US-MI-Mason+Tract


 * =Birding in Michigan=

Crawford County
=Mason Tract= Canoe Harbor Road Grayling, MI 49738 [|Mason Tract web site] [|Mason Tract map] [|Canoe Harbor State Forest Campground]

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Mason Tract
Coordinates: 44.57735, -84.5033167 eBird links: Hotspot map View details Recent visits My eBird links: Location life list Submit data

About Mason Tract
What is officially the George Mason River Retreat is to most people who visit this special area simply the Mason Tract. Both titles refer to auto magnate George Mason who loved to fish the South Branch of the Au Sable River. Mason made his fortune in the automobile industry and, in the 1930's, purchased a large tract of land that borders the South Branch from another auto magnate, Clifford Durant of the Durant Motor Car Company. Mason loved his river so much that upon his death in 1954 he bequeathed it to the state of Michigan on three conditions. The land had to be a permanent game reserve, never to be sold; camping was to be banned; and the state had to accept the gift within two years of Mason's death. The conservationist's plan was to preserve his wooded retreat by opening it up to everyone who loved the Northwoods, and it was Michigan’s responsibility to maintain it that way.

The original gift of 1,500 acres has since been enlarged to 4,493 acres but its crowning jewel is still the South Branch that splits the Mason Tract in half, offering fly anglers access to 11 miles of some of the finest trout waters in the state. The undeveloped qualities of the river here are very attractive to anglers. The fact that mountain biking has been banned on the pathway has made the area popular with hikers as well.

Paralleling the west bank of the river is the Mason Tract Pathway, an 11.5-mile network of trails from M-72 to Chase Bridge on Chase Bridge Road (County Road 519). The river moves in and out of view along this trek, as the trail works its way across the bluffs the South Branch flows between. For many, beginning at one road and ending at the other presents a transportation problem and a choice must be made. The best section of trail for this choice is the northern half, where two small loops have been set up. The Campground Loop is 2.7 miles from the M-72 trailhead, around the small loop around Canoe Harbor, and back. The Thayer Creek Loop is an 8.7-mile, round-trip hike from M-72 and much more interesting as you spend a good portion of the time skirting bluffs along the river. **Find a friend, this is an excellent trek that takes most hikers four to five hours.** From [|Michigan Trail Maps: Mason Tract web site]

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media type="custom" key="27341932" || L458950 US US-MI US-MI-039 44.57735 -84.5033167 Mason Tract