USFS · Michigan

Huron-Manistee National Forest

The Huron–Manistee National Forests are two separate national forests, the Huron National Forest and the Manistee National Forest, combined in 1945 for administration purposes and which comprise 978,906 acres (3,960 km2) of public lands, including 5,786 acres (23 km2) of wetlands, extending across the northern lower peninsula of Michigan. The Huron–Manistee National Forests provide many benefits to the public, including clean air and water, recreational opportunities for visitors, habitat for fish and wildlife, and resources for local industry such as timber, minerals, and energy production. The Huron-Manistee National Forest is organized into four separate divisions. The Baldwin/White Cloud District is situated in the central region of the forest. The Manistee/Cadillac District lies in the northwest portion of the forest. The Huron and Tawas/Harrisville District is located on the eastern edge of the forest. The Milo District is positioned in the southern section of the Huron-Manistee National Forest. The headquarters for the forests is in Cadillac, Michigan.

From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

National Forest2.0 million acresUSFSMI50 campgrounds within 10 mi112 Forest Service sites354 trails
Official page at U.S. Forest Service ↗
1 fire
active
Welcome Lake South Rx (prescribed burn) · 19 mi from the center · 35 acres
Interagency incident data as of 2026-11-01
Incident details ↓

Facts

Where each comes from ↓
DesignationNational Forest
Managed byU.S. Forest Service
StateMichigan
Size2.0 million acres
Forest Service code0904, region 09
Center point44.53° N, 84.07° W
Night skyAbout as dark as the ground gets (Black Marble reading 11)

Boundary map

3 outlines

Boundary, simplified to about 0.005 degrees Federal campground Forest Service recreation site

The outline is the agency boundary simplified for display, so small parcels and inholdings may not show. The agency page has the authoritative map.

Weather by month

NOAA climate normals →
Weather by month near Huron-Manistee National Forest10°20°30°40°50°60°70°January: 1.83 inches of precipitationFebruary: 1.58 inches of precipitationMarch: 1.94 inches of precipitationApril: 3.11 inches of precipitationMay: 3.49 inches of precipitationJune: 3.80 inches of precipitationJuly: 3.52 inches of precipitationAugust: 3.33 inches of precipitationSeptember: 2.90 inches of precipitationOctober: 3.28 inches of precipitationNovember: 2.49 inches of precipitationDecember: 2.14 inches of precipitationJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecJanuary: 18.5°F averageFebruary: 19.9°F averageMarch: 29.1°F averageApril: 41.7°F averageMay: 53.9°F averageJune: 63.2°F averageJuly: 67.4°F averageAugust: 65.7°F averageSeptember: 58.3°F averageOctober: 46.3°F averageNovember: 35.1°F averageDecember: 25.1°F average0 in1 in2 in3 in4 inTemp °FInches
The line is the average temperature and the bars are average precipitation at Lupton 1S, 8 miles from the center point at 908 feet, station USC00204967 in the NOAA monthly climate normals for 1991 to 2020. Precipitation totals about 33 inches a year.

Large units span more than one climate. The station stands in for the center point, and the outer parts of the boundary can be warmer or colder.

Where to camp

Campsite Atlas →

50 federal campgrounds sit inside the boundary. Nearest first. Distances are from the campground point to the boundary edge, from the Campsite Atlas index.

FS · Inside
Au Sable Loop Campground
Reservable5 sites
FS · Inside
Ausable River Camping
Reservable102 sites
FS · Inside
Bear Island Campground
First-comeMI
FS · Inside
Bear Track Campground
First-comeMI
FS · Inside
Benton Lake Campground
First-come25 sites
FS · Inside
Bowman Bridge
Reservable17 sites
FS · Inside
Bowman Lake Campground
First-come4 sites
FS · Inside
Brush Lake Campground
First-come6 sites
Show 4 more

38 more within ten miles are not listed here.

Trailheads and sites

Forest Service directory · 112

The Forest Service lists 112 recreation sites in this forest, among them 42 campgrounds, 15 paddling accesss, 10 trailheads, 10 boat launchs. Each links to its page on fs.usda.gov, which carries the season, fees and current status.

Show all 60

The 60 closest to the center point are listed; 52 more are on the Forest Service site.

Distance is from the center point of the boundary, not from a road or town.

Trails

Every trail on Trailhead Atlas →

The Forest Service trail layer records 354 named trails in this forest, 1,727 miles in all. The 10 longest are listed here.

TrailMiles
North Country Trail ↗127.3
Mi Shore to Shore Horse&hike ↗98
Newaygo-Wellston Smt Dnr3 ↗95.6
McCct- Bwc ↗82.5
Oscoda-Alcona Smt Dnr96 ↗64.4
Mack Lake Loop Trail ↗39.6
Corsair Trails ↗34.1
Huron ORV, Smt/Huron ORV Trail ↗33.2
Iosco Smt Dnr6 ↗32.8
McCt - Cad/Man ↗31.1

Lengths and allowed uses come from the Forest Service trail layer by way of Trailhead Atlas. This trail list was copied from Trailhead Atlas on November 1, 2026 and is copied again on each weekly run. Trails in plain text have no page there yet.

All 354 trails in Huron-Manistee National Forest on Trailhead Atlas ↗

Fire nearby

Within 50 miles · as of 2026-11-01
  • Prescribed
    Welcome Lake South Rx

    19 mi from the center point · 35 acres

Distance is to the reported incident point, not the fire edge, and is measured from the center of a boundary that may be many miles across. Check the agency page for closures.

Explore

Nearby on the other atlases

National Park System units within 30 miles · Park Atlas
National Lakeshore · 24 mi
Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore
National Register listings within 15 miles · 250 in all · Register Atlas

Landmarks are listed first, then by distance from the boundary.

Guidebooks for Michigan

We earn a small commission if you buy through these links. It does not change what we list.

  • Rail-trails Michigan & Wisconsin
    Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, 2017
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • Explorer's Guide 50 Hikes on and Around the North Country Trail - Michigan and Wisconsin
    Thomas Funke, 2016
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • Hiking Michigan's Upper Peninsula
    Eric Hansen, 2016
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • Five-Star Trails: Ann Arbor and Detroit
    Greg Tasker, 2018
    Find at Bookshop.org

Titles come from Open Library's catalog, matched by subject heading or by title.

Reference

Questions people ask

How big is Huron-Manistee National Forest?

2.0 million acres.

Source: Forest Service boundary data

Who manages Huron-Manistee National Forest?

The U.S. Forest Service.

Source: U.S. Forest Service

What state is Huron-Manistee National Forest in?

Michigan.

Source: How states are assigned

Can I camp at Huron-Manistee National Forest?

Dispersed camping is allowed on most national forest land outside developed sites. Check the forest page for closures. The federal campgrounds within ten miles are listed under Where to camp.

Source: Where to camp

How do I get to Huron-Manistee National Forest?

A point inside the boundary is at 44.533° N, 84.067° W. Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore is 24 miles away. The official page carries directions and the office address.

Source: U.S. Forest Service

Is there a fire near Huron-Manistee National Forest right now?

1 active incident within 50 miles as of 2026-11-01, the nearest Welcome Lake South Rx at 19 miles. Distance is to the reported incident point, not the fire edge.

Source: Fire nearby

Which national parks are near Huron-Manistee National Forest?

Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore (24 mi). Park Atlas has fees, hours and alerts for each.

Source: Nearby on the other atlases

Are there historic places near Huron-Manistee National Forest?

The National Register has 250 listings within 15 miles, including U.s.s. Silversides and S.s. Badger (carferry).

Source: Register Atlas

Sources

  • Boundary, name, acreage and code: the Forest Service Enterprise Data Warehouse.
  • States and territories: computed by intersecting the boundary with Census state polygons and coarse outlines of the territories and outlying islands. A place is listed when it holds at least one percent of the area. A boundary that touches no outline is listed under the nearest one.
  • Description: Huron–Manistee National Forests on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. The article was accepted because its title contains this unit’s name.
  • Campgrounds: the Campsite Atlas index of federal campgrounds, matched to this boundary at build time.
  • Trailheads and sites: the Forest Service Recreation Opportunities layer, matched by forest code.
  • Trails: the Trailhead Atlas open-data file of Forest Service trails, matched by forest code.
  • Night sky: NASA Black Marble (VIIRS, 2016 composite) sampled at zoom 6 around the center point.
  • Weather, alerts, air quality, river flow and earthquakes load live in your browser from NWS, AirNow, USGS and iNaturalist when you open the page.