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Schedule of Weekly Nature Programs
Scedules for other nature programs
 The Michigan Forest Visitor Center, at Hartwick Pines State Park , draws thousands of visitors, campers and school children each year to see one of Michigan's last stands of majestic old-growth pine forest.
Tell us about your visit
For many visitors, Hartwick Pines is a mystical place, offering a serene escape from the modern world, and the year-round, fully accessible visitor center is a gateway to the towering pine forest and the Hartwick Pines Logging Museum that helps us remember when "White Pine Was King."
Visitor Center Exhibit Hall
Inside the 1,500-square-foot exhibit hall, visitors will find dioramas, hands-on exhibits and a talking "Living Tree" that tell the story of "Michigan's Forests...Its Past, Present and Future."
The self-guided tour takes the visitor on a journey through time that begins with the Ice Age and ends with a look at how Michigan's healthy forest lands of today are growing more each year than is harvested. Six interpretive areas focus on different aspects of the forest.
The BeginningDiscover the natural origins of the forest and how Michigan's climate,
topography and various types of soils created a vast primeval forest that was thought to be "limitless and inexhaustible."
The TreeWith a push of a button, the Living Tree describes how trees capture energy from the sun and use nutrients in the soil to make the food trees need to grow. Learn how the hardness and thickness of the bark protects the tree from heat, cold, moisture loss and injury.
ImpactListen to how the loggers spent their days cutting huge white pine trees during Michigan's lumbering era. Before cutting began, it was estimated there was enough lumber for 500 years of logging. In less than 60 years, nearly all of northern Michigan was clearcut.
Forest ProductsWhen not used as fuel, trees have been processed into primary products, such as lumber, veneer, timbers, poles, posts and pulp. These products, in turn, are processed into thousands of wood-based products that we use in everyday life.
Forest ManagementSee how the early foresters and other individuals initiated the recovery of Michigan's forestlands, and how today's forest managers work to ensure the sustainability of a diverse forest that covers more than 53 percent of our state's land mass.
DecisionsAn interactive display allows the visitor to become a forest manager, making various decisions that will shape the future of their virtual forest. Visitors also learn about some of the challenges that confront today's foresters, such as exotic insects, forest fragmentation and ecosystem management.
Auditorium
Within the visitor center is a 105-seat auditorium featuring a nine-projector, multi-image slide program: "The Forest, Michigan's Renewable Resource." This 14-minute show orients visitors to the story of forest management from the logging era to the present. The auditorium also hosts a variety of programs, videos and special presentations during the summer.
The classroom, with a seating capacity for up to 35 persons, may be reserved by groups for meetings and educational programs. The room features a TV/VCR unit and a dry erase whiteboard. Call the visitor center for more information.
Hours and Information
The Michigan Forest Visitor Center is open daily 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Memorial Day through Labor Day. September through May, the center is open daily 9 a.m. to 4 p.m, excluding the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays. The Hartwick Pines Logging Museum is open May 1 through Oct. 31. Teachers and group leaders interested in arranging a visit to the Michigan Forest Visitor Center or an interpretive hike or program, should contact the park interpreter at (989) 348-2537, or by e-mail at: kasmerc@michigan.gov.
Special Events in 2008
The visitor center hosts a number of special events each year, including guided snowshoe hikes and skiing by lantern light (see above). There is no cost to attend these events; however, a state park motor vehicle permit is required to enter the park.
Maple Syrup Day..........................March 22
Forest Fest....................................August 9
Friends of Hartwick Pines
Volunteers from the park's friends group help at special events and sponsor two annual festivals that are devoted to old-time logging and 19th century life. Make plans to attend these special events scheduled for 2008:
Woodshaving Days Festival..........July 19-20
Black Iron Days Festival................August 23-24
The center's bookstore is operated by the friends group and features historical reference books, nature-related field guides and other coffee-table books about Michigan. Stationary, children's items and a variety of merchandise relating to logging and Michigan's natural history also are available.
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