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
navychief98
for creating, hiding and maintaining this MSPC GeoTour cache.
Photo courtesy of Michigan Department of Natural Resources
Traverse City State Park Entrance Sign
Traverse City State Park:
Traverse City State Park is a 47-acre urban park that features a quarter mile of beautiful beach on
the Grand Traverse Bay. The park is only two miles from downtown Traverse City, one of the
most popular resort towns in Michigan.
The park is located on the southern shoreline of East Grand Traverse Bay, a bay of Lake
Michigan, and is used mainly as a campground. US-31/M-72 runs between the park proper and a
beach area; there is an overpass by way of which campers can get to the beach. The beach area
has a playground, grills and picnic tables. The camping area has around 350 campsites, all with
electricity. Other features include a dump and fill station, 3-bathroom buildings, and a
recycling/trash center.
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Photo courtesy of Michigan Department of Natural Resources
Kayaking and Paddleboarding at Traverse City State Park
History:
The park was established in 1920 on about 16 acres of
land after the logging industry in the area began to wane. In 1921 and 1939, parcels were added
to increase the park′s land area to its present size. The original inhabitants of the land were the
Ottawa branch of the Algonquin Indians.
On July 21, 2011, the Michigan Natural Resources Commission augmented the name of the park
with that of Keith J. Charters, a local conservationist, hunter and angler who served on the
commission from 1994 to 2010. Read more about Keith Charters Here. While signs at the park′s entrance have added the new name, it is still usually referred to as Traverse City State Park.
Map courtesy of Michigan Department of Natural Resources
Activities:
Activities beyond camping include swimming at the wonderful beach, Biking on the TART Trail that borders the south end of the park, Fishing in the bay and hiking. Other attractions to watch for include the Cherry Festival, held every July. Day use parking is very limited at this park, so be prepared to find parking and hike in.
The Traverse City Area is rich with Geocaches, including the oldest active cache in the state, GC35 Power Island, which will require a boat ride. There is a Facebook Group dedicated to that cache: search for GC35 Power Island. Another famous cache is the GC41D6 NGS Zoo Benchmark
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Photo courtesy of Michigan Department of Natural Resources
Cottage to rent at Traverse City State Park
Information:
For more information, reservations and a calendar of events, follow this link to
Traverse City State Park.
Special thanks to
Karatana
for help with this geocache.
Special thanks to Are You Geocacher Enough? Road Rally for the Northern Lower regional prize.
Resources: