MSPCGT:Bass River RA Multi-cache

Michigan State Parks Centennial GeoTour (GT93)

UPDATE: 3/1/2024:

2019 was the 100^th 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 2 stage multi-cache. At the posted coordinates you will find the necessary information to get you to the final.

• Stage 1: Sign here
• Stage 2: No Birds here
  
  

You are looking for a Regular size container.

Thank you GHBuccaneers & Pepstreet for creating, hiding and maintaining this MSPC GeoTour cache.

^{Photo courtesy of Michigan Department of Natural Resources}
Paddling through Water Lilies at Bass River Recreation Area

Bass River Recreation Area:

Bass River Recreation Area, a 1,665-acre site in central Ottawa County, consists of open meadows, open brush land, mature hardwoods, small ponds and 300-acre Max Lake. It has approximately three miles of frontage on the Grand River. The park is used primarily for boating, hiking, mountain biking and horseback riding (on designated trails) as well as hunting. The Bass River feeds into the Grand River near the center of the park.

Bass River Recreation Area provides inclusive open space in an area lacking in public lands. Roughly 500 acres in the westerly portion of the park was extensively mined for gravel by a former owner, Construction Aggregates. The easterly portion of the park was largely undeveloped and provides productive wildlife habitat.

^{Photo courtesy of Michigan Department of Natural Resources}
Bass River Wetland

History:

Bass River RA was acquired from Waste Management Inc. in 1994 for outdoor recreation purposes and was assigned to DNR Parks and Recreation Division to administer as a State Recreation Area. At that time, Waste Management Inc. was obligated to offer this property, 1,115 acres, as first right of refusal to the State of Michigan due to local opposition to the proposed planned use and subsequent court action involving Ottawa County. In 2002, 550 acres known as the Bakale Tract were added to the Recreation Area for the purposes of wetland management, outdoor education, and wildlife-related activities. While the entire 1,665 acres are designated as Bass River RA, and managed by Parks and Recreation Division, the Bakale Tract is co-managed by Wildlife Division.

^{Map courtesy of Michigan Department of Natural Resources}

Activities:

Trail usage is a large component of the park. Bass River is a popular year-round destination for mountain bikers, equestrians, cross country skiing, and hikers. There are approximately nine miles of trails in the park open to mountain bikers. Six of those are shared with hikers. The other three are shared with equestrian use.

Bass River provides hunting, fishing and wildlife viewing opportunities unique to southwest Michigan. Seasonal birds use the Grand River for orientation during migratory flight.

Information:

For more information, reservations and a calendar of events, follow this link to Bass River Recreation Area.

Special thanks to Wayward Wanderers for help with this geocache.

Special thanks to Cold Cache Crew and Silent Whistles for the Southwest regional prize.

Resources:

• State Parks Centennial GeoTour - Download the Ticket to Celebrate 100
• Michigan.gov/StateParks100
• Michigan DNR Recreation Passport
• When were Michigan state parks and recreation areas established?
• Michigan Geocaching Organization (MiGO)