Museum Photos

Yesterday I featured photos of the museum's gift shops, which are in the front two rooms. The back rooms are the museum displays. To help cover the museum's property taxes, I do charge adults 18 and over a small $1.00 fee for entering the museum. Kids can not only enter the museum for free, if they go into the history rooms and read, learn, and then verbalize a history fact to who ever is working the museum -- they get to select a free rock from a treasure chest. This year I'm adding a wrinkle -- each day we will tell the kids from which history display they must learn the fact.

First, photos from the mineral displays.

This display shows fluorescent rocks illuminated by short and long black light.

This is the doorway between the mineral displays and the history rooms.

Some of the lumber history displays....

Some of the Grand Marais history displays....

Some of the fishing history displays....

The mystery items display -- you have to guess what the items are.

Museum Photos

It has been raining steady in Grand Marais for the past couple of days so I did not get out to hike. It has been quite some time since I posted pictures of the museum, so while working yesterday I snapped off a few shots. Today I'll feature pictures of the gift shop.

New Disc Golf Course in Grand Marais!

Local teacher, Brian Prill, applied for and received a grant to build and install a Frisbee golf course in the Burt Township School Forest, located a few miles east of Grand Marais. Our school has the largest school forest in the state of Michigan at over 1,300 acres.  Brian is Candace's husband.  Candace as many of you know is the museum assistant manager

Grab your discs and head out to the School Forest because Superior Pines is open…unofficially. The Grand Opening ceremony will take place on July 30th. The event will include a 50/50 raffle, brats and hot dogs, cold refreshments and a great time.

Although the course is open and ready for use, it is still a little rough, so bring some close toed shoes and pick up a few sticks as you play. So come and enjoy the Upper Peninsula’s first professional quality disc golf course!

Directions: Enter Grand Marais and head East on H-58. After 3 to 4 miles, turn left into the School Forest and then left onto Superior Pines (road before the bridge). Park past the chimney and look for post hole #1 and our coming soon trail head kiosk.

Friend, Renee, and I headed out there last night to play our first round!  The second photo below I took from the school's web page.

The eighth hole provides an extra special challenge.  The arrow below shows the basket.  I must admit that we chickened out and did not try to throw our disks over the river.  We baled and went around to the left.

For those who have not played, you start at the tee box and count your throws down the course.  When you get near the basket, you throw the disk into the chains and complete the hole when your disc falls into the bottom of the basket.

We noticed Lady Slippers along the course.

At points along the course, you follow the Sucker River.

Flowers, Sable Lake, and Geese

This morning I had to install an agate window at my friend's house in Grand Marais. Thank you, George, for another great waffle breakfast! George is one of our GM golf group -- thanks, also, for the golfing gifts!

On my way out to my car, I took some pictures of the magnificent flowers in George's yard.

The other day I also documented the calm conditions on Sable Lake.  It is not often that there are days in Grand Marais with no wind.

Sea Planes, Motorcycles, and More

Yesterday was an extremely busy day in Grand Marais. Since I played golf on Friday, yesterday I had to take advantage of our township's clean up days. With all the house, garage, and museum cleaning this past few months -- I had a lot of things to haul. In my opinion this annual two-day clean up event is the best thing our township does for us. The nearest garbage pit/transfer station is 60 miles away. Since I hauled six car loads yesterday, the township saved me the approximate $360 that it would have cost me to make repeated trips to Munising.

The Grand Marais Historical Society also had their annual giant yard sale. Since I was busy hauling, I didn't get a chance to get over there.

Yesterday was also the annual Splash In. This is an event spearheaded by local resident, Ed Bowen. Although more planes showed up yesterday than any previous year, the weather did not cooperate. It was sunny and a bit cool, but with east north east winds, the bay was too wavy for the planes to fully compete in all their events. The colorful planes lined up on the beach in our bay is an interesting site.

Yesterday was also the annual Rendezvous Motorcycle Rally in Blaney Park, which is located around 50 miles south of Grand Marais. Many of those attending that event took advantage of being so close to the newly paved H58 between Grand Marais and Munising -- and went for a ride, stopping in Grand Marais for lunch.

I have a couple of new products for sale in the museum's gift shop this year.  The first are ornaments that consist of a large agate slab mounted to 1/2 inch copper tubing.  I have different lengths to accommodate gardens as well as flower pots.  Prices range from $14 to $24.  Not pictured are new hat/lapel/tie pins that are small agates glued onto clasps.

A couple came by the museum yesterday with purchased agates from the Keweenaw Peninsula.  They are the paintstone variety typically found in the mineral rich area.