KENTON RANGER DISTRICT
OTTAWA NATIONAL FOREST
The Kenton Ranger District, headquartered in the Village of Kenton, Michigan, is one of six administrative districts on the 989,000 acre Ottawa National Forest. The district is the largest and oldest district on the Ottawa, dating back to 1931, when the forest had a gross area of approximately 250,000 acres and only one district. Gross area of the Ottawa today is approximately 1.7 million acres. The district office is located in Michigan's Western Upper Peninsula, at the junction of M-28 and Federal Forest Highway 16, approximately 70 miles east of the forest supervisor's office, which is located in Ironwood, Michigan.
Kenton is a unique district with a large timber program with a current annual sale volume of approximately 20 MMBF. This includes a wide variety of timber types including high value northern hardwoods, red and white pine, aspen, jack pine, lowland conifers, spruce-fir, lowland hardwoods and paper birch. The recreation program includes a wide variety of dispersed activities including hunting for waterfowl, small and big game; fishing for cold and cool water species in numerous lakes and streams plus anadromous trout and salmon fishery from Lake Superior; remote camping and hiking including two wildernesses; snowmobiling on numerous maintained trails; recreational driving with a variety of potential destinations including lakes, waterfalls and other scenic attractions. Developed recreation includes 7 campgrounds (3 on rivers, 4 on lakes), 2 waysides on M-28 and a CCC era organizational camp, which is used seasonally by a wide variety of organizations for outdoor education and other purposes.
The McCormick Wilderness is located approximately 45 miles east of Kenton in the rugged terrain of North Marquette County and includes several clear lakes. The Sturgeon Gorge Wilderness is approximately 20 miles by road from Kenton and features Sturgeon River, Gorge Falls and rugged gorges with numerous small tributary streams. There are portions of four major rivers on the district that are also included in the National Wild, Scenic and Recreational River System: Sturgeon, Yellow Dog, East Branch of the Ontonagon and Middle Branch of the Ontonagon.
The district is a premium spot for the outdoorsman. Whitetail deer are numerous. Black bear are common and getting more numerous. Upland game birds include ruffed grouse and woodcock. There is some local Canada geese and ducks in addition to migrants, which concentrate on local farm fields and Michigan DNR wildlife projects. Wild turkey hunting is also available with a two-hour drive. Fishing includes brook, rainbow and German brown trout, Chinook and Coho salmon, walleye, large and small mouth bass, northern pike, musky and numerous species of pan fish. Deep water charter fishing on Lake Superior for lake trout and salmon is available within an hours drive.
The area is also home to a wide variety of other wildlife including moose, gray (timber) wolves, fisher, pine marten, bald eagles, osprey, loons, river otter, bobcat, mink, beaver and many more. Sightings of bald eagle are common occurrences with local population being among the highest in the Midwest along with numerous nesting sites.
The local economy is primarily based on logging industry and tourism. Local logging supplies timber resource to numerous mills in Upper Michigan and Northern Wisconsin, with a variety of end products including hardwood veneer, lumber, pulp and paper, chip board, insulating board and more. Tourism is seasonally heavy in mid to late summer for camping, sight seeing and an escape from heat. In winter, the main attraction is snowmobiling. Fall is popular for hunting, especially for whitetail deer.
In town services are limited with a small general store, 2 taverns with food service, a small resort with cabins, town hall, fire hall and county road maintenance garage. A new K-12 school is located approximately 22 miles west in Ewen, Michigan, which provides bussing. School sports programs include basketball, football, volleyball, golf, baseball and track. There are two state supported universities, one private university and a community college located within a two hour drive. A 24 hour grocery and gas station is available in Bruce Crossing, Michigan, approximately 16 miles west. Postal service is RFD from Trout Creek, Michigan, located five miles west. There are numerous car dealerships, small hospitals, hardware stores, grocery stores, churches, golf courses and other facilities within an hour's drive or less in numerous small towns. Government quarters are available for three families within walking distance of the district office.
Commercial air transportation is available from local airports within approximately 75 miles from Marquette, Iron Mountain and Hancock in Michigan and Rhinelander, Wisconsin, with connections to major hubs in Chicago, Detroit and Minneapolis.
Michigan state income tax rate is 4.2% of adjusted income. Sales tax is 6%,
excluding food. There are no city or county income taxes.
Weather is usually warm from late April to mid September with high in 70's to low 80's. Temperatures in the 90's are relatively rare and the humidity is usually relatively low. Winter high temperatures, December through March, average the 20's. Lows can get to -30 or below but are normally close to 0 or into the teens. Snow cover normally lasts from late November into early April with average accumulation of 1.5 to two plus feet. Winter road maintenance and snow removal by county and state agencies is usually very good and winter travel is not usually a problem.
In general, it is a good place if you enjoy clean air, water, outdoor experiences and nature.
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:
Kenton Ranger District
4810 E. M-28
Kenton, MI 49967
Phone :( 906)-852-3500
TTY: (906) 852-3618
FAX: (906) 852-3618