Warren Dunes State Park
It all begins with an idea.
Saturday, December 21
Sawyer, Michigan
Two inches of freshly fallen snow and partly sunny skies made for a perfect afternoon hike for the 16 people (including two newcomers) who showed up at Warren Dunes. The group had virtually the whole area around Floral Road to itself–we only encountered one other hiker. Leader Pat Fisher pointed out several girdled oak trees along the way, victims of Oak wilt, a fungal infection that is spread by beetles and is almost always fatal. Killing trees with the disease keeps it from spreading to other oaks in the forest. One hiker pointed out holes in trees made by pileated woodpeckers. Others inspected birdhouses nailed to several trees and proclaimed them homes for wood ducks. (Photo by member Mark Piper.)
Harbert Road Preserve
It all begins with an idea.
Saturday, December 7
Three Oaks, Michigan
President Pat Fisher gave a brief introduction about Michigan’s natural features, then turned hike leadership over to member Mark Piper. (A fall at home left Fisher, who was originally scheduled to lead the hike, with an uncomfortable foot injury.) Piper led the two dozen who attended through the preserve’s 90 acres of various types of wetlands, prairie and woodlands along its perimeter trail. (Photo by member Mark Piper.)
Grand Mere State Park
It all begins with an idea.
Saturday, November 16
Stevensville, Mich.
Forty-six hikers, including some new members, turned out for this November event at one of Michigan’s more diverse state parks. The park’s 1,100 acres offer two embayments, small lakes left behind by glaciers. A third, North Lake, is part of a township park and is used for recreational boating and, in season, duck hunting. The weather started out sunny, then turned cloudy, but temperatures remained comfortable. Hike leader and Hikers President Pat Fisher said there were originally five embayments, but two have dried up–and eventually the others will, too. Some unusual properties of the sand at Grand Mere make it ideal for casting car parts, and Michigan’s automotive industry fought for and briefly won rights to mine this resource. Grand Mere was designated a Natural Landmark by the National Park Service in 1968, and has many natural features not found in the rest of the state.