2 weeks Ago
The North Country Trail in its entirety is more than 4,400 miles long running from Vermont to North Dakota. More than 100 miles of it are within an hour’s drive of Cadillac. Over the last several years, I have been systematically doing day hikes on these more local sections.
The destination for this day’s hike was the Mesick area. Just after we passed through Mesick on M-115, we crossed the Manistee and almost immediately turned left into the trailhead parking area. Although our hiking companions, Mary and Steve Davis, have gone north from this point, they hadn’t yet explored the trail as it goes south from here.
Following the path from the parking area, we followed the light-blue painted marks on trees into the forest and soon arrived at Hodenpyl Pond. The day was unusually warm and we soon shed our windbreakers. This is a great trail for those seeking a hike with no hills.
There would be no hill climbing today. Much of the time we walked along the shoreline of the impoundment. This first stretch was almost a loop as it brought us back to the highway just a hundred yards or so from where we parked.
My Strava app showed we had just walked a mile. If you’re looking for a short loop of woodland hiking, this would be a good choice. We continued walking west along M-115 for about a quarter mile to Hodenpyl Dam Road.
Turning left here, almost immediately we came upon another trailhead parking area. Walking on the road, we followed the trail markers through Fletcher Creek Campground until the NCT exited at the south end of the park. Although there were some aspen, maple and oak, mostly we were among red pines.
At one point we came to wetland but a couple hundred yards of boardwalk kept our feet dry. Arriving at another campground, we followed the road through it. Finding the NCT blue markers at the end of the campground proved a challenge but we finally discovered the trail where it connected to the power line.
It’s hard to get lost for long as the trail is sandwiched between the reservoir and Hodenpyl Dam Road. About a mile-and-a- half from the trailhead, we turned around and retraced our route to our cars giving us a hiking total of 51⁄2 miles. This was the flattest stretch of the NCT that I’ve found.
Our next hike, which would begin across the road from where we parked for this section, will be hillier but I’m told the views of the river will be spectacular. A week later we are back. In addition to Mary and Steve, today Joyce and Dave Petrokovitz joined Cyndy and me for the hike.
Parking our car at the trailhead lying just off M-115 about 50 yards west of the bridge crossing the Manistee, we crossed the highway and followed the blue markers through a stand of red pine. The path ran along the top of a ridge providing us with views of the Manistee River flowing languidly below us. After about a half-mile of walking we came to a sign reading “Arlen’s Overlook.
” Just beyond that point there’s a bench and offering a view of the river that had us pulling out our phones for pictures. At this point, the hiking gets more challenging as the path narrows, drops into a valley, followed by a steep climb. The pattern continues and we mountain goat up and down several sharp inclines.
Wooden bridges over the sharpest inclines make the walking a bit easier. Perhaps because it is a tougher walk than other NCT hikes in the area, the trail doesn’t show a lot of use once you get to the up-and-down sections. As we strode though the brushier parts of the trail, I couldn’t help but see this as prime tick country.
When the trail leaves the woods, the markers lead you through a large field that has been clear cut in recent years and you soon come to a metal gate. The trail continues on, but seeing that we’ve gone about 21⁄4 miles on my Strava app, we turn around and follow our tracks back to our cars. As we munch on snack bars at the trailhead, we remark that the North Country Trail never disappoints.
We are lucky to live near this magnificent pathway..
