DNR Events/Get Involved - July 2026

After a week of living under the “Ready, Set, Go!” protocol for potential evacuations initiated in response to the Ridge Fire, located 10 miles northwest of Marquette, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and Marquette County Sheriff’s Office and Emergency Management have lifted the “Ready” status for residents along North Basin Drive.

As fire crews on the ground battle to suppress and contain the Rugged Terrain Complex wildfires in the Upper Peninsula, officials have confirmed that a lightning strike was the cause of the Black River Fire. This was also the confirmed cause of the Craig Lake Fire; the cause of the Ridge Fire remains under investigation.

Like most things, wildfires don’t always look like they do in the movies. Even at hundreds of acres each (just over 1,400 acres combined), the three fires that make up the Rugged Terrain Complex aren’t currently burning through the trees of the Upper Peninsula forests. They are burning up to 2 feet down in the duff, a layer of organic material lying under freshly fallen leaves and twigs and above the bare mineral soil.

The Michigan Department of Natural Resources is now managing the three major U.P. wildfires – Ridge Fire, Craig Lake Fire and Black River Fire – as the Rugged Terrain Complex. One incident management team managing all three fires, known as a “complex,” allows for better coordination, logistical support, more streamlined communication and better efficiency.

Adjusting daily possession limits to allow for harvesting smaller fish in select lakes and removing an unnecessary spawning closure are part of updated northern pike regulations now in effect following Michigan Natural Resources Commission action earlier this week.

From decades-long careers dedicated to public stewardship and introducing people to outdoor recreation and nature to innovative partnerships that bring natural science into Michigan classrooms, Michigan Department of Natural Resources education efforts are making a difference – and being recognized.

Sixty-five Michigan Department of Natural Resources firefighters continued suppression efforts Thursday on the Ridge and Craig Lake fires, but the dangers they faced weren’t just the fires. Rough terrain, falling trees, slippery rocks, and rutted roads sometimes so muddy they are impassible, are just some of the unique hazards the crews are facing daily.

A new method for tagging stocked walleye, called parentage-based tagging, is more effective and cost-efficient than traditional approaches and will help fisheries managers better understand how stocking is or isn’t affecting the walleye populations in key lakes. It’s kind of like Ancestry.com or 23andMe for fish.

While you’re enjoying time outdoors this fall and winter, keep an eye open for black bear dens. Reporting den locations to the Michigan Department of Natural Resources is a simple yet effective way to support bear management programs.

Fire crews from the Michigan Department of Natural Resources continued battling the rugged terrain and difficult access of the Ridge Fire and Craig Lake Fire Wednesday, making containment progress on both.