Sidetrip to Little Manistee River

One of the side trips that my boys club kids used to like was to the Little Manistee River. The access road to that site had trees so close together that it looked almost like night a few feet into that forest. The boys were amazed as to how close together those trees were.

Once at the river, shoes and socks were shed and they moved ever so slowly into the fast moving current. They were amazed at how cold the river was which was almost as cold as Lake Michigan itself. In the 1970′s they could even bend over and get a nice cool drink from that river making sure their feet were steadied. Some of the braver kids just jumped in all the way and began splashing around. They didn’t stay in the river long as it was bone cold.

Some boys just stood in place and watched fish swim right between their legs. A couple of boys threw in their own fishing lines having first obtained a fishing license at the Big Bass Lake store. For some reason they never caught even a single fish at that river. We always had a picnic lunch at the Little Manistee River before heading back to Big Bass Lake.

Winter on The Little Manistee River

I ttok a friend from work fishing on the Little Manistee a few weeks ago and we had a ball even though it was in the winter season. Did you know that no one else was out there that day even though the temp was in the 30′s? I caught two fish and my pal caught a cold.  I guess his worms froze to death waiting for him to catch something?

I never liked ice fishing all that much as I prefer fishing the more swift rivers in the winter that often don’t freeze over.  With ice fishing you hve to drill a hole and then sit your keester down on freezing ice or on a chair until you catch something.  There I would be catching a cold!

To be honest, I can only fish these rivers for about an hour and then my legs go to sleep on me.  I’m one that prefers standing in one location each time I go out in cold weather until I catch something.  Besides I would think that any sane fish would just love warming up inside my oven over that of freezing in the Little Manistee all winter.  So you might say that I fish to keep those fins warm in either my oven or stomach.  I wonder how my wife would view that?

Fishing The Little Manistee River

The Salesian Boys Club of Columbus, Ohio, made an off site trip from our property at Big Bass Lake to the Little Manistee River for some fishing and fun.  While there, no one liked to fish next to Mike Myers and the reason why simple.  Mike was a constant talker and everyone knows that you have to be quiet to be a good fisherman.  Yet Mike always maintained that he was talking to the fish as if anyone believed that!

Even more popular than fishing were the splash wars that the boys had on that trip.  Since rain seemed to be our constant companion on that particular time at our property the kids enjoyed every opportunity to get legitimately wet.  The Little Manistee River’s water was as cold as Lake Michigan and very swift moving.  It was also clean enough to get a drink from. 

We took the days catch back to our property and had a good old-fashioned fish fry complete with baked potatoes.  Good eating that day capped off a great day of fun for those boys.

Climbing Down to the Little Manistee River

I once thought that canoeing the Little Manistee River was the hardest with all its twists and turns and underwater obstacles.  Yet even more challenging is hiking the river.  Often times one has to make their own trail.  And you have to watch where you step or you might enter the river without even knowing it. 

I enjoy most the overlooks to the river either by hiking up or down the hillsides.  Just look at how green this valley is along the river course.  An artist could have a field day along this river at almost any point. 

Even when canoeing the river often I have to portage along the way giving me the opportunity to both hike and canoe.  Either way each turn of the river provides you with more great scenery to observe.  I would like to know, among those that follow our website, which river they prefer.  The Pere Marquette or the Little Manistee and why.  Leave me a comment in that regard.

A Diversion to Beartrack

On our camping trips to our property, some names of places seemed to evoke some fear in the boys.  The Haunted House on Haunted Island or The Bloody Antler Trail carried fear within their very names.  Take the Haunted Island, for example.  That entity the boys could see from our wooded beachfront the moment they arrived as it literally stared them in the face as they set up the tents.  One of our many side trips was to Beartrack which was a camping area along the Little Manistee River.

Since it was located in the heart of the Manistee National Forest the boys equated that area with bears by its very name itself.  On this particular trip with the Salesian Boys Club, it had rained nearly every day.  Yet the fearful name Beartrack was about to dissolve away as the boys instead shed their shoes and socks and had the time of their life in a splash war.

The boys instantly became aware of how cold that river was as it neary matched Lak Michigan in temperature.  Thy also noticed how swift the river ran even though they were in shallow water.  Getting their feet out of their hot shoes and socks must have felt great as they hit the icy water.  Before they knew it, they were all swimming and having a great time.  The name, “Beartrack”, now meant a place of fun over that of a name to be frightened over.

What they had learned that day was not to be fearful in a name itself as no bears were to be found that day.  Well, at least they had not seen any bears.  Hmmm?

Bear Track and The Hoffman Estates Boys Club

From our property, the closest campground to us was Driftwood Valley along the Little Manistee River.  Most of our trips went to this location.  However on one trip with the Hoffman Estates Boys Club, we took a side trip to the next campsite up the river, that being Bear Track.  Our excursion just happened to occur just after dusk.

Now, when the boys saw the sign “Bear Track” their fertile imaginations immediately went to work as I didn’t have to add much for our story of the night there huddled around a picnic table.  I told them of a nearby cave where a bear was known to dwell.  Of course, there were no takers to go to that cave but two of the boys, Alan Cohen and Mark O’Brien got the biggest eyes as my tale progressed.  They were both sitting on the grass and when they heard a sound in the bushes near them they leaped into the air only to spot a very small squirrel seemingly amused at their reactions.

Just the name of the site, Bear Track, was enough to unnerve most of the boys and they were most anxious to return to our rented cabin that evening.  And, that was the very same trip where the kids saw wolf through that cabin window one evening! 

Sidetrip to Driftwood Valley

About seven miles off our property was a campsite called Driftwood Valley. It was a campground for campers right next to the Little Manistee River. Just down the road from Driftwood Valley was another campsite by the name of Beartrack.

On our rainy trip with the Salesian Boys Club out of Columbus, Ohio, one of our sidetrips was to Driftwood Valley but the kids were not interested in the campsite per se, but rather the Little Manistee River. They took off their shoes and socks and waded into the icy waters. This river has a swift current so the kids had to watch their balance.

Whitey Meier took out his fishing pole and began to try out his luck standing almost in the middle of the shallow river. Within a few minutes the kids had to give way to two canoes who were making their way downstream. Two of the boys jumped into the river and tried to swim upstream with varying success. One of the boys said it was like swimming without getting anywhere.

We stayed at this location most of that morning with an off and on sprinkle. Of course, when kids are in a river, a gentle rainfall is water off their backs so to speak. They had a great time that morning and Whitey caght three fish which we cooked up later that day back at our campsite.

Oh, yes, this is the area in which the kids were involved most of that morning. One of the boys noted that his feet never felt as refreshed as they did that morning as this river is just about as cold as Lake Michigan. Hot Dogs and Hostess Snowballs were consumed for lunch before we headed back to Big Bass Lake.

Living on the Banks of the Little Manistee River

Wow!  If my wife Darlene would let me, I would buy a parcel of land on the Little Manistee River and almost be in heaven!  Fishing year round would become prt of my daily life as I would only have to go out my back door to cast in a line.  Or I could put in my canoe anytime and move about this marvelous river.  And, in te good old summetime, we could both refresh ourselves in the icy waters of this river.

Darlene could paint pictures of this area to her hearts content without ever having to travel about to do the same thing now.  But she loves her large garden where we live now just outside Scottville, Michigan.  She would hate to leave that so for now I can dream about owning a place on that river.  The river looks a little high today as it must have raied a lot. 

Can you imagine the salmon running this stream at that time of the year?  Makes my mouth water!  Maybe, just maybe, some day this will become a reality.  Maybe?

The Little Manistee River

The Little Manistee River is about as cold as Lake Michigan with a very quick current. Once one of the kids on a trip I was on in that area caught a large turtle that swam right between the boys legs. He kept it on a makeshift lease and we brought it back to Big Bass Lake where he kept it in the lake yet still on the leash.

He took that turtle back home with him to Marion, Indiana, and I will never forget his mother’s reaction when he told her about the turtle he had caught. I’m sure she expected a small turtle that would fit in a goldfish bowl. “Get that monster out of here!” Fortunately for the turtle he was donated to the Marion Park Zoo that day and they were more than glad to take it in.

You just never know what you might find in the Little Manistee River. Next time we go there a story about freshly caught fish on the bank.

Kayaking the Little Manistee River

Not far off of our property is the Little Manistee River with water nearly as cold as Lake Michigan year round. The current is also quite strong throughout its course. It flows through both Driftwood Valley and Beartrack camping grounds both of which are remote campsites without many modern conveyances.

Fishing is excellent and for the avid fisherman salmon season awaits you where you literally can just reach in your hand and pick out your choice. If you like cold water this river can be ideal for swimming or simply exploring. And for the avid canoeist it is a paddling dream.

But for youngsters using the Kayak, the Little Manistee River is a paddling dream. It is both a test of endurance and skill to move about the many jags of this fast moving stream. Ed Hawks provided this photo.