40 | MARCH 19 • 2020

Okemos couple visits every
state park in the Mitten.

JUDY GREENWALD CONTRIBUTING WRITER A

ri and Jessi Adler know the
meaning of hitting the road
— for pleasure and purpose.
To acknowledge the centennial of
Michigan’
s parks in 2019, the Okemos
couple traveled some 8,000 miles, visit-
ing each of our state’
s 103 parks to learn
about their unique beauty and history.
The two started a website (trekers.
org) and wondered how to expand it
to get more people interested in hiking
and camping adventures and the infor-
mation they were sharing. They decid-
ed to visit every state park in 2019 to
celebrate the centennial anniversary of
Department of Natural Resources.
The Adlers started planning their
adventure and found a sponsor to help
offset some of the travel expenses, but
the deal fell through when the company
ran into financial difficulty. The Adlers
had already created and announced
a YouTube channel and Instagram
account, and talked about the trip on
their website. A tough decision arose —
would they continue planning the trip
or give up?
“We decided to push ahead, and it
was worth it, especially when we receive
comments from YouTube viewers about
how we helped them plan trips. That

was the whole point,” Ari said
The two own an RV with all the ame-
nities: a bed, toilet, refrigerator, stove,
heat and shower — so transportation
and lodging was set. They began their
travels in mid-January 2019 and fin-
ished in late October, traveling almost
entirely on weekends, except for two
weeks off to visit the Upper Peninsula
in September and a couple of three-day
weekends in mid-summer.
They visited multiple parks during
each trip, which was the only way to fit
in 103 venues. They camped at as many
as possible, sometimes staying at one
and exploring others in the area over
the same weekend.
The couple drove as far as the west-
ern end of the Upper Peninsula and
south to the Ohio and Indiana borders.
“Our parks are on all four of the
Great Lakes that touch Michigan,”
Jessi said, “so we hit every point on
the map by visiting all 103. There’
s so
much diversity in Michigan parks, from
wilderness with lots of hiking to camp-
grounds on the beach to day-use picnic
or fishing spots.”
The most challenging park to visit
was Lime Island, located in the middle
of the St. Mary’
s River, according to

103 Parks in
365 Days

Jews in the D

COURTESY OF THE ADLERS

TOP: Lake of the Clouds at Porcupine
Mountains Wilderness State Park

Above: Jessi watching sunrise at Porcupine
Mountains Wilderness State Park.

continued on page 42

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