Ft. Custer Horse Friends
Association

• NOTICE:The Mountain Bike Club has a big race this weekend and it will cross the Historic Trial. It is advised to avoid the Historic Trail and enjoy the other trails today and tomorrow.
• NOTICE:Please bring any Tribute feed proofs of purchase that you may want to donate to FCHFA to the Spring Campout to give to Roger.  We are close to being able to turn them in for $$ from Tribute.
• NOTICE: The FCHFA bylaws were changed last year so that we could hold our Annual Meeting at the Spring Campout. Because of our insurance policy all attendees at the Campout must be members. To be able to vote at the Annual Meeting you must be a member that paid for that membership by 30 April, 2022. Bottom line - to be on the camp grounds for any reason you must be a member.
• NOTICE:  Due to a ring of timber thieves working in SW Michigan, both day-use gates will be locked at 10:00 pm. Gates will be unlocked in the morning by 8:00 am, the statutorily set opening time. Targeted tree species are walnut, red oak and white oak. The gates are beyond the access road to the trailhead/campground and should not impact equestrians but this is good information to know.
• Read Info from DNR on trail etiquette for "Muddy Trails".
• In anticipation of the spring rains the gates on Parker’s Path (R3 – R4) have been closed and locked as of 3/18/2022. The gates will be opened in late May or June when it dries out.
• NOTE: Prices for yearly and daily passes for non-residents of Michigan have increased. The annual pass is now $36 and the daily pass is $10. The price for the pass for Michigan residents has not increased.
• FCHFA riders, Jan Enyart and Judy Johnson, featured on the DNR Horseback Riding page.  Check it out!

New Equestrian Campground Opened for Reservations
Construction of a new equestrian campground with 7 large campsites has been completed.  The new campground is now open for camping.  Reserve your site by using the DNR reservation system.

DNR web site reservation system 

After choosing Fort Custer as the park and the size of your camping vehicle it will take you to a map where you can choose the Equestrian site of your choice.  There is a description of each site.
 
These are primitive sites with no electricity or water hookups. There is a hand pump and pit toilet.  Manure should be deposited in the manure bunker near the outhouse not in the woods.  Site No. 7 is a drive through.  The others are a back in or out situation.  Picket poles are located in the back of the site.  A fire pit and picnic table are at each site.  Please clean up after ourselves and let’s make this a grand success.

Fort Custer Recreation Area is located in Southwest Michigan near the small town of Augusta between Kalamazoo and Battle Creek. While there are many opportunities for outdoor activities our group's focus is the equestrian trail system.  There are almost 20 miles of wooded, marked trails for equestrian use within the park, some with water crossings. Our "Maps" section has more info.  The equestrian trailhead allows easy parking, even for big rigs. You need not be member of our group to ride at the park.  But we would sure love to have you join! Hope to see you on the trails!!!

When parking at the trailhead, please clean up all manure around your trailer and put it in the manure pit at the edge of the parking area. Also, anyone who would like the compost is welcome to take it.

Fort Custer is getting so popular it is important that we use parking at our staging area to its best advantage.  Ideally we can get three rows of trailers. For that to happen the first row has to be as far forward as possible - see map. First comers please pull forward and leave just enough room for trailers to drive in front of you   (On the map, for example, the big rig is in a pretty good spot but could be forward a bit. The dark truck and trailer could come forward a lot.)  The second row should also allow enough space in front on them to allow for a trailer to pass - judge space by the longest trailer in the front row.  Same for Row number 3.  Admittedly this would be an ideal situation but that’s what we’re trying for.  Make sure you are not blocking anyone in and let’s do our best.  We want as many folks as possible to enjoy our beautiful trails.

Contact Wayland

Each one is worth $.25 for the club and could provide a small but steady source of funding for the club.  As we were unable to have our two campouts, which are our major  fundraisers,  any extra funding is especially important. 












(Proof of Purchase from any Tribute feed bag is eligible. These are examples.)