Winterfield Pines

Winterfield Pines hosts a diverse mixture of habitat, including woodlands, grassland,
swamp, river, creeks, drains, ponds, and actively farmed agricultural fields.

Woodlands
The majority of habitat included in Winterfield Pines Nature Sanctuary is woodlands
made up of a diverse selection of trees including various types of evergreens,
hardwoods, poplar, and fruit trees. Most of the poplar is first-stage regrowth after the
last round of logging. All of the woodlands are now in a rewilding process, where Mother
Nature is making the decisions. Within the wooded portions of the property are a
number of old-growth white pines, including several with diameters ranging from 36” to
43” and heights reaching approximately 140 feet. The woodland understory is complex,
including seedlings and saplings at ground level for all of our types of trees, raspberries
and blackberries where patches of sunlight break through the woodland canopy, and in
summer, ferns that create a ground-level canopy for the seedlings. The sanctuary’s
woodlands have a good start at becoming mature, natural forest.

Grassland
A small portion of the property is natural grassland that has not been cut for decades.
The grassland acres provide an alternative habitat for wildlife on the property. Deer
frequently bed down in it. Coyotes use it for cover. Rabbits and mice nest there. Turkeys
spend time foraging in the grassy cover. A variety of birds take refuge in it. Though our
sightings of ringneck pheasants are rare, an average of one every two years, these
patches of grassland are prime habitat for them. In the summer, butterflies often flutter
about the grassland.

While all of the creatures enjoy the grassland, it is the combination of grassland, forest,
wetlands and agricultural fields that makes Winterfield Pines Nature Sanctuary ideal for
the all types of wildlife to breed, raise their young, and enjoy an ample supply of food
throughout the year.

Swamp
Winterfield Pines Nature Sanctuary includes patches of tag alder swamp, which
continue extensively throughout neighboring properties. A sizable cedar swamp is also
close by. The surrounding swamps are favorite daytime cover for white-tail deer,
bobcats, and black bear in the area.

West Branch of the Clam River
More than one mile of the West Branch of the Clam River, a tributary in the Muskegon
River Watershed, winds ungroomed through Winterfield Pines Natures Sanctuary and
along its border. The West Branch of the Clam River crosses Haskell Lake Road, and

then both Partridge Avenue and Cook Avenue before feeding into the Clam River’s
main branch several miles from where the Clam River feeds into the Muskegon River.
The Muskegon then flows south and west for another 185 miles to Lake Michigan at
Muskegon. The source of the Muskegon River is Houghton Lake in Roscommon
County. The river’s watershed drains an area of about 2,350 square miles of Michigan
countryside.

The West Branch of the Clam River is thought to be now wider, more shallow, and
warmer than it was when settlers first arrived, (before the 1870-1910 logging era when
Michigan’s iconic white pine forests were clearcut and logs floated downriver to mills
making dimensional lumber and shingles.) Each log running the river knocked a bit off
the river’s banks making it wider. A wider river will be shallower and have more surface
area. Increasing the stream’s surface area, where it can catch more of the sun’s rays,
results in a stream that is a bit warmer. Fish and other wildlife inhabiting the river must
adapt or move to streams cold enough to suit them.

The river is now habitat for various fish, turtle, clam, snail, and snake species, as well as
river otters, muskrats, and beaver. Blue heron, green heron, kingfisher and bald eagles
all cruise the river for food, while a variety of ducks, geese and am occasional swan
spend time on the river’s surface.

Creeks and Drains
Randall Drain flows directly east from Kirby Road into the West Branch of the Clam
River. It is a tree-lined depression that divides the actively farmed agricultural portion of
the property into two fields. It has a small, year-round trickle of water in dry periods and
can be quite wet after heavy rains.

An unnamed creek flows year round along the east property border of Winterfield Pines
East. It begins in the tag alder swamp on Winterfield Conservation Club property and
flows for about 3/8 mile south and west until it deposits its copper colored, tannin-filled
water into the West Branch of the Clam River.

Ponds
A human-made half-acre, spring-fed, pond of cool, clear water is located at the south
end of the old gravel pit on Winterfield Pines East. The pond reaches a depth of thirteen
feet. Cattails line its north end and a small beach is kept open for swimming on the
ponds west side. The pond was created when mining gravel on the property, and is
stocked annually with a few rainbow trout and fathead minnows. A population of perch
also live in the pond, which are offspring from a batch of fingerlings put in the pond
when it was first dug. Various turtles, snails, and frogs also inhabit the pond. It is
occasional visited by blue heron, river otter, a muskrat and ducks or geese.

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A small knee-deep natural pond is fifty yards northwest of the treehouse, and is
obscured by cattails, tall grass and trees. But summertime frogs provide reminder that it
is there. In the spring you may see a small pool of open water. The tall grass around its
edges is a favorite spot for deer to sleep.

Agricultural Fields
Winterfield Pines Nature Sanctuary has three actively farmed agricultural fields. The first
field has a south border of Wilson Road. The second field has a west border of Kirby
Road and a south border of Randall Drain. Together these two field are nearly 40 acres.
The agricultural use of the fields is leased to a local dairy farmer. Since 2016, timothy
grass has grown in the field. The dairy takes two or three cuttings off the fields each
year, which they chop in the field and store at the dairy as feed in sileage form. Before
2016, corn and alfalfa were both grown in the fields. There is also a small field of mixed
grass at the northeast corner of Wilson Road and Kirby Road. This small field is cut
and baled annually (large round bales) by a local farmer with a small beef operation.
Revenue generated by the farm leases is used to pay for upkeep, improvements, and
property taxes for Winterfield Pines Nature Sanctuary and the section of Wilson Road
east of Kirby Road.