Michigan State Parks to reopen after devastating ice storms

Trees stripped in Northern Michigan ice storm

An ice storm at the end of March stripped the limbs and branches of thousands of trees while taking power to homes and businesses throughout northern Michigan.

(FOX 2) - Six weeks after an ice storm tore through northern Michigan, the state Department of Natural Resources reports the dozens of state parks closed due to the damage will reopen in time for their scheduled spring date.

The late-March storms affected almost a million acres of state forest land, as well as thousands of miles of trails.

Big picture view:

The 19 state parks and 55 state forest campgrounds that closed due to ice storms on March 28 will reopen on Thursday.

The DNR announced this week that the state parks, campgrounds, as well as 169 boating access sites, 3,290 miles of state-managed trails and 3,400 miles of state forest roads would reopen Thursday.

However, there may still be downed trees and debris.

This could lead to other closures on a temporary basis.

Dig deeper:

The DNR has an online dashboard that can be used to track which parks are open and which are closed.

Check out the status of the parks and campgrounds here.

Alcona, Alpena, Antrim, Charlevoix, Cheboygan, Crawford, Emmet, Mackinac, Montmorency, Oscoda, Otsego and Presque counties were among those impacted by the damage.

The indefinite closures by the DNR warned cleanup could take weeks or even months.