Community Highlights: Meet Tim Schmidt of Sylvania Wilderness Cabins

Today we’d like to introduce you to Tim Schmidt. 

Hi Tim, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstories with our readers.
In 2000, Jill and I purchased a cabin on Crooked Lake in Watersmeet MI. It was really the only place we wanted to be even though it’s 3 1/2-hour drive from our home. Crooked Lake is unique because most of its shoreline is within the Sylvania Wilderness Area, a federally designated wilderness. The park is home to numerous pristine lakes and covered by old-growth forest, much of which has never been logged. Unlike national, state, and county forests, the forests that make up the 18,327-acre Sylvania are fully protected from logging. Crooked Lake will not see the uncontrolled development so rampant around many other lakes. We were also drawn to the great paddling, hiking, biking, and swimming available in and around Sylvania. 

Next door to our cabin was the Crooked Lake Resort (CLR). This resort was there since long before the U.S.F.S purchased the ‘Sylvania Tract’ and turned it into a wilderness park. Most of the CLR clientele used gas motor boats to fish and recreate on Crooked Lake. When Sylvania became a wilderness area, the use of motors was banned. The Crooked Lake Resort sued the USFS in order to keep its right to use gas motors on Crooked Lake and eventually won. There were an uncontrolled amount of boaters entering the wilderness as “guests” of CLR, many more than just the vacationers staying in the 6 rental cabins. There was a crazy amount of traffic and boats parked all along our shoreline and trucks and trailers along the road. Our cabin was not the wilderness retreat we thought we had purchased. 

In 2004, the Crooked Lake Resort was sold to the Conservation Fund. The Conservation Fund took the motor rights away from the property and put the property back up for sale. Jill and I, along with Tom Church, who also owned a cabin on Crooked Lake, purchased the resort. We wanted that property to be a complement to the wilderness. Suddenly we were resort owners. We renamed the resort Sylvania Wilderness Cabins and opened for business in May 2006. 

I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
The beginning was a struggle. The Crooked Lake Resort, having been in business since the 1950s, was completely booked, and most used gas motorboats. After the Crooked Lake Resort shut down and the resort lost the right to use gas motors, almost all of the previous clientele stopped coming. We had to start from scratch to find guests who enjoyed ‘silent sports’ such as canoeing, hiking, and biking. 

Another struggle was the number of items requiring repair or replacement. The septic line from the main house would freeze up in late winter and we could no longer use the house until the spring. We remodeled and reroofed almost all of the cabins, replaced all of the furniture, added a new well, new septic tanks, new driveway, new docks, and new boat shelter. We tore down one cabin to add parking and open space and torn down another and built a new lake house in its footprint. 

Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about Sylvania Wilderness Cabins?
Sylvania Wilderness Cabins is a small resort consisting of 5 cabins. We cater to people who love nature, hiking, canoeing, kayaking, fishing, swimming, and/or biking. We offer the closest lodging to the Sylvania Wilderness, that does not require camping. From our resort, guests can paddle, hike or bike into the park in just a few minutes. 

Many of our guests are former campers who no longer want to camp or have someone in their group who will not camp. We do our best to mimic a wilderness experience while providing the comforts of a nice cabin. The property is quiet, dark, and natural. Our cabins do not have TV or air conditioners. We removed the three large dusk-to-dawn lights that covered the ground and neighborhood in light pollution. We have removed large amounts of lawns, bringing the property back to its native landscape. Our grounds are wild, not manicured. 

We’d be interested to hear your thoughts on luck and what role, if any, you feel it’s played for you.
We have been very lucky to have many wonderful caretakers over the years. They have done much maintenance and repair, kept cabins clean and fresh, hummingbird feeders full, grounds clean, and more. They have been trustworthy and great with the guests. This is important since we do not live in Watersmeet and have other jobs. 

Contact Info:

• Website: www.sylvaniawildernesscabins.com