It spans 108,000 acres across rugged northern Michigan.
Locals call it the “Big Wild.”
Biologists call it the “crown of Michigan’s public lands.”
The Pigeon River Country State Forest is the heart of the state’s elk range and is now 597 acres bigger, with more wild country for the public to hunt, fish, hike and otherwise access.
It came about thanks to the Michigan Department of Natural Resources.
The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation helped the D-N-R make the $2 million private-to-public-land transfer possible thanks in part to its $75,000 donation.
Among other things, the transaction provides access to Walled Lake, a spring-fed 44-acre double sinkhole lake.
There is also a smaller lake and pond nearby as well as a stretch of the Black River, a blue ribbon trout stream.
The landscape is lush with vegetation and teeming with wildlife – from elk, deer, black bears and upland birds to small mammals and raptors.
There’s no doubt about it…this is prime wildlife and riparian habitat, and it is 100 percent accessible.
Since 1984, RMEF and its partners opened or improved public access to more than 1.3 million acres of land.
To learn more about the sites and boundaries of RMEF access projects near you or your favorite hunting area, turn on the RMEF layer in the onX Hunt App.
Plus, use the code R-M-E-F when you sign up for your new onX subscription to receive a 20 percent discount, and a portion of the proceeds benefit RMEF’s mission.