>Home page (last
revised
February 25, 2012
)
______________________________________
For
a list of free, wilderness trips and expeditions organized
by Michael Neigeras a community service of Michigan
Backcountry Search and Rescuecheck MiBSAR's operational
calendar.
|
Contents of this Web page:
Welcome to The Rucksack
Who are the
Michigan Bush Rats
What
do Bush Rats do in the bush
Michigan Backcountry SAR
Bush Rats' trips &
expeditions
Fees and expenses
Liability waiver
Fitness & experience
Hazards &
perils
Insurance & SAR-comm
gear
What's new on Web site
Copyright notice
& disclaimer
Remember that one man [woman] is
much the same as another, and that he [she] is best who
is trained in the severest school.
--Thucydides,
Greek General
460-400 B.C.
History of the Peloponnesian War
Chris Ozminski
of Frankenmuth,
Michigan found
these two
moose shovels
on Grindstone
Point, deep in
the trail-less heart of Lake Superior Provincial Park, Ontario,
Canada, on a July '05 wilderness expedition. (Photo by Mary
Powell) View
more sheds Read
journal from this trip
If you're able to
read this Web page...
Thank a Teacher;
If you're able to read it in English...
Thank a Veteran.
Chimo!
* The RuckSack
Web site is dedicated
to Great Lakes-area
wilderness trippers and
expeditioners--Michigan
Bush Rats--who enjoy
remote, multiday
backpacking, canyoneering,
winter camping, and swift-water paddling trips.
No matter what type of
wilderness experience
you happen to thrive on,
I hope you enjoy your visit
to the The RuckSack Web
site. As always, your
comments, suggestions, and corrections are welcome at mneiger@hotmail.com.
Thanks.
Now I see the secret
of making the best person,
it is to grow in the open air
and to eat and sleep
with the earth.
--
Walt Whitman
1819-1892
____________
*Chimo is an
ancient Inuit--or Eskimoan--term used to convey the warmest
of greetings and salutations. It is often accompanied by
a friendly hand gesture; namely, a circular movement of
the left hand over one's heart. Chimo is also the name of
a military-spec, arctic-grade mukluk widely used by the
Canadian Armed Forces and the first choice of many arctic
expeditioners. This heavy-duty mukluk (too heavy for our
snowshoeing purposes) was used by the Bush Rats on the 12-day,
200-km, Jan. 2006 Algoma Highlands Ski Expedition in Ontario,
Canada. This hard-to-find, minus-104°F-rated muk is
manufactured by Acton
Canada and sold by Weaver
& Devore Trading LTD., which is located in Yellowknife,
Northwest Territories.
The Michigan Bush Rats are an unorganized,
loosely-affiliated, Internet-connected network of hard-core,
dyed-in-the-wool wilderness trippers and expeditioners who
hail from such Great Lakes-area groups as the:
____________
The
principal bulletin board for Michigan Bush Rats' trip postings,
important updates, and pre-trip discussion is currently
Backpacker
Magazine's Midwest Forum.
If you are interested in keeping abreast
of the Michigan Bush Rats' adventures, you should consider
visiting this online forum. Look
for posts by LandNavMan under the "Topic Starter"
column header. If you are planning to participate in one
of their adventures, you should join (register) so you can
receive automatic, e-mail notification of new posts, ask
or answer questions, and participate in discussions.
Joining this free forum is very quick
and easy--simply pick a cool bush name and answer a few
questions. Join
now. If at some point you would like to add an optional
avatar--a thumbnail-size photo that will appear with all
your posts--and you need help optimizing (cropping, pixel-sizing,
and byte-sizing) it, e-mail
me. If you would like to add an optional "signature"
quote, which will appear at the bottom of all your posts,
visit American
Trails for a list of unique qoutes.
The Michigan Bush Rats are rain-or-shine,
substance-free (tobacco, alcohol, illicit drugs) wilderness
trippers and expeditioners with strong minds and bodies and
who enjoy living out of a rucksack, sledge, or canoe for days--sometimes
weeks--at a time.
No matter where they travel or bivouac,
the Michigan Bush Rats do their best to adhere to the principles
and practices of the low impact doctrine.
For example, they try to minimize their footprint on the wilderness,
especially when it come to campfires.
If they can't locate a gravelly, sandy,
or muddy area that will not be permanently scared by their
fire and that can be easily cleaned up and left as they found
it, they do without a fire. On most trips where they expect
to have a small, Indian-style fire, they backpack in a small,
8-ounce, steel cookie sheet, using it as a fire pan atop several
rocks or a couple of logs.
The Bush Rats
often use an
elevated fire pan,
like the one
on the right from
the October '06 Fox
River Canoe Trip,
to prevent a
fire from
permanently
scarring the
ground. The leg-support design on the fire pan shown was developed
by Mary Powell of Flint, Michigan. This fire was started by
friction, with a bow and drill. (Photo by Gail Staisil) View
photo album from this trip View
journal from this trip
There is pleasure in the
pathless woods,
There is a rapture on the lonely shore,
There is society, where none intrudes,
By the deep sea, and music in its roar:
I love not man the less, but Nature more.
--Lord
Byron
(George Noel Gordon) 1788-1824
Childe Harold's Pilgrimage
canto IV [1818], stanza 178
The Michigan Bush Rats
generally backpack, sledge, or paddle from 5 to 6 hours each
day. Regular rest breaks are the norm as are 1-hour-long lunch
breaks, which allow one enough time to enjoy a hot cup of
bush coffee or soup, read a book, etc. However, Michigan Bush
Rats' trips are not not highly-scripted, fair-weather affairs.
Lori Watson
of Walled Lake
takes time
to read a good book
on a Sept '01
wilderness trip
along the
Miners River,
upstream of
Miners Falls, in
the backcountry of the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore (Photo
by Mary Powell) Read
journal and view photos from this trip
While the Michigan Bush Rats spend
a lot of time bushwhacking off-trail, their unscripted, cross-country
travel often incorporates maintained or long-abandoned hiking
trails, portage trails, trap lines, jeep trails, logging roads,
railroad grades, hydrolines, gas lines, survey lines, and
fire breaks. They also travel along natural corridors such
as canyons, ridgelines, valleys, draws, meadows, marshes,
stream beds, river banks, lakeshores, beaches, and game trails.
The common thread uniting many Michigan
Bush Rats is a love of traditional, technical, land navigation
combined with an insatiable desire to seek out little-known,
off-the-beaten-path examples of Mother Nature's finest handiwork--waterfalls,
old growth, caves, rocky peaks, cliffs, canyons, coves, points,
sandy beaches, and pristine, bivouac sites--many of which
still remain hidden in the wilds of Michigan and Canada.
The Bush Rats
negotiate a
flooded section
of Dugout Creek
Canyon--a side-
canyon of the
lower Agawa Canyon--on a May '06 canyoneering expedition in
Ontario's Lake Superior Provincial Park. (Photo by C. A. Susan)
View
photo album from this trip
The Michigan Bush Rats also keep their
eyes peeled for signs of man's passing long ago: old trapper
cabins and fly-in lodges, remnants of the logging era (camps,
dams, sluiceways, booms), abandoned mines and fire towers,
remote bush-plane wrecks, ghost towns, shallow-water ship
wreckage, and old trails, trap lines, and railroad grades.
The
fireplace
and loft
inside
the Old
Woman
Lake Lodge
were a welcome site to weary trekkers on a Feb '05 expedition
to Old Woman Lake, deep in the heart of Lake Superior Provincial
Park.
(Watercolor by Mary Powell)
Read journal no.
1 from this expedition Read
journal no. 2 from this expedition View
photo album from this expedition
The Michigan Bush Rats, especially
those on point, are always on the lookout for birds and animals
as well as evidence of their passing--aerial and ground spoor--such
as scat, tracks, hair, and disturbed vegetation. If they are
lucky, they'll find a bird or animal bone, shed,
skull, tooth, feather, or claw.
Mary Powell of Flint
looks over a huge
moose shovel she
found on a May of '00
wilderness trip in
the heart of Lake Superior Provincial Park in Ontario, Canada.
(Photo by Mary Powell) View
more sheds
On most Michigan Bush
Rats' trips and expeditions, a journal
is kept by one or more people who enjoy writing. Those interested
in photography capture the essence of the trip digitally,
often sharing their photos
with other trippers by uploading them to the Net. Others study
the local flora, fauna, or geology.
In the school of the woods
there is no graduation day.
--
Horace Kephart
1917
On breaks, at lunch, and
when bivouacking, some Michigan Bush Rats can be found reading
a good book or honing essential wilderness skills such as
knot tying, land navigation, shelter building, tarp rigging,
friction fire starting (bow & drill), plant and tree identification,
etc.
On service outings, the
Michigan Bush Rats work on maintaining or improving an established
campsite or section of trail.
Mary Powell
of Flint, Michigan
relaxes outside
a brush hut
she fabricated
on a 2003
backpacking trip
to the McCormick Tract. (Photo courtesy of Mary Powell) View
photo album from this trip View
journal from this trip
Michael Neiger
of Marquette,
Michigan
practices
starting a
fire by friction
with a bow,
drill, socket,
hearth, and
tinder on the
October '06
Fox River
Canoe Trip.
All materials
were gathered
and fashioned
at the bivouac site by the Bush Rats. Thanks to a critical
assist by Chris Ozminski of Frankenmuth, Michigan, a fire
was successfully kindled. (Photo by Gail Staisil) View
photo album from this trip View
journal from this trip
Success is on
the far side of failure.
--
T. J. Watson
Founder of IBM
Michigan Bush Rats who are interested
in land navigation get lots of hands-on
experience. After pouring over quads, deciding on a plan,
and calculating the corresponding azimuth, distance, and terrain-profile
for each plotted leg of the route, they take turns on point,
cutting azimuths.
The land nav team
pours over the quads
on an April '06
recon of the bush
in the northern reaches
of the Pigeon River Country State Forest. (Photo by Khai Mong)
View
photo album from this trip
View journal from
this trip
On technical, challenging routes, someone
else carefully tracks the group's progress using ranger
pacing beads. Hands-on, in-the-field discussions about
map interpretation, compass use, aiming
off, pace counting, adjusting for magnetic declination,
using UTM roamer cards, the UTM coordinate system, configuring
GPS units, map
prep for GPS use, map
waterproofing, etc., are also common.
More often than not, the Michigan Bush
Rats end up bivouacking in the far reaches of rugged, sometimes
inhospitable, wilderness, far from established campgrounds,
level or dry sleeping sites, potable water, toilets, fire
rings, and picnic tables. Because of this, they have to hump
extra water occasionally, like when they bivouac atop a high
cliff or a rocky summit.
A Bush Rats
bivouac along
the Agawa River,
deep in the Agawa Canyon, on a Sept '06 canyoneering expedition
to 11-Mile Creek Canyon in Canada. (Photo by C. A. Susan)
View
photo album from this trip
Michigan
Backcountry Search and Rescue (MiBSAR), a special operations
group within the Michigan Bush Rats, assists families and
law enforcement agencies with missing-person investigations--mainly
cold cases--in remote, wilderness areas of northern Michigan.
- Long-range,
long-term, off-trail SAR ops through challenging bush &
along remote waterways
- Sustained
ops--up to 10 days without support or resupply--by rucksack,
canoe, snowshoe, & pulk
- All-season,
all-weather SAR Ops--down to minus 50° Fahrenheit ambient
temps
- Remote
man-tracking, sign-cutting, & recon ops
- Backcountry
investigations & forensic evidence documentation, collection,
packaging, & transport
- Field
support & technical land nav services for K-9 teams
operating in remote bush
- Missing-person
Web site & blog services; case promotion & media
relations
- All
services provided completely free of charge by Michael Neiger
of Marquette, Michigan and other volunteers
- Member
of the National Association
for Search & Rescue (NASAR) and the International
Society of Professional Trackers (ISPT)
"So
loved ones aren't left behind"
Current SAR Investigations:
To
learn more about where the Michigan Bush Rats have traveled
in the past, visit the trip
journals and photos page and read a journal or view a
photo album.
To
find out where the Michigan Bush Rats are headed in the months
to come, visit the wilderness tripping
opportunities page.
All Michigan Bush Rats'
trips and expeditions organized by Michael Neiger are free;
there is never a charge to participate.
Instead, participants
are responsible for their own expenses including, but not
limited to, transportation, reservations, lodging, meals,
insurance, tickets, licenses, permits, clothing, bush equipment,
field rations, safety equipment, etc.
Anyone bivouacking on land owned by
the State of Michigan, outside of a state park, state forest
campground, etc., is required by state law (Natural Resource
and Environmental Protection Act, Sec. 74201 et seq., P.A.
451 of 1994) to post a Camp
Registration Card (Form no. PR 4134) at their campsite.
This permit--which is free--must be
filled out in pencil (to make it legible when wet). Since
the two-part permit is perforated and made of heavy cardstock
to withstand weathering, it can not be reproduced. These 8.5-
by 11-inch permits can be picked up from any Michigan Department
of Natural Resources (DNR) office, or they can be ordered
by e-mailing
the DNR. Backpackers have been heavily fined for not posting
Camp Registration Cards in the past.
Review Land
Use Orders issued by the Director of the DNR. Tip:
To find what you are looking for, search the above Web page
using your browser's "find" feature, which may
be accessible by clicking the "edit" tab on the
toolbar.
Review Regulation
of Land Administered by the DNR
Anyone bivouacking on Crown land, property
owned by the Province of Ontario, outside of a provincial
park, etc,. is required by provincial law to purchase Crown
Land Camping Permits. These permits cost $10.00 Canadian
per night, per person and are generally available from any
Ontario sports shop that sells hunting and fishing licenses,
such as the one below, which is conveniently located along
the east side of Highway 17 on the northern outskirts of Sault
Ste. Marie, Ontario.
Chippewa
Trading Post
1332 Great Northern
Road
Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario P6A 5K7
1-705-759-4518
Fax: 1-705-759-0887
E-mail: trading.post@shaw.ca
Web site: http://www.trading-post.ca
All persons participating
in a Michigan Bush Rats' trip or expedition organized by Michael
Neiger must read, acknowledge understanding, and sign a liability
waiver at the trailhead.
In nature
there are neither rewards
nor punishments--
there are consequences.
--Robert Green
Ingersoll (1833-1899)
American lawyer, orator,
and civil war cavalry commander
Some Reasons Why (1896)
Michigan Bush Rats' trips
and expeditions organized by Michael Neiger are generally
strenuous to very-strenuous in nature. As such, they are only
suitable for adventurous individuals with strong minds and
bodies.
They are not suitable
for the overweight, inactive, or out-of-shape. Rather, they
are only suitable for those who maintain their muscular and
aerobic fitness on a regular and long-term basis.
It is strongly recommended
that participants consult their personal physician before
participating in a Michigan Bush Rats' trip or expedition
organized by Michael Neiger. The following heath checkups
are strongly recommended:
- thorough
physical exam
- stress
test
- complete
dental exam
Michigan Bush Rats' trips
and expeditions organized by Michael Neiger are only suitable
for seasoned wilderness trippers with considerable experience,
including traveling and bivouacking in foul weather.
They are not suitable
for beginners or the inexperienced. Depending upon the nature
of a particular trip, participants will need to be at the
intermediate, advanced, or expert level.
Since participants are
responsible for themselves--as well as their own safety, health,
and well-being--they must be:
- at least 18
years old
- nonsmokers
- independent
- self-reliant
- foul-weather
ready
- fully and appropriately
equipped
- proficient
swimmers
- wilderness-skills
savvy
- good
decision makers who exercise sound wilderness judgment
There's no
such thing
as bad weather--
only wrong clothes.
--
Anonymous
Wilderness tripping and expeditioning--especially
remote, foul-weather travel, bushwhacking cross-country, cliff
and steep slope travel, climbing, canyoneering, cave exploration,
river fording, swimming, canoeing, portaging, skiing, snowshoeing,
winter camping, ice travel, ice crossing, deep cold, high
winds, etc.--involve unknown and unpredictable hazards and
perils.
The beginning
of wisdom
is a salutary shock.
--
Arnold Toynbee
A wilderness tripper's or expeditioner's
failure to physically and mentally prepare for a harsh trip
or expedition; acquire the necessary skills and equipment
for a harsh trip or expedition; and recognize, take responsibility
for, and avoid the unknown and unpredictable hazards and perils
that often present themselves on a harsh wilderness trip or
expedition will likely result in the serious injury, paralysis,
or slow, painful death of the tripper or expeditioner.
PegLeg: A totally
blown-out knee
immobilized
by slats of old growth
during a May '01 trip
to the remote,
northern section
of the McCormick Tract in Marquette County. (Photo by Mary
Powell) Read
journal and view photos from this trip
On Michigan Bush Rats' trips and expeditions
organized by Michael Neiger, the only first-aid equipment
available is that which is carried by each participant. Each
participant should carry their own first-aid kit, which should
be stocked with the items and medications recommended by their
personal physician.
On Michigan Bush Rats' trips and expeditions
organized by Michael Neiger, there are no doctors, nurses,
EMTs, paramedics, or other trained emergency medical personnel.
At best, other participants may only be able to render the
most basic of first-aid care.
On Michigan Bush Rats' trips and expeditions
organized by Michael Neiger, there are no search and rescue
personnel; no one is trained in rope handling, rappelling,
climbing, caving, ice travel, high-angle slope travel, swift-water
travel, etc. No one is trained in rescue from any of these
activities either; no one is trained in high-angle rescue,
ice rescue, swift-water rescue, etc.
Early and provident fear
is the mother of safety.
--
Edmund Burke
1729-1797
Speech, 1792
On Michigan Bush Rats' trips and expeditions
organized by Michael Neiger, no insurance coverage is provided
for participants. It is strongly recommended that participants
consider purchasing insurance coverage such as:
- trip cancellation insurance
- dental insurance
- medical insurance
- prescription insurance
- evacuation insurance
- disability insurance
- life insurance
TravelX
Insurance Services
1-800-228-9792
http://www.travelex-insurance.com
MedJet
Assistance
1-800-963-3538
http://www.medjetassistance.com
International
SOS
1-800-523-8930
http://www.internationalsos.com
Travel
Guard International
1-800-826-4919
http://www.travelguard.com
U.S.
Department of State
http://travel.state.gov
Complete list of air ambulance & med-evac companies
as well as travel insurance vendors listed under "International
Travel" and "Health"
InsureMyTrip
1-800-487-4722
http://www.insuremytrip.com
A comprehensive listing of 72 policies offered by 15 companies
On Michigan Bush Rats' trips and expeditions
organized by Michael Neiger, emergency communications gear
such as cell phones, satellite phones, and satellite beacons
(ELTs, PLBs, & EPIRBs) are not provided or carried. Even
if a participant carries SAR-comm gear, it can't always be
relied upon, especially in rugged terrain or remote bush.
Nature never overlooks a mistake,
or makes the smallest allowance
for ignorance.
--
Thomas H. Huxley, 1825-1895
A Liberal Education, 1868
The only way to summon search and rescue
personal or emergency medical personnel on Michigan Bush Rats'
trips or expeditions organized by Michael Neiger is for another
uninjured participant to walk or paddle to a point where help
can be summoned.
The wait for assistance will be very
long--measured in days--and possibly very painful, maybe even
fatal. Since the evacuation process will be very difficult
and costly to arrange, participants should consider purchasing
evacuation insurance and carrying their own communications
gear:
ACR Terrafix 406 GPS
PLB
1-954-981-3333
http://www.acrplb.com
(Personal locator beacons with 406MHz and 121.5MHz transmitters
that include GPS position fixes)
Globalstar
SPOT Satellite Messenger
1-877-728-7466
http://www.globalstar.com
(GPS-Enabled Satellite Messenger)
GMPCS Personal Communications
1-888-664-6727
http://www.gmpcs-us.com
(Satellite phone rentals)
McMurdo FastFind Plus
GPS PLB
1-800-576-2605
http://www.mcmpw.com
(Personal locator beacons with 406MHz and 121.5MHz transmitters
that include GPS position fixes)
PLB
Rentals LLC
1-425-299-5662
http://www.plbrentals.com
(Personal locator beacon rentals)
It is always
dangerous
to try to impose
your will on reality
because reality
has a terrible way
of biting back.
--
Newt Gingrich
Former House Speaker
- 08-12:
Mary Powell's photo-journal
from the May 24 to June 2 '08 Canadian Backpacking Expedition
to Lake Superior Provincial Park uploaded
and linked to the Trip
Journals and Photos page
- 07-20:
Mary Powell's photo album
from the May 24 to June 2 '08 Canadian Backpacking Expedition
to Lake Superior Provincial Park uploaded
and linked to the Trip
Journals and Photos page
- 07-12:
Tracy R's photo album
from the May 24 to June 2 '08 Canadian Backpacking Expedition
to Lake Superior Provincial Park uploaded
and linked to the Trip
Journals and Photos page
- 07-11:
Michael Neiger's photo-journal
from the June 28 to July 4 '08 Porcupine Mountains Backpacking
Trip uploaded
and linked to the Trip
Journals and Photos page
- 07-11:
Dennis Waite's photo album
from the June 28 to July 4 '08 Porcupine Mountains Backpacking
Trip uploaded
and linked to the Trip
Journals and Photos page
- 07-11:
Dennis Waite's photo album
from the May 24 to June 2 '08 Canadian Backpacking Expedition
to Lake Superior Provincial Park uploaded
and linked to the Trip
Journals and Photos page
- 06-23:
Michigan Bush Rats' November 7-10
'08 Mackinac Wilderness Tract Trip beta uploaded
to the Midwest
Forum
- 06-13:
Michigan Bush Rats' October 3-6
'08 Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore Backpacking &
Spelunking Trip beta uploaded to the Midwest
Forum
- 05-17:
Michigan Bush Rats' August 28 to
September 2 '08 McCormick Wilderness Tract Backpacking Trip
beta uploaded to the Midwest
Forum
- 04-11:
Gail Staisil's photo album
from the April, '08 Mackinac State Forest Backpacking Trip
uploaded and linked to the Trip
Journals and Photos page
- 03-29:
Gail Staisil's photo-journal
from the March 7-11, '08 Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore
Trip uploaded and linked to the Trip
Journals and Photos page
- 03-18:
Cathy Susan's photo-journal
from the Feb 9-17, '08 Trans-Lake Superior Provincial Park
Canadian Expedition has been posted on Backpacker Magazine's
Midwest
Forum and linked to the Trip
Journals and Photos page
- 03-17:
Michigan Bush Rats' June 28 to
July 5, '08 Porcupine Mountains Backpacking Trip beta
uploaded to the Midwest
Forum
- 03-17:
Photo albums from the
March 7-11, '08 Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore Trip uploaded
and linked to the Trip
Journals and Photos page
- 02-17:
Gail
Staisil's photo album
and C.
A. Susan's photo album
from the Feb 9-17, '08 Trans-Lake Superior Provincial Park
Canadian Expedition uploaded and linked to the Trip
Journals and Photos page
- 02-17:
Mary
Ann Hayman's photo album
from the Jan 18-22, '08 Delirium Wilderness Tract Winter
Sledge Trip uploaded and linked to the Trip
Journals and Photos page
- 02-01:
Mary Powell's
trip journal
from the Jan 18-22, '08 Winter Sledge Trip uploaded
and linked to the Trip
Journals and Photos page
- 01-31:
Michigan Bush Rats' May 24-June
2, '08 22nd Annual Canadian Backpacking Expedition--The
Coldwater River and Calwin Falls Expedition--beta
posted on Backpacker Magazine's Midwest
Forum and linked to the Upcoming
Trips Page on this Web site
- 01-27:
Mary
Powell's photo album
from the Jan 18-22, '08 Delirium Wilderness Tract Winter
Sledge Trip uploaded and linked to the Trip
Journals and Photos page
- 01-26:
Michigan Bush Rats' May 2-5, '08
Mackinac Wilderness Tract (Michigan's U.P.) Backpacking
Trip beta posted on Backpacker Magazine's Midwest
Forum and linked to the Upcoming
Trips Page on this Web site
- 01-26:
Michigan Bush Rats' April 4-7,
'08 Mackinac State Forest (Michigan's L.P.) Backpacking
Trip beta posted on Backpacker Magazine's Midwest
Forum and linked to the Upcoming
Trips Page on this Web site
- 01-25:
C.A.
Susan's photo album
from the Jan 18-22, '08 Delirium Wilderness Tract Winter
Sledge Trip uploaded and linked to the Trip
Journals and Photos page
- 12-18:
Mary Powell's
trip journal
from the Dec 7-10, '07 Mackinac State Forest Winter Sledge
Trip uploaded
and linked to the Trip
Journals and Photos page
- 12-15:
Gail
Staisil's, Mike
Fogarty's, and
Mary
Powell's photo
albums from the Dec 7-10, '07 Mackinac State
Forest Winter Sledge Trip uploaded and linked to the Trip
Journals and Photos page
- 11-25:
Mary Powell's trip journal
from the May 27 - June 2, '07 Canadian Backpacking Expedition
uploaded
and linked to the Trip
Journals and Photos page
- 11-19:
Joanne Sarrasin's trip journal
from the Oct 5-8, '07 Pictured Rocks Backpacking and Spelunking
Trip uploaded
and linked to the Trip
Journals and Photos page
- 11-18:
Mary Powell's trip journal
from the Nov 2-5 Mackinac Wilderness Tract Winter Backpacking
Trip uploaded
and linked to the Trip
Journals and Photos page
- 11-15:
Big Daddy's Gypsy
Caravan fabric outlet
added to sewing page on
this Web site
- 11-14:
Michigan Bush Rats' March 7-11
'08 Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore Snowshoeing and Ice
Exploration Trip beta posted on Backpacker
Magazine's Midwest Forum and linked to the Upcoming
Trips Page on this Web site
- 11-14:
Sarah Kirkish's trip journal
from the Nov 2-5 Mackinac Wilderness Tract Winter Backpacking
Trip uploaded
and linked to the Trip
Journals and Photos page
- 11-12:
Mary Powell's photo album
from the Nov 2-5 Mackinac Wilderness Tract Winter Backpacking
Trip uploaded
and linked to the Trip
Journals and Photos page
- 11-08:
Gail Staisil's photo album
from the Nov 2-5 Mackinac Wilderness Tract Winter Backpacking
Trip uploaded
and linked to the Trip
Journals and Photos page
- 11-07:
C.A. Susan's photo album
from the Nov 2-5 Mackinac Wilderness Tract Winter Backpacking
Trip uploaded
and linked to the Trip
Journals and Photos page
- 11-07:
Rob Schwenke's photo album
from the Nov 2-5 Mackinac Wilderness Tract Winter Backpacking
Trip uploaded
and linked to the Trip
Journals and Photos page
- 10-31:
Michigan Bush Rats' Feb 9-17 '08
21st-Annual Canadian Snowshoeing Expedition
beta posted on Backpacker
Magazine's Midwest Forum and linked to the Upcoming
Trips Page on this Web site
- 10-23:
Mary Powell's photo album
from the Oct 5-8, '07 Pictured Rocks Backpacking and Spelunking
Trip uploaded
and linked to the Trip
Journals and Photos page
- 10-16:
Feb through June wilderness-tripping schedule uploaded to
Upcoming Trips Page
- 08-08:
New Man-Tracking Message Board
on Yahoo.com
added to Tracking Man & Beast
Page
- 07-17:
Michigan Bush Rats' Jan 18-22 Delirium
Wilderness Tract Winter-Camping Trip beta posted
on Backpacker
Magazine's Midwest Forum and linked to the Upcoming
Trips Page on this Web site
- 07-16:
Michigan Bush Rats' Dec 7-10 Mackinac
State Forest Winter-Backpacking Trip beta posted
on Backpacker
Magazine's Midwest Forum and linked to the Upcoming
Trips Page on this Web site
- 07-12:
Michigan Bush Rats' Nov 2-5 Mackinac
Wilderness Tract Winter-Backpacking Trip beta
posted on Backpacker
Magazine's Midwest Forum and linked to the Upcoming
Trips Page on this Web site
- 07-09:
Michigan Bush Rats' Oct 5-8 Pictured
Rocks Backpacking & Spelunking Trip beta
posted on Backpacker
Magazine's Midwest Forum and linked to the Upcoming
Trips Page on this Web site
- 07-08:
International Guild of Knot Tyers http://www.igkt.net/
added to Knot Page courtesy of Glenys
Chew in England
- 07-05:
Michigan Bush Rats' Aug 31 to Sept
4 Pigeon River Elk-Country Backpacking Trip beta
posted on Backpacker
Magazine's Midwest Forum and linked to the Upcoming
Trips Page on this Web site
- 06-24:
Tracey Robertson's photo album
from the May 27 - June 2, '07 Canadian Backpacking Expedition
uploaded
and linked to the Trip
Journals and Photos page
- 06-22:
Dennis Waite's expedition photo-journal
presentation from the Feb 10-18, '07 Canadian
Snowshoeing Expedition uploaded
and linked to the Trip
Journals and Photos page
- 06-19:
New vendor Taiga Works
http://www.taigaworks.ca/
added to Backpacking Resources
Page
- 06-17:
Charlie Robertson's moose shed
from the May 27 - June 2, '07 Canadian Backpacking Expedition
uploaded and linked to the
Trip Journals and Photos
page
- 06-17:
C. A. Susan's photo album
from the May 27 - June 2, '07 Canadian Backpacking Expedition
uploaded
and linked to the Trip
Journals and Photos page
- 06-16:
C. A. Susan's expedition highlights
from the Feb 10-18, '07 Canadian Snowshoeing Expedition
uploaded and
linked to the Trip Journals
and Photos page
- 05-16:
For an excellent selection of bowie
knives, visit this Finish site: TERA-ASEkeskus
Precision Steel
- 05-16:
For excellent info on black bear
safety, visit the Ontario Ministry of Natural
Resources' Bear
Wise Web site, which has been added to the Bear
Safety page
- 04-30:
Michigan Bush Rats' June 26 to
July 16, '07, 684-km Lake Superior-to-the-Arctic Ocean Canoeing
Expedition beta posted on Backpacker
Magazine's Midwest Forum and linked to the Upcoming
Trips Page on this Web site
- 04-26:
A vendor of military equipment,
The U.S. Patriot
Store, added to Military
Equipment Vendor List
- 04-13:
C. A. Susan's photo album
from the Michigan Bush Rats' March 31 to April 3, '07 Pigeon
River Country State Forest Backpacking Trip uploaded
- 04-13:
Mary Powell's photo album
from the March 1-6, '07 Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore
Ice Tour uploaded
- 04-06:
Mary Powell's photo album
from the Michigan Bush Rats' March 31 to April 3, '07 Pigeon
River Country State Forest Backpacking Trip uploaded
- 04-05:
Gail Staisil's photo album
from the Michigan Bush Rats' March 31 to April 3, '07 Pigeon
River Country State Forest Backpacking Trip uploaded
- 03-22:
Mary Powell's trip journal
from the Michigan Bush Rat's March 1-6, '07 Pictured Rocks
National Lakeshore Winter-camping Trip uploaded
- 03-19:
C. A. Susan's photo album
from the Feb 10-18, '07 Canadian Snowshoeing Expedition
uploaded
and linked to the Trip
Journals and Photos page
- 03-17:
Michigan Bush Rats' May 27 to June
2, '07 Canadian Backpacking Expedition to Lake Superior
Provincial Park trip beta posted on Backpacker
Magazine's Midwest Forum and linked to the Upcoming
Trips Page on this Web site
- 03-17:
Gail Staisil's photo album
from the March 1-6, '07 Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore
Ice Tour uploaded
and linked to the Trip
Journals and Photos page
- 03-16:
C. A. Susan's photo album
from the March 1-6, '07 Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore
Ice Tour uploaded
and linked to the Trip
Journals and Photos page
- 03-14:
New paddling equipment vendor--MountainMan
Outdoor Supply Company--added to Paddling
Resource page
- 02-25:
Michigan Bush Rat's March 31 to
April 3, '07 Pigeon River Country State Forest Backpacking
Trip beta posted on Backpacker Magazine's Midwest
Forum
- 02-04:
Gail Staisil's trip journal
from the Michigan Bush Rat's January 12-16, '07 Kingston
Plains and Fox River Pathway Winter-camping Trip uploaded
- 02-04:
Mary Powell's trip journal
from the Michigan Bush Rat's January 12-16, '07 Kingston
Plains and Fox River Pathway Winter-camping Trip uploaded
- 01-25:
Mary Powell's photo albums
from the Michigan Bush Rat's January 12-16, '07 Kingston
Plains and Fox River Pathway Winter-camping Trip uploaded:
album
no. 1 and album
no. 2
- 01-18:
Gail Staisil's photo album
from the Michigan Bush Rats' January 12-16, '07 Kingston
Plains and Fox River Pathway Winter-camping trip uploaded
- 12-20:
Michigan Bush Rats' March 1-6,
'07 Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore Ice Cave Tour
trip beta posted on Backpacker Magazine's Midwest
Forum
- 12-18:
Gail Staisil's trip journal
from the Feb 19-23, '06 Batchawana River Valley Winter-Camping
Expedition uploaded
- 12-12:
Bush Rats' Feb 3-11, '07 20th Annual
Canadian Snowshoeing Expedition beta posted on
Backpacker Magazine's Midwest
Forum
- 12-08:
Gail Staisil's trip journal
from the Dec 2-3 Dog Lake Flooding Winter-Backpacking trip
uploaded
- 12-08:
Mary Powell's photo album
from the Dec 2-3 Dog Lake Flooding Winter-Backpacking trip
uploaded
- 12-07:
Mary Powell's trip journal
from the Dec 2-3 Dog Lake Flooding Winter-Backpacking trip
uploaded
- 12-06:
Bush Rats' Jan 12-16 Delirium Wilderness
Tract Trip beta posted on Backpacker Magazine's
Midwest
Forum
- 12-05:
Gail Staisil's photo album
from the Dec 2-3 Dog Lake Flooding Winter-Backpacking trip
uploaded
- 12-05:
Roy Kranz's photo album
from the Dec 2-3 Dog Lake Flooding Winter-Backpacking trip
uploaded
- 11-30:
Notice--The principal bulletin board for Bush Rats' trip
postings, important updates, and pre-trip discussion is
currently Backpacker
Magazine's Midwest Forum.
If you are interested in keeping abreast
of the Bush Rats' adventures, you should consider visiting
this online forum. Look for posts by LandNavMan under the
"Topic Starter" column header. If you are planning
to participate in one of their adventures, you should join
(register) so you can receive automatic, e-mail notification
of new posts, ask or answer questions, and participate in
discussions.
Joining this free forum is very quick
and easy--simply pick a cool bush name and answer a few
questions. Join
now. If at some point you would like to add an optional
avatar--a thumbnail-size photo that will appear with all
your posts--and you need help optimizing (cropping, pixel-sizing,
and byte-sizing) it, e-mail
me. If you would like to add an optional "signature"
quote, which will appear at the bottom of all your posts,
visit American
Trails for a list of unique qoutes.
Miners Castle in
the Pictured
Rocks National
Lakeshore.
(Pastel by
Susan [Neiger]
Roubal )
For
brick and mortar
breed filth and crime,
With a pulse of evil
that throbs and beats;
And men [women] are withered
before their prime
By the curse paved in with
the lanes and streets.
And lungs are poisoned
and shoulders bowed,
In the smothering reek
of mill and mine;
And death stalks in
on the struggling crowd--
But he [she] shuns the shadow
of oak and pine.
--Nessmuk (George W. Sears)
Woodcraft, 1920
False solomon's
seal in the
Pictured
Rocks
backcountry
(Drawing
by Mary Powell)
All the Best,
Michael Neiger
aka: LandNavMan
Marquette, Michigan
mneiger@hotmail.com
Return
to top of page |
Return
to home page
In
God's wilderness
lies the hope of the world,
the great, fresh, unblighted,
unredeemed wilderness.
John Muir
1838-1914
Alaska Wilderness, 1890
Return
to top of page |
Return
to home page
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since
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Michael Neiger
(aka: LandNavMan)
is an avid wilderness tripper
who lives in
Marquette, Michigan
on the south shore of
Lake Superior
E-mail
him
Read his bio
Become
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shopping engines
I've always
had this adage
that load dictates speed.
In order to safely go light,
you have to be able to go fast.
In bad weather,
if you want to go slow
--and stay warm--you
have to go heavy.
--Mark
Twight
Extreme alpinist
& ultralight guru
"Expert Corner:
Light vs Heavy,"
Backpacker Magazine,
May 2003
FlyerTalk
BiddingForTravel
DealDetector
FareAlert
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(crawler)
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11-30)
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More
travel links
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ETravelJournal
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NationalGeographic
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SeaLetter
TripSpot
VirtuallyThere
Men
[women] may dam it
and say that they have
made a lake,
but it will still be a river.
It will bide its time,
like a caged animal
alert for the slightest opening.
In time, it will have its way;
the dam, like the ancient cliffs,
will be carried away
piecemeal in the currents.
--Wendell
Berry
On
a February '99
snowshoe expedition
to Whiskey Bottle Lake,
Gary De Kock of
Fruitport, Michigan
bevel-cuts blocks of
snow for his Igloo in
anticipation of a
40-below night along
Kasubeek Creek,
Lake Superior
Provincial Park,
Ontario, Canada
(Photo by Gary De Kock)
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Dehydration....
"...don't
just let
thirst be your
guide or you're
doomed for failure.
This is because
the thirst drive
is satisfied long
before the body's
fluid stores are
fully replenished."
Source:
Dr. Steven Keteyian
The Detroit News,
April 24, 2002
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Little Miners River Falls
greets Gail Staisil and
fellow spelunkers
at the entrance to the
2000-person Amphitheater
cave on a Sept '01
backpacking trip
to the Pictured Rocks
National Lakeshore
(Photo by Gail Staisil)
Read
trip journal
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Lowdown on cotton...
Even
when
dry, cotton
sucks heat
six times faster
from your body
than polypro
Source:
Hypothermia,
by William
Forgey
(ICS, 1985)
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John,
Loretta, Sue, Gail,
Mary, Mara, & Michael
in the Agawa Canyon,
Ontario, Canada, on a May '01
backpacking expedition
(Photo by Gail Staisil)
Read
trip journal
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Lowdown on DEET...
Out of 8 billion
applications of
DEET from 1966
to 1999, less
than 40 instances
of toxicity
appeared in the
medical literature.
Source: Study by
Dr. Mark Fradin
as reported in the
May 2000 issue of
Backpacker, p. 29
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Twin moose calves
greet paddlers on
the Aubinadong Ri,
Ontario, Canada
(Photo by Michael Neiger)
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Mike, Gail, Jane, Mary,
and Michael heading into
the McCormick Tract,
Marquette & Baraga Cos.,
on a May '01 backpacking trip
(Photo by Mike Ugorowski)
Read
trip journal
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Caribou,
Mount McKinley, Alaska
(Photo by Dave Kahanek)
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Members of the
WomenQuest Polar Trek 2001,
an expedition that
skiied to the North Pole
in April '01, train with
the Bush Rats
and Mary Powell of Flint
on a March '01 trip to the
Pictured Rocks National
Lakeshore
(Photo by Michael Neiger)
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Lady
Evelyn Falls,
Sand River,
Ontario, Canada
(Photo by Michael Rizzio)
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Bull
moose in
Algonquin Provincial Park,
Ontario, Canada
(Photo by Robert Topp)
I am the
heat of your hearth on the cold winter nights, the friendly
shade screening you from the summer sun, and my fruits
are refreshing draughts quenching your thirst as you
journey on.
I am the
beam that holds your house, the board of your table,
the bed on which you lie, and the timber that builds
your boat.
I am the
handle of your hoe, the door of your homestead, the
wood of your cradle, and the shell of your coffin.
I am the
bread of kindness and the flower of beauty.
Ye who pass
by--listen to my prayer: harm me not.
--Prayer
of the Woods,
from Portuguese Forest Reserves
over 1,000 years ago.
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