The Mackinac Blog

New Year’s Eve on Mackinac Island!

New Year’s Eve December 31, 2010
Spending New Year’s Eve on Mackinac Island is a blast. Snow falling, great live music, amazing food, dancing, and loads of laughing…its the simple things that make life memorable. Come join us.

Accommodations:
Mission Point Resort
www.missionpoint.com
800-833-7711
a 15 minute walk from downtown

Bogan Lane Inn
www.boganlaneinn.com
906-847-3439
two blocks from downtown

Harbor Place Studio Suites
www.harborplacestudiosuites.com
800-626-6304
located downtown next to Shepler’s Ferry

Pontiac Lodge
www.pontiaclodge.com
906-847-3364
located downtown across from Shepler’s Ferry

Park Place Suites
www.mackinacislandparkplacesuites.com
(906) 847-8194
located downtown on Market Street across from the Post Office

Sunset Condos (Up Island…ski in- ski out)
www.mackinacresorts.com
(906) 847-3407
most condos are located on the Stonecliffe Estate about a mile and a half from downtown. Perfect for xx skiers. Also inquire about the spacious Harbor Suite downtown on the Star Line Ferry dock.

Dining
Village Inn of Mackinac
906-847-3542
A traditional New Year’s dinner of Surf and Turf at the VI, reservations suggested.Pianist John Kissane performs during dinner and DJ Brevin takes on the night.

Patrick Sinclair’s Irish Pub
906-847-8255
Chef Shane Moore puts on a gourmet menu. The Thunder Chiefs feat. Mary McGuire, Gary Rasmussen and Nino Dmytryszyn kick out the jams after 10pm.

Mustang Lounge
906-847-9916
Always into the revelling spirit, the Mustang creates a great menu. Tricky Dicky and the Spoonmen play some great college rock for the dance crowd.

Goodfellows Italian Chophouse
906-847-0260
(tentative opening, please call to confirm)

Getting Here:
Arnold Line Ferry from St. Ignace
Arnold Transit Company
906-847-3351

Shepler’s Mackinac Island Ferry from St. Ignace
Shepler’s Ferry
(906) 643-9440

From Mackinac County Airport in St. Ignace
Great Lakes Air
906-643-7165
Round Trip between St. Ignace and Mackinac Island
$27 per person each way, kids 12 and under $13.50 each way
(2 fare minimum)

For More Info Visit Mackinac Island Tourism Bureau Website >>>>

 
 

Headstone Placed at Fort Mackinac Infant’s Grave 117 Years After Death

Via Mackinac State Historic Parks

At 10:00 this morning, November 17, 2010 at the Post Cemetery on Mackinac Island, a headstone was placed at the gravesite of infant Robert D. Walsh over 117 years after his death at Fort Mackinac. The stillborn son of Private Walter J. Walsh and his wife, Fort Mackinac Hospital Matron Caroline Walsh, was buried at the Post Cemetery on Mackinac Island after his death on August 17, 1892 at Fort Mackinac.

“By properly marking this gravesite, we are able to honor the wishes of the family and bring greater historical accuracy to this cemetery,” said Mackinac State Historic Parks Director Phil Porter.

Until recently, the unmarked gravesite was thought to be a stillborn daughter of the Walsh family, who died sometime between February and September of 1892. However, a letter from Walter and Caroline Walsh’s great-grandson, James Hudson of Lake City, Michigan, shed light on the 117-year-old mystery. After reading Mackinac Island’s Post Cemetery, a vignette by Porter, which mentioned the Walsh baby’s unmarked grave in the Post Cemetery, Hudson searched for and found old documents given to him by his mother, the granddaughter of Walter and Caroline Walsh. Written in Hudson’s grandmother’s writing was an entry for Robert D. Walsh in the births and deaths sections of the family record, both showing the date of August 17, 1892.

Hudson wrote to Porter, “My wish is that a headstone, with a now known name and date, be placed on the gravesite. I feel this should be done for the memory of this baby and for Walter J. Walsh, who was a Civil War Veteran, retired with 30 years of honorable service in the army, and for Caroline Walsh, who served as the Post’s Hospital Matron.”

The headstone was funded by the Department of Veterans Affairs, National Cemetery Administration, which has provided guidance and financial assistance to maintain the cemetery since 1990. Because of this funding, tribute has been paid to the small child who didn’t have a chance at life, but will now be forever remembered.

In the future, Mackinac State Historic Parks hopes to continue to install accurate headstones at other unmarked or improperly marked gravesites within the Mackinac Island Post Cemetery.

More Information at Mackinac State Historic Parks Website >>>>

 
 

Spring Ferry Service via Arnold Transit Company begins March 15, 2010

No other ferry service to Mackinac Island offers a longer sailing season than Arnold Transit Co. From early spring to late fall, Arnold’s triple-deck catamarans and classic ferries cross the straits seven days a week.

Our ferries are the largest on the straits so you will always be on our next trip across!

St. Ignace Spring Schedule
March 15, 2010 until further notice
8:00
11:00
3:45		 am
am
pm		 8:45
12:00
4:30		 am
noon
pm
Due to Ice conditions
Schedule subject to change without notice

Arnold Transit Co.
PO Box 220
Mackinac Island, MI 49757
(800) 542-8528 or (906) 847-3351

Visit Arnold Transit Co Website >>>

 
 

Take A Winter Holiday on Mackinac Island

(Note: Spoke with the Arnold Transit Co. and the last Arnold Ferry passenger service to Mackinac Island was yesterday, January 7, 2010 – They were unable to get through the ice out of St. Ignace today (January 8, 2010) – It’s Great Lakes Air (906-643-7165) now for winter travel to the island (until the ice bridge forms)

UPDATE: Spoke with Arnold Line( again) and they said definitely no service today (January 8, 2010) – they also said odds are against any more passenger service this year unless there is a significant change in the conditions of the ice. However, anything can happen – check for updates on their website or call Arnold Transit Co. at 1-800-542-8528)

Looks like a perfect weekend to take a break from shopping at the malls and ride the Arnold ferry over to Mackinac Island. The snowy start to December has established a nice base for the the cross country ski trails and the word is the ski club groomers have been out smoothing the trails.

You can take an early ferry to the island fly Great Lakes Air (906-643-7165), ski the trails, have lunch at the Village Inn or the Mustang or Patrick Sinclair’s Irish Pub and catch the last ferry flight back to the mainland. You can be even more adventurous and fly Great Lakes Air to the island from St. Ignace. You can get off the plane and ski right from the airport terminal on the island.

Of course, if you want to make a weekend of your Mackinac Island winter holiday, you can find a cozy room (or suite) at one of hotels or bed & breakfast inns that remain open during the winter months. THE PONTIAC LODGE has been the mainstay of winter lodging over the years. BOGAN LANE INN BED & BREAKFAST also welcomes winter visitors to the island. This year THE COTTAGE INN will also be open from December 18, 2009 through February 21, 2010.

Here is a list of more lodging, dining and ferry services with phone numbers.

We are working on getting some photos of this year’s snow on the ski trails. If you are lucky enough get out on the island please post some photos on the Mackinac Island fan page: Just Click Here and Post Your Photos

However, in the meantime below are some photos from last March. (Note: The ice bridge in the photos does not form until January at the earliest.) Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

(Click on photos for slideshow view)

 
 

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