Huron National Forest

September 19-20-21(morning), 2006
We stopped at Klenow’s Market in operation since 1900 here in East Tawas, MI. They have smoked meats, jerky and custom meats. They were butchering and cutting while we were there. The counter guy was very helpful and gave us lots of information about the meats. Try them at http://www.klenowsmarket.com/

Oscoda is right on Lake Huron. They have a nice little park where we spent the day. It was a real find with electric and water. Will painted the cook table with some black enamel paint we have been carrying. We walked along the shore and collected shells that have a flat side like gravity pulled them down when growing. We played Boggle, a word game Justin got us. Justin this is a great game!

We entered the Huron National Forest and drove just twenty some miles to a road leading down to the Au Sable River. A flock of about twenty-five turkeys strutted across the road. At the overlook the river makes an oxbow, a u-bend. That is where we parked. The air was cool; it feels like a nice fall evening. The leaves are starting to change colors. The river, down from the bluff we sit on, moves quickly. We put our chairs out on the edge and watched the night come. Sipping hot tea we watched the river below. A beaver swam about. The sky grew dark. Stars came out; there were so many. The big-dipper seemed low on the horizon.

We took a few walks while here on the dirt roads leading through the forest. Each morning we did our constitutional. We found that if we walked to the end of the road and back the powerline road it made about an hour walk. One evening we walked out to the end of the road and back the powerline road only as far as the boat dock. We went down and looked at the water. The turkey crossed the roadway. We decided to walk along the river back to our parking spot at the overlook. Will figured he would recognize the bank as he had gone down a few times to wash his paint brush and try a little fishing. We set out on a fishermen’s path that stayed close to the shoreline. It ended abruptly and we made our own path for a time. The sun was setting so we knew where west was. Will carried the emergency whistle and blew it softly to alert any bears that might be around. We soon found ourselves out of shoreline and at a wetland. Will led us inland knowing we would eventually come to the road we walk. The underbrush is mostly fern and downed trees. Horsehair, a hollow straw like plant that grows in old growth forests was abundant. We made our way slowly and the sun was setting. We past trees that bears had clawed; Forrest had showed us that so we knew it when we saw it. It had been fun when there was a path to follow, but bushwhacking was not so much fun. We came to a tall bank. At the base was a toilet. Hunters must have put it there. There was even a plastic container of tp. We climbed the bank and found the road!! Kathy was most relieved.

Mushrooms were everywhere. We were walking down to the water one morning and came across the biggest puff mushrooms we had ever seen; they looked like dinosaur eggs!

On one morning walk along the powerline road, which is sandy, we saw tracks of many animals: deer, raccoon, mice, dog or wolf, and cat. The cat track was from a big cat with a gate that was five feet! We followed the cat tracks to a place where deer crossed and the cat dug in for the run. We lost the track when the animals left the roadbed. Tracks can tell the story!

The sound of motors roaring filled the air. We knew we were close to the Air Force base and figured they were testing engines. When some people stopped to look at the river they told us that someone has a motorcycle that runs on nitro fuel and he uses the runway at the base. We listened to that motorcycle a little each day as it went through all five gears revving up. We imagined him flying down the runway!

Birds flew about in the early morning before the motorcycle started. We saw blue jays, yellow-bellied sapsuckers, red-headed woodpeckers, robins, geese, cooper’s hawk and others. It was fun sitting up on the bluff watching them fly about, stop and pick at wild grapes, preen while sitting high in a branch and fly about some more.

It felt good being out in the wilderness. Will kept a smoke fire going in our little smoker pot. We fixed our meals and ate outside in the sunshine. We had our awning out and tables set up. We were camping.