Spirit of the Woods at Big M 2024

  The Spirit of the Woods Chapter of the NCTA has a chili feed and hike at Big M almost every year. As unlikely as it seems, 2017 may be the last time I was there. I was doing a book event a couple of years on that weekend, I was in NY in 2018, then there was Covid, then I was hiking. Not sure what happened last year. I may have still been in hiding.

We had a serious size group- 30 people! Three dogs and a ferret too.

The group quickly spreads out on the trail. We've been doing out-and-back hikes for several years, so people just go at their own pace and turn around when they are "half tired."

Nine of us decided to take the short bushwhack over to the Udell Fire Tower.

The definining feature of the Udell Hills is... hills. There is a nice amount of topography to keep you entertained and working a little harder. The nine of us left from the fire tower on a different trail and took Big M trails (Barber Chair and Sky Pilot) to loop back to the NCT. Most of the snow was gone, but there was enough here to nicely define the trail.

The anticipated portion of the event was the return to the Big M warming shelter.

There was chili provided by the chapter, and pot luck items to round out the meal. Serious eating ensued.

One of the nicest things about the shelter is the wood stove. It not only gives a cozy feel to the room, but can be used to heat the chili!

The chapter honor award this year went to Monica. She has been organizing the hikes and serving as sweep at many of them. That means she makes sure we get the same number of people back as the number that started!

Those of us who did the loop did a total of 5.9 miles, with 4.2 being on the NCT for Hike 100.

Total miles hiked in 2024: 97.5 of which 17.2 is North Country Trail.

North Country Trail from Madison Rd to Udell Fire Tower turnoff, Big M Barber Chair and Skypilot Trails. 5.9 miles total

See SPW Chili Feed 2017

Only 10.3 Miles?

  I thought my total was going to be more like 11 or 12 miles, so I'm a little disappointed in that, but 10.3 isn't shabby. Loren and I started at the North Country Trail Udell Trailhead on M-55 and went north. There was the April Fool snow on the ground. After a mile in the woods, the trail comes out on Cedar Creek Road (which isn't very road-like on the west end so it makes a nice easy piece of trail).

The best feature of this section of trail is Pine Creek.

The sun came out, and with a sandy bed the creek looked golden.

A fallen tree with roots washed bare seemed artistic.

A lovely bed of Norhern Ground Cedar accented with Reindeer Moss.

We returned to Udell and ate lunch. Loren had enough, but I went in the other direction. By now, almost all the snow was melted away. The air was crisp and the temperature stayed in the 30s, but it was nice for walking.

This section is much hillier. These are called the Udell Hills, and that's where the trailhead gets its name. My plan was to go outbound on the NCT until the place where it is closest to the Shanty Boy trail that is part of the Big M system. Here's where I bushwhacked across. I'm standing on the NCT looking north. I think the far line of hills is on the north side of the Manistee River. But all I had to do was drop down the hill- you can see the edge practically at my feet- (carefully) to reach Shanty Boy at the bottom.

Easily found the other trail and headed back to the junction with the NCT that I had passed earlier. One very very cool thing is that this is a piece of local trail I've never seen before. The outer loop at Big M is about 25 miles long. It's primarily for mountain bikes, although hiking is allowed. I need to get out there and do an overnight to see all of that loop! Anyway, Here is part of the Shanty Boy Trail

One interesting feature was a big glacial erratic boulder. These are not very common here. We mostly jut have sand, and this one is huge for our area.

Anyway, my afternoon hike would make a nice loop for a group as long as they didn't mind the steep descent from the NCT to Shanty Boy. Fun stuff! My total for the day, 10.3 miles.

North Country Trail miles for 2021 is at 155.

In other news: I'm doing a little work on a web site, but the hiking took most of the day.

See MNF Challenge Hike #11

One Day, Two Hikes

  I had planned to walk with Cathy this afternoon, but then an informal group decided to hike at Big M ski area in the morning. Well, why not?

We hiked the highest, hilliest trail at Big M. This is the view north from Capper's Peak.

Let me pull that in for you a bit. I didn't look up what we are seeing, but my guess is the hills on the north side of the Manistee River.

Big M is an area within the Manistee National Forest, within the Udell Hills. The North Country Trail passes through it, but that's not what we were on. There are miles of cross-country ski trails. Of course these can be hiked when there is no snow. It used to also have a downhill run, and this is the foundation from the ski lift. Those hikers are looking south, so you can tell that Capper's Peak really is a high point.

Oddly enough, there was an old travel trailer that had been dragged out into the woods. Loren reported it, because it's certainly not supposed to be there.

We did the Catamont Loop, plus spurs at each end to get from and to the parking lot.

There were eight of us, and Loren's two dogs, who hiked. It's easy to spread out on a trail, and being outside is pretty safe anyway.

Then I came home, got some lunch, and met Cathy to hike at Ludington State Park, the back trail out to Hamlin Dam. I didn't take many pictures, but this is a little pond that is on the inland side of one of the dunes. Technically, an interdunal wetland.

And our turn-around point- this familiar view of the back side of Hamlin Dam.

I've decided that I really like hiking when the temperature is in the 30s. If you hike right along it's easy to stay warm enough.

The really bad news is that someone in bell choir has tested positive for the virus. So my phone kept dinging with texts to tell us all that practice was cancelled. In fact... all the Christmas bell choir stuff may be cancelled. We'll have to wait and see. There is no other news except that I picked up some groceries on the way home.

My mileage for the day was a total of 8 miles- 5 at Big M, and 3 at the State Park.

Big M Ski Area, Manistee National Forest, Michigan. Catamont Loop plus spur from parking, and Double Bit and Lumberjack Trails to return to parking. Ludington State Park, Piney Ridge Road to Hamlin Dam and back

See Four Miles and Comfort Food for another hike to Hamlin Dam See Hiking at Big M for another day I hiked the Catamont Loop

Shanty Boy - NCT Loop

 
Today I went back to Manistee County and connected with the place I left the North Country Trail for the Udell Fire Tower.

It was cool and only partly sunny, so a little gloomy. But I can't complain. I started at Udell Trailhead on M55 and went south to the Big M Shanty Boy trail. I hadn't hiked any of this. It's primarily a mountain bike trail, but walking it is allowed. I took the Shanty Boy trail west. Passed this glacial erratic rock. Fairly big for here. We have more sand than rocks.



I did see a smaller rock that was quite pretty with all the mineral stripes. What the photo can't show you is that the white stripes have quartz or something in them, so they glitter in the sunlight.



Once again, the Avenza app makes it really easy to bushwhack. While I was on the Shanty Boy Trail, I could look left and estimate that the NCT was on top of that ridge.



Can't tell where it is? I've marked the top with a yellow line.



The distance between the two trails where I chose to cut over was minimal. However, the elevation change was impressive. I cut across the slope, and that way it wasn't bad. Now I'm up on the ridge- the NCT was right at the top, and the Shanty Boy Trail is down in the valley. You can't even see the bottom in this picture.



I am really enjoying seeing "my" trail in this time of year. I don't think I've been on much of it with the leaves off before. I had not really appreciated that the NCT follows this ridge through Udell Hills for about a mile and a half. Really "on top of the world."

So I did 6 miles in the pack, and then dumped it and did 3 more. NCT miles this year is at 126.

In other news: Not much- a little volunteer stuff and then I went hiking.

North Country Trail, Manistee County, MI. Udell TH south to Big M Shanty Boy Trail west about 2 miles, bushwhacked to NCT, continued west to mile 810.1, back to Udell, then north to Huff Rd and back. 9 miles total

See Udell Fire Tower

Manistee National Forest Challenge Picnic

 
So the core group that's been hiking the Manistee National Forest this year decided to have a picnic to celebrate. Actually, we have one more hike next Sunday, but today was the only day that most everyone could make work.



We met at the Big M warming shelter. Not that we needed to stay warm today, but there were huge swarms of Asian Ladybugs outside, so we didn't mind having us and the food inside.



It was neat because we all got to talk with each other. On the hikes the faster people usually didn't see much of the slower ones, so this was nice.



All the ski trails make nice hiking paths when there isn't snow. The leaves are barely starting to turn colors here yet.



After we ate, three of us stayed to take a little 4-mile walk. I did get to see a piece of one trail I hadn't been on before.



Miss Sophie was festive in a Halloween tutu!



The group surprised me with a thank-you card and a very undeserved but appreciated gift for organizing the hikes!



The weather was perfect, the friendships are sincere, the doggie kisses were great, and life is good.

	See Challenge Hike #12
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Spirit of the Woods at Big M 2017

 
Almost every year our trail chapter has an event and chili feed at Big M ski area. Today was the day. We started a little later than our normal time so that we ate first. The lodge there is really nice. It's hard to get good pictures though, because anywhere you point the camera there's a big window. Notice the table full of food. Yum!



That only affects the pictures, not the quality of encounters inside. I didn't count, but there were about 15 people there.



I finally got to meet Sophie the dachshund. If you are local and saw my column in today's Ludington paper, she was the star of "Can You Hike Farther than a Dachshund?" She's hitching a ride in this picture because she had already bounced through deep snow for a couple of miles. (picture not taken by me)

We basically split into three groups. Some skied, some snowshoed at Big M, and one group drove a few miles to snowshoe on the North Country Trail to get miles for their Hike 100 2017 patch. I decided to ski.



We did 3.4 miles which included some easy trail and some intermediate. I give myself a pat on the back for that. Elizabeth, the younger member of our party, is growing up. She was a novice skier at the event linked below.

In fact, I got a complete body workout this weekend. Work last night was quite physical because we were shorthanded. Came home with many sore upper body parts. Came home from skiing with sore hips. Bed for me, really soon, but what a nice day.

	See Spirit of the Woods at Big M 2014
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Spirit of the Woods at Big M 2014

 
As has been a tradition for several years now, for the February event we go to Big M Cross Country Ski Area. We didn't manage to get a picture of all the people who came this time, because folks just come and go from the warming shelter. I both skied and snowshoed. Here are four snowshoers on the Double Bit Trail.


All together, I think 13 people showed up. I both skied and snowshoed for a total of about 6 miles. We had a lot of fun. Instead of a howling wind, the temperature wasn't ridiculous, and the snowflakes fell softly. Catching them on the tongue isn't only for kids.


Speaking of kids, we had one who came with her uncle. She thought it was pretty funny when he warmed up her feet. She did get warmed up and skied a total of a couple of miles herself.



We had chili, and cornbread and brownies in the warming shelter. It's impossible to get good pictures in there because of the big windows, but they let in the light, and I'm not complaining. You can see what a nice facility it is.

Nice day!

	See SPW Big M 2013
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