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Pigeon River Country State Forest expands by 597 acres

VANDERBILT, Mich. — A DNR land deal has led to the expansion of Pigeon River Country State Forest in Montmorency County. The deal, valued at $2 million will add elk forest, which contains 597 acres of wilderness, to Michigan’s public lands. The property was formerly privately owned by a family but thanks to grant money, the DNR was able to acquire it.

Forest Land Administrator Kerry Wieber says this is a great addition for the state. “We were able to acquire this thanks to Federal Forest Legacy program grant, something we had to compete for at the national level,” she said. “It’s a very very competitive program. So its outstanding that Michigan was able to secure those grant funds and then acquire something like this that now everyone will be able to go use and enjoy.”

Elk Forest brings with it a vast amount of opportunities to those who love wildlife. It will be open for hiking, hunting, fishing, skiing, bird watching, and elk viewing just to name a few. Walled Lake is located on the property and, like  is home to some impressive fish. “Walled Lake itself is an excellent lake for blue gill fishing, so people that love to go fish for panfish there are some really large blue gill in the lake.”

Structures on the property will remain in private ownership through the end of May.