Michigan trails · Hoist Lake Trails
Hoist Lake Trails
A 15.4-mile out-and-back in Michigan, with 206 ft of climbing. Reaches Carp Lake and other lake destinations. Managed by the U.S. Forest Service.
Elevation profile
The climbing leans toward the middle third: 49% of the ascent falls between mile 5.1 and mile 10.3. It gives back about 902 ft along the way, so it rolls rather than climbing steadily.
3-D terrain
USGS 3DEP ELEVATION × ESRI WORLD IMAGERY · VERTICAL ×1.5
Reaches
- Carp Lake (lake)
- Byron Lake (lake)
- Hoist Lakes (lake)
Getting there
HOIST LAKES EAST HIKING TRAILHEAD — parking nearby, restroom, water, fee site. About 59 min drive (49 mi) from Alpena. 44.64861, -83.74806 · directions
Daylight at the trailhead
On October 14, 2026 — the day this page was generated — first light reaches this trailhead at 7:19 a.m., the sun rises at 7:48 a.m. and sets at 6:52 p.m., and the last usable light fades about 7:21 p.m. (EDT) — 11 h 04 min of daylight. At about 2.7 mph plus 30 minutes per 1,000 feet of climbing, the 30.8-mile round trip works out to roughly 11 h 37 min of walking — more than a single day of daylight here, so plan it as an overnight or hike it in sections.
Loop options
- HOIST LAKE TRAILS + HOIST, 10-1-5 BYRON LAKE SPUR — 5.5 mi loop, 562 ft gain
- HOIST, 10-1-5 BYRON LAKE SPUR + HOIST, 11-12 NO NAME LAKE SPUR + HOIST LAKE TRAILS — 6.4 mi loop, 436 ft gain
- HOIST, 10-1-5 BYRON LAKE SPUR + HOIST LAKE TRAILS + HOIST, 14 TO 2 SPUR — 14.7 mi loop, 1,390 ft gain
Nearby trails
- Ogemaw-Iosco Smt Dnr6 — 14.7 mi