Jim DuFresne, Michigan Trails Expert, at QWS

Jim DuFresne has a deep rooted passion for two things: sunsets and shoreline, no doubt the result of living his entire life in the two states that have more coastline than any other; Alaska and Michigan.

After graduating from Michigan State University with a journalism degree, Jim was soon headed to Juneau, Alaska. As the outdoors and sports editor of the Juneau Empire, Jim became the first Alaskan sportswriter to win a national award from Associated Press. More significant than the writing award, he discovered his passion for the mountains and wilderness travel while living in Alaska’s capital city.

In 1981, Jim spent a winter in New Zealand to backpack and write his first book, Tramping in New Zealand for Lonely Planet. Jim followed up with the first edition of Lonely Planet’s Alaska and later, Hiking in Alaska and then returned to Michigan to write Isle Royale National Park: Foot Trails & Water Routes. This guide to the wilderness areas of Isle Royale has been in publication in various editions for more than 25 years and today is known as the “backpacker’s bible” to the Lake Superior island.

Today DuFresne lives in Michigan, where he’s never more than an hour’s drive from the shoreline of the Great Lakes. He is the main contributor to www.MichiganTrailMaps.com, a resource web site devoted to trail users and the promotion of trails in his home state. In Michigan, DuFresne can be found out on the trail, whether it is hiking, mountain biking, backpacking, snowshoeing or cross-country skiing and is the author to more than 20 guidebooks on the state that include Backpacking In Michigan, 12 Classic Trout Streams in Michigan: A Handbook for Fly Anglers and Michigan: Off the Beaten Path.


Jim DuFresne, Michigan Trails Expert, at QWS Jim DuFresne has a deep rooted passion for two things: sunsets and shoreline, no doubt the result of living his entire life in the two states that have more coastline than any other; Alaska and Michigan. After graduating from Michigan State University with a journalism degree, Jim was soon headed to Juneau, Alaska. As the outdoors and sports editor of the Juneau Empire, Jim became the first Alaskan sportswriter to win a national award from Associated Press. More significant than the writing award, he discovered his passion for the mountains and wilderness travel while living in Alaska’s capital city. In 1981, Jim spent a winter in New Zealand to backpack and write his first book, Tramping in New Zealand for Lonely Planet. Jim followed up with the first edition of Lonely Planet’s Alaska and later, Hiking in Alaska and then returned to Michigan to write Isle Royale National Park: Foot Trails & Water Routes. This guide to the wilderness areas of Isle Royale has been in publication in various editions for more than 25 years and today is known as the “backpacker’s bible” to the Lake Superior island. Today DuFresne lives in Michigan, where he’s never more than an hour’s drive from the shoreline of the Great Lakes. He is the main contributor to www.MichiganTrailMaps.com, a resource web site devoted to trail users and the promotion of trails in his home state. In Michigan, DuFresne can be found out on the trail, whether it is hiking, mountain biking, backpacking, snowshoeing or cross-country skiing and is the author to more than 20 guidebooks on the state that include Backpacking In Michigan, 12 Classic Trout Streams in Michigan: A Handbook for Fly Anglers and Michigan: Off the Beaten Path.
Template 1 - QWS January 2017 Newsletter