alcona county. It's not tremendously scenic, but it's a good little hike. Not a very populated area too, so it does have a wilderness feel.