Backpacker Magazine – May 2002

Out Of Sight: Hiking Michigan's Trap Hills

In Michigan's Trap Hills, you'll find space to wonder and wonder, and quiet rock outcrops with panoramas so wide you'll be blinking in disbelief.

by: Eric Hansen

Expedition Planner
TRAP HILLS, MI

Getting there: From Bergland, Michigan, at the north end of Lake Gogebic, drive 10 miles north on M-64, then 4.5 miles south on old M-64 to the Gogebic Ridge Trail.

Trails: The author's 28-mile hike started at the Gogebic Ridge Trail on old M-64, turned a half-mile east to the North Country Trail (NCT), and followed that path east to Old Victoria (a restored historic mining village that features an Adirondack-style trail shelter). Some of the western segments of this section of the NCT are faint, but navigable thanks to blue diamond markers. Shuttle rides: Ontran, (906) 884-2006; check for availability.

Guides: The best source around is the Web site of the Peter Wolfe Chapter of the North Country Trail Association (www.northcountrytrail. org/pwf/). It features topographical trail maps, elevation profiles, trail notes, conditions, water sources, and phenology. USGS quads include Bergland NE, Matchwood NW, Oak Bluff, and Rockland ($4.95).

Contact: Ottawa National Forest, (906) 932-1330; www.fs.fed.us/r9/ottawa/.

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