TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (AP) - A young woman and her dog are hitting the road to learn more about Michigan’s remote rustic campgrounds.
Over five months, Paige Lackey plans to visit 77 of Michigan’s 145 state forest campgrounds in the northern Lower Peninsula and Upper Peninsula. The goal is to collect information for the Department of Natural Resources and people who want to get off the beaten path.
Lackey will collect GPS data for mapping, update the DNR’s photo library and evaluate signs, MLive.com reported.
She will report her experiences on a blog for General RV, which is providing a recreational vehicle. Her sidekick: Willow, an Australian cattle dog.
“This is not a marketing project; I’m not going around spotlighting some of these really beautiful, more private places,” Lackey said. “I’m really just gathering the information and then putting it online so that if you’re planning a trip or you’re looking around for a campground in a specific area, there will be sufficient information there and some updated photos and maps.”
Lackey serves the DNR as a member of Huron Pines AmeriCorps, which places college graduates in a 10-month term of volunteer service with Michigan conservation groups.
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