Tour Detail

Michigan State University and Michigan Department of Natural Resources offers a field tour option to visit a northern hardwood sawmill and northern hardwood forest field site visit. This optional tour will utilize a group bus for transportation to Housler’s Sawmill in Mesick, Michigan.  Participants will need to be able to handle short flights of stairs and willing to wear hardhats, safety glasses, and ear plugs for the sawmill portion of the afternoon.  These items will be provided to each participant for the tour. 

Housler Sawmill is a family owned and operated hardwood mill that is the epitome of Michigan’s forest products industry.  They have their own logging crews to supply the mill along with purchasing logs from other wood producers.  They are trained and certified by Michigan’s Sustainable Forestry Initiative and a member of the Michigan Association of Timbermen-Self Insurers’ Fund to maintain a high level of responsibility and safety in all aspects of their business operations.  Mill owners will be assisting in the tour and available for your questions.

After departing the sawmill, the bus will make a 60-minute stop on the return route to Traverse City to a quality northern hardwood forest stand.  This field stop is designed to have an interactive and energetic discussion around the economic importance and variability of the hardwood industry in Michigan and the Upper Great Lakes region.  We hope you can join us for this afternoon adventure outside the conference room.

Date, time and stop for the tour. 

Date: May 25, 2022

2:00 PM : Depart from Hotel (Traverse City) via bus or vans for Housler Sawmill, Mesick

2:30 PM: Arrive at sawmill

2:30 PM: Tour of hardwood sawmill, log receiving yard, finished product shipping yard

Discussion will be around species use, methods of wood utilization, and market conditions for hardwood lumber products.

4:00 PM: Depart sawmill for hardwood forest site visit

4:15 PM : Forest field stop to discuss economics of hardwood forest management in Michigan

5:30: Arrival to Hotel (Traverse City)

This tour is made possible by -

 DNR_Logo_Color_01_large Michigan Department of Natural Resources

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