I went to Hartwick Pines Wednesday May 16. It was really fun there and there was a guy named Craig and he was funny. He showed us all kinds of diforent animls. One of the animals was a skunk and a raccoon a snake to. There was a museum and at the museum there was a lot of cool facts about lumber jacks. The lady told us how early they had to get up and they had to wake up at 5:00 in the morning. At the gift shop I got a walking stick and there was a old chapel. There were some trees that got struck by lightning. The trees were so cool there were trees that had snag and there was a indoor museum. I liked it there. I hope I can go again. ~Nickolas G.

On May 16, 2012 we went to Hartwick Pines and it was so much fun! We got to play a game called Skins and Skulls. The ranger's name was Craig .He was really funny and this is how you play Skins and Skulls! A ranger would hand you the skin of an animal but you will blind folded so you could not see and the ranger will hand you the Skin and Skull and you will have to guess what kind of animal skin it is. Then we went on a hike in the Old Growth Forest and our ranger's name was Marissa. Marissa told us that there is a tree called the Monarch and it is a tree that got struck by lightening but it is still living. We also learned that a snag is a dead tree but it is still standing and it doesn't grow any leafs. Then we went to the Logging Camp/Museum and a girl that lead us through the museum her name was Heidi. She told us about what the Loggers did and how much money they earned. Then she told us about the Road Monkeys. Road Monkeys have a really hard job. They have to run very fast ahead of the horses who are pulling the trees. The Road Monkey have to make paths with their feet. Horses have to be able to pull around 16,000 pounds and they have to pull a sled. I had so much fun at Hartwick Pines! ~Colleen M.

My Favorite Part of Hartwick Pines

My favorite part about Hartwick pines was Skins and Skulls. The guy taught us the game was Craig. It is when you put animal skins or skulls in their hands and you have to gees what it is. There was a raccoon, skunk, a snake , and a beaver. When he was done we walked in the Old Growth Forest and we got to see trees that were hit by ligtening a name for it is a snag. It is a dead tree but it is standing. After the long walk we got to the logging camp and we met a person named Heidi. I learned about the camp. On the way back we went to McDonalds. It was good food after I ate all my food I had a slushy. After that we went home. It was fun at Hartwick Pines. I hope I go there another time. ~Caden J.

On Wednesday 16, 2012 Mrs. Bennett's class went to Hartwick Pines. We saw many different things there. It was a long drive there. When we got there we ate lunch at picnic tables and got to play on the playground. After that we went to the skins and skulls presentation. The man's name that talked about skins and skull was Craig. He was super funny! At the presentation some of my classmates got blind folded and got an animal skin in their hands and had to geuss what it was with clues from Craig. When they found out what it was Craig told us about the animal. The different animals were a raccoon, skunk, snake, and a beaver. After that we took a walk through the Old Growth Forest with a guide named Marissa. We saw many different kinds of trees. We saw two trees that got hit by lightning. One was alive and the was a snag. Then we saw the Monarch. Monarch means high king or queen. Many people came to see the Monarch. You use to be able to go and take pictures by it but when you step on the soil and roots it was cutting of the trees oxygen. When we finish the hike we went to the logging camp. There was a women there named Hiedi. She took us in this building. She told us about the the logging camps. A cool fact was if you were a young boy you could be a Road Monkey. A Road Monkey was a boy who had to run in front of a slay in the winter and throw sand in front of the slay. They had to be faster than the horses. After that we went to the gift shop. Then on the bus we go. I had a really fun time . ~Hanna H.

      On Wednesday May 16, 2012 all the fourth graders in Mrs. Bennett's and Mrs. Eichberger's class took a trip to Hartwick Pines.
      Hartwick Pines is in Grayling, Michigan, so it took about two hours to get to Harwick Pines from Onekama. When we were at Hartwick Pines we first played a game called Skins and Skulls. Skins and Skulls is a game were you get blindfolded and you have to guess what animal skin or skulls you have in your hands. The guy who was in charge of the game was Craig. He was really funny. We learned a lot about raccoons, skunks, beavers, and the Michigan Puff Adder. A Puff Adder is a type of snake. Next we went to the Old Growth Forest. We walked about a mile and a half in the the Old Growth Forest. We learned what a snag is, a snag is a dead standing tree. We saw two snag trees. We also saw the Monarch tree, which was the tallest and widest tree that was in Hartwick Pines. On our way to the Logging Camp/Museum we got to see the old chapel. It smelled kind of funny. We also saw the Logging Museum/Camp. I learned that the loggers only had two pairs of clothes and got payed a dollar a day, which is a lot back then. The women that were at a logging camp were the cooks, and got payed three to four dollars a day. It depend on how good the food was. The little girls were called cookies, they would set the table and help out in the kitchen. The boys would either be a Road Monkey or a Barn Boys. A Road Monkey would have to be able to run faster than the horses. They had to put sand in a path so the logs don't trample the horses. The Barn Boys would have to help out in the barn. I had a lot of fun at Hartwick Pines. I Hope to go there again someday. ~by Sydnee H.

      On May 16, 2012 I went to Hartwick Pines with my class. On the bus ride there my friends and I played our DS's, DSI's, and DSI XL's. We all played Mario Cart and Super Mario Bros.
      When we got there we ate lunch and played tag. Then we walked on this bridge thing. We went in this building and met a guy named Craig. Craig played a game called Skins and Skulls with us. In the game he would pick somebody and blindfold them and take out a skin of an animal and put it in their hands. They had to guess what animal it was and he would give them clues and after they got it right he would tell a story about the animal. One of the animals was a Puff Adder Snake and he told us it's defenses. The first defense was he would rattle its tail, then it would hiss and shed its skin, and then it would play dead. He pretended it was dead and he kept saying I'm dead, no you're not, yes I am, no you're not, it was funny! Its next defense was fake strike like it was gonna bite you but they aren't known to bite people, and the last thing it would do is throw up the stuff it ate. Those are all the Puff Adder's defenses.
      Next we went on the trails. Our leader's name was Marissa. She took us to the Old Growth Forest. She showed us two trees that were struck by lightning. She told us that a dead tree that is still standing is called a snag. There were two or three snags there. One tree we saw was the Monarch Tree. It's broken into three pieces from wind storms. At one point it was 300 something feet in the air and 12 feet around! She also told us about a pine martin and a bobcat.
      Then we went with Heidi into the logging camp/ museum. She told us about how lumberjacks would sleep, work, eat, and how they got paid. One job was for a little kid and they were called Road Monkeys. There would be a sled with wood on it and horses would be pulling it and they would run in front of them and put down sawdust to make the sled not slide but if the kid got ran over they would be badly injured because it all ways 16,000 lbs.
      After we left we went to McDonald's where everybody ate and got a toy.
      Then on the way home we all played our games again. Hartwick Pines was a fun educated field trip I will never forget. ~From Taylor B.

On May 16, 2012, my class went to Hartwick Pines. When we got there we went to a park to eat lunch before we went to play at the playground. Then when we were finished playing, we went inside with the man named Craig. He showed us skins and skulls. He was so funny! He took some people up to feel some skins of raccoon, skunk, and fox. When he was finished we went with a girl named Marissa, and took us on a walk to the Old Growth Forest. She showed us the trees that got hit by lightening and the pine martin. At the very end of the Old Growth Forest, there was a logging camp museum. A girls named Heidi talked about the loggers. They worked really hard. When we got back from the logging camp museum we went to the museum to buy things. Only five people could go in the gift shop at a time. The last thing we did was to go McDonald`s to have dinner and it was so good. Then when we were done eating we went home. The best part of the trip was feeling the animal skins. I had a blast at Hartwick Pines with my class. ~By Griselda

On May 16, 2012 our class went to Hartwick Pines. It was a long way there and when we got there we ate lunch. We played on a play ground for a little bit and then we went to the visiting center. We met a guy called Craig he did a game called skins and skulls. He showed us a raccoon, skunk, beaver fur and other stuff. He was really funny too. after that we went with a girl called Marissa. She showed us the Old Growth Forest. After that we went to the logging camp. We saw how people cut down trees in the 1890's. After that we went to the gift shop. It was very small. We got all of our things and went back on the bus. I had a great time at Hartwick Pines State Park. ~Aaron P.

On May 16th my class went to Hartwick Pines. It was very fun. My favorite part was when we were in the heart of the Old Growth Trail were Marissa showed us the pine martin. It lives in the top of the trees. When the loggers came and cut the trees the pine martin left Michigan and fifty years later the pine martin came back to Michigan. When we went farther in the Old Growth Trail we saw a lightening tree. A lightening tree is a tree that was struck by lightening but some are still living like one that I saw had a line from the lightening. The lightening always goes for the juiciest vein in a tree. When we went farther down the trail we saw a snag. A snag is a tree that has died and part of it is still standing. There was a snag that was 150 feet tall there was a picture of it that was so cool they called it the Monarch. When we went farther down the trail and Marissa told us about the diseases Heart Rot. Heart Rot rots out the inside of it. Then we went to the Old Chapel. It's a church no one knows who belt it but it was very old. At our last stop Marissa showed us the bobcat but it wasn't alive but it still had it's claws. After that we went to the logging museum ware Hiedi led us threw the museum. First we went threw the camp. The beds were made of hay. There was two or three people in a bed so the logger's stayed warm in the cabin that could fit 100 men. Then we went to another part of the museum ware we learned what tools they used for saws and axes. There was a double bit ax and it was used when one side was dual they would use the other side. Then we learned about the Road Monkey. The Road Monkey put sawdust on the hill in the winter so the horses don't slide down the hill. After that we went to the visitors center and went to the gift shop and the indoor museum and then we left to go to McDonald's for dinner and that was it for the field trip. It was very fun. ~Zackary G.

Go to Hartwick Pines, page 2