In Search of Snow and a Groomed Trail

Posted on January 30th, 2012

Editor’s Note: Jim DuFresne wrote and filed this blog for MichiganTrailMaps.com on Friday morning, Jan. 27. That evening five inches of snow had fallen on most of Emmit County and on Saturday Mother Nature added two more. There is good Nordic skiing from Gaylord through most of the northern half o… read more

Time To Give Back To Trails

Posted on January 7th, 2012

Editor’s Note: This blog entry by Jim DuFresne was suppose to appear just before Christmas but technical difficulties prevented us from posting it until now. By Jim DuFresne Jim DuFresne This is the time of the year when we often pause to reflect, remember and give thanks. Despite thes… read more

Driving Father Jack’s Buick

Posted on November 8th, 2011

I’m driving a new car. No, let me re-phrase that; I’m driving a newer car. I picked up a Saturn Vue that is three-years old and has 43,000 miles on it. It’s high tech. For the first time I can use my IPod in my vehicle. It has remote start for those mornings when the windows are all frosted up and during… read more

Pondering Life & Death on the Trail

Posted on September 21st, 2011

On the day of Greg Hokans’ funeral I was hiking in Emmet County, recording trails for MichiganTrailMaps.com and enjoying a beautiful September day in northern Michigan. At the Elk Rapids Library that evening, my Internet connection when I’m in this corner of the state, somebody emailed me con… read more

Lessons From Alaska’s Chilkoot Trail

Posted on July 12th, 2011

You’ll learn a lot hiking the Chilkoot Trail. You get a history lesson on the Chilkoot and a sense of the feverous attraction gold can have on men. You learn a little about personal perseverance as you struggle over the Chilkoot Pass on a rainy morning when the clouds are so low and so thick you have to p… read more

Riding The Alaska State Ferries To Adventure

Posted on June 22nd, 2011

Editor’s Note: Jim DuFresne, the main contributor to MichiganTrailMaps.com, just filed his second blog entry from his summer of wanderlust in the Last Frontier. We really hope he comes back some day. I’m eating lunch at my favorite restaurant in Alaska. The food is good – I’m having a halib… read more

Reaching the Top of an Alaskan Mountain

Posted on June 9th, 2011

Editor’s Note: Jim DuFresne, the main contributor to MichiganTrailMaps.com, made it to Alaska and sent in his first blog entry. In Los Angeles, you cruise the Sunset Strip; in Paris, you stroll the Champs-Elyse’es; and in Anchorage, you climb Flattop Mountain. This is the first mountain… read more

Prepping for the Hiking Season

Posted on May 10th, 2011

Editor’s Note: Jim DuFresne, the main contributor at MichiganTrailMaps.com, is headed for Alaska this summer and will be spending more than a month in Southeast Alaska exploring the region’s wonderful trail system. He promises to blog about his walks beginning in mid-June. We’re goi… read more

From Argentina – A Personal Trophy of a Trout

Posted on March 21st, 2011

After a flight halfway down the world and another halfway across Argentina, an all-night bus ride and jaunts on subways and taxis, after dreaming and planning about this day for over six months, there I was—finally—standing on the banks of the Rio Malleo in the foothills of the Andes. The river w… read more

A Personal Journey to Argentina

Posted on March 11th, 2011

Editor’s Note: This is the second in a series of reports from Jim DuFresne, the main contributor at MichiganTrailMaps.com, who is traveling in Argentina. Due to technical problems in South America this entry of Trail Talk is a week late getting posted. I was on a roll on my journey halfway arou… read more

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