The Secrets of Neebish Island: Part One – Pine River Canoe Camp

We’d surveyed our Restless Viking followers asking them to name Great Lakes islands which we should explore. Neebish was a popular selection. Honestly, I hadn’t heard about Neebish Island before. I also hadn’t realized that the Pine River Canoe Camp had been housed there. Join us as we connect with the owners and tour the grounds!

Neebish Island is located in the St. Mary’s Seaway east of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. It’s 21 square miles.

From our research 63- 89 people inhabit the island year round. There’s only one store, which is at the campground. Freighters travel northbound on the east side of the island and southbound on the west. I was looking forward to our upcoming trip. But first, we had the my Meade family reunion to attend.

Steve and Cliff Borbas

These two brothers have been well known for their adventurous spirits and unique escapades. They follow our Restless Viking antics. I was so excited to talk with them!

“Where are you going next?” My Uncle Steve and his brother, Cliff, asked at our Meade Family Reunion. “Neebish Island.” Chuck and I answered in unison. (Uncle Steve prefers to be called, “Steve.” He is married to my Dad’s sister, Genevieve)

Aunt Genevieve, (Uncle) Steve, his brother Cliff, Martha (me) and Chuck sharing stories
at the Meade Reunion on July 31st, 2021.

“That’s where our Canoe Camp was.” Cliff nodded. (pictured in the center of the group) “I ran it for over 30 years!”

“I had always thought your camp was in Colorado.” I furrowed my brow in shock! Steve and Genevieve, had lived in Colorado ever since I could remember. I didn’t know that this famous camp was in Michigan! Wow!

Pine River Canoe Camp – How It Started

“Well, Steve and I started the camp, then he moved.” Cliff clarified tipping his head toward his brother, Steve. “I was left to run it on my own.”

Cliff, a social worker, and Steve, a teacher, had worked in Okemos, Michigan. The brothers bought land on Neebish Island and began hauling supplies and building cabins.

Steve smiled, “I put a pontoon boat together at home, completely on my own. Then I disassembled it and brought it up north. There I reassembled it. We used it to deliver all our supplies ourselves. I remember it being loaded with lumber and tools to build the cabins. They were all rustic, but they served the purpose.”

Steve met Genevieve while teaching in the Lansing area. The pair bought a motel in Salida, Colorado shortly after getting married and relocated. They have made a wonderful team running the motel while teaching in the mountainous state. Cliff continued to work in lower Michigan and oversee Pine River Canoe Camp on Neebish Island from the late 1960’s until 1993.

I marveled at their ingenuity! The brothers had built everything! With wide eyes of amazement at this connection, I couldn’t wait to travel to Neebish Island and see the Pine River Canoe Camp!

Cousins’ Canoe Camp Capers

Three of my Meade cousins had attended Cliff’s camp several years in a row. Each enjoyed it so much that they returned as counselors as soon as they were old enough! Raucous laughter accompanied these tales!

Shauna and Bill shared some of their adventures from Pine River Canoe Camp on Neebish Island.

Shauna recalled the rustic camp as a home base for a canoe excursion in Canada. The group had boarded a Canadian boxcar with their canoes. Then, the train dropped the crew off alongside a river. Next, they paddled through the wilderness pitching tents at night.

Bill laughed remembering being positioned at the helm of the pontoon boat loaded with young kids. They needed to cross the remarkably rough St. Mary’s River. It had been a relief to reach the shore of Neebish Island.

My cousin, Paul Turnbull, attended Cliff’s camp, too.

This rustic experience suited my brave cousins well! They grew in confidence and have raised their kids with an appreciation for nature.

Cliff said he would be at his the camp the same weekend we’d be on Neebish! We couldn’t wait to see the wooded land where so many young lives had been influenced!

Pine River Canoe Camp

After arriving on Neebish Island by a tiny car ferry, we located the path to Pine River Canoe Camp. Cliff had emailed us directions. The mile long trail was just large enough for a four wheeler. We set off on our hike to see this famous site.

The trailhead to the Pine River Canoe Camp
The yellow dot shows the beginning of the pathway to the highlighted area, Pine River Canoe Camp.

As we trekked down the desolate path we noticed some downed trees and low hanging power lines from a recent storm. After ten minutes mucky mud revealed itself as the trail became overgrown. “Cliff?” we called into the breeze. A few moments later, “Look! Here’s a building!” DaViking announced. Birds answered and fluttered skyward.

The cabin slanted, tired from holding decades of memories.
These cots had housed dozens of kids from the 1960’s-1993.
Many of the campers returned year after year and later became counselors.
They LOVED this place!

We continued through the swampy land locating four other cabins and two outhouses. It was a rustic camp!

The outhouse held its own special memories.

Finding Cliff

From a distance a sturdier cabin sat quietly in the dappled light. It appeared to have electricity with a glow peeking from cracks as well as from the windows. This structure was more stable than any of the other buildings on the property even with gaps between the layered logs. “Cliff?” Chuck called out. “Yeah?” an answer was soon accompanied by the creak of the door opening.

Cliff’s cabin had once been designed to house campers. Now Cliff uses the space as his retreat.
Cliff welcomed us into his cabin. He offered to take us on a tour of the property.

Cliff had modified the cabin to suite his current needs. He had electricity and a wood stove. His tent was pitched on a platform inside. “Bugs are rampant.” He explained. A water well sat ready nearby. I was impressed with how he and his brother, Steve, had built these structures on their own.

The Tour

We stopped by the well and Cliff dropped his containers to fill on our way back to his cabin. Nearby stood the dining hall and outdoor kitchen area.

The dining hall had a wood stove in the center with dirt floors. There were benches for campersseats.

The food prep and cooking was done outside. There had been a tarp over the outdoor area. Campers participated in preparing their own meals.

Cliff guided us to the shore where there had once been a long dock to welcome campers.

“What did you like best about running the camp?” Chuck asked. “When everything came together.” Cliff explained the demanding job of organizing adventures, the campers, the gear and the food.

Cliff gestured to the shoreline, “We had devised a sauna, so campers could warm up after their swim.” This was so clever!

A sauna sat on shore. Campers could warm up after a swim.
Cliff’s singular chair waits at the shore for reflection and recharging.

As a social worker in the Lansing area, it had been Cliff’s passion to build confidence in youngsters. I marveled at the effort it took to create such an entity as Pine River Canoe Camp. Cliff said he’d just sold the property to a man who had once been a camper. The gentleman now lives across the river in the upper peninsula. He doesn’t plan to build on the property and will allow Cliff to visit anytime.

Cliff Borbas had dedicated decades of making a difference in so many lives. Touring his Pine River Canoe Camp was an honor!

Related Links

Restless Viking merchandise is available!

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neebish_Island

https://www.facebook.com/neebishislandleaflet/

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