Start the New Year Off Celebrating in Community
Launching the New Year often involves dropping something at a community gathering place. We have a few of those … and a few other options for celebrating and enjoying in the coming weekend. (We're sending ATCTW early this week so you have time to sign up for events!)
Don't forget to check your favorite eating or lodging establishments for their own special N.Y.E. options. Pier B, in Duluth, for instance will have a velvety evening with it New Year’s Eve Party with Laura Velvet singing hits from Motown to modern that starts at 8:30 p.m. Or Big Powderhorn Mountain Resort in Bessemer, Mich., plans a special menu from 4-7:30 p.m, a traditional fireworks display at 8 p.m. and live music by XTRA from 9 p.m.-midnight.
Happy beginning to the 2024 to everyone!
Ring in the new year with the first-ever Houghton N.Y.E. Chook Drop. This New Year’s Eve spectacle will be a new, first-time
event on the pier to celebrate entering 2024. The chook, a kind of Yooper take (with attached face covering) on the Canadian touque, is, according to Visit Keweenaw, "the soft and hardy hats people wear to stay warm during winter. Sometimes called beanies, the hats are a popular staple in the Keweenaw." The photo here shows the "official" Yooper Chook, created in 2009 and which comes in all sizes and a variety of styles. Join Visit Keweenaw and the city of Houghton on the
Yooper Chook
Yooper Chook
Houghton Pier from 11:30 p.m.-midnight on Sunday (Dec. 31). Expect music and a classic midnight countdown and drop with DJ service Party Sounds out of Hancock keeping the tunes coming. Fire pits outside will keep folk warm (mostly).
Once again, Downtown Marquette welcomes everyone for the New Year's Eve Ball Drop Bash. With live music, entertainment and a spectacular midnight ball drop, the event sponsored by Double Trouble Entertainment and Travel Marquette captures the spirit of the season. There's the earlier Family-Friendly Ball Drop at 6-8:30 p.m. followed by the Ball Drop Bash Block Party at 10 p.m.-1 a.m. Side parties – indoors – are also raging. And don't forget, the Holiday Lasers on the Ore Dock also will be
Thursday, Friday and Saturday, 6-8 p.m. this week with a final showing 6-8 p.m. on Sunday (Dec. 31).
In Sault Ste. Marie, Mich., home to the Soo Locks, dropping anchor for the New Year seems quite appropriate. And that's just what the community does for the 2024 Soo Co-op Credit Union New Year's Eve Celebration and Anchor Drop. The evening focuses on family fun then switches to adult-friendly activities. There are cornhole tourneys, crafts, a vendors market, a marathon, face painting ... in addition to the anchor drop for kids at 8 p.m. and for grown-ups at midnight. Check out the full list of events Facebook.
Jay Cooke State Park in Minnesota has a healthy suggestion to usher out the old and welcome the new. On Sunday (Dec. 31) from 12:30-2 p.m. join the End of the Year Snowshoe Walk. Organizers promise to help you "discover what resolutions our forest animals are making for the new year."
In Duluth on Sunday, the DECC puts on the glitz for "Glamour & Gold: A Great Gatsby New Year's Eve." The evening will swirl around the world of the Roaring Twenties and the Jazz Age with "sophistication, fine champagne and memories that will resonate well into 2024." There will be dancing, a balloon drop and toasting 2024. Dinner will feature Waldorf dalad, piped Borson mashed potatoes, and either
bourbon-glazed ham or a roasted chicken. Plus there will be an Underground Speakeasy by Vikre Distillery and Bent Paddle Brewing Company. A silent auction will support of the local Ronald McDonald House-Northland, which will provide coat-check services. Order tickets through host Glitterati.
Ring in the New Year and wrap up Fort William Historical Park's 50th anniversary year at the New Year's Eve Family Frolic, 4-8 p.m. Sunday at the Thunder Bay fort. Enjoy an evening of family-friendly activities, winter games and contests, live artisan demonstrations, and fireworks!
While we're not mentioning all the many individual parties at local businesses, we thought it worth noting that Thunder Bay's no alcohol bar and late-night coffee house, Howl at the Moon, will be hosting a sober N.Y.E. dance party, 9 p.m.-1 a.m.
Have an Aurora New Year
2024 hasn’t even started … and already we’ve got some good news to convey.
Visit Keweenaw sent out a release encouraging all who have yet to witness the northern lights that 2024 “could be your year.”
Based on the sun’s changing activity, scientists believe our current solar cycle will peak after the new year, says the release. "That means that you’re about to have a better chance at seeing the aurora borealis when skies are clear. Solar cycles last around 10-11 years, bringing a range of solar activity. Despite being mostly unpredictable – they build to a maximum before settling and starting a new cycle. 2024 will be the peak of this decade’s current solar cycle." Read more about the phenomenon at the Visit Keweenaw blog here.
Should you want to hang out where the auroras are likely to glow, Visit Keweenaw also has a helpful “Dark Skies” page that talks about the peninsula’s internationally designated Keweenaw Dark Sky Park. This photo, taken by Isaac Diener Photography, shows northern lights near Toivola.
If other shores work better for your travel plans, check out the Voyageurs International Dark Sky Park in Voyageurs National Park in Minnesota. It’s right across the U.S.-Canada border with the International Dark Sky Park in Quetico Provincial Park.
Finally, Visit Cook County in Minnesota has lots of dark sky events (including its annual December festival). Check out the online information, and the downloadable Northern Lights Driving Route map.
Yes, Virginia … Winter Will Get Here, We Hope
For many parts of our Lake Superior shores, a true "white Christmas" was not in the cards this year. But we still have hopes for a season of white. When those snowflakes do come down, may we suggest getting out your camera (or prepping your phone), and linking to our story "7 Winter Photography Tips" by Dennis O'Hara. (There are more lovely winter images there, too, like this one.)
Photo & graphic credits: Houghton Chook Drop; Yooper Chook; Marquette Ball Drop; Glitterati; Fort William Historical Park; Isaac Diener Photography; Dennis O'Hara
Around the Circle This Week editor: Konnie LeMay