Calendars: Classes & Workshops; Hunting and Fishing; Public Meetings; Volunteer Opportunities; State park, historic sites and visitor center events.

Find camping and overnight lodging options, reservation info, rules and regulations and more. USE THE BUTTON ABOVE TO VISIT THE CAMPING HOMEPAGE or go directly to you area of interest below:

Get all your fishing information here, including rules and regulations, license info, the weekly fishing report and much more. Use the button above to visit the fishing home page, or go directly to your area of interest below:

Get all your hunting information here, including hunting season dates, rules and regulations, and much more. Use the button above to visit the hunting home page, or go directly to your area of interest below:

Find ORV license and permit info, maps, rules and regulations and more. USE THE BUTTON ABOVE TO VISIT THE ORV HOMEPAGE or go directly to you area of interest below:

Information on DNR shooting and archery ranges, rules and regulations, resources to get started and more. Use the button above to visit the target shooing and archery home page, or go directly to one of the pages below:

Find snowmobile trail permit info, maps, rules and regulations and more. USE THE BUTTON ABOVE TO VISIT THE SNOWMOBILE HOMEPAGE or go directly to you area of interest below:

Want to find tasty morel mushrooms in the forest? Click the box above for tips and tricks to fill your basket.

Find cross-country ski, ice fishing , snowmobiling info and much more. USE THE BUTTON ABOVE TO VISIT THE WINTER FUN HOMEPAGE or go directly to you area of interest below:

Find facility info, overnight info, an event calendar and much more. USE THE BUTTON ABOVE TO VISIT THE RAM HOMEPAGE or go directly to you area of interest below:

Visitor Centers across the state provide education programs, field trips, archery, fishing, trails and much more. Click the box above to see all our locations, or click the individual location below.

Big Wild Forest Carbon Project

We administer grants that enable our local partners to promote the lifestyles we all enjoy by providing recreational opportunities, enhancing wildlife habitat and ensuring public safety. Visit the grants home page by clicking on the button above, or view a specific area of interest below:

Recreational Safety and Hunter Education

Learn about Michigan's diverse range of fish, plants, trees, reptiles, amphibians, insects and mammals. Click the box above to see all species, or click the species group below.

DNR educators across the state provide fun, educational activities, programs and workshops year-round for adults, families and kids. Click the box above to see all our offerings, or click the program below.

DNR educators provide classroom lessons, field trip opportunities, professional development and experiential programs to teachers around the state. Click the box above to see all our offerings, or click the program below.

DNR programs engage youth in our natural resources. Click the box above to see all our offerings, or click the program below.

DNR forest resources professionals maintain healthy forests, manage wildfire, maintain responsible harvesting certifications and improve wildlife habitat. Click the box above to learn more about Michigan's state forests.

Doing business with the DNR

law enforcement, legislation, rules and regulations

Accessible recreation opportunities in Michigan

All DNR-related boards, committees, and advisory groups

Find seasonal, part-time and full-time job openings with the DNR

information on how to contact us

information about volunteer and donation opportunities

News releases, closures, photos and more

Office of Outdoor Recreation Industry

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Are you a whiz at tree identification and would you like to make some money? Collecting a bushel of red pine cones this September will earn you $100 and help the Michigan Department of Natural Resources plant trees in state forests.

From Sept. 1-30, you can pick red pine cones and drop them off by appointment at several DNR locations in the Upper Peninsula and northern Lower Peninsula where red pines are most abundant.

What are foresters looking for in a quality seed pine cone from a red pine? Freshness, proper storage and most of all – the right species. Old cones or the wrong species of cone won’t be accepted.

To be paid for your collected cones, register as a vendor in the DNR's online system.

Finding enough of the right cones is not an easy task, so come prepared for the outdoors and expect to be in the woods for a while. A bushel is approximately two 5-gallon buckets.

The easiest way to collect cones is to pick from living red pine trees where branches extend close to the ground. Fresh cones can be found in recently felled treetops from timber sales and on state forest lands. If picking from a recent timber sale, logger permission is required, and hardhats must be worn for safety.

Store pine cones in a cool, dry place in mesh bags. Onion bags will be provided to pickers by the DNR at drop-off locations. Don’t use burlap or plastic bags, which can hold moisture and ruin the cones. Tag bags on the inside and outside with your name, county where you picked and if the cones are wild or from a plantation.

Cones may be dropped off by appointment at select DNR Customer Service Centers and Wyman Nursery:

Please do not bring pine cones to DNR Customer Service Centers not listed here and without first making an appointment.

After pine cones are dropped off, they’re put into machines that gently warm and shake them, allowing the seeds within to drop out and be stored until planting time. This process helps foresters replant the forest and replenishes the supply of red pine seed, which is in high demand.

Red pine is a fast-growing tree species that is used to make many types of forest products including lumber, posts and pulpwood.

Michigan’s forests provide clean air and water, renewable resources, homes for wildlife and places to explore nature. The DNR is committed to ensuring we will always have forests by maintaining responsible management certifications and regenerating or replanting cut trees. Learn more at Michigan.gov/Forestry.

Note to editors: Accompanying resources are available below for download. Caption information follows.

Please view our directory listing for general contact information. For a full listing of help desk numbers, field offices, and other ways we can help, please visit our contact page.

In addition to full time positions, we are currently hiring many summer (seasonal) positions including park workers, interpreters, rangers, wildlife workers and more.