Michigan racing to buy 485 acres on Lake Superior before private buyers snap it up

Michigan is moving to buy 485 acres along Lake Superior in the Upper Peninsula with state wildlife officials seeking $2.1 million to protect cedar and hemlock forests that provide winter cover for white-tailed deer. The Department of Natural Resources requested the money from the Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund to purchase the Laughing Fish Point property in Alger County, which includes about 6,000 feet of shoreline roughly halfway between Marquette and Munising. If approved, the land would be folded into a Gwinn-based state forest unit. The land has been listed for nearly two years, and officials note Michigan does not have a right of first offer. The DNR presented the acquisition to the trust fund board Sept. 30; the board is expected to decide at its December meeting amid other conservation applications, including a $6 million Great Lakes Basin easement request.