Fairview, Michigan Explained

Fairview is an unincorporated community in Oscoda County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is located within Comins Township at the intersection of highways M-33 and M-72 at 44.725°N -84.0511°W.

Fairview is considered the wild turkey capital of Michigan.^[2] The Fairview 48621 ZIP Code serves most of Comins Township, as well as small portions of Clinton Township to the north and Mentor Township to the south.^[3]

Geography

Geographic features

• Fairview is situated near the Au Sable River Valley.
• It is surrounded by the Huron National Forest and near the Rifle River State Recreation Area.
• The area is part of the Au Sable State Forest, specifically the
  • Grayling FMU (Alcona, Crawford, Oscoda, and northern Iosco counties).
• The Oscoda County Park is minutes away.^[4]
• Fairview is part of Northern Michigan.
• Fairview sits on the "Grayling outwash plain", a unique habitat.^[5] Glaciers shaped the area, creating a unique regional ecosystem. A large portion of the area is the so-called Grayling outwash plain, which consists of broad outwash plain including sandy ice-disintegration ridges; jack pine barrens, some white pine-red pine forest, and northern hardwood forest. Large lakes were created by glacial action.^[6]

Highways

• runs mostly concurrent with M-72 before separating north in the center of the community, where it is known locally as North Abbe Road.
• runs eastwest through the center of the community and merges briefly with M-33. Locally, it is referred to as East Miller Road.

Local attractions and activities

Attractions

The community is centered in the Huron National Forest along the Au Sable River. Wildlife are nearby, including bear, deer, eagles, Kirtland's warblers, and turkeys. Local attractions and activities include:

• Mennonite Relief Expo & Fair
• Michigan Shore to Shore Riding & Hiking Trail passes nearby. It runs from Empire to Oscoda, and points north and south. It is a 500-mile interconnected system of trails.^[7]
• The Michigan AuSable Valley Railroad, a ¼ scale, gauge ridable miniature railway, which offers rides on a passenger train through of jack pine country. Riders travel through parts of the Huron National Forest.^[8]

Activities

• Birding - Kirtland Warbler Habitat and Festival. The Kirtland's warbler has its habitat in the area.^[9] There is a Kirtland's Warbler Festival, which is sponsored in part by Kirtland Community College.^[10]
• Boating, paddling (canoe and kayak)
• Fishing, particularly trout fishing
• Hiking
• Golf
• Hunting
• Cross-country skiing
• ORV, motorcycle and groomed snowmobile trails, including the renowned Bull Gap.^[11]
• Every year, Fairview Area Schools puts on Eagle Festival. This festival is in the second week of October, and is a fundraiser for Fairview School's athletic department. The festival includes a parade, soccer games, a silent auction, car shows, kiddie games and more.

References

Sources

Howard and Joann Schrader Dunn, Jon, and Garrett, Kimball. Warblers. New York: Houghton Mifflin, 1997. Print.USDA, Forest Service Huron-Manistee National Forests. Biological Opinion Monitoring2006.

External links

• Fairview Community Schools
• Michigan Organizations, Oscoda County Chamber of Commerce.

Notes and References

1. Web site: U.S. Census website . . 2008-01-31 .
2. http://www.infomi.com/capital.html The Capitals of Michigan
3. http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/MapItDrawServlet?geo_id=86000US48621&_bucket_id=50&tree_id=420&context=AdvSearch&_lang=en 48621 5-Digit ZCTA, 486 3-Digit ZCTA - Reference Map - American FactFinder
4. http://www.theenchantedforest.com/oscodacountypark/ Oscoda County Park
5. http://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/resource/habitat/rlandscp/s7-2-2.htm Regional geography, geology and ecology of the area.
6. http://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/resource/habitat/rlandscp/s7-2-2.htm Michigan regional geology.
7. http://www.kerchevalave.com/mtra/sh2sh.html Michigan Shore to Shore Riding and Hiking Trail
8. http://www.michiganausablevalleyrailroad.com/index.html Michigan Au Sable Valley Railroad.
9. http://www.michigan.gov/dnr/0,1607,7-153-10371_10402-175411--,00.html Michigan Department of Natural Resources, Kirtland's Warbler Populations Continue to Grow.
10. Web site: Kirtland Warbler Festival and links.. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20080102164632/http://warbler.kirtland.edu/. 2008-01-02.
11. Web site: Michigan Organizations, Oscoda County Chamber of Commerce. . 2008-05-02 . 2011-08-07 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110807144439/http://www.michigan.org/Property/Detail.aspx?p=B7456 . dead .