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Sierra Club Wilderness
trips and expeditions
Chapter: Michigan (Mackinac)
Group: Central Upper Peninsula (CUPG)
Leader: Michael Neiger, Marquette,
Michigan (Web site; e-mail;
bio)
Review photo
album and trip highlights
from this completed trip
December 2-5, 2005
Winter-camping backpacking & elk
tracking
This early-winter
backpacking trip will involve a cross-country exploration of the wilderness
along the western limits of the 70-mile High Country Pathway, which is
situated within the Pigeon River Country State Forest. We will likely
be working the bush along the Pigeon River as well as Cornwall Creek Flooding
and Dog Lake. This area is home to the majestic Elk and we'll be keeping
an eye out for this elusive animal as well as its tracks and sheds.
The Pigeon River Country State Forest
The 93,000-acre Pigeon River Country
State Forest consists of seven campgrounds, over 90 miles of hiking
trails, 27 miles of horse-riding trails, numerous limestone sinkhole
lakes, and several rivers.
History
After heavy logging between 1860
and 1910, the area suffered disastrous, uncontrolled fires for years.
Fires burned significant acreage as late as the 1930's. Unsuccessful
attempts to convert the land to farms resulted in large parts of the
area reverting to State of Michigan ownership through either tax reversion
or purchase. In 1919, the area was designated a state forest and tree
planting began soon thereafter. Planting and forest recreation development
expanded with the establishment of a Civilian Conservation Corps Camp
in the region. The headquarters buildings along the Pigeon River were
built between 1934 and 1935.
Elk & wildlife
Seven elk released in 1918 increased
to as many as 500 by 1927. Illegal shooting of elk in 1974 resulted
in a record-high loss of 45 animals. By 1975, the herd was estimated
to number only 200 animals. The heard eventually recovered and now
exceeds 1,100 animals, making it the largest wild elk herd east of
the Mississippi River. To control crop damage and allow forest regeneration,
limited harvests of the elk are scheduled from time to time. In addition
to elk, the region is inhabited by deer, bear, bobcat, coyote, grouse,
woodcock, snowshoe hare, squirrels (gray, black, and fox), pine martin,
beaver, otter, muskrat, waterfowl, and numerous songbirds.
Gas & oil exploration
After the discovery of gas and oil
deposits under the south-central portion of the region in the 1970's,
commercial exploration and development began. By 1984, nearly 857,000
barrels of oil and 9,200,000 million cubic feet of gas were being
removed from the area annually.
(Contains material adapted from
the Pigeon River Country State Forest brochure, courtesy of the
Michigan Department of Natural Resources)
Destination:
Pigeon
River Country State Forest
Otsego and Cheboygan Counties
Northern Lower Michigan, northeast of Gaylord
Experience level:
Intermediate-level,
minus 10-degree backpacking
Difficulty:
Strenuous
Off-trail/on-trail rating:
80 percent off-trail,
map & compass recon
Participant requirements:
-- Notice:
please review the homepage on this Web site
for general wilderness tripping requirements
-- 18 years old or older
-- non-smoker and non-drinker
-- very physically fit (good aerobic endurance)
-- adventurous spirit
-- proficient swimmer
-- prior wilderness tripping experience
-- fully equipped with lightweight backpacking gear
including rucksack, bivouac gear,
survival gear,
foul-weather gear, rations, stove,
etc.
Bivouac
advisory:
This
is not a basecamp trip.
We will move each day
and bivouac in a different location each night,
often deep in the bush and far from roads,
dry & level campsites, potable water, toilets, and
fire rings.
Trip info:
-- 8 a.m. Friday
to late afternoon Monday
-- Club fee: $10
-- Sign up
by November 24 appreciated
-- Contact trip
leader to sign up, or for application form if new
-- Review journals
and photos from similar wilderness trips
Specialized equipment required:
-- In-pocket survival
kit (knife, matches, firestarters,
compass, whistle); Sierra Club survival
kits can be
borrowed free of charge
-- River-fording footwear
-- Snowshoes may be required
Rations required:
-- Breakfasts--4
-- Snacks--4
-- Lunches--4
-- Dinners--3
-- Backup rations--1 full day
-- Rations and stoves info
Additional
destination info:
-- Pigeon River State Forest Headquarters,
DNR
1-989-983-4101, http://www.michigandnr.com
-- Elk viewing maps and tips:
Indian River Chamber
of Commerce
1-800-EXIT-310,
http://www.irchamber.com
Gaylord Area Convention and Touism Bureau
1-800-345-8621,
http://www.gaylord-mich.com
-- Read Field Guide to the High Country Pathway,
1997 topo maps with keyed text, by the Pigeon River Country Association,
P.O. Box 122, Gaylord, Michigan 49735 ($5, 24 pages; may be available
from the Indian River Chamber of Commerce).
-- Read High Country Pathway, 1990 map with text,
Michigan Department of Natural Resources, Information Services Center,
P.O. Box 30028, Lansing, Michigan 48909.
-- Read Green Timbers, 1993 map with text, Michigan
Department of Natural Resources, Information Services Center, P.O. Box
30028, Lansing, Michigan 48909.
-- Read Hiking Michigan, by Mike Modrzynski (Falcon
Press, 1996).
-- Read Backpacking in Michigan, second edition,
by Pat Allen and Gerald L. DeRuiter (University of Michigan Press, 1989).
-- Read "Hiking with the Herd," by James Campbell,
in Backpacker Magazine, Oct '00, page 97.
-- The Pigeon River Country--A Michigan Forest,
by Dale Clarke Franz, et al., by the Pigeon River Country Association,
P.O. Box 122, Gaylord, Michigan 49735 (300 pages).
-- Read Pigeon River Country State Forest, 1985
map with text, Michigan Department of Natural Resources, Information Services
Center, P.O. Box 30028, Lansing, Michigan 48909.
-- Search destination in http://www.google.com
search engine
Travel
info:
-- Driving maps
-- Road conditions and weather
reports
-- Tourism info
-- Road trip gear
Wilderness skills and resources info:
-- Backpacking
skills
-- Land nav skills
-- River fording skills
-- Water purification
skills
-- Lightning safety
-- Low-impact skills
-- Backpacking links,
books, & vendors
-- Ultralight backpacking
links, books, & vendors
--
Dressing warm skills
-- Sleeping warm skills
-- Winter-camping skills
-- Ice-crossing skills
-- Snowshoe links,
books, & vendors
-- Winter-camping
links, books, & vendors
Emergency contacts:
-- Otsego County
Sheriff: Gaylord, 1-517-732-6484
-- Montmorency County Sheriff: Atlanta, 1-517-785-4238
-- Michigan State Police: Gaylord, 1-517-732-5141
-- Michigan State Police: Alpena, 1-517-354-4101
-- Hospital: Gaylord, 1-517-731-2100
-- Hospital: Alpena, 1-517-356-7252
-- Sierra Club Outings Department 24-hour help line:
1-888-outings
Land Nav Team Info:
Topographic maps:
1:24,000 Tower, Michigan
1:24,000 Silver Lake, Michigan
1:24,000 Hardwood Lake, Michigan
1:24,000 Afton, Michigan
--Topo map ordering
information
--Topo map waterproofing
& GPS prep
County maps:
Otsego
County
Cheybogan County
--County map ordering
information
Pigeon River Country-area
Trail Maps:
Pigeon
River Country State Forest, 1985 (free, 8.5 by 11)
Pigeon River State
Forest Headquarters, 1-989-983-4101
Pigeon River Country State Forest
Access Map, 1994
(free, 17 by 22)
Pigeon River State
Forest Headquarters, 1-989-983-4101
Shingle Mill Pathway, 1992(free,
8.5 by 11)
Pigeon River State
Forest Headquarters, 1-989-983-4101
Green Timbers, 1993 (free,
8.5 by 11)
Pigeon River State
Forest Headquarters, 1-989-983-4101
High Country Pathway (free,
8.5 by 11)
Pigeon River State
Forest Headquarters, 1-989-983-4101
Field Guide to the High Country
Pathway ($5, 24 pages)
Pigeon River Country
Association
P.O. Box 122, Gaylord,
Michigan 49735
(May be available
from the Indian River
Chamber of Commerce
at 1-800-EXIT-310)
Clear Lake--Jackson Lake Hiking
Trail (free, 8.5 by 11)
Pigeon River State
Forest Headquarters, 1-989-983-4101
Sinkhole Area, 1990 (free,
8.5 by 11)
Pigeon River State
Forest Headquarters, 1-989-983-4101
Sinkhole Pathway, 1990 (free,
8.5 by 11)
Pigeon River State
Forest Headquarters, 1-989-983-4101
Elk Viewing Map
Indian River
Chamber of Commerce, 1-800-EXIT-310
2005
Magnetic declination specs:
Magnetic declination
for Lat 45° 15'N, Lon 84° 25'W:
06° 50' west
UTM easting grid line to meridian
line deviation:
01° 49' east
UTM easting grid line magnetic declination:
08° 39' west
GPS
configuration specs:
Grid coordinate
system
1000-meter Universal
Transverse Mercator Grid (UTM)
UTM grid horizontal map datum:
1927 North American
Datum (NAD 27 CONUS)
UTM grid zone:
Zone 16
UTM grid hemisphere:
Northern hemisphere
Unit of measure:
Metric
Battery type:
Lithium, for deep
cold, or long-range use
Alkaline, for 3-season
use
Battery type setting:
Select type of battery
(lithium, alkaline, or Ni-Cad);
battery discharge-rate
differences affect meter accuracy
Misc nav setup:
Roamer
UTM plotter scale(s):
1:24,000
Ranger pacing
beads:
Metric--9 100-meter
beads; 4 1-kilometer beads
Magnetic declination setting on compass:
0° of offset
More land
nav team info
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