XC Skiing/Snowshoeing

XC Skiing/Snowshoeing Areas

• Bergland Ranger District

  The Bergland Ranger District is managed by the Ontonagon Ranger District.  Currently the Old Ranger Quarters houses the Bergland/Matchwood Historical Society and the Administrative Offices is home to the Bergland Cultural & Heritage Center.  The Bergland Cultural & Heritage Center provides information about the Ottawa National Forest and surrounding attractions during the summer months.  This district offers miles of hiking trails and wildlife/nature viewing.

• Iron River Ranger District

  Iron River is located in Iron County, in the western portion of Michigan's Upper Peninsula, just seven miles from the Wisconsin border. The border is shared with the Nicolet National forest. The Iron River Ranger District is 138,000 acres in size. Recreation opportunities include two camping for fee campgrounds and two rustic campgrounds. Three wilderness areas are located on adjacent districts. The area's climate is truly unique for each season of the year. The weather is summarized as follows: 31 inches of average annual precipitation, 68 inches of snowfall, an average of 62 frost-free days, 59 degree F. average temperature May through September, and long cold winters.
  Four-season recreation is Iron County's claim to fame. 2,175 lakes and 902 miles of streams offer unlimited challenges for both warm and cold-water fishing. Three rivers on the district have recently been designated as recreational rivers under the Wild and Scenic rivers Act. Northern hardwoods, pine, balsam fir, and spruce cover 80% of the county. More whitetail deer Boone and Crockett entries have been taken from the forests of Iron County than any other Michigan county. Add to this, the title of woodcock capital of the world and one cannot find any better small and big game hunting anywhere in the Midwest.
  When winter arrives, it's no time to rest. 212 miles of snowmobile trails connect to a vast system of trails throughout upper Michigan and northern Wisconsin. The Iron River District, in cooperation with Covenant Point Bible Camp, grooms and maintains a Nordic ski trail, and Ski Brule, a major ski resort, is just minutes from town.

  
   

• Ge-Che Hiking Trail
• Ontonagon Ranger District

  Ontonagon Ranger District is on the shores of Lake Superior, largest of the Great Lakes, and the mouth of the Ontonagon River. There are numerous outdoor recreational opportunities. Hunting, fishing, swimming, hiking, boating, and ATV riding are available in the summer and fall months. In the winter downhill, cross-country skiing, snowmobiling and snowshoeing are available.

• Courtney Lake Campground

  Courtney Lake Campground, located 22 miles southeast of Ontonagon, Mi., on the Ontonagon Ranger District features a single loop with 21 spacious sites that can accommodate tents, trailers, or larger motor homes.

  Courtney Lake Campground also features two "walk-in" sites for tent campers.

  Of the 21 sites, 6 of them accommodate equestrian camping. All 6 have high lines and 3 have a corral. There is also a hitching post at the campground restroom. Currently it is “pack it in, pack it out” for horse waste cleanup.  

  This campground provides a scenic view and access to the lake. Each site offers wooden picnic table, fire ring, lantern post and parking spur. Two sets of vault toilets and two pressurized water faucets are located within the camping loop. Adjacent to the campground is a boat landing, picnic area, and a sandy beach. The 2.2 mile Circle of Life Trail with its bog viewing platform adjoins the campground with trailheads at the south side of campsite #7 and across from the beach day use area parking area. One of the Ottawa's only equestrian trails can also be found adjacent to the campground.

  Courtney Equestrian Trails Map

• Watersmeet Ranger District

  The Watersmeet Ranger District is one of five districts on the almost one million acre Ottawa National Forest. The District has approximately 25 people who manage a variety of traditional lands, fisheries, recreation and timber programs. Both the Wilderness and the recreation area receive high use, particularly during the summer season. Six developed campgrounds and a major visitor center, add to the heavy recreation program. The Ottawa Visitor Center is currently open year round with about 30,000 annual visitors.

  Watersmeet is located in Michigan's Western Upper Peninsula, an area known for its woods and waters. This Headwaters area boasts beautiful, deep, clear, glacially formed lakes that provide water to the Lake Superior, Lake Michigan and Mississippi Watersheds. Waterfalls are numerous and the major attractions to thousands of visitors annually.
  The Watersmeet area is a perfect spot for fishing, picnicking, swimming, boating, canoeing, hiking, camping and hunting for grouse, black bear and white tailed deer. Tourism and timber products are the major industries in this area of forested hills and interspersed lakes and rivers. There are several resorts for those who wish to come to the Northwoods to stay in a comfortable cottage, or the Sylvania Wilderness for those wishing a more primitive experience in a pristine setting.
  Watersmeet is in Big Snow Country where the rolling hills provide some of the best cross-country skiing in the mid-west. With snowfall averaging more than 100 inches a year, skiing usually begins in early December and sometimes doesn't end until after Easter. A half-dozen Alpine ski resorts are nearby - with Thanksgiving the declared opener for some. Major snowmobile trails cross the district and some trails even take the riders to view waterfalls in winter splendor
   

• Ottawa National Forest Visitor Center
• Sylvania Wilderness Backcountry Camping

  The Sylvania Wilderness encompasses 18,327 acres of primitive lands and is part of the National Wilderness Preservation System.

  Visitors can camp in 50 designated campsites within the Sylvania Wilderness. Visitors enjoy endless canoeing, fishing, hiking and wildlife viewing opportunities.

  Natural Features: The old-growth forests and pristine lakes in the region provide habitat for a wide range of animal and plant life, including rare orchids, bald eagles, loons and osprey. The wilderness contains 34 named lakes, some with sandy beaches and others surrounded by record-size red and white pines. 
  
  The Ottawa National Forest is comprised of nearly 1 million acres and is located in the western reaches of Michigan's Upper Peninsula. The forest's rolling, forest covered hills extend from the south shore of Lake Superior to the Wisconsin border. Lakes, rivers and waterfalls are found throughout this beautiful landscape.

  Recreation: Sylvania's abundant lakes provide plentiful non-motorized boating, canoeing, kayaking and fishing opportunities. Other popular activities include hiking and viewing wildlife.

  Facilities: Sylvania Wilderness Backcountry Camp is not a physical campground located at one location. The 50 individual sites are located along eight lakes within the Sylvania Wilderness. Camping is allowed only at designated sites. Campsites are primitive, but each is equipped with a campfire ring and a wilderness latrine.

  Camping is permitted at designated sites by permit only. Permits MUST be reserved by visiting Recreation.gov (see details below). No first-come, first-serve walk in sites available in 2020.

  Fish Your National Forests: Fish available include: Trout, Native Trout, Bass, Walleye, Panfish, Pike; Types of fishing available include: Wade, Shore, Non-motorized boat, Float tube, Fly, Spin, Ice; 

  Maps:

  • Sylvania Wilderness Map
  • Clarks Lake Campground Map

  2022 SYLVANIA WILDERNESS AND RECREATION AREA UPDATES