Limited Time Offer *only while flooding lasts* Ferry Rides to the Store!
No worries about flooding here - staff members like Ben Peters (pictured here) would be happy to escort you to the store by canoe or kayak!
While most people are sweltering in the late July heat, we’re staying comfortably cool here at Stone Harbor – thanks to the big air conditioner (aka Lake Superior) out back. We’re having fun with the recent downpours as you can see from the picture, kayaking in the parking lot. If you’re in town when the parking lot is flooded, have no fear! We can pick you up at the curb with one of our boats, or direct you to the secret passageway into the back door of the store. The great news is, we built the store high enough that we do not take in any water. It might cover the first 2½ steps of the entrance, but everything inside stays high and dry.
This is the busiest time of the year for us, and folks have been coming from all over the world to see us and participate in our tours and events. Almost every day, weather permitting, we have at least one kayak tour on the big lake. Scott has been very busy keeping up with countless fly fishing tours. Canoes are going out all the time for day trips and BWCA trips, and stand up paddling is starting to catch on.
This is such a great time of year to visit Grand Marais. Next weekend is the annual North Shore Dragon Boat Festival, which we are sponsoring again this year. The weekend after that is the annual Fishermen’s Picnic. The Grand Marais Playhouse is having performances of Forever Patsy Cline and Shout, and our restaurants are going full force with menus you cannot find anywhere. Don’t miss the great pies at the Pie Place, and of course the great doughnuts at the World’s Best Donuts shop.
And, of course, you can’t miss the ferry rides to the store in our parking lot – only available while the water lasts. We’ll be waiting for you.
Great State Park Hikes Near Grand Marais
The High Falls at Grand Portage State Park
The guests we get at Stone Harbor Wilderness Supply are an adventurous bunch, and often ask about local hikes, events and restaurants. Our staff is always excited to offer ideas, so be sure to ask when you’re in town. If you’re ready to hike, however, here are a few great state parks to start with:
At the west end of Cook County is the Temperance River State Park, where you can take a short hike down to the lake and look at the beautiful palisades as the rive enters Lake Superior. Or you can go away from the lake and hike up the rocks towards the Superior Hiking trail where you can look down into the chasms and small canyons as the river moves along.
Closer to Grand Marais is the Cascade River State Park. As you hike up the trail you can get great pictures of the Cascade River as it … well, cascades …. towards the lake. You can also make a longer day of it by hiking up the trail to Lookout Mountain. And as you get back to your car you are a stone’s throw from the Cascade Lodge, where you can get snack or stop at their new Irish pub.
About 15 miles east of Grand Marais is Judge Magney State Park. Here you can take an hour’s hike back to the Devil’s Kettle. This is where the Brule River splits off – part of it goes into the ground, never to be seen again. They have tried to put dye in the water along with ping pong balls and other tracing materials, but no one has ever seen it come out, neither down below nor out into Lake Superior. You can turn your hike into a daytrip by continuing north along the Brule, which is a very quiet, relaxing hike. And when you are finished, simply cross the road to visit Naniboujou Lodge for lunch, dinner or high tea. This amazing place is listed on the National Registry of Historic Places.
If you keep heading up Highway 61 to the Canadian Border you’ll come to Grand Portage State Park. Here you can take a short hike up to the High Falls on the Pigeon River. It is a stroller/wheelchair-friendly asphalt trail until the very end, which has a wooden staircase to a lookout over the river. If you are looking to get off the paved trail, try turning at the bathroom about half-way up the trail, where you see a sign for the hike to the Middle Falls. This hike is much more secluded and will take you to one of my favorite spots – very quiet, very beautiful. When you finish your hike, go into Grand Portage and check out the interpretive center at the National Monument. It will give you a great history of the area from the days of the Voyageurs. If you still have some energy after that, you can even visit the casino for a bite to eat or to try your hand at one of the poker machines.
There are even more hikes within a very short distance of Grand Marais, which I’ll try to share with you in the future – these state parks only scratch the surface when it comes to great hikes in the area. And restaurants? We may be a “small town” – but we have some of the finest restaurants you can find anywhere, reaching from one end of the Cook County to the other. Stop in and we’ll tell you all about them.
Stand Up Paddling Sneak Peek
Frank out on the East Bay of Lake Superior, on a stand-up paddleboard.
Stand Up Paddle Boards are on display in the store and the staff has been out in the East Bay trying them out. Yes, the water is cold but once you get the hang of the boards, all that gets wet are your feet so it is not as bad as it sounds. I was up on a board last week and if I can get out and stay dry, anyone can get out and stay dry.
We have demo days scheduled in July using both the Grand Marais harbor and Devil Track Lake:
- Saturday, July 2nd, 1:00 – 5:00 PM. Grand Marais City Campground Beach
- Saturday, July 9th, 1:00 – 5:00 PM. Grand Marais City Campground Beach
- Tuesday, July 19th, 4:00 – 8:00 PM. Devil Track Landing
- Saturday, August 6th, 1:00 – 5:00 PM. Grand Marais City Campground Beach
If it’s not demo time while you’re here, come on in and rent a board to give it a try – although we do encourage you to get familiar with the boards on an inland lake where the water is quite a bit warmer.
Private instruction for SUP is available at $35 per person per hour. That rate also applies if you want to take a rental out on Lake Superior – for your safety, you’ll need go with a Stone Harbor Wilderness Supply Instructor. Otherwise, one of the area’s inland lakes is a great place to start!
Rental Rates:
- Half-Day SUP/Paddle/Life Vest Package :: $25
- Full-Day SUP/Paddle/Life Vest Package :: $40
Kayak Tours Resume This Weekend!
Spring has sprung, and the fishing boats and canoes are starting to fill up our parking lot again. But perhaps the surest sign of all that summer is on its way is our kayak tours. They’ll be starting up again on the big lake (Lake Superior)this weekend – just in time for Memorial Day.
All tours are three hours, and are offered in the morning and afternoon. Your tour includes a wet suit/pfd fitting and rental, some dry land instruction and paddling time out on Lake Superior. It is a great way to familiarize yourself with the nuances of paddling on the big water, while just having relaxing time with friends. We stop for pictures and a little snack and then head on back to the store. Call the store at 218.387.3136 to reserve a tour spot anytime this summer.
TJ Stone went out in a Langford last weekend and caught some beautiful walleye. We're not saying there's a connection between the Langford and the walleye...but it is a very attractive canoe...perhaps the fish can't resist?
Also keep in mind that if you can’t make a kayak tour, we can still set you up with some great paddling opportunities! We have canoe rentals and kayak rentals for inland lakes – including Langford canoes. Langford is the oldest canoe manufacturer in Canada, and is known for making a high quality, high performance canoe that is a dream to paddle. One of the only places you can get them in the Midwest right now is here at Stone Harbor, so be sure to check them out while you’re here.
Finally, it’s a great time to be planning for any kind of tour this summer. Scott is already getting booked up for fly fishing tours, and Frank will be taking groups out rock climbing on the North Shore (when he isn’t guiding kayaks).
If you’re feeling really adventurous, Frank will be leading a 4 day kayak trip to Isle Royale in August. Details will be announced in a separate post, but if you already know you want to do it, give us a call to reserve your space. We’re expecting this tour to fill up quickly, so get your reservation in early.
That is just a start of what we expect to be a great summer. Stay in touch here and on Facebook for more updates, or call with any questions. We hope to see you in the store soon!
Full Moon Sea Kayak Tour
Paddling on Lake Superior under the light of the full moon is an experience you won’t forget.
Full Moon Sea Kayak: A short introductory session will prepare you for a leisurely paddle into the sunset out of the East Bay. We’ll float past Artists’ Point and Grand Marais Harbor and enjoy the silhouette of the Sawtooth Range in the distance. As the moon rises over Lake Superior we’ll bring our boats together and enjoy the silvery moonlight in the wake of our kayaks.
Dates: Wednesday, June 15th; Friday, July 15th; Saturday, August 13th.
Weather permitting
Time: 8:00 PM – 11:00 PM
Where: Stone Harbor Wilderness Supply, Grand Marais, MN.
Cost: $60. Includes rental of kayak, paddle, life vest, wetsuit and all other needed safety equipment.
Stand Up Paddling Demo
Come learn about the hottest new sport to hit the North Shore! During this demo, you’ll learn how to cruise across the flat water of area lakes and literally look down on the kayakers. You can use a paddleboard to tour the beautiful BWCA, or even fish – come learn more during this demonstration.
Birch Bark Canoes with Erik Simula
Learn about traditional birch bark canoe construction and wilderness tripping from Erik Simula, a birch bark canoe expert who traveled 1,000 miles with his dog in his own handmade canoe from April to August 2009.
Erik is currently employed as a seasonal park ranger and canoe builder at Grand Portage National Monument, instructor at North House Folk School in Grand Marais, Minnesota, and wilderness guide and musher at Bearskin Lodge on the Gunflint Trail.
Customer Appreciation Event
Join us for FREE Schwan’s Ice Cream Sandwiches as we celebrate our first year of business. We’re thanking our customers for their support, especially through the winter!
Sunday, May 22, 11 am-2 pm
Spring 2011 Gear and Tour Preview
Wondering what’s going on at Stone Harbor Wilderness Supply right now? Well, the skis and snowshoes are gone, and in are the canoes, kayaks and (new for this year!) stand up paddle boards. Also new this year are Big Agnes sleeping bags and Mountain Hardwear tents, plus the latest in outdoor clothes, boots, shoes and sandals.
Melissa's "Tower of Power"
Along with the new, great gear you will also find some of your old favorites – perhaps just displayed in a different way. We have three carousels of boats and a “tower of power,” which is Melissa’s masterpiece. Come in to the store to see some of the great clothing she has on display there!
Another area we’re putting together right now is the fly fishing department. The steelhead trout are starting to run in this neck of the woods (so I guess the real question is, can we fish and still get the store pulled together?) We have gotten in a great selection of Tenkara and St. Croix rods, Pflueger and Redington reels. I see boxes from Cortland and we are trying to get our fly case set up so that it is easier to find our locally tied flies.
We’re also putting our final preparations together for tours! We anticipate starting our kayak tours over Memorial Day. We are increasing the tour fleet and getting our guides certified and recertified. Next week, we are once again putting on a Wilderness First Aid class for our staff and the public. You can feel safe going on any tour with Stone Harbor as it is a requirement that all guides be trained and are a holder of at least a Wilderness First Aid certificate.
Finally, if you have access to the Cook County New Herald you may have seen the article about the Hudson Bay-Bound ladies. We are donating a canoe to their cause of being the first women to paddle Eric Sevareid’s route from Fort Snelling to Hudson Bay, which he chronicled in his book Canoeing with the Cree. This is a 2250-mile trek and will take them all summer. When they return, we will have the canoe in our shop for a short while, and will then have it auctioned off by Camp Menogyn with all proceeds going to their camper program.
There’s a lot going on this spring – stay tuned to this blog and our Facebook page for more updates. We hope to see all of you soon.
More Time to Play in the Snow
Nita and Storm lead the team on our late-season run.
Here at Stone Harbor, we’ve been planning for summer for the last few weeks. But last weekend, Mother Nature showed that she still has other plans.
Another 8-10 inches of snow fell onto the 2-4 foot base we already had on the trails. The snowmobile and ski trails are being groomed, Pincushion Ski Trail was groomed earlier this week, and we’re all out taking advantage of these perfect late-season snow conditions.
I took out a team of our sled dogs recently with Nita and Storm leading the way. On Monday morning, we were out after all the new snow fell. As we ran across Trout Lake, we tried to exit on a trail that hadn’t been traveled recently. We soon found ourselves literally swimming in snow – when I got off the sled, I was in up to my chest.
We have plenty of snow now, and will for days or maybe even weeks. Come visit us at the store and rent snowshoes to explore one of our many lakes, rivers or trails. Our cross country skis are all waxed and ready for the hundreds of kilometers of groomed trails in the area.
Summer will be here soon…but for now, it’s still Winter at Stone Harbor. Stop by, and we’ll set you up to go play in the snow.
© 2012 Stone Harbor Wilderness Supply :: Grand Marais, MN :: 218.387.3136
