City of Cheboygan to Rogers City

Rogers City to the City of Alpena

General Information:

Description of this segment of the Huron Greenways route begins in Rogers City. The main route through Rogers City follows business US-23, although bicyclists and hikers can take the Huron Sunrise Trail. The route meanders across the countryside following mainly county roads before reaching the City of Alpena. This segment traverses farmlands and northern hardwood, aspen-birch and dense cedar forests. Travelers can view the largest limestone quarry in the world south of Rogers City; visit one of the gems of the Huron Greenways, Thompson’s Harbor State Park; gather fossils at the old Rockport Quarry; or explore the Rockport sinkholes. There are a number of side trails along this route. The main route between Rogers City and the City of Alpena is about 52 miles.

Maps of the Huron Greenways trail system for this segment are provided on this web site as well as local maps of side trails.

Trail Description:

West of Rogers City, Birchwood Drive and US-23 converge. The Huron Sunrise Trailhead is located west of this intersection in the Herman Vogler Conservation Area. The Herman Vogler Conservation Area is a 320-acre park with hiking, biking and ski trails. Travelers have the option of taking the non-motorized Huron Sunrise Trail or following US-23 or N. 3^rd Street into Rogers City.

Numerous waterfront parks bless Rogers City. Seagull Point is the largest and is noted for an extensive trail system through stands of native forest vegetation and dunes. Lakeside Park, at the center of town, includes a small boat harbor, beach, picnic area, soccer and basketball fields, bandshell (with seasonal musical performances), pavilion and seasonal food service.

Downtown businesses and restaurants are in easy walking distance from the harbor. For the meat lovers, this town has two special attractions, a German meat market famous for its smoked pork loins and a Polish meat market famous for its wide variety of sausages. The City’s history as a shipping and mining town can be explored at the Presque Isle County Historical Museum, located in a National Register historic home on Huron Street in Rogers City.

Be sure to explore the City’s Huron Sunrise Trail, a “park linkage” pathway that connects all of the City’s waterfront parks into a pedestrian and bicycle-oriented trail system. Long term plans are to extend the trail to Hoeft State Park and Calcite Harbor.

Continuing on S. 3^rd Street, just south of Rogers City, Quarry View provides an overlook to view the largest limestone quarry in the world, still in operation and still the County’s largest employer. Limestone and dolomite, extracted from Michigan Limestone and Stoneport quarries, are fine grained, finely crystalline, very pure and high quality resources.

South and east of Rogers City, the Huron Greenways Trail passes though farm country. The route crosses US-23 and continues south on Petersville Road, then turns east on Co. Rd. 638. German and polish farmers homesteaded this area over 100 years ago. Some farms are still owned and operated by descendents of the original settlers. Hagensville, once a small thriving farm community, with churches, stores and a dance hall, is located at the crossroads of Co. Rd. 638 and Co. Rd. 441. Centennial farmsteads and some buildings converted to private uses remain at the crossroads. Watch for signs advertising fresh eggs at several farmsteads and pick up a dozen to go along with the bacon and sausage you purchased in Rogers City.

The route continues east on County Road 638 to US-23. Shortly after converging onto US-23, the route passes Thompson’s Harbor State Park. This is a day use park, with miles of undisturbed shoreline, sand bluffs, hiking trails and quiet picnic spots. Wildflowers and wildlife abound. This is a favorite spot for sea kayakers.

The trail follows US-23 to Old State Road north of Grand Lake east to Presque Isle Harbor. The community of Presque Isle lies approximately fifteen miles south of Rogers City, and is another key feature of the Huron Greenways. From there follow Grand Lake Road south to the Besser State Natural Area or continue south to US-23. There is a bike path along a segment of Grand Lake Road between Presque Isle and Presque Isle Harbor. In 1998, Presque Isle Township completed the first phase of a safety trail system along Grand Lake Road, which connects the community of Presque Isle on Grand Lake to the Presque Isle small boat harbor and lighthouse area.

Presque Isle - Originally a wood fuel stop for lake going passenger and freight steam ships, Presque Isle and the nearby Grand Lake community is today a center for recreation and tourism. Maritime historical sites in the area include the Old Presque Isle Light (1840), the New Presque Isle Light (1870) and the Presque Isle Range Light. A public park and picnic area surrounds each of these lights. Both lighthouses feature museums and public access to the towers. Public docking, launching, swimming and picnic facilities are available at the MDNR small boat harbor at Presque Isle, with a seasonal restaurant and convenience store nearby.

The Besser Natural Area includes a nature trail, and the ruins of the historic Village of Bell, a lumbering era settlement. Existing foot trails lead from this site into the adjacent Rockport property, now in public ownership. In the Presque Isle Township section, Rockport features a number of sinkholes and significant dune/swale environments.

Traveling south on US-23 from the Alpena/Presque Isle border, a side trip on Rockport Road provides access to the old Rockport quarry and sinkhole area.

The trail leaves US-23 on Monaghan Road and continues in a zigzag fashion along paved and gravel county roads to Misery Bay and eventually into the City of Alpena. A large underwater sinkhole is located in Misery Bay. The bedrock feature is actually an outlet of an underground river that flows from points unknown through the limestone bedrock. As the trail enters the City of Alpena from the west, it travels by the Lafarge quarry and cement plant. While this large industrial complex strongly contrasts with the rest of the Huron Greenways, the complex is interesting to view and important to the local economy. The trail system connects with Alpena Bi-Path, which offers several routes through the City.

Trail Distance and Type

Rogers City: Route through the City

Distance: 4 miles

Route Information: Business US-23, follows N. 3^rd Street which turns into S. 3^rd Street and eventually intersecting with US-23.

Route: Rogers City to Alpena

Distance: 50 miles Note distances are approximate

Route Information: Outside of Rogers City, Business US-23 is paved and in good condition, with a gravel shoulder.

Petersville Rd. (3 miles) paved with gravel shoulder

E. County Road 638 (6 miles) paved with gravel shoulder

US-23 (4 miles) paved with narrow paved shoulder

Old State Road (3 miles)

County Road 638 (2 miles) paved road

Grand Lake Road (12 miles) paved (adjacent bike path from Presque Isle to the Harbor)

US-23 (2.5 miles) paved with narrow paved shoulder

Monaghan Point Road (1.5 miles)

Anderson Road (1 mile)

Kirchoff Road (0.5 miles)

Samp Road (1 Mile)

Bloom Road (2 miles)

North Point Road (2 miles)

E. Hamilton Road (0.5 miles)

El Cajon Road (2 miles)

Indian Road (1 mile)

N. Point Road (1 mile)

Misery Bay Road (3 miles)

Ford Avenue to the Thunder Bay River (about 2.3 miles)

There are numerous side trails and alternate routes. Trails in state parks are well marked, maps of these are provided on the web site. Some of the trails such as those through the Rockport Property are not marked. It is recommended that only experienced hikers with proper equipment or a guide should embark extended hikes on these trails.

Terrain and Adjacent Landscape

The terrain between Rogers City and Alpena is level to very gently rolling. Within Rogers City the trail runs through quaint residential neighborhoods and the downtown business. Rogers City is a clean well-kept coastal community, with bungalow style homes prevalent in the older residential neighborhoods.

Grand Lake -Two large water bodies, Grand and Long Lakes, have glacial origins different than the numerous kettle lakes found further inland. Acting like large bulldozers, the glaciers broke apart the level sedimentary bedrock and scoured out the long linear lake basins we know today. The linear orientation of these lakes is similar to the drumlins found near Onaway.

Between Rogers City and Thompson’s Harbor State Park, the trail goes through farmlands. Well-kept farmsteads, with barns and silos are scattered along the roads. Once the trail system leaves the farm country, aspen-birch, oak and pine forests dominate the natural areas. Northern white cedar, tamarack, and black spruce dominant forested wetlands. Rocky outcrops comprised of limestone bedrock characterize the Lake Huron shoreline along the eastern edge of the Presque Isle and Alpena Counties. There are some stretches of cobble/sand beaches. A series of old shore beach ridges (dune and swale complexes) at Ferron Point provides evidence of past glacial Great Lakes water levels.

South from Rockport, the Greenways route follows a number of country roads through the sparsely populated farmlands of northern Alpena Township. Although much of the land is still under cultivation or in pasture use, many of the historic farm buildings have been abandoned. Many of these buildings were constructed of native fieldstone. Fieldstone fences can frequently be seen as well. The flat to gently rolling terrain, long views, and scant traffic makes bicycling in the area a pleasure. The route leads out to the Lake Huron shoreline, with views of coastal wetlands, shoreline cabin development and woodlands.

As the trail system enters the City of Alpena, it goes through older shoreline industrial complexes. These industries are the foundation of Alpena. The trail follows city streets through older residential neighborhoods before crossing the Thunder Bay River and entering the downtown business district.

Points of interest:

Herman Vogler Conservation Area

Rogers City

Michigan Limestone Quarry

German and Polish meat markets in Rogers City

Huron Sunrise Trail

Parks in Rogers City

Thompson’s Harbor State Park

Hagenville, a German farm community

Presque Isle Harbor

Name of the two lighthouses in Presque Isle

Grand Lake

Besser State Nature Area

Rockport sinkholes

Rockport quarry rich in fossils

Rockport public access

El Cajon Bay an underwater sinkhole

North Point

Bike Trails in City of Alpena

Side-trails:

To see a map of the side trails click on the trail name below. To return to this page click on the back gadget of your web browser.

Huron Sunrise Trail is located in Rogers City

Herman Vogel Trail is located west edge of Rogers City

Thompson’s Harbor Trail is located in Thompson’s Harbor State Park

Side Trips:

Rockport Quarry and Public Access

Rockport was an economically significant limestone quarry and deepwater shipping port, through the first half of the 20th century. Operations were later moved to Stoneport, a quarry still in operation in Presque Isle Township. At Rockport, ruins of the old stone processing equipment are still visible at several locations, and the quarry walls are exposed. Fossils of invertebrate sea life dating to the prehistoric seas abound in the old quarry. This is one of the best fossil collection areas in the Upper Great Lakes. In eastern Alpena and Presque Isle Counties, exposed limestone bedrock and deposits of stone cobbles are common.

Rockport is a popular launch site for Salmon and Brown Trout fishing. Middle Island, including the Middle Island Lighthouse (1905), lies offshore from Rockport. An extensive network of foot trails lead throughout the Rockport site. Outside the quarry and beach area, the property is heavily wooded.

Rockport Sinkholes

The Rockport Sinkholes, which includes eight large and several small sinkholes, are accessible from the old quarry and Grand Lake Road. Trails are not marked, so it is advisable to have someone guide you to the sinkholes. This Karst geology formed in the limestone bedrock. Water flowed into cracks in the limestone bedrock that had been exposed after the last continental glacier. The water gradually dissolved the limestone and widened the cracks underground. Over the years, these underground caverns became larger and the bedrock ceilings became thinner. Eventually, ceilings became so thin; they collapsed and formed sinkholes.

The sinkholes range in width of less that 50 feet to 300 feet. The depth and steepness of their sides varies. Water can be found in the bottom of sinkholes, although many drain during dry periods. The bottoms of the sinkholes are strewn with fallen and slowly decaying trees. Some of the decay resistant northern white cedar, may have fallen into the sinkholes over 100 years ago, but remain intact since they are waterlogged much of the time. Uncommon ferns, such as Robert’s fern can be found on the steep limestone walls of the sinkholes.