Audubon International Cooperative Sanctuary Golf Course Certification

written by admin | August 23, 2021

The Keweenaw Mountain Lodge is working toward becoming an Audubon International Cooperative Sanctuary Golf Course. We are currently in the early stages of this process.

Member #:  15001

The Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary Program for Golf is an education and certification program that will help us maintain our golf course to protect our environment and preserve the natural heritage of the game of golf. The program will assist us “to take stock of its environmental resources and any potential liabilities, and then develop a plan that fits its unique setting, goals, staff, budget, and time.” — Audubon International

The elements of the program include:

        • Environmental Planning
        • Wildlife and Habitat Management
        • Chemical Use Reduction and Safety
        • Water Conservation
        • Water Quality Management
        • Outreach and Education

Who We Are

The Keweenaw Mountain Lodge is a WPA-era wilderness resort at the top of the Keweenaw, with a history that dates back to 1934. We are on the state and national historic registers, and value educating visitors on how we marry history with the future to get to a vibrant and progressive present.

The golf course at the Keweenaw Mountain Lodge is a wilderness 9-hole golf course designed using the Keweenaw terrain, with spectacular views of Brockway Mountain and the surrounding wilderness environment. We are a historic wilderness golf course, not a golf course in the wilderness — so expect the course to be maintained in-line with the history of golf and along the lines of the natural landscape of the rugged Keweenaw. As part of signaling our history, the Lodge site, including the golf course, is on the state and national historic registers.

While public appearances are not guaranteed by wildlife, you will share the golf course with various wildlife native to the area. Our summer residents include the sandhill cranes, our little fox families, and of course, the deer, the chipmunks, and the squirrels. These birds and animals allow us to play on their golf course, so have your cameras ready!

Our Goal

We want to learn how to create a harmonious relationship between human recreation and the natural environment by adopting Audubon methods. We want to work with The Nature Conservancy (they currently own 32,000 acres surrounding the golf course) at encouraging the regrowth and revival of natural habitats, while still enabling humans to enjoy getting closer to nature, while enjoying outdoor activities, including playing a round of golf.

The guidelines that we are striving to follow with the Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary Program (ACPS) is helping us expand our educational opportunities – a major value engraved in our DNA at the resort – our lodging is supported by outdoor activities, rustic worldly food, AND education.

How Will ACPS Help Us Succeed

We are not looking to get certified as a marketing resource. The certification process will help us better evolve our current practices and improve or implement new processes that will make us a better citizen of the world.
We hope that it will help golf enthusiasts better understand and appreciate the natural environment, rather than expect unnatural environments for the golfing playing field. This should help golfers be nature seekers.

We, as a team at the Keweenaw Mountain Lodge, look forward to progressing through the certification process to better our abilities to education and provide a wilderness golf course to golf enthusiasts.

 

Current Version

Supporting Documents

Application progress / schedule:

  • February 22, 2024: Submitted version 1.0 of application (and supporting document) to our Audubon International program manager, Scott Turner

Project Champions from the KML Team

 

Notes