Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park
& Sylvania Wilderness
Ontonagon, MI
August 6-13, 2022
Co-Trip Leaders: Elden Hartman and Linda Conti
Type of Trip: Backpacking/Paddle
Trip Cost/Deposit: $444/$222
Cancellation Date and full payment: May 6, 2022
Wilderness Level: 2.5 - EMS accessible most of the time within 1-2 hours or at other tines within 1/2 day
Trip Difficulty: Moderate and Rugged; Possible 13 mile hike option; 2-8 miles of hiking; PDF required;
Policy on Fitness Self-Assessment
Level 2: Primarily applies to trips in which we carry only day packs. In one day, we can hike up to 9 miles and 4500 feet of elevation gain on maintained trails, or up to 7 miles and 2000 feet of elevation gain on more rugged, less-maintained trails. For a Level 2 trip you should be comfortable hiking 6-8 miles in a day in hilly or mountainous terrain with a light day pack. If a backpacking trip has a Level 2 rating, it means the distances are 2-4 miles with little elevation gain/loss.
Level 3: Applies to backpacking trips in which we hike with 25-35 pound backpacks. In one day, we can hike up to 7 miles and 3000 feet of elevation gain on maintained trails, or up to 5 miles and 2000 feet of elevation gain on more rugged trails. For a Level 3 trip you should be comfortable hiking 6-8 miles in a day in hilly or mountainous terrain with a 25-pound backpack.
Group Size: 6/6 Maximum/Minimum
Adults and Youth 16+ with Adult
***Before registering***
While considering your participation in CIWC trips, be aware that some trips will involve shared transportation, lodging, and other activities. Each participant is encouraged to evaluate your comfort level with such arrangements based on your health condition, vaccination status, and unknown COVID positivity rates at the time of the trip. Members are encouraged to review the COVID waiver as a part of this evaluation.
We will depart from the south side or west side of Indianapolis early in the morning a 6 passenger Chevrolet Silverado with a covered bed. We will drive to the Upper Peninsula of MI, to the 60,000 acre Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park near Ontonagon, MI, where we will spend four nights in a rustic cabin with 4 bunkbeds near the shores of Lake Superior. We will spend three days exploring the park and hiking some of the beautiful trails in the park, including the Lake of the Clouds Scenic Area, the Escarpment Trail, Presque Isle River Waterfalls loop, Summit Peak Observation Tower, Union Mine Trail, and others. Early on Wednesday morning, we will drive 70 miles south to Sylvania Wilderness in Ottawa National Forest near Watersmeet, MI. We will camp three nights in a primitive wilderness campsite on Clark Lake, about a 45 minute paddle (and no portaging) from our entry point, and take some day paddles or hikes from our base camp there. Sylvania Wilderness is a beautiful and pristine area of 18,000 acres, with 34 lakes, and 25 miles of hiking trails. The portages are well-maintained and easy trails of short to moderate length. We will leave our campsite on Clark Lake early on Saturday morning, paddle back to the landing, and start our trip home.
The trip fee will include all meals and snacks from Saturday night through Friday night. The trip leader will provide the stoves, fuel, cook gear, eating and drinking cups, plates, and eating utensils. There will be weight and space restrictions on what you can bring. The club leader will bring all the food and gear needed for the trip. You will just need to bring a sleeping pad, sleeping bag, tent, and a minimal amount of clothes and toiletries. Bulky foam pads, seats and chairs are discouraged because of weight and space reasons, and cans and bottles are prohibited pursuant to National Forest regulations
Questions may be submitted to ciwcinfo@gmail.com.
All trip participants must fill out and submit a CIWC Medical Form and Long Waiver Form.
Effective on all trips, there will be a $50 non refundable registration fee. This fee will be assessed to those who sign up for a trip, get on the roster and then later cancel. Even cancelling before the cancel date. Those who never make the active roster (i.e. those who stay on the waitlist) will NOT be charged the $50 cancellation fee.
