Off-road vehicle enthusiasts know that a few bumps in the road can add to the fun, but what if a forest road is damaged? Or if the path under your tires doesn’t match what’s on the map? You can share your thoughts on your favorite places and help the DNR keep its maps of thousands of miles of forest roads accurate.

The DNR annually reviews forest road information to make sure digital maps reflect what’s on the landscape and help people know which roads are open or closed to public use. Updates are posted April 1, the same date you can get new ORV licenses and trail permits.

While comments on forest road maps may be submitted at any time, feedback received by Aug. 31 will be considered when developing the 2024 maps.

About 11,600 miles of forest roads currently are open to the public. View the status of forest roads and submit comments on an interactive map at Michigan.gov/ForestRoads, or email comments to DNR-RoadInventoryProject@Michigan.gov.

Updates may include decisions to open or close a road to ORV or conventional vehicle traffic, or to update a road’s status. These decisions are typically made to protect damaged natural resources, ensure public safety due to road conditions or fix data errors in maps.

Questions? Contact Jason Caron at 906-235-4361.

If you’re interested in helping the DNR take care of Michigan’s natural and cultural resources, August offers plenty of options! Read on to find the right fit for you, from state parks support and wildlife habitat projects to state forest planning and more.

Join a state park stewardship workday

Several state parks in southern Michigan are welcoming volunteers to help remove invasive plants that threaten high-quality ecosystems. Check this roster of stewardship workdays for opportunities:

• Waterloo Recreation Area (Washtenaw County), 1 to 4 p.m. Friday, Aug. 4.
• Hoffmaster State Park (Muskegon County), 9:30 to 11 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 5.
• Brighton Recreation Area (Livingston County), 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, Aug 5.
• Yankee Springs Recreation Area (Barry County), 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 6.
• Bald Mountain Recreation Area (Oakland County), 9 a.m. to noon Saturday, Aug. 12.
• Ludington State Park (Mason County), 10 a.m. to noon Saturday, Aug. 12.
• Island Lake Recreation Area (Livingston County), 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 13.
• Muskegon State Park (Muskegon County), 10 a.m. to noon Sunday, Aug. 13.
• Highland Recreation Area (Oakland County), 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 19.
• Warren Dunes State Park (Berrien County), 10 a.m. to noon Saturday, Aug. 19.
• Fort Custer Recreation Area (Kalamazoo County), 9:30 a.m. to noon Sunday, Aug. 20.

More details about each workday and how to register can be found on the DNR volunteer events calendar.

Join On the Ground, Michigan United Conservation Clubs’ volunteer program in partnership with the DNR, to plant approximately 100 trees and shrubs throughout three openings in the Garden Grade Grouse Enhanced Management Site in Delta County. Volunteers are needed at this GEMS location Saturday, Aug. 26, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

This project is an effort to establish soft mast (fruits and berries that wildlife eats) that will benefit species such as grouse, deer and turkey. All ages are welcome to attend. Registered participants will receive free lunch and a volunteer appreciation gift.

Get more details and register for the Delta County planting event.

Prescribed burns, timber harvests and other activities are carefully planned to keep Michigan’s nearly 4 million acres of state forest thriving. Plans for these activities are being finalized now for 2025, and public input is welcome.

Find out what activities are planned and how to share your feedback at Michigan.gov/ForestInput. You can submit online comments during designated 30-day periods or attend an open house or compartment review meeting, where plans are finalized.

See all scheduled comment periods, open houses and compartment review meetings for the 2023 season.

Crisp, cool days; bright autumn leaves crackling underfoot; the small puff of your breath on the air ... There's nothing like a hunting day in the woods! It may feel far away during the dog days of summer, but now is the right time to think about hunter education if you or someone you plan to hunt with hasn't yet completed a course. 

You can take hunter education in a traditional classroom, online or as a take-home study course. Online and take-home study students are required to complete an in-person field day, during which all students will have the chance to practice hands-on skills, such as target shooting and fence crossing.

While successful completion of a hunter education course is required in order to buy most hunting licenses, the course delivers much more. Students will learn lifelong skills, such as wildlife management, basic first aid and proper use of a compass.

Many of our state's hunting seasons begin in September, so be sure to start checking for hunter education opportunities now – it’s an investment in a lifetime of safe, responsible enjoyment of Michigan's hunting tradition.

Find a class near you at Michigan.gov/HunterEducation.

Questions? Email DNR-LED-RecSafety@Michigan.gov.

Ask Michigan residents what type of careers there are at the DNR and most would respond with some of the more well-known jobs such as park ranger or conservation officer. These are important positions, to be sure, but there are many other people who do a variety of work for the department in roles you might not ever have considered! 

To highlight some of these career paths and opportunities, we've put together the first in a series of short videos so you can hear from the employees themselves about the work they do, what it means and how they got started:

• Fisheries research biologist Shawn Sitar talks about his work on Lake Superior, where he and his crew use a research vessel to check fish populations and other scientific data that help guide current and future management decisions. Shawn describes a 2006 expedition to the deepest spot in Lake Superior (1,350 feet) and the thrill of documenting a living population of fish.
• Park interpreter Theresa Neal is based at Tahquamenon Falls State Park. She shares her love of Michigan with park visitors of all ages every day, helping them discover the outdoors through guided tours, hikes and hands-on learning activities. Theresa's programs and teaching have inspired generations to visit Michigan's Upper Peninsula in Paradise.
• Deputy public information officer John Pepin works out of the DNR's Marquette field office. John's desire to work for the DNR sparked at a young age, and he is now part of a communications and marketing team that helps millions of people connect with outdoor recreation and conservation education. See his work online via "Showcasing the DNR" stories and a variety of media publications.

We'll share more staff videos as they are created. In the meantime, learn about DNR career pathways and job opportunities at Michigan.gov/DNRJobs.