The final screws drilled into the new canopy walk at Hidden Lake Gardens, on Dec. 2, 2022. Construction began on May 1, 2022 and ended on Dec. 9, 2022.
—Hidden Lake Gardens, a 55-acre nature preserve owned and operated by Michigan State University, has long been a hidden gem. However, members and staff hope their newest addition, opening this April, will make it a true destination.
Since Oct. 2017, they have been designing, funding, and building a suspension bridge hanging off of a 70 foot central tower. The bridge, an idea sparked by a frequent hiker, runs over a valley, giving visitors an up-close view of the trees without the climb.
The bridge sits deep in the property, about a mile's hike from the visitors’ center. Designers hope this secluded location will create a more tranquil setting and showcase the various hiking trails on the journey out
On Dec. 12, an inspector approved the addition for visitors, officially concluding eight months of active construction.
Hidden Lake Horticulture Gardener Jon Genereaux said the beauty of the canopy walk is that it will let guests experience nature in a way they couldn’t with the currently available trails and drives. The goal is to celebrate nature, not push it to the side with something that attempts to excite visitors.
The bridge is designed to blend in, so as to not disturb the natural tranquility of the surrounding area. Hidden Lake Managing Director Paul Pfeifer, said achieving that vision meant sourcing speciality materials and being careful to not disturb the surrounding growth.
“We don’t want it to look like Disneyland or an amusement park,” Pfiefer said, “We wanted it to blend in with nature, so when you’re on it, you feel connected to nature, and not like you’re inhabiting it or taking it over.”
The entrance ramp twists to around three small trees to prevent their removal. The few trees that were removed in the process or those that naturally died are left out in the valley beneath the bridge. Genereaux said the theory behind this was based on the arboriculture adage: “Is there more life in a live tree, or a dead one?”
“There's only four cells that are actually alive in a tree, whereas in a dead tree you've got all kinds of birds and insects and bacteria and all kinds of things that are actually eating and feeding off it,” Genereaux said. “You wouldn't want to shove it to the ground because there are so many things that are using it.”
Before guests enter the bridge, they will walk through what the designers call the “outdoor classroom.” It’s a large covered platform sitting 20 feet in the air, which can serve as a waiting area on busy days, though the hope is that it will be multi-purposeful educational space – a space for outdoor yoga classes, field trips or local bird-watching groups.
Funding the canopy walk required $1.25 million in donations. Today, Pfieffer says they’ve raised over $1.4 million and opened an endowment which will put the excess and future funds towards the long-term maintenance and upkeep of the bridge.
Hidden Lake currently offers one-time entry fees of $10 for adults; $8 for seniors, military and veterans; and $5 for K-12 and college students. Children age 4 and under may enter for free. Seasonal memberships are also offered.
MSU acquired the property, which is about 70 miles from the East Lansing campus, in 1945. The forest and its titular lake were a gift to the university; they were donated by a businessman from Adrian who decided he didn’t want to continue running and maintaining the property.
Since MSU has taken over, they’ve expanded offerings. In the years preceding the pandemic, Hidden Lake attracted up to 54,000 visitors in a single year, according to Pfeiffer.
Aside from the outdoor offerings, visitors can also explore the conservatory, where they’ll find three greenhouses – one arid, one tropical, one temperate and a seasonal bonsai tree garden.
With the potential boost in visitors the bridge could bring, Pfeifer said they will discuss future expansion for the gardens. One attraction they’ve been discussing, but haven't formally began, is a “children’s garden," a playground-like setting.
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Hidden Lake currently caters to passionate members and regular dog-walkers, but especially during the pandemic, an expansion like the canopy walk wasn’t anywhere near the norm.
“We had a lot of people that were naysayers on this, they didn’t like something about it, or really they didn’t know what it would be like,” Genereux said. “Then they see it, and they’re like ‘wow! It fits perfect!’ So don’t be a naysayer right away.”
How it came together
Chuck Gross works as an attorney just minutes from Hidden Lake. He’s a longtime member and frequent hiker of the gardens, and during the 2017 Fall Foliage Festival, he had an idea.
“I thought how do we, one, get people to pull off the road and see the place, and two, once they do get inside, how do we get them off the road or out of the visitors’ center, and out onto the trails to see the best features of Hidden Lake?” Gross said.
Gross had recently visited the Holden Arboretum canopy walk in Kirtland, Ohio, and wanted to bring a similar experience to Hidden Lake. He contacted Pfieffer, and presented his idea.
Pfeiffer and his team then began working out the details while Gross led fundraising efforts, pulling on his connection in the community and with other Hidden Lakes members.
Creating the bridge took two contractors. Krieghoff Lenawee, a local firm, built the towers the bridge would hang from, as well as the ramps and “outdoor classroom” that provide access to the catwalk. Phoenix Experiential Designs built and hung the suspended walkway.
These contractors faced two major challenges: the remote location – the site is nearly a mile hike from any paved roads and has no electricity or running water – and the glacial bowl the bridge runs over. Krieghoff Lenawee Vice President Scott Hill said in an email that these hurdles presented challenges that construction had to adapt me.
There was only enough of the specialty treated lumber to construct the structure exactly as planned, so no mistakes could be made. To ensure it would be flawless, contractors first built scale models out of two-by-four planks in a barn at Hidden Lake.
“The last thing we wanted to do was clear out five acres of woods to build a bridge, and have to wait for the trees to grow for 1500 years to fill in again” Pfieffer said. “These guys worked around trees and tried to keep as many intact as possible.”
Once the ramps, outdoor classroom, and towers were completed, Phoenix Experimental Designs stepped in to hang the bridge. The steep topography didn’t allow for the traditional machine to hang a bridge, so Phoenix founder Robbie Oates had his team run one line over top of the bridge and hang from harnesses to install the rest.
“Because it's a canopy walkway, and you're showcasing trees, you have to be really careful about working around them,” Oates said. “Typically, we would do our projects with almost no machinery involved, and that involves a tremendous amount of planning, rigging and execution to pull off.”
Oates was assisted on this project by his son Austen, who began working with him when he was just twelve years old. Austen was homeschooled so he could travel to various international locations and develop his skills working “on-line.”
A grand opening of the bridge, featuring a speech by MSU’s then-president Samuel Stanley, was scheduled for Oct. 22. Due to construction delays, it was turned into a sneak-preview for donors. By the 22nd, Stanley was between his resignation and replacement, making that donor event one of Stanley’s final official outings as MSU’s president.
The official opening of the bridge is now set for April. Until then, the hiking trails, scenic drives, visitors center and conservatory are open to visitors.
Editor's note: This article was updated on Saturday, April 8, 2023 to reflect a price increase in entry fees.
