Across Northern Michigan’s state parks trees are covered in heavy ice, roadways are covered in wind-blown debris and electrical powerlines are still down after a severe ice storm barreled through this weekend.

In response to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s state of emergency, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources is closing state parks, trails and facilities as they assess the storm damage.

Here are the areas that are currently closed:

• Aloha, Burt Lake and Cheboygan state parks (Cheboygan County).
• Clear Lake State Park (Montmorency County).
• DNR Customer Service Center in Gaylord (Otsego County).
• Fisherman’s Island and Young state parks (Charlevoix County).
• Hartwick Pines State Park and Visitor Center (Crawford County).
• Negwegon State Park (Alcona and Alpena counties).
• Onaway, Thompson’s Harbor and P.H. Hoeft state parks (Presque Isle County).
• Oden State Fish Hatchery and Visitor Center (Emmet County).
• Otsego Lake State Park (Otsego County).
• Rockport Recreation Area (Alpena and Presque Isle counties).
• Wilderness and Petoskey state parks (Emmet County).

Why this Northern Michigan ice storm damage is so tough to fix

The DNR warned that many trails near these state parks and in affected counties are also closed due to hazardous obstacles.

Hikers and bikers are also advised to avoid state forest lands as trees are still snapping and falling.

As DNR trail assessments take place, closure signs and blockades will be placed in areas that are determined unsafe. In the meantime, trail users are asked to used extreme caution when using trails.

“The trails could be dangerous especially for motorized trail users who come up on unsafe trail conditions quickly,” said Scott Slavin, Northwest Lower Peninsula trails specialist for the DNR Parks and Recreation Division.

“We urge off-road vehicle riders to slow down, take corners with extra caution, watch for potential hazards and stay on designated trails.”

The DNR is contacting camping reservation holders in affected areas of the northern Lower Peninsula to cancel existing reservations.

Upper Peninsula reservation holders traveling from the Lower Peninsula are strongly encouraged to cancel for a full refund. Please call the reserved park with questions.

Destructive spring ice storm debilitates Northern Michigan, see videos

In Grayling, Hartwick Pines State Park Interpreter Craig Kasmer documented thick ice coating trees around the park’s visitor center.

In a video the loud, snapping of branches could be heard echoing in the distance making gunshot-like cracks.

Over the weekend, the park posted that the road to the visitor’s center was impassable and the building had lost power. On Tuesday, the park updated that the center was unscathed by the damage.

However, conditions were not safe to travel on the Old Growth Trail or the Logging Museum so the potential damage there is unknown.

Ice and wind storms leave downed, broken trees across Michigan; hold off on removal

Trail assessments and cleanup efforts are a collaborative effort between the DNR and the many volunteers who maintain these trails on a regular basis. Trail users can report significant obstructions or erosion to Jessica Roehrs at 517-331-3790 or HolleyRoehrsJ@Michigan.gov.

‘Catastrophic’ damage: Thousands of miles of powerlines smothered in ice after Northern Michigan storm

The craft brewery fans have spoken, and the final four semifinalists for The Detroit News Michigan Craft Brewery Bracket Challenge have been announced.

The first bracket pairs Griffin Claw Brewing Company of Birmingham, which also has a tap room and facility in Rochester Hills, and Williamston, Michigan’s Old Nation Brewing, maker of the popular M-43 beer. It’s a good matchup: Both beer companies distribute in Michigan and beyond, and both opened in the mid-2010s.

The second bracket pits against each other New Holland Brewing on the west side of the state and Cheboygan Brewing Company at the top of the lower peninsula. Both of these breweries have been around a while, with New Holland dating back to 1997 and Cheboygan opening in 2009 (although the Cheboygan Brewing and Malting Company operated in the late 19th century).

Voting for these two brackets is open now and runs through Wednesday at 11:59 p.m. The two winners will battle each other in the final round.

These contenders started as a pool of 64 breweries which were chosen based on nominations from our readers. The champion brewery will get a trophy and bragging rights, plus a feature in The Detroit News.

Local emergency officials in Okemos, Michigan, and the National Weather Service are still determining how much Sunday’s severe storm impacted neighborhoods.

You can hear the familiar hum of generators as people wait for power to come back on and survey the damage from yesterday’s storm. 

“All of a sudden, the power went out, and we heard what sounded like a freight train,” said Susan Benivenga, of Okemos. 

Benivengna tells CBS News Detroit that her home was spared any major damage, but trees in her yard and in the neighborhood came down. 

“The spruce trees, the other conifer trees, had fallen like dominoes from one backyard to the next backyard, into the next backyard– at least four or five houses had this happen,” she said. 

Benivengna said her power was still not on as of Monday afternoon. Consumers Energy reported that their crews are out working to restore power, but getting everyone back up and running could take until Wednesday. Rob Dale with Ingham County Emergency Management said officials are still working to define Sunday’s storm. 

“Right now, we do know it was a wind storm. There may have been some tornadoes involved. On these smaller-end tornadoes, sometimes it’s hard to tell the difference between a tornado and a straight-line wind. Fortunately for insurance, it doesn’t matter. Wind is wind,” said Dale. 

He said that he hadn’t seen any reports of deaths from the wind storm but one injury and widespread tree and property damage. Dale said storms like this one are why it’s important to practice what to do when a storm is coming. 

“We just did our tornado drill last week, so if you didn’t take it seriously before, we really hope you take tornado safety seriously in the future and save your life and protect your household as best you can,” Dale said.