We are thrilled to report that because of recent generous support from partners and citizens like you, we’ve met our fundraising goal to move forward with the Song of the Morning Dam Removal this fall! We are thankful for each dollar contributed by individual donors and from dynamic groups like the Pigeon River Country Association, Mullett Lake Area Preservation Society and additional support from the Michigan Department of Natural Resources’ Aquatic Habitat Grant Program. Seeing our community rally around doing what’s right for the Pigeon River has been so inspiring and means that we are anticipating breaking ground on this high-impact project by mid-October! Removing the dam will allow brook trout and other wildlife to access high-quality habitat in the headwaters of the Pigeon—and that’s really something to celebrate!

Dam removals are complex projects and progress has been continuing behind the scenes all summer. All of the power and utilities that were housed in the dam have been disconnected and a new transformer is now in place to power the buildings at Song of the Morning Ranch. A sand trap is currently being installed downstream of the dam to capture sand that is mobilized during the construction process. Our construction contractors have been selected and a pre-construction meeting held at the site of the dam to review the timeline, work through any questions and discuss last-minute details like placement of sediment fences in the river. We have also placed updated signage at river access points to keep the public informed about this important project. With so many wheels in motion working toward the goal of dam removal, we couldn’t be more excited to dig in next month—stay tuned for regular updates as construction begins!