NEWS

New ranger explores public access for St. Martin Island

Karen Ebert Yancey
USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin

Dustan Hoffman, the new U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service refuge ranger for the Green Bay National Wildlife Refuge, is exploring public access options for St. Martin Island, which was transferred to the service by The Nature Conservancy 10 months ago.

"It is not an island used for colony nesting like Hog and Pilot islands," he said.  "There is great public interest in using the island."

He said that many people were intrigued by a place as remote as St. Martin Island, which is 18 miles from the Door peninsula.

"There is something in your soul that is livened in a desolate place," he said.  "There are lots of people in the world who are seeking that right now."

The Nature Conservancy bought 1,244 acres of St. Martin Island from the Fred Luber family of Milwaukee for $1.5 million in 2013.   The Luber family, which had owned the island since the 1980s, constructed a large dock as well as maintained a group of cabins on the island.

An additional 36 acres owned by David Uihlein of Milwaukee was sold to the Nature Conservancy in 2014.  Fifty-seven acres around the lighthouse are owned by the Little Traverse Bay Band of the Odawa Indians.

The island is an important stopover for birds migrating through the Great Lakes.   More than 100 species of birds have been documented using the island in recent years.   But unlike Pilot and Hog islands, which serve as nesting colonies for cormorants and other birds, St. Martin has forests, wetlands, meadows, bluffs and cobblestone beaches that are habitat to a greater diversity of wildlife.

Dustan Hoffman, right, stands on the U.S. Fish & Wildlife boat docked at Washington Island, while  a group of volunteers prepares to head to Plum Island.
Dustan "Dusty" Hoffman, the new ranger for the Green Bay National Wildlife Refuge, holding a piece of chain coral found on an island in the refuge.

St. Martin Island is currently uninhabited, but in the mid 1800s there was a fishing colony of more than 20 families living on the island year-round. The fishing colony left the island by the 1890s, but remnants of their life on the island can still be seen..

Before public access can be provided,  environmental and impact assessments must be completed, as well as a plan for public use and public meetings to provide input, Hoffman said. In addition, Congress must approve opening refuge land to the public.

He said that if it was determined that public access could be provided on St. Martin, it would at least be 2018 or beyond before a final plan could be implemented.  The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service acquired Plum Island in 2007 and only opened it for limited public access in 2015, he noted. .

When public access is provided, Hoffman said, it is usually for the "Big 6" uses: hunting, fishing, wildlife observation, environmental education, interpretation and photography..

The border between Wisconsin and Michigan is in the channel between Rock Island and St. Martin, Hoffman said.   Even though St. Martin is part of Michigan,, primary access to St. Martin is from Washington Island in Wisconsin, said Hoffman.

The Fish & Wildlife Service now has a boat stationed at Shipyard Marina on Washington Island  for official trips to St Martin as well as other islands in the Green Bay refuge, including Plum, Pilot, Hog, and Rocky Islands, he said.  Rocky Island, a 10-acre island two miles off of the coast of Michigan's Garden Peninsula,  was also part of the Nature Conservancy transfer in 2015.

Hoffman, who has a bachelor's degree in environmental science and a master's degree in geographic information science from St. Mary's University of Minnesota, has been working for Fish & Wildlife since 2012 and was appointed to his current position in November.

In addition to serving as ranger for the Green Bay refuge, he is also park ranger for the Gravel Island National Wildlife Refuge off Baileys Harbor, which has the only colony of Caspian terns nesting on Lake Michigan.   The Gravel Islands, including Gravel and Spider islands, are wildlife refuges established by Congress in 1913 and provide no public access, he said.

Hoffman said that he is currently focusing on expanding public use on Plum Island.  This summer, the island is open during daylight hours through Labor Day weekend for hiking, wildlife observation and nature photography on designated trails and beach areas.

But because the dock still needs repairs, only kayaks, canoes, and dinghies are allowed to access Plum Island,   Boats are not allowed to dock at the pier until repairs are completed, although motorized boats can be pulled up on the beach, Hoffman said.

Tim Sweet, president of the Friends Of Plum and Pilot Islands, said that the group has raised the $22,000 needed for dock repairs and hopes that the contractor can begin repairs later this summer and complete them in 2016.

Hoffman and about a dozen volunteers with the Friends of Plum and Pilot Islands  worked on Plum Island last weekend, removing invasive species and upgrading trails.

A meeting will be held for stakeholders in Plum and Pilot islands and other islands in the Green Bay Wildlife Refuge on Aug. 13 at the Trueblood Performing Arts Center on Washington Island, he said.  The meeting will provide information for establishing future goals for the islands.

In addition, Hoffman is working with the friends group to prepare for a kayaking event on Aug. 6 and  Explore Plum Island Days on Aug. 20-21,  The days are designated for the public to volunteer and interpret the natural, historical and cultural values of Plum Island, Hoffman said..

Members of the Friends of Plum and Pilot Islands recently assisted Hoffman with placing signs at St Martin, but Sweet said the friends' group has not discussed whether they will "adopt" St. Martin into their efforts.

"The islands play an important role for migratory birds species and other wildlife, but it enhances the islands' appeal if there are opportunities for people to visit them as well," Sweet said.