Search Bay and St. Martin's Point Hiking & Ski Trail

Many of the points extending into northern Lake Huron are privately owned with little public access. An exception is St. Martin's Point west of Hessel. Its east-facing shore on Search Bay and most of its interior is the easternmost part of the Hiawatha National Forest. A beautiful, out-of-the-way beach, mostly sand, is on Search Bay at the end of FR 3436/Search Bay Road, about 1 1/2 miles south of M-134. It's popular with local people. Not many others know about it. A few picnic tables are here, and two non-reservable dispersed campsites. This is strictly primitive camping - no toilets, no water. Small boats can be launched at the boat launch here if water levels are high enough. Campers are asked to follow the principles of no-trace camping and leave the area as clean as it was when they arrived, or even cleaner.
The Search Bay area here is recommended as a top area site for birding. The chamber of commerce web site calls it "great for songbirds in April and May. Look for sandhill cranes or raptors in September. Small flocks of warblers, vireos, chickadees and nuthatches move quickly through the balsam fir, white cedar, and white birch." A nifty annotated Les Cheneaux bird checklist can be picked up at the Les Cheneaux Welcome Center in Cedarville.

Two easy, groomed cross-country ski loops in a figure-eight pattern, 1 1/2 miles each, go through the woods and wetlands at the base of the little peninsula going out to St. Martin's Point. From the trailhead a little south of M-134, the first loop starts in frozen cedar swamps, then comes up to a spruce and balsam woods broken with occasional wildlife openings of aspen - the same habitat of the second loop, which is basically dry in summer.

The second loop also makes a pleasant hiking trail that offers a good chance of seeing deer, grouse, bald eagles, hawks, and perhaps even a porcupine or bear. Get there by going down Forest Road 3436. Hikers should take the trail where the second loop crosses the road twice.

From M-134 6 miles west of Hessel and about 7 miles east of I-75, look for "Ski Trail" sign. Take FR 3436/Search Bay Road to the water, about 1 1/2 miles south of M-134. (906) 643-7900. Free.
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