Our lodging properties surround the park and make the perfect base camp for exploring backcountry lakes and waterfalls. Offers great views of the surrounding area. Edwards Rating: II (III) M M - for the complete traversePorcupine Ridge's official trail ends at about 4.5 km and is pretty much a hike with some easy to moderate (if you stick to the ridge all the way) scramble on the ridge where you can avoid some exposed sections if you want. Start: Hwy. Porcupine Peak (also known as Goat Peak) is a little known trail that begins beside the popular Lindeman and Greendrop Lakes trailhead. 40 (Kananaskis Trail) at Porcupine Creek bridge. As you get higher, the trees gradually give way to low growing alpine plants and subalpine fir. Lost Lake Trail. The seemingly forested ridge between the two forks of Porcupine Creek is a fun trip for experienced off-trail hikers. The hike is tough, going straight uphill for a significant portion, with some ups and downs right before reaching the peak. The Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park offers some of the best hiking and backpacking trails in the upper Midwest (ranked #2 by Silent Sports Magazine). The trail has many switchbacks, but they help maintain a wonderful grade up the entire mountain. The actual hiking trail is found 740m farther along this road (close to N51 05.048 W121 48.806). While the ridge is essentially a hike or easy scramble, the tower is much more engaging and demanding. Via #12 Porcupine … Day Hikes, Short Scenic Hikes & Backpacking. The area around North Dome is very exposed with few trees, so make sure you have plenty of water and sunscreen. Cross Porcupine Creek and travel parallel to the creek for a short distance until you begin to cross a hillside on an old dirt road directly above the creek. The world famous Porcupine Rim ride is a must-do on any mountain bike bucket list and is a classic Moab ride. With each step, more mountains become visible and your view up the Valentine Creek drainage gets better. It covers 60,000 acres and is Michigan's largest state park. Porcupine Tower is fairly easily claimed as a distinct summit from Porcupine Ridge. Take the Indian Rock Trail spur either on your way to or back from North Dome to view the only granite Arch in Yosemite, and the whole High Sierras. Porcupine Rim Trail. Trail Description: From the trailhead, cross over a small fork of Porcupine Creek and pass an old cabin on the left side of the trail. The Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park offers some of the region’s best backcountry trails, and the day hiking options are almost endless. Porcupine Lookout Difficult. After losing height from Porcupine Ridge, we were pleasantly surprised to find some moderate (exposed) scrambling along the ridge towards the tower. The hike from Tranquille Lake up to Porcupine Ridge is a hike that is listed in many sources – in hiking books, on websites, on recreational maps, and in regional literature. A signed backroad winds up past the powerline and into the Two Mile Creek valley, then over to Porcupine Creek. Choose any trail, and you’ll be astounded by the natural beauty of the area, whether you’re cresting a ridge to take in the spectacular views at Lake of the Clouds or stopping to rest by a bubbling waterfall. The route takes you to the edge (literally) of Castle Valley and then down a thrilling (and bone jarring) descent to the edge of Jackass Canyon where you'll ride sweet singletrack around and down to the Colorado River. The Porcupine Rim Trail is the "other" famous classic ride at Moab. It is the first leg of the Masters Sub-Alpine Trek, a route all the way across the Bonaparte Plateau to Bonaparte Lake. A Parks sign is found along the road near the start of the hike. 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