Southeast Houghton Area Recharge Project (SHARP)

"Three recharge ponds with nice wide trails and ramada picnic area. Pavement for wheelchair users extends to middle area, where there is a beautiful mural and informational displays. Bathrooms are in constant use by landscapers and contractors, apparently visiting for just that purpose. Trees and bushes are midsized, appropiate species and grouped to attract wildlife and put in basins to facilitate irrigation. Some smaller, likewise appropriate, flowering plants were in bloom. Benches for resting are fairly common, but often placed where there was no shade. Overall, nicely done and will improve with age. I went in October while it was still warm, two ponds were dry, and one had only a few inches of water. Still, there were dragonflies and birds. There was only one other visitor at that time, with a dog mostly off-leash except when I was there. Please check leash requirements."

"Beautiful project. Fun walk. Lots of dragonflies. Gates to the bike trail were locked and I saw a father and son turn back after not being able to enter from Bunny Trail. Would be nice if those gates facing south and west were unlocked. -Edit Gates are unlocked now and the facility is beautiful. Great place to park if you are riding Bunny Trail."

"Neat lil loop. Bathrooms and drinking fountains are welcome. Being located next to a shooting range makes it not as much of a relaxing time as one would hope for and there’s no tree coverage to alleviate spring / summer temperatures."

"Right now this place is kind of barren. But that's to be expected as it is brand new. I believe in 3 to 5 years it will be a really nice place to go birding. It needs to get some vegetation coming in so it can attract some birds. Once the ponds are all full I'm sure it will be much nicer."

"When the native plants grow a bit bigger this will be an excellent birding spot. As it is now there are good facilities with a restroom, paved walkways, benches and covered picnic tables."