List of recommendations released by the Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund

The big list of items recommended by the Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund was released earlier this evening. Containing 99 projects for funding, here are some of the more interesting ones to me I found:

• The City of Detroit is recommended to receive $600,000 for renovations and improvements to two city parks, which includes relocation of several athletic fields and renovating walking trails.
• Kensington Metro Park is recommended to receive $94,000 for a pond overlook, seawall and interpretative signage, among other items.
• Kent County is recommended to receive $300,000 for a bridge for M-6 trail users.
• Petoskey will be recommended to receive $300,000 for a 10-foot concrete path and parking, among other items, for the city's Downtown Greenway north segment.
• Newberry is recommended to receive $300,000 for the development of a complex with an outdoor skating rink and hockey facility.
• The trust fund is recommending the spending of $3 million to purchase an area near Manchester and rename it the River Raisin Recreation Area. More on that here.

For the entire list, click here.

Michigan hunting live chat taking place today at 11:30 a.m.

I need to compile my thoughts a bit more on the subject, but the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, along with the Pure Michigan campaign, is hosting a live chat today on hunting on its website.

I'm no hunter, although I'd like to eventually give it a go. More on this later, but thought I would share the live chat link earlier as opposed to later.

Fire engulfs hundreds of acres of forest near Grayling

A fire broke out in the forest just outside Grayling in Crawford County at about 2:30 p.m. today, according to 9 and 10 News.

Officials are saying the fire is reaching toward state campgrounds in the area, and more than 100 homes are being evacuated in and around Grayling, north of M-72. Coincidentally, I was just up on M-72 a few weeks ago, coming home from backpacking Sand Lakes Quiet Area.

The fires spanned approximately 1,000 acres in the dry heat, which set records downstate near Detroit. It has consumed one home so far, according to the AP, which had its story published in places such as mysanantonio.com in Texas and the Albany Times Union in New York. Resurrection Life Church east of Grayling is serving as an emergency center for the people that have been displaced.

Below, I've created a Storify post to document some of the social media posts on the fire. (P.S. It's my first time using the service, please let me know how I can improve!)