OFFSITE TOUR: Northwest Washtenaw County
This hike is limited to 8 attendees.
Note: Because the enrollment is limited and Tom’s hikes are popular, he will be guiding this same exact hike on May 16.
Please let the Elderwise office know if you are unable to attend this tour. This gives students on the waitlist an opportunity to join. It also helps the onsite class assistant.
Mud Lake Bog occupies part of a 260-acre property owned and protected by the University of Michigan, west of Whitmore Lake. It is a true bog system - an open, often floating wetland characterized by an absence of water input from streams and by acid-loving plants adapted to nutrient-poor conditions. The bog is reached by a strenuous slog through densely tangled swamp land and wet mucky ground. Those who persevere will be rewarded by the breathtaking open aspect of the quaking peat bog itself and the lake it still surrounds after thousands of years. Hikers should dress warmly in old clothing and wear boots suitable for walking through pooled water and mud. Tom Friedlander is a retired University of Michigan trained tree-and-shrub taxonomist who spent 38 years teaching and coaching at Greenhills School in Ann Arbor. Driving directions and parking instructions will be emailed to class registrants a few days before the tour.
