Cabin Adventure - Day 2

Friday morning, second day of our trip and our 34th wedding anniversary, we took a hike on the Manistee River trail.  But before we left and after a hearty breakfast, we took Tilly out for a walk since she would be staying at the cabin while we went for the longer hike.  Last year we took her on a 10 mile walk, it is just too much for her 14 year old body.

                      Sunrise at the cabin

There was frost over night, probably the first frost of the season.  The car was frosty and the dry brown ferns had a coat of white.  Below is a picture of moss so pretty with little ice crystals on them.

We decided on starting our hike at Red Bridge on Coates Highway, this is the south end of the Manistee River Trail.

There is a parking area just east of the bridge on the south side of the road, to access the trail you cross the road (Coates Highway) then follow the trail along the road about 1/4 mile to trailhead.

OK good now we get on the trail and head north(ish), before long you are high above the river and have a great vista of the river valley below.

Many trees had a hazy smoke look to them, they must have already dropped their leaves.

Many signs have been updated in several of the US forest lands.  And this boardwalk has been replaced, it was pretty wet walking through here before.

Cool tree

We walked as far as Cedar Creek, it was a beautiful day with perfect weather.  And we hadn't seen one other person on the trail.  We had it all to ourselves!

If I remember right we were out for about 4 hours total, we weren't walking fast and we stopped several times to take in the view.  From the parking area on Coates Highway to Cedar Creek is ~3 1/2 miles, so we walked 7 miles, not counting going up and down the hills!  Perfect.

We drove to Wellston and checked out some stores, then drove to Irons for a good fish dinner at the Oak Grove Tavern.  The place looks a bit scary from the outside, but the food was good.  I would go there again.

Back to the cabin we went, Tilly was glad to see us and we walked her to the creek for a swim (her not us).  A serene evening up to about 8:30 when the owner of the cabin, Fern Dog, showed up along with two other people and 5 dogs.  Well it is a big cabin.

Pickerel Lake and Townsend Parks

October 17, 2011   

Pickerel Lake Park  (6001 Ramsdell Road NE Cannonsburg, MI 49317)

was our first stop of the day, 46 degrees- sunshine, blue sky.   

Michigan has been  having wonderful autumn weather. 
Pickerel Lake Park is a favorite in this area (just NE of Grand Rapids  Michigan) because of the interesting trails.  Larch Swamp trail, Sandy Knoll trail, woodland trails, and the main trail which circles the lake for an easy
1.9 mile walk.  You can cross country ski here, or fish from the docks.

There has been a big tree on the top west end of Pickerel Lake that a beaver chewed almost all the way through.  Well we found that tree was finally down.

First here are two pictures from 2010 of the tree.

The tree today (below).

Near the beaver tree, one of the many boardwalks at Pickerel Lake Park.

Next park for the day is Warren Townsend Park  (8280 6 Mile Road Cannonsburg, MI ), just a mile south from Pickerel Park on Ramsdell to 6 Mile Road. 

This park has a stone shelter, scenic footbridges, baseball diamonds, cross country skiing, fishing, hiking/walking, nature trails, a playground, and

restrooms.

Footbridge over Bear Creek at Townsend Park

We walked north on the Red Pine Trail, about a mile round trip, then checked out the enclosed shelter and Bear Creek.

                           Remanants of Bittersweet Nightshade

Still some wildflowers, this is a weed called Cheeses (always plural).

Another beautiful day!!

Ross Coastal Plain Marsh Preserve

Mud Lake at Ross Coastal Plain Marsh Preserve

We explored Ross Coastal Plain Marsh Preserve two weeks in a row. Parking at the south lot on September 26, we traipsed for 5 hours.  First down the main trail then to what we call Meadow Beauty Corner, called that since we found Meadow Beauty there in 2010.

                 Meadow Beauty Corner

 We found a special plant in this area, it's called Coastal Plain Flat-topped Goldenrod. I was on the look out for Autumn Coralroot,  a wild orchid.  We found it here in 2010 but on the last day of August, so I wasn't sure it would be around.  It was! 

                Autumn Coralroot (Corallorhiza odontorhiza)

We saw a frog and a toad. A caterpillar fell out of the trees near Marie, I haven't ID'ed it yet.

                         Puff Balls. 

We have been seeing these tiny pinwheel mushrooms with a white parachute collared cap, and a dark wiry stem, growing on fallen oak leaves.  I think it might be Marasmius capillaris.

Beechdrops (Epifagus virginiana ) with Cobweb spider, maybe Theridion frondeum.

We followed the trail west toward the nearby highway U.S.196/31 here we found some clay tiles so we now refer to this spot as "clay tiles corner" and here the trail goes north but we, like the crazies we are, turned south to follow a deer trail. 
Up and down we went on the non path, it wasn't easy but we were exploring new territory.  Finally we came to a point where we had a creek on our left and a highway wire fence on our right.  Oh Oh!  We didn't want to go back the way we came, no fun, and I wasn't going near the highway.  Then it got worse the creek crossed in front of us to go toward (and under?) the highway. 

We found a narrowing in the creek and a bit of a sandy spot, we had our boots on so it was just a few steps through the stream and up the bank on the other side.  Whew.
Now we were close to the road we started on (44th  Avenue), we had to go a half mile east and some of that was through the "Ancient sand dunes from the shores of preglacial Lake Nipissing".

The next week (October 3rd) went to Ross and walked ~5 miles, we were out there almost 5 hours.  We headed north on the main trail then west to Meadow Beauty Corner, we found lots of branches and some trees across the trail, it had been quite windy this past week.  And most of the pretty colored leaves were gone at Meadow Beauty Corner.

Both weeks we found the orchid, Nodding Ladies' Tresses.  The first two photos are from September 26th.  The third photo is the same plant one week later.

Nodding Ladies' Tresses September 26

Nodding Ladies' Tresses on October 3

This time we kept to the trail and went north at clay tiles corner, we walked all the way past Mud Lake and to the east, to 38th Avenue. 

Along our hike we found  Witch Hazel (Hamamelis virginiana) blooming!

There is another entrance to Ross here but it is much less traveled.  In 2009 we came to this 38th Ave. road end and under the tall grass found a wooden sign for Ross, now three years later the sign was up against a tree.

Now we turned back to head west to Mud Lake, here you can find the old partial foundation from the Ross family home.   There is also a map sign of the trails here. 

We sat in this scenic place and had a snack while watching a Mourning Cloak fluff its wings.  After skirting the lake a bit we went back on the main trail (one and a half miles) back to the car.  Total hike according to my pedometer 4.16 miles!  According to Bing maps 5 miles, I think it was definitely, at least, 5 miles!  A beautiful day!

   Turkeys hogging the road.