It’s time to hit the trails…

By: McKenzie Fox, Conservation Program Assistant

With spring officially here, it’s time to hit the trails!  Antrim County is home to a plethora of beautiful trail systems, some of which Antrim Conservation District (ACD) manages.  ACD has a forester, as well as a parks and trails coordinator, both of which help to maintain county property and trail systems.  

With the abundance of trails around the county, you may have not even heard of some of them!  Maybe you are looking for a gorgeous stroll on the bay in which case you would want to visit Antrim Creek Natural Area.  Don’t want to travel far from Bellaire?  Head down to the Cedar River Natural Area, which offers the beauty and quietness of the forest less than a mile from town.  Looking for a quick easy hike?  Try Mohrmann Park.  Want to walk on rolling dunes?  Try Torch Bay Nature Preserve.  These are only a few of the many wonderful trail options around the county!   

ACD will host a variety of events this month to take advantage of our beautiful trail systems.  Continuing with our weekly event Trail Tuesday, join ACD staff for a hike at the Cedar River Natural Area during your lunch break every Tuesday.  We meet at the Fairground Trailhead at noon and do a short hike that lasts approximately 30 min.  At the end of the month, on May 28th, we will do a special Trail Tuesday event at Mohrmann Natural Area (and will not do one that day at Cedar River).  We will meet at the trailhead off Intermediate Lake Road at noon for a short, easy hike (less than 1 mile).  Finally, on May 25th, to kick off the Petoskey Stone Festival, join us for a trail 5k at Barnes Park.  You can run, jog, or walk your way through the beautiful trails with a race time starting at 8:30am.  Registration can be completed online at antrimcd.com or in person on the day of the race starting at 7:30am. 

We hope you get a chance to go exploring on one of Antrim County’s beautiful trails this spring.  From Glacial Hills to Grass River to Cedar River to Barnes Park and more, we are certainly lucky to have such an abundance of places to explore.  This is the time to go see wildflowers and wildlife as the forest re-awakens after a long winter.  Happy trail-going, friends!

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