By Owen Wiese
Individuals with the Garretson Park Board and City maintenance met on the 18th of June to discuss the present and future uses of the Devil’s Gulch Park. Naturally, a discussion about the park’s history and its present and its past uses came about. I have a long association with the Gulch and will endeavor to bring the memories to mind.
There is an old saying, “the older that one gets to be, the easier it is to remember things that never happened.” I will endeavor to put things in the right order and in the right frame, but there is no guarantee that the results from a ninety-year old brain will be correct. If anyone has corrections about content or presentation, they will be welcome.
In 1950, R.P. and Ella Wiese purchased the land including Devils Gulch, and subsequently began a tree farm at the location. This photo, dated around 1952, shows the dedication of the farm after Ginnala Maples were planted along the road leading to the parking area.
In 1950, R.P. and Ella Wiese bought from Norm Engebretson the quarter section of land that included Devil’s Gulch. At the time the Gulch was not the well-kept attraction it is now. It was simply a road beginning at Oak Drive, winding through the park past the Jesse James Bridge and out, ending at Center Avenue and 5th Street.
At the east end, at the beginning of the road, there was an old dump ground that people would dig in, looking for old momentos and items of interest. The dump is still there, but it is overgrown with trees.
There was no bridge overlooking the falls. At the start of the falls, there was a crossing of sorts which I improved with more rock and a covering of ready mix (which is still there). The crossing and a road winding up the hill gave access to the land on the north side of the Gulch. That land on the north side of the Gulch is very hilly. It was a challenge to farm and could not be reached by larger modern-day equipment. When growing hay, I baled it (with Matt Schreurs driving the tractor). It was a real challenge for the boys riding on the bale wagon to stack the bales so that they wouldn’t fall off, particularly on the trip back on down the hill, across the crossing and back up the hill on the other side.
One year, Albert Hoogland bought the hay crop, chopped it, and hauled it out using the same route. He didn’t try that again.
It was an everlasting challenge to keep pickups and snowmobiles from using the mile and a half route from the corner where Bert Risty lives and down through the Gulch, always leaving gates open. There is no designated road in that area, only a trail.
When Jeff Benson started to farm the land with much bigger equipment, access to the fields was by going three miles around and back through Wes Julsons‘ land. It has always been very nice to have understanding and cooperative neighbors like the Julsons.
This painted rock showcasing Dischners Cafe can still be found in Devils Gulch. The restaurant was in operation around the 1920’s, but it is unknown when or why it was painted. Several interesting viewing opportunities can be found within the Gulch for those willing to search.
When the government established the CRP program, I signed up for it. For twenty-three years the land north of the Gulch has been in the CRP. The contract will end in 2022. After that, we have other plans for the land.
My Dad, R.P., was always interested in trees, and wanted to plant them in the Gulch.
One year (we don’t know the exact year) he had Ginnala Maples planted next to the road leading to the parking area. A ceremony was held designating it as the R.P. Wiese Tree Farm. A nice sign was installed, but over a period of several years the sign has disappeared.
Those trees have now grown large and are a nearly impenetrable row of trees. I have also always been interested in growing trees and have planted some evergreen trees on the hill above the crossing. It was a difficult area to plant and maintain, but some of those trees have grown to good size. Lois has relatives living in Northern Michigan. They have some pine trees growing in sandy soil. On trips to visit them I would dig up small seedlings and bring them home to plant in the Gulch, but either because of the difference in soil or climate I did not have very good luck in making them survive. Mother Nature does a very good job of planting trees many places. Particularly successful are the cedars which sometimes cling to small cracks in the rocks.
About thirty-five years ago, a Ladies organization named the Daughters of the Revolution received a grant to build a visitor’s center at the Gulch. We negotiated a twenty-five-year lease with them to build the visitor’s center. That lease was renewed two years ago for another twenty-five years.
The City has added many improvements to the Gulch. Foremost among those are a very well-anchored bridge over the Gulch with safety fences, a very good bridge overlooking the falls, and a small bridge at the top of the Devil’s Stairway. The hiking trails have been improved and designated. The FFA built a very nice picnic shelter. The latest improvements are benches installed in several spots for visitors to rest and view some of the scenic views. The only item missing is the nice bronze plaque, which was attached at the top of the bridge over the Gulch. Several years ago, someone pried it off its placement and stole it. It is probably laying in someone’s garage somewhere. A second plaque was also pried off, but it was found and it now rests in the Visitor’s Center.
There are several hidden places to be seen in Gulch. Amongst them is a sign painted under a rock overhang advertising Dischners Cafe, Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner. Dischners Cafe operated during the 1920s and was located on Main Street where the Library is now. Why the sign was painted where it is, no one knows.
There is also a beaver lodge closer to the railroad bridge, which has been there for many years. When the field south of the Gulch is planted for corn, the beavers climb up through the rocks and across the road and take corn stalks to use in their lodge.
There are other interesting places for visitors to see, if you look for them.
To make sure that the Gulch Park will remain as an attraction that people want to see when they visit Garretson, we took several steps to ensure the long-term presence of the Gulch Park.
We had its 28 acres surveyed, then formed an LLC, which belongs to Lois and I for as long as we live. After we are gone, the LLC goes to our three daughters, who will own it for the duration of the remainder of the current twenty-five-year lease. By that time, they will all be very elderly or deceased. After that the property will go to our grandchildren in the Petersek family. They will determine the future of the Devils Gulch Park.
Our three daughters all feel very strongly that the Gulch remain a park without the incursion of further development. So, everyone, enjoy the Devils Gulch Park!
