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.
Before you begin your tour, you should answer these questions and record your answers, as they will be helpful later. The answers can be found on the cache page. If you forget to solve this before heading to the field, you can find answers to these questions in the park. Cell phone service is spotty at best so you may not be able to find the answers using your phone on site. Because of this, the difficulty level has been bumped up.
Q1) What causes the waters of the Tahquamenon River to be amber colored?
0) animal waste products
1) tannin from cedar swamp
2) mud and silt from the river bottom
3) pollution
Q2 What causes the large amounts of foam in the water?
0) Soft water and turbulence
1) Pollution
2) Soap from campers
3) animal waste products
Q3) the Upper Falls drops _____ feet?
0) 100
1) 50
2) 150
3) 75
Q4) What animal will you most likely NOT see in this area??
6) White Tail Deer
7) Black Bear
8) Bison
9) Moose
Visit the lower falls while you are here and enjoy your tour. You are looking for a Regular size container. Please return everything as good or better than you found it.
Thank you
usyoopers
for creating, hiding and maintaining this MSPC GeoTour cache.
Photo courtesy of Michigan Department of Natural Resources
Upper Tahquamenon Falls
Tahquamenon State Park:
Tahquamenon Falls State Park encompasses close to 50,000 acres stretching over 13 miles. Most of this is undeveloped woodland without roads, buildings or power lines. The centerpiece of the park, and the very reason for its existence, is the Tahquamenon River with its waterfalls. The Upper Falls is one the largest waterfalls east of the Mississippi. It has a drop of nearly 50 feet and is more than 200 feet across. A maximum flow of more than 50,000 gallons of water per second has been recorded cascading over these falls. Four miles downstream is the Lower Falls, a series of five smaller falls cascading around an island. Although not as dramatic as the Upper Falls, they are equally magnificent. The falls can be viewed from the river bank or from the island, which can be reached by rowboat rented from a park concession. The island walk affords a view of the falls in the south channel.
Photo courtesy of Michigan Department of Natural Resources
Autumn at the Lower Falls
Rising from springs north of McMillan, the Tahquamenon River drains the watershed of an area of more than 790 square miles. From its source, it meanders 94 miles before emptying into Whitefish Bay. The amber color of the water is caused by tannins leached from the cedar, spruce and hemlock in the swamps drained by the river. The extremely soft water churned by the action of the falls causes the large amounts of foam, which has been the trademark of the Tahquamenon since the days of the voyager.
Photo courtesy of Michigan Department of Natural Resources
Aerial view of the Lower Falls
History:
This is the land of Longfellow′s Hiawatha - by the rushing Tahquamenaw Hiawatha built his canoe. Long before the white man set eyes on the river, the abundance of fish in its waters and animals along its shores attracted the Ojibwa Indians, who camped, farmed, fished and trapped along its banks. In the late 1800′s came the lumber barons and the river carried their logs by the millions to the mills. Lumberjacks, who harvested the tall timber, were among the first permanent white settlers in the area.
Map courtesy of Michigan Department of Natural Resources
Activities:
There is far more to do at Tahquamenon Falls State Park than admire the waterfalls. The park has over 35 miles of hiking trails that will get the ambitious hiker to places most people don′t ever see. There are sixteen miles of the North Country Trail through the park. Fishing for brown trout, walleye, muskie, perch, smallmouth bass from the river is a popular draw Paddling from the Lower Falls to the river mouth is also popular. In the fall, most of the park away from the falls is open to hunting. Winter sports include cross-country skiing, snowshoeing and snowmobiling.
Photo courtesy of Michigan Department of Natural Resources
Elusive moose sighting
Watching wildlife is also available. White-tailed Deer and Black Bear call the park home. You may get lucky and see Moose feeding in the wetlands of the park. Do not approach the moose. They are one of the more unpredictable animals in the world.
Be sure to stop and grab this Earth Cache while you′re here: GC33QN5 Ancient Beach at Tahquamenon Falls.
Information:
For more information, reservations and a calendar of events, follow this link to
Tahquamenon State Park.
Special thanks to
HappilyCaching
for help with this geocache.
Special thanks to Cherry Capital Cachers for the Upper Peninsula regional prize.
Resources: