State park Hiking Club

[Stick in Mud]

Hello all,

The fiance and I are huge hikers, and we look for any excuse we can to get out into the woods. I've bought her/us a membership in the Hiking Club in the state parks. Does anyone have any experience with this club? It seems to me like a GREAT idea, but I'm wondering if any of you all have also joined the club, and if so, what you think about it? Or if you have any tips on the best hikes?

Carmike

[Stick in Mud]

Must be an unpopular club....

...or the wrong time of year to be about hiking.

[upnorth]

We hike a bit in the state parks on the north shore of lake superior, but never heard of the club. What do they offer?

[Comit 2]

The hiking club (if I remember right ) is where you walk the trails of the state parks looking for the secret word posted somewhere along the trail. After you have collected X amount of passwords you can get a free camp site at a state park of you choice for a night.

You could also look for a geo cache. Most state parks have one somewhere.

[Stick in Mud]

Yup, that's about it, Comit. Most of the state parks have a designated "Hiking Club" trail. Halfway along the trail is a post with a password on it. You go into the office with the password, they punch your booklet, and if you go enough times, you "earn" a few nights of camping in the parks. Not a bad deal....though its use for me has more to do with giving me/us an excuse to get out hiking more often.

[Comit 2]

Don't let Nerstrad Big Woods fool you. If you go there, remember there is a reason why it isn't farmland. The land is so not flat there wasn't a reason to clear the land for farming. There are a lot of ferns in the under growth. If you like that kind of thing it's a fun walk.