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Except as otherwise noted, all contents of this
Web site are Copyright
© Chief
Noonday
Chapter,
the North Country Trail Association.
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September 20,
2008 |
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K.B.S.
has a busy workday:
Saturday was great day to be outside.
Steve Hicks (left) was so
excited that he started in the wee hours
when the dew was still heavy. He
was the first to start and the last to
leave, mowing the entire length of the
trail through the Kellogg Biological
Station. Part of his reward
was getting stung behind the ear by a
ground bee!!!
Larry and Mick Hawkins,
Jerry Pattok and Ron Sootsman
started the morning on a less healthy
note packing in the calories and
cholesterol at the Hickory Timber Inn
— only to feel more guilty when Jeff
Fleming arrived at KBS having biked
five miles from Augusta to the work
site. Mary Armitage,a
newbie on the work crew, came up from
Kalamazoo. Larry Pio joined
us as well (Notre Dame having an away
game at East Lansing).
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| (From
left) Larry Pio,
Ron Sootsman, Mary
Armitage, Larry
Hawkins and Jeff
Fleming in front of the
brand spanking new kiosk
along the Trail at KBS. |
As I
mentioned, Steve did a whole lot
of mowing. Mick and Mary
were in charge of lopping and trimming,
working north from C Avenue to the
Bio-Fuels field. Jerry Pattok
pulled the old Jeff Fleming signs from
the former trail route and replanted
them where the trail, newly re-routed,
now crosses 40th Street just north of C
Avenue.
Ron Sootsman had spent last week
building the new kiosk to go along the
trail at the Bio-Fuels field.
Ron, Larry Hawkins, Jeff,
and later Jerry, and still later
Larry Pio worked on finishing
construction and installing the kiosk
where the trail up from C Avenue comes
out at the Bio-Fuels site (and where the
new re-route toward the Bird Sanctuary
begins).
We won't comment on who forgot to bring
the paper stuff that was supposed to be
displayed on the new kiosk....
We will be sharing that kiosk with KBS
as part of our Interpretive Program.
We had hoped to get the new section of
the trail blazed and to rehabilitate the
old blazing, but were unable to
accomplish that this time.
Thanks to all who turned out for the
workday. As always, we so appreciate the
donation of your time and talents to the
trail effort.
Larry
Hawkins
Chapter President - Chief Noonday
Chapter
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August 26, 2008 |
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Chief Noonday Chapter
members and workers and their
families from Kashi got
together on August 26th to whip
the Trail in the Middleville
State Game Area into shape
and to revise the emplacement of
an informational kiosk at one of
the trailheads on Robertson
Road. |
Bear Naked Comes to the North Country
Trail:
For those of you who are unfamiliar with
the product, Bear Naked Granola
is produced by Kashi, a division
of the Kellogg Corporation in
Battle Creek, Michigan. Yes, they
make more than corn flakes!
In keeping with the natural, unprocessed
character of their cereals, Bear Naked
has also been promoting National Scenic
Trails, having named two of their
products after the Appalachian Trail and
the Continental Divide Trail.
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"Charlie's Contraption" is
readied for re-setting a
trailhead kiosk. |
On the Friday before Labor Day, several
employees and their families began their
holiday weekend by volunteering their
time working on the North Country
National Scenic Trail.
The workday was organized by Chris
Sweeney, a member of the Chief
Noonday Chapter, who recruited his
fellow workers, had the Chief Noonday
trailer pulled to the work site, and
spent quite a bit of time on his cell
phone guiding people to an
out-of-the-way trailhead in the
Middleville State Game Area in Barry
County.
Chief Noonday trail workers Jim
Heaton, Charlie Krammin and
MIck Hawkins joined the group to
provide support and supervision.
After a brief introduction and
instruction by Larry Hawkins,
Chapter president, the group divided up
and set to work.
A large, very heavy informational kiosk
that had been the victim of many
frustrated guys with guns was pulled
from the ground using a home made crane
designed and built by the “straw boss”,
Charlie Krammin, who is better
known to some as “Hiker Killer”.
The kiosk was shifted in such a way as
to make it a less inviting target for
those who are unable to hit moving
targets.
The rest of the crew worked the trail
east and west of the Robinson Road
trailhead doing pruning, blazing the
trail, and picking up litter.
Chris reported that the trail was
generally in good condition and now is
even better thanks to the efforts of the
Bear Naked team. In the early
afternoon, a hot and tired group of
trail workers returned to the trailhead
for a much appreciated lunch provided by
Kellogg's.
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Before-and-after pictures of the
kiosk repositioning. Have
trouble seeing the one on the
right? That's the whole
point — making it a less
conspicuous target for small
arms fire from the parking lot.
The trail enters the woods just
to the right. (Click
here to see the damage that
had been done to the kiosk.) |
The Chief Noonday Chapter extends their
thanks to the employees of Bear Naked
for their hard work on the trail, and to
Kellogg's for releasing them to work on
the trail as well as providing food and
much needed electrolyte drinks.
The crew consisted of Tamila Williams,
Larry Williams, Ben Williams,
Rachael Williams, Jon Warner,
Monjur Hossen, Hway-Seen
Yeoung, Diana Seevers,
Maria Ruhlman, and Roger Wenk.
Hopefully, we will see more support from
Bear Naked and maybe someday a “North
Country Trail Mix” in their product line
— given that our Trail goes right
through their hometown. I
encourage you to try their products.
I have, and it’s good stuff.
Larry Hawkins
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August 27, 2008 |
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DNR
acting on Chronic Wasting Disease case:
In case you missed Monday 8/25/08's announcement
from the Department of Natural
Resources in the wake of a case of
chronic wasting disease in a white-tail
deer located in Kent County, you
can read it on the
DNR Web site.
Among other things the article stated,
Among the provisions is an
immediate ban on all baiting and
feeding of deer and elk in the Lower
Peninsula. DNR conservation
officers will step up surveillance
and enforcement efforts on baiting.
Baiting and feeding unnaturally
congregate deer into close contact,
thus increasing the transmission of
contagious diseases such as CWD and
bovine tuberculosis. Bait and feed
sites increase the likelihood that
those areas will become contaminated
with the feces of infected animals,
making them a source of CWD
infection for years to come. ...
DNR restrictions will affect hunters and
anyone transporting live or harvested
deer or elk this fall.
DNR officials reminded citizens
that, to date, there is no evidence
that CWD poses a risk to humans, nor
has there been verified evidence
that the disease can be transmitted
to humans.
CWD is a fatal neurological disease
that affects deer, elk and moose.
Most cases of the disease have been
in western states, but in the past
several years, it has spread to
Midwestern and eastern states.
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August 25, 2008 |
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Summerfest 2008:
Chief Noonday's presence
at the Hastings Summerfest once
again helped promote awareness and use
of the North Country National Scenic
Trail as it passes through Hastings'
own back yard. This year
conditions started out a bit damp, but
from mid-afternoon on Friday things
picked up weather-wise.
Having learned a lesson from last year's
flood conditions, this year we employed
floating leak-proof containers for our
literature stock. This year's
lesson was that the tarp over the booth
is overdue for retirement!
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| Tom Warner
and Larry Hawkins talk
with visitors to the Chief
Noonday booth on Saturday
afternoon. (Chris
Sweeney was hidden from view
in this picture.) |
Location
arrangements were a bit different this
year — and a bit challenging.
Non-profit exhibits were sited along
Court Street this time, and Chief
Noonday's booth was just two doors down
from the entertainment stage.
Mick Hawkins joked with visitors on
Saturday that he'd be glad to answer
their questions if they submitted them
in writing — because the decibels
emanating from the stage a few feet away
were totally overwhelming his hearing
aids.
Jerry Pattok, Larry Hawkins,
and Joe Higdon were responsible
for setting the booth up and taking it
down, and Jerry handled
transportation.
Taking turns staffing the booth (in some
cases for more than one shift!) were
Jerry Pattok and his family (Sandy,
Laura and Anna), the
Hawkins brothers Larry and
Mick, Jean Lamoreaux, Tom
Garnett, Jeff Fleming,
Josephine Miller, Steve Hicks,
Tom Warner, Chris Sweeney,
and Joe Higdon.
Thanks to all who helped with the booth
this year. And thanks to our
visitors as well.
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August 25, 2008 |
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Help needed!
Two upcoming work
projections on the Trail could use your
help. One is this week in Chief
Noonday's section. One is toward
the end of September further north in
the Lower Peninsula:
1.
In Chief Noonday's section:
This Friday, August 29, Chris
Sweeney is bringing a group of
volunteers from Kashi/Kellogg's to work
in the Middleville State Game Area.
These will all be newcomers to trail
work. If any of you are available to
help supervise, we could really use the
help. We are planning on meeting at the
south Robertson Road trailhead at
10:30 AM and will probably send a crew
in each direction to do pruning, tread
repair, and blazing.
If we can figure out a way to do it, we
would also like to pull the kiosk in the
south parking lot and swing it around
90° to make it a less inviting target to
those who find it an irresistible target
for their heavy caliber weapons — not to
mention we'd like to reduce small arms
fire directed toward the Trail!
Most of our members work on Fridays, but
if you are available, we could sure use
the help.
2. In northern Lower
Michigan: On
Saturday, September 27, at 9:00 AM
the Tittabawassee Chapter of the
NCTA will be working on the Boor
Conservancy re-route, south of
Petoskey, to move the North Country
Trail off of Krause Road into the woods
and onto the side of a 200-foot hill.
They really need all the help they can
get to bench this trail into the side of
the hill.
Bring
any dirt moving tools you have, such as
grub hoe, shovel and metal dirt rake.
The chapter will provide mattocks,
pulaskis, fire rakes, and McLeods. The
chapter will also provide some snacks
and beverages for breaks, but feel free
to bring more. They plan on
providing lunch and a supper meal for
the workers at the end of the day.
Please let them know if you plan to come
so they can prepare enough food. Please
RSVP to
tbwchapter@northcountrytrail.org.
Meet at
Krause Road south of Brubaker Road
by the communication towers (the Google
Maps location shown here is only
approximate!). There are a group
of towers at that location that are
visible from miles around. Consult
your county map of Emmet County because
unless you are familiar with the area it
is confusing. (The Google Map link
here shows the preferred route to the
work area if you were coming up from the
south via US-131 from the direction of
Point A on the map. You want to
end up at Point B.)
Camping is available on private land if
you want to stay overnight and help the
next day too. Help eat up the
leftovers! Any questions
other than the RSVP, call Gary at
989-842-3478 or Jerry at 231-526-9597.
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August 21, 2008 |
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HIKER
MISSING ON NCNST IN UPPER PENINSULA:
Joseph Robert
Clewley, a 73-year-old white male,
has not been seen since Saturday, July
12, 2008.
He was staying at his cabin located
south-southwest of Paradise, Michigan,
which is located in Chippewa County's
Whitefish Township.
His
van was found parked along the north
side of Tahqua Trail, about 5.1 miles
west of M-123, at the trailhead for the
North
Country National Scenic Trail
(NCNST). Tahqua Trail runs along
the north bank of the Tahquamenon River
and is within the boundaries of the
Tahquamenon Falls State Park.
Initially the missing man's dog Chip
was also missing but later turned up
unharmed near the Clewleys' cabin on
August 1.
Click here for a Web site set up for
the search for Joe Clewley.
More details are available in an article
published August 24, 2008, in
The Mining Journal of Marquette, MI,
and in an earlier article from
The Evening News of Sault Ste.
Marie.
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August 7-10, 2008 |
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| Larry
Hawkins (back to camera)
gets everybody lined up for this
year's annual President's Photo.
Jan and Dave Cornell
(in brown and blue shirts
respectively) are in the front
row -- not quite center. (Click
here for the "good" version
of this year's President's
Photo.) |
Cazenovia
— NCTA National Conference 2008:
Dave and Jan
Cornell and the Hawkins
brothers made their way to the beautiful
rolling hills and gorges of Central New
York for the 2008 National Conference of
the NCTA hosted by the Finger Lakes
Trail Conference. The
conference was held on the tiny campus
of Cazenovia College in the
Village of Cazenovia. The college
went out of their way to make us
welcome. The Cazenovia Police
Department was not so gracious as they
ticketed some participants who parked on
the streets overnight.
Fortunately, the CNC reps went
unscathed.
Dave
and Larry attended the Summer
Board Meeting on Thursday while Mick
and Jan did more fun things.
Thursday evening, after a wonderful
meal, we had the Annual Membership
Meeting of the NCTA. Bruce
Matthews, Fred Szarka,
Matt Davis and Andrew Bashaw
gave us a whirlwind state of the trail
report from North Dakota to New York.
After that, Tom Gilbert, our NPS
representative, unveiled and reported of
three exciting new ventures:
●
significant progress toward the
completion of the trail through the
Adirondack Mountains,
● the extension of the trail east
from Lake Champlain to the Long Trail in
Vermont and ultimately connecting to the
Appalachian Trail, and
●
Westward Ho, the program
exploring the possible extension of the
NCNST west from Lake Sakakawea in North
Dakota to meet the Continental Divide
Trail, opening the way to the
possibility of a Sea to Sea (C2C) Trail.
The National Park Service Volunteer
Recognition followed the Membership
Meeting. Our own Mick Hawkins
(left) was honored with the 1000
hour Volunteer Vest. The evening
closed with a fascinating program,
The Erie Canal — NY’s Miracle Miles,
presented by our good friend Irene
Szabo, providing yet another reason
to go back to Central New York.
Friday
greeted us with rain, rain and more
rain. Fortunately, with great
foresight, the CNC contingent had signed
up for driving tours; so we stayed
reasonably dry and had a great day
viewing falls and gorges in the Finger
Lakes area (right), along with the Cornell
University campus.
The Annual Banquet, silent and live
auctions, and a wonderful concert by
folk singers Dan Berggren and
Peggy Lynn celebrating the
Adirondacks completed the evening.
Saturday
dawned gorgeously and actually sustained
it through the day making our hikes very
enjoyable.
As Mick had become the unofficial
"official" photographer for the NCTA, he
took the President’s photo of the
assembly on the quad before supper.
Dave was most grateful that
someone in Lowell had misplaced the ugly
“Blue Blaze President’s Shirt” that is
traditionally worn by the president for
this picture. One wonders whether Dave’s
proximity and frequent visits to the
office in Lowell might have had
something to do with the missing
shirt....
Saturday
evening, the NCTA awards were presented.
Many of our friends from the conferences
received well deserved awards.
We were particularly delighted when
Bill Meinke (middle right)
received the Lifetime Achievement Award.
Long associated with the Trail before he
retired from the NPS, Bill is now the
Great Lakes Trail Coordinator for the
NCTA.
Deb
and Bobby Koepplin
(left), from
the Sheyenne River Valley Chapter
in North Dakota, extended an warm
invitation to all of us to join them for
the Annual Conference in 2009.
John Morris from the Finger Lakes
Trail Conference, a writer and
biology teacher, presented the program
Seasons along the Trail with
great humor, great pictures, and a whole
lot of knowledge.
The rain returned Sunday morning as we
packed for the trip home and said our
good-byes to all our friends from east
to west on the NCNST.
The Annual
Conference is a time of great fellowship
and sharing. We meet new friends, reacquaint ourselves with old
friends that we have made at previous
conference, and gain a whole new vision
and energy for this 4600 mile trail that
we all love. For those of you who
have never made it to an Annual
Conference, I strongly urge you to
consider the trip to North Dakota in
2009. It’s a long ways, but it
will be well worth it.
Larry
Hawkins |
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July 12 & 19, 2008 |
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Recent weekend tales:
The
rain gods have not looked benignly upon
us the past couple of weekends.
Two weekends
ago on Saturday, July 12,
admittedly on short notice we scheduled
a hike in the Yankee Springs
Recreation Area in lieu of a hike
we'd scheduled earlier on the Gun
Lake Tract south of Gun Lake.
The
GLT trail turned out not to be
user-friendly when Charles Krammin
(left) inspected it a few days
before the scheduled hike. So
Charlie suggested an alternative
hike on the proposed re-route he'd
flagged for the Trail south from Hall
Lake, which a few of us had hiked on
June 14 with the Yankee Springs
Recreation Area Supervisor Andru
Jevicks (see below).
The rainy morning of July 12 arrived,
and, true to Chief Noonday traditions,
the stalwart amongst us gathered for
breakfast at the Hastings Big Boy:
Charlie K, Larry and Mick
Hawkins, Jerry Pattok and two
of his grandchildren, and Jim Studt,
member of West Michigan Chapter from
Sparta. The more we ate and the
longer we tarried, the harder it rained.
By 9:00 stalwart for the most
part yielded to practical, as
Jerry and the kids caved, followed
by Mick — and Larry hadn't
planned to hike anyway, still nursing a
tender calf from the fall he'd taken the
first time we'd hiked the
re-route in June.
Charlie dismissed us as
"pantywaists" and took off for Yankee
Springs with Jim. The two
of them completed the hike as planned
and put the rest of us to shame.
Jim especially appreciated the
running commentary provided by
Charlie throughout the hike and felt
he'd gained a valuable wilderness
education on the trek. His
education included boot issues, because
his apparently were not equal to the
task, so Charlie pointed him in a
good direction to resolve that issue for
the future. Jim says that a
big feature the rest of us stay-at-homes
missed was "10,000 hungry mosquitoes!
Too many bugs to take off our long
sleeves, it was a sweatfest!"
Our luck was somewhat better a week
later on July 19 when we gathered
at Augusta for a morning of work
on the Trail north and south of E-F
Avenue. Larry, Mick,
Dave Cornell, Ron Sootsman,
Tom Garnett, Jeff Fleming
and Jim Heaton were joined by a
new Trail Adopter, Chris Vreeland,
and Chris's son for a hearty breakfast
at Duda's Deli & Pizzeria. Mike
Wilkey and Terry Meden joined us at the work site.
Chris and his family had recently
enlisted as Trail Adopters for the Dr.
Sackett property section of the Trail
between Kellogg Forest and E-F Avenue.
After breakfast we convoyed up to E-F
Avenue and embarked upon a mowing and
trail clean-up project on the Trail
north from E-F Avenue. The
mosquitoes were memorable, to put it
mildly, but the rain was very light, and
within a bit over an hour we'd done a
creditable job of getting the Sackett
section mowed, sawed, lopped, and
trimmed back so that Chris and
his family could take over the care of
the now decently-groomed section for the
future.
Ron and Jeff, having
finished their work with the DR mower on
the north side of E-F Avenue, had moved
to the south side and continued on while
we wrapped up where we were. But
by the time the rest of had lugged our
tools and gear back to the vehicles
parked on E-F Avenue, the rain had
become decidedly more forthright, and
around 10:30 we voted unanimously to
call it a day — and give custody of the
area back over to the mosquitoes.
Thanks to all who took part on both
Saturdays.
Mick Hawkins
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