End of the Trail for Our Author

Posted on October 10th, 2023

Editor’s Note: This winter Jim DuFresne’s Isle Royale National Park: Foot Trails & Water Routes will celebrate its 40th year of continuous publication. Our favorite author is celebrating that amazing achievement and the end of his guidebook writing career with a farewell spea… read more

Hustling Books at the Expo’s Author Table

Posted on March 4th, 2022

Metro Detroit’s largest and longest-running fly fishing show is back. After a two-year absence due to the pandemic, the Midwest Fly Fishing Expo will be held on Saturday and Sunday, March 12-13, at The Macomb Community College Sports and Expo Center in Warren. This 61,000 square foot venue w… read more

The Right of a Coyote to Live Next Door

Posted on December 27th, 2019

Who’s your neighbor? Five whitetail deer that ravish your tomato plants or your expensive landscaping? A squirrel that empties your bird feeder? A coyote eyeing your cat from behind a tree? In this Trail Talk blog for MichiganTrailMaps.com, Jim DuFresne looks at the issue of when people butt hea… read more

A Moose hunt on Isle Royale? Bad Idea

Posted on November 20th, 2019

The moose population on Isle Royale has exceeded 2,000 and some Michigan lawmakers are pushing a resolution urging the National Park Service to stage a lottery hunt as a way to control the herd. In this latest Trail Talk blog from MichiganTrailMaps.com, Jim DuFresne argues that while such hunts wor… read more

Hard to Delete a Trail Like Valley View

Posted on March 14th, 2019

In a park known for great beaches, spectacular views and towering sand dunes, the Valley View Trail in Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore had none of those. Yet when the decision was made not to reopen this short, obscure trail after the 2015 wind storms, we lost a lot. Read the latest Michiga… read more

Cooking Like a New York City Food Cart Vendor

Posted on February 13th, 2019

Jim DuFresne, the main blogger for MichiganTrailMaps.com, was sitting in Times Square when he realized that New York City food cart vendors could teach a thing or two to backpackers. What could they possibly have in common? Read his latest Trail Talk blog to find out (and pick up a few cooking tips). I… read more

Funding Our Natural Gems – Users or Society?

Posted on January 15th, 2019

Cross-country skiing on a snowy winter day in a Michigan State Park. The “opt-out” bills for the Recreation Passport didn’t survive the lame-duck session in Lansing last month despite all the support for them. But in this latest Trail Talk blog for MichiganTrailMaps.com Jim DuFresne argue… read more

#OptingOut of the #OptOutside Movement

Posted on November 23rd, 2018

The #OptOutside movement is full of good intentions but do they have to hold it today? Jim DuFresne our main blogger at MichiganTrailMaps.com, wonders if there isn’t a worse day than the final Friday of November to encourage people to go outdoors in Michigan. What this day is great for is plannin… read more

The Overcrowded Wilderness

Posted on October 3rd, 2018

Have you hiked Nordhouse Dunes lately? Our favorite trails and wilderness areas are getting crowded and not just on the weekends. What’s the solution to overrun campsites and the growing amount of trash left in the woods? Are reservations or strict permit systems to the backcountry a permanent p… read more

National Parks; A Bargain at Any Price

Posted on August 9th, 2018

The National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Senior Pass Last year when the National Park Service raised the price of the senior citizen lifetime pass from $10 to $80 we’re assuming there must have been a loud outcry. Jim DuFresne, the main contributor to MichiganTrailMaps.com, missed bei… read more

320

Find Trails & Maps