Walk through Hartwick Pines' old-growth forest
Near Grayling, Hartwick Pines protects 49 acres of old-growth pine forest and tells the story of the lumber era that changed Michigan.
White pine powered Michigan’s late-1800s lumber industry. The DNR says Michigan led the nation in lumber production during that era, while the Michigan History Center places the state’s white-pine logging period roughly between 1860 and 1910. Most of the northern Lower Peninsula’s original forest was cut. Hartwick Pines is a rare place where part of it survived.
The park protects 49 acres of old-growth pine forest. The Michigan History Center calls it Lower Michigan’s largest remaining stand of old-growth white pine; the DNR describes it as one of the state’s last stands. The paved, accessible Old Growth Forest Trail makes a 1.25-mile loop through the grove, past the visitor center and logging museum.
Karen Hartwick donated 8,000 acres to the state in 1927 as a memorial to her husband, Edward, who died in World War I. Her gift included 86 acres of forest that had not been cut. The DNR’s stewardship plan says a fierce windstorm on November 11, 1940, caused a major blowdown and left about 49 acres as closed-canopy old growth. The logging museum nearby explains what happened to the forests beyond this grove.
Where to see it
Hartwick Pines State Park, off I-75 near Grayling. The accessible, paved 1.25-mile Old Growth Forest Trail starts near the visitor center; the on-site Hartwick Pines Logging Museum tells the story of Michigan's "white pine was king" era. A Recreation Passport is required.
Sources
Last reviewed against the listed sources: July 15, 2026.