“The days they pass so quickly now, nights are seldom long, time around me whispers when it’s cold,” – John Denver With the skies gray and chilly, threatening rain, I’m visiting an old hardwood forest I like to frequent in the autumn. This is a place where golden maple leaves reign ...
The Michigan Department of Natural Resources has announced recipients for the 2025 Fisheries Habitat Grants. Ten conservation projects on lakes and streams throughout the state will share $892,200. The funds are matched by more than $240,000 in partner contributions, for a total conservation value of over $1.1 million. Funded projects are located in the following counties: Allegan, Calhoun, Cheboygan, Crawford, Grand Traverse, Manistee, Newaygo, Oceana, Shiawassee and Wayne. “Supporting partner organizations with these projects is crucial to create healthier lakes and streams with ...
The first bear hunting period of 2026 kicks off Sept. 9 in the Upper Peninsula as thousands of bear hunters prepare to take to the field this fall. The Michigan Department of Natural Resources is issuing 6,278 bear licenses for the 10 bear management units across the state in 2026. Bear hunting is allowed in the U.P and the northern half of the Lower Peninsula. More than 72,500 people applied for a bear license or preference point this year. Licenses are awarded through an annual drawing that’s based on the number of points each hunter has earned. The number of points needed to ...
Michigan forests feature a host of nut trees. Basswood, not a nut tree, has other favored features. Walnuts and butternuts produce sweet fruits. Basswood sports semi-showy flowers favored by bees in season. Basswood honey is a specialty product that carries a healthy price tag. Non-timber forest products consist of most anything from trees and forests that are not wood or derived from wood. Think mushrooms, birch bark, and maple syrup, for examples. Marla Emery wrote a PhD dissertation in the late 1990s examining the movement of these products across the Upper Peninsula. ...
Many folks in Michigan remember the dreadful day of May 19, 2020. Severe weather pushed the Edenville and Sanford dams in Midland and Gladwin counties past their limits, resulting in catastrophic flooding in the area. These dams, along with Secord and Smallwood dams, on the Tittabawassee and Tobacco rivers create the Tittabawassee River Impoundments, also known as the Four Lakes: Secord, Smallwood, Sanford and Wixom. The flooding likely displaced many fish downstream into the Saginaw River and Saginaw Bay while also limiting access for anglers throughout the Four Lakes system — an ...
“Autumn this year is gonna break my heart, the leaves start falling and the feeling starts,” – Steve Forbert The rain seemed undecided, not sure whether it felt like delivering itself to the earth below or not. Maybe the rain has lazy days too? Nothing more than a faint mist was ...
