UPDATE: 3/1/2024:
2019 was the 100th Anniversary of Michigan State Parks and we're still celebrating!. Join the Michigan Geocaching Organization (MiGO), the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and Geocaching.com for the first official GeoTour in Michigan.
This tour was originally scheduled to run for three years, kicking off on Friday of Memorial Weekend in 2019 and continue through May 31, 2022. The success of this awesome tour has not gone unnoticed. On February 2, 2022, The DNR announced the extension of the GeoTour through September 24, 2024! Join us in making a final push to complete this very popular and very successful GeoTour before the sun sets on it.
Each geocache is in one of Michigan's state parks. The geocaches are arranged by MiGO Region, with twenty-five geocaches per region. The Ticket to Celebrate 100 is available for download from the DNR's Geocaching page. It explains how to qualify for prizes in each of the four regions and for the GeoTour as a whole.
Day use areas of state parks are open from 8AM to 10PM. Geocaching is limited to those hours. Entry into Michigan's State Parks requires a Michigan Recreation Passport. See the Resources section below for more information.
The sun will set on the MSPCGT at midnight Tuesday, September 24, 2024. The MSPCGT will go off the air as a GeoTour and the caches will disappear from the map. There is a lot of construction going on in our State Parks in 2024. Some of the GeoTour caches will have to be pulled earlier. The remaining geocaches in the tour will be archived October 1, 2024. Players will have until December 31, 2024 to claim any prize they have earned. Hiders will be contacted to request removal of the geocaches they hid unless they have made arrangements with park managers and have their own permit in place to keep the geocache in play, with a new GC Code.
Now for some good news: MiGO and the DNR are busy working on a new project that will kick off in the Spring of 2025, code named MSPGT 2.0. Are you interested in helping? Keep your MiGO Membership up to date and stay tuned to the website.
Cache:
This cache was hidden as part of the Michigan State Parks Centennial GeoTour, presented by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and the Michigan Geocaching Organization. Record the codeword printed on the log book and on a label inside the cache container to the appropriate box on the Ticket to Celebrate 100 form. See the instructions on the form to claim prizes.
This is a traditional cache hidden at the posted coordinates. You are looking for a Regular size container. Please return everything as good or better than you found it.
Thank you
angelsunshine
for creating, hiding and maintaining this MSPC GeoTour cache.
Photo courtesy of Michigan Department of Natural Resources
Lake Huron Beach at PH Hoeft State Park
PH Hoeft State Park:
Hoeft State Park is a heavily wooded park with a mile of sandy, Lake Huron shoreline. A
paved non-motorized trail connects the park to Huron Sunrise Trail which stretches to
Rogers City riding along the beach next to Lake Huron and ends at the world′s largest
open pit limestone mine. The park is five miles north of Rogers City via US-23.
The moderating effect of Lake Huron causes temperatures to be less extreme during both summer and winter and causes up to two weeks delay in season changes compared to a few miles inland.
UpNorth Memories - Donald (Don) Harrison collection, used with Creative Commons License (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)
CCC Bathnouse and Shelter in the 1940s
History:
This was one of the first 14 Michigan State Parks. The original property was donated by lumber baron, Paul H. Hoeft on January 2, 1922. A picnic shelter still in use was built in the day use area by the Civilian Conservation Corps in late 1930′s. It was designed by CCC architect Ralph B. Herrick.
The Picnic Shelter and Bathhouse shown above is built of rough-cut stone from Presque Isle County and has a coarse gravel mortar. The single level structure has a low-pitched side gabled roof now clad in asphalt shingles. Log support posts are sixteen inches in diameter while the exposed beams and rafters of the roof trusses are ten to twelve inches in diameter. Paired log rails run along the wide, square openings of the shelter area. A drop wing on the north elevation contains the toilets.
Photo courtesy of Michigan Department of Natural Resources
Picnic area inside the Shelter and Bathhouse building set up for a wedding
The area in front of the shelter is a wide grassy opening providing a view of the lake. A 1930s planting plan for this area is available. While plantings near the structure have all been altered, remnants of original plant groupings can still be seen near the lakeshore. The Beach Trail crosses in front of the building and a horseshoe pit is located near the northeast corner of the shelter.
Map courtesy of Michigan Department of Natural Resources
Activities:
Cycling is a favorite activity at Hoeft State Park. A ten-foot wide paved non-motorized trail starts in the day use area and connects at the park entrance to the Huron Sunrise Trail. It stretches to Rogers City riding along the beach next to Lake Huron and ends at Calcite Limestone Quarry, the world′s largest open pit limestone mine. This trail also connects to Herman Vogler Conservation Area which includes seven miles of hiking and biking trails.
Four and a half miles of trails are used for hiking and cross-country skiing. They feature gently rolling terrain in mixed hardwood and conifer forest and also follow the Lake Huron shoreline. The park also has a sandy swimming beach on Lake Huron.
Information:
For more information, reservations and a calendar of events, follow this link to
PH Hoeft State Park.
Special thanks to
SAGeocachers
for help with this geocache.
Special thanks to Are You Geocacher Enough? Road Rally for the Northern Lower regional prize.
Resources: