Legacy Trails Program Awardee

Trails in Ontonagon and Sturgeon watersheds

The Superior Watershed Partnership (SWP), Great Lakes Climate Corps (GLCC), Ottawa National Forest (ONF), and North Country Trail Volunteers (NCTV) will complete over 37 miles of deferred maintenance on 6 prioritized ONF trail systems, adjacent to 7 National Wild and Scenic River corridors.

Applicant: Superior Watershed Partnership
Project Location: Hiawatha, Ottawa and Huron-Manistee Ranger District, Ottawa National Forest, Michigan
Amount Awarded: $90,956.00

During the 2023 and 2024 spring and summer months, trained GLCC (8 crew members) and NCTV (35 volunteers) will complete prioritized work on trails within the OTF. The ONF has identified critical infrastructure and safety issues, impacting recreational use and watershed health to the following trail systems within forest boundaries: North Country National Scenic Trail, Oh Kun De Kun Falls Trail (1.5 miles); Sturgeon Falls Trail in the Sturgeon River Gorge Wilderness (0.98 miles); Silver Mountain Trail (0.5 miles); Sparrow Rapids Trail (0.31 miles); Imp Lake Interpretive Trail (1.4903 miles); and the Sylvania Wilderness Trails (33 miles).Trail work will be under FS guidance, meet National Quality Standards, design parameters, and be consistent with FS Trail Management Objectives. SWP will follow procedures set forth in grant agreements, including programmatic and financial reports.

GLCC crews are trained and experienced in a range of conservation projects including, trail building, public access improvements, tree planting, stream restoration, erosion/sediment control, habitat restoration, and environmental monitoring. Great Lakes Climate Corps: Improving the Resiliency of the Ottawa National Forest Trail System addresses these critical social, ecological, and infrastructural issues, under FS guidance, and meeting National Quality Standards, design parameters, and FS Trail Management Objectives. Throughout project duration and upon completion, outreach and education will regarding the importance of safe and accessible outdoor recreation will occur in the form of press releases, social media posts, and partnerships with K-12 schools.

RFSS species for the Ottawa National Forest (identified in the 2002 Biological Evaluation of the Vegetation Management Project), benefiting from this project include: Northern Goshawk, Red-shouldered Hawk, Black Tern, Trumpeter Swan, Peregrine Falcon, Connecticut Warbler, Black-backed Woodpecker, Great Gray Owl, Four-toed Salamander, Lake Sturgeon, Nabokov’s Blue Butterfly, Large-leaved Sandwort, Western Moonwort, Goblin Fern, Blunt-lobed Grapefern, Ternate Grapefern, Northern Reedgrass, Fairy Slipper, Northern Wild Comfrey, Ram’s-head Ladyslipper, Laurentian Bladder Fern, Large Toothwort, Fairy Bells/Drops Of Gold, Butternut, Farwell’s Water-milfoil, Yellow Pond-lily, One-flowered broomrape, American Ginseng, Arrow-leaved Sweet-coltsfoot, Carey’s Smartweed, Prairie Buttercup, Satiny Willow, Water Bulrush, Heart-leaved Foam-flower, and Port-hole lichen.