Thanks for this! I happen to be in Grayling right now, sneaking in some very icy xc skiing before rededicating my life to Zoom meetings. I really loved the stretch of the Au Sable river that runs through Hartwick Pines, and now I know where I can find more trail like that!

You can decide a lot on the fly, especially if --- as you're doing --- you've followed Leave No Trace precept #1: plan ahead and prepare! If you do wind up at McCargo, an option to consider is following the Minong Ridge Trail (detouring along the way to check out the Minong Mine, about a mile uphill...

Thanks for the excellent and informative report! It looks like the sumacs were popping. Is there overlap (other than you) between your MRT/NCT companions and your summer '21 IR expedition?

This sounds like a superfun trip! (It may even inspire you to backpack next time!) three more thoughts: *if you do the kayak/lookout Louise combo, you can incorporate an out-and-back (of whatever length you choose) on the easternmost stretch of Greenstone ridge trail. It's a way to get a sense of wh...

"These expeditions are for experienced backpackers only, as you will be hiking up to 16 kilometers a day with a backpack that grows even heavier with moose bones near the end of your hike." A useful counterpoint to the prospect of a backpack growing heavier due to dampened coffee grounds! ...

off topic, because it's not instant, and maybe more in-depth than anybody cares for, but I came across this and thought I'd leave it here:

https://www.adventurealan.com/best-camp ... er-coffee/

My exposure to the waterborne options is glancing, so others should chime in. But if the idea is to kayak from a RH base for a few days before mounting a hiking trip, that seems like a great idea. -Even bounders like me can enjoy the kayak/hike combo that starts from RH's seaplane dock ("inland...

insects: not really an issue in December. Except in the yurt: the propane heat very briefly resurrected some houseflies who had gone into some sort of suspended animation. I swept their sad corpses out in the morning before leaving. The yurt itself was very welcoming and sensibly appointed. As, as s...

I learned something about deer seasons recently that I really wish I'd known a few weeks ago. This year, at least in the southern lower peninsula, muzzleloading season is open to all legal firearms. That, plus lots more licenses are valid in muzzleloader season. As far as I can tell, muzzleloader s...

Bobcat1 wrote: ↑Sat Dec 12, 2020 5:26 pm Cholmondeley has so many more letters than it needs!

His tags tag him as "Chumly", and that's the name he uses with the vet. But between friends, we go for the whole berserk proper spelling.

Day 2: Green Lake to Silver Lake And a very frosting morning it was! frosty pond.jpg I set off in the company of more gunfire, but soon crossed into Park Lyndon---no hunting allowed! (I recognize that it’s irrational for me to care about that, since it’s the irresponsible hunters I worry about, and ...

Just short of Sackrider, I encountered the first gun of the trip, a (muzzle loading hunting?) pistol tucked into the waistbelt of a person walking a young German shepherd, who took vociferous exception to me. The human was perfectly friendly and seemed genuinely abashed that his dog was unmannerly. ...

Background: Mr torpified and I were somehow allowed to do our jobs from California last year. I’d aimed to mount one last Sierra backpacking trip, in the Hoover Wilderness, before our return to Michigan. The worst wildfire season in west coast history put the kibosh on that plan. So since getting ba...

I'll address the head: *My first trip was almost exactly those dates! You'll be there for the solstice: sunset around 10, sunrise around 6, where it gets light well before official sunrise and stays light well after official sunset. So consider bringing something that might serve as a sleep mask. (I...

Has anybody tried mailing a package with fuel canisters to the island ahead of time? I thought I had read somewhere that all mail delivery to the island was via the Ranger III so it seems like it should be OK. The NPS site ( https://www.nps.gov/isro/planyourvisit/supply-delivery-and-storage.htm ) m...