Song of Hiawatha

(Hiawatha Series #1)

By the shores of Gitche Gumee,
By the shining Big-Sea-Water
Stood the wigwam of Nokomis,
Daughter of the Moon, Nokomis.
Dark behind it rose the forest,
Rose the black and gloomy pine-trees,
Rose the firs with cones upon them;
Bright before it beat the water.
Beat the clear and sunny water,
Beat the shining Big-Sea-Water.
There the wrinkled old Nokomis
Nursed the little Hiawatha.

– Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Song of Hiawatha, Hiawatha’s Childhood

This is an ongoing series of letterboxes themed around Longfellow’s poem, The Song of Hiawatha. The boxes will be placed at various locations in or near the Hiawatha National Forest in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.

Named after Longfellow’s poem, The Song of Hiawatha, the Hiawatha National Forest is located in the central and eastern Upper Peninsula of Michigan. The forest encompasses approximately 880,000 acres, and receives over 1.5 million recreational visits per year. The forest affords visitors access to white sand, scenic beaches and relatively undeveloped shorelines along three of America’s inland seas — Lakes Superior, Michigan, and Huron. From scenic and historic lighthouses to Great Lakes islands, from spectacular shorelines to the Midwest’s finest winter playland, the Hiawatha National Forest brings to life a myriad of fascinating and exciting natural, historical, and unique recreational opportunities.

Letterboxes in this Series…

• Song of Hiawatha
• Gitche Gumee
• Daughter of the Moon
• Nahma, King of Fishes

Getting There…

To find the trail, turn south on H-03 (Forest Lake Road) from M-28. Travel 4.5 miles, passing through the village of AuTrain, and turn east onto FR-2276. You will see a Hiawatha National Forest Recreation Area sign at this intersection. Go 1/2 mile to the next sign and turn left (stay on the pavement) until you enter the campground. Take the first campground loop to the right and you will find the trailhead near campsite #11. The campground is seasonal, closing for the winter in mid-October, but after this you can still get back into the area and park at the campground entrance, near site #1. From here it is just a short hike to the trailhead.

Clues…

As you follow the blue blazed trail, read the informational postings about the various kinds of birds that can be found along the way. Keep alert for a buzzing zee-zee/zee-zoo-zee song, at which point you will find a wooden structure located in front of a fallen log, about 25 paces up the trail. Standing behind this structure, gaze due south to a triple trunk tree with a hole in the base. Find the box in an indent around the back side of this tree, under cover of leaves and a decaying log.