Welcome to Up North, Close By...

May 2009 Newsletter

The month of May kicks off the beginning of the busy season for us here in Mason County. Much like the great outdoors the spring brings new life and activity to the Ludington Area. As visitors begin to head into our area, businesses are opening their doors to welcome summer. As you begin to plan your next trip to our beautiful area be sure to check out one of the following activities and events!

First Annual West Michigan Birding Festival

The Sable Dunes Audubon Society is hosting more than two dozen events for birding enthusiasts and their families at the Ludington Area Center for the Arts during the First Annual West Michigan Birding Festival May 15-17, 2009.

The Festival will focus on activities for beginning and advanced birders as well as children. Ludington is an ideal area for bird watchers to observe a wide variety of migratory birds. For more information, contact Judy at 231-843-4826. 

Mason County Offers Visitors a Chance to Meet the Individuals Who Grow Your Food!

Join us for good food, good people, and GREAT fun and meet the families who grow your food! The Scottville Farmer’s Market will be open every Saturday, May 10 through October 11, from 9:00am until 1:00pm and every Tuesday evening, June 9 through October 6, from 3:00pm until 7:00pm in the city lot along West State St.

Each Saturday at the Scottville Farmers there will be music, children’s activities, and a downtown book swap. On Tuesday evenings there will be evening concerts and late night shopping.

Join us on Fridays for Ludington's Downtown Farmer’s Market located on the North James Street Plaza. Support your local growers; enjoy music, entertainment, locally produced foods, and artisan works. You can also enjoy Downtown shops and restaurants within seconds of the Market Area.

The Market will be in operation from May 8 through October 30, 2009 on Friday evenings from 3:00 PM - 8:00 PM. The Market will be open rain or shine.

The Market is located in the heart of Downtown Ludington on the North James Street Plaza Area. Easily accessible from all directions, and with ample parking for vendors and patrons, the North James Street Plaza Area was a perfect fit for the Ludington Farmer's Market. 

A Piece of Area History

The Ludington Area is as rich in history as it is beautiful. The abundant amount of natural resources located throughout the area has shaped its past, present, and will continue to form its future.

Ludington’s prime location among the vast forests of tall pine trees and on the shore of one of the major waterways on Lake Michigan rooted the community in the lumber, rail, and maritime industries.

Ludington boomed and bustled from 1849 – 1917 during its lumber era. In 1874, Ludington became the western terminus of the Flint & Pere Marquette Railroad and home to the largest carferry fleet in the United States.

At the height of the carferry era the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad provided faster transportation to the lumber markets via the nine Carferries that operated daily to three Wisconsin ports.

Since the 1890’s the Ludington Area has and continues to attract visitors who seek the serenity of the area’s beautiful beaches, unmatched State Park, plentiful rivers and golf courses for recreation.
Visitors are offered opportunities to experience its rich lumber and maritime history still to this today via many of the historical attractions present in the area. The next time you plan your trip Up North, Close By be sure to stop and spend time at the following historical landmarks.

S.S. Badger: Lake Michigan Carferry

As the only coal-fired steamship in operation in North America, the S.S. Badger operates on domestic fuel, and the company has an extraordinary commitment to maintaining a unique propulsion system that has been designated as a national mechanical engineering landmark. The S.S. Badger offers an authentic steamship experience unmatched anywhere else.

The 410 foot S.S. Badger entered service in 1953, designed specifically to handle the rough conditions that it would likely encounter during year round sailing on Lake Michigan. Built primarily to transport railroad freight cars, but with superior passenger accommodations, the Badger reigned as Queen of the Lakes during the car ferries' Golden Era in the late Fifties, with Manitowoc, Milwaukee, and Kewaunee as her Wisconsin ports of call. By the Seventies, changing railroad economics were condemning other car ferries to mothballs or the scrap yard. With little railroad freight business left, and without ever tapping into the opportunity to serve the needs of the vacation traveler, the Badger sailed from Wisconsin to Ludington and tied up for the last time in November 1990 - signaling the end of the century-old tradition of car ferry service on Lake Michigan.

However, in 1991, an entrepreneur named Charles Conrad committed to reinvent the S.S. Badger to carry leisure passengers and their vehicles. The S.S. Badger now sails daily between Manitowoc, Wisconsin and Ludington, Michigan from May 22, 2009 through October 11, 2009. Check out travel details an the S.S. Badger page for your own one of a kind trip.

Historic White Pine Village

Opened in 1976, Historic White Pine Village is a community of over twenty-five historic buildings located on a 23-acre bluff overlooking the Lake Michigan shoreline. Each of the buildings contains thousands of artifacts that help interpret the history of the area. The history interpreted includes lumbering, music, farming, small rural villages, maritime, sports, and the development of business and industry.

White Pine Village features the Rose Hawley Museum, a blacksmith shop, general store, old fashioned ice cream parlor, trapper’s cabin, the first county courthouse, doctor’s office, one first county courthouse, doctor’s office, one room school house, a music gallery, lumbering exhibits, a restored 1880 farmhouse, a local Sports Hall of Fame museum and a maritime museum which focuses on the rich maritime history of Mason County. Also among these buildings is the White Pine Chapel which is frequently rented throughout the season for small weddings by couples from around the country.

Historic White Pine Village opened for the 2009 season on Saturday, May 2. For additional information follow this link.

Waterfront Sculpture Park

Situated between the City of Ludington’s Municipal Marina and Harbor View Marina, located at the end of South William Street, you will find a wonderful 5 acre park. The park boasts Ludington's Waterfront Sculpture Park and walking loop which features panels telling of Ludington’s lumber era, the Spirit of Ludington, Old Time Baseball, and a tribute to the Carferries. Children can let their imaginations run wild in the playground while parents and couples watch the S.S. Badger head into port, take in a sunset, or listen to a summer concert under the amphitheater. The park has night lighting, as well as restrooms.

Anytime through the year, Visitors can take advantage of the many packages offered by Ludington Area lodging facilities and other CVB Members. Check out the current packages and member deals in the Packages & Deals section of out website.

Photo Credit: Todd & Brad Reed Photography, www.toddandbradreed.com