Harbor Friends Initiatives

Outdoor Classroom Program
Wetland Recovery
Marina Upgrade Project
Sweetheart's Bluff Loop Trail
DNR Boat Landing
Commerical Lake Trout Fishery

Outdoor Classroom Program

Harbor Friends initiated the Outdoor Classroom Program in March 2006, with the publication of the first field guide in a planned series of 29. The guides are the curricular material for the outdoor classroom, which is defined as the public coastal lands surrounding the harbor and the harbor itself.

The first field guide "Birds" is available at the Harbor Center.

Wetland Recovery

Harbor Friends presented a proposal to the City of Grand Marais and the Grand Marais Park Board in January 2007 to map the harbor area to determine the type and extent of wetlands that once occupied the harbor basin. The mapping information would be given to the city for planning efforts in the harbor and park recreation areas.

Read more and see old US Army Corp Maps. (PDF 995KB)

Marina Upgrade Project

In January 2007, The Grand Marais City Council -- with new mayor and a new city council member -- unanimously passed a resolution that took the city out of the planning process for a new marina with with MN DNR. This has taken the large state-owned marina proposal off the table for now. The present effort by the city focuses on upgrading the existing marina.

Harbor Friends' role has been to provide information in two reports for the City Council and general public:

Grand Marais Harbor and Marina: Studies, Reports and Considerations (PDF 4.5MB)
Grand Marais Harbor and Marina: A History

Both reports gather all the pertinent information up to the present for improving the existing marina. Reports are available in large format from our website or from the Harbor Center.

Sweetheart's Bluff Loop Trail

Proposed in March 2007, as a cooperative project with the Grand Marais Park Board, the Sweetheart Bluff Trail Loop will provide a wheelchair friendly trail in compliance with ADA guidelines. The trail will feature:

Beautiful woodland
5-foot wide packed granite sand surface
Gentle grade
Dramatic close-up viewing of Lake Superior
The only ADA trail within 35 miles of Grand Marais

Construction is scheduled for summer 2007. The City of Grand Marais is donating labor for preliminary clearing and long-term maintenance. Harbor Friends is seeking a grant to fund part of the cost of constructing the trail, and will raise funds for the balance of the construction costs. Learn more. (PDF 533KB)

DNR Boat Landing

In March 2007, Harbor Friends initiated a dialogue with the DNR regarding their public boat landing north of the U.S. Coast Guard Station on the Grand Marais harbor. After observing the ramp and boaters launching at this ramp over the past seasons, Harbor Friends' primary concerns include the steepness of the ramp, the drop-off at the end of the apron and the height of the dock above the water level.

Steepness makes many launches and retrievals dangerous.
Washouts and erosion at the end of the ramp causes may users to drop their trailers off the ramp.
Dock height causes problems for elderly boaters in particular. The dock is well above a height that gives users easy and safe access to their boats.

Harbor Friends has offered to try to secure grant money to address these problems, and hopes to work with the DNR for improvements. See photos and more information. (PDF 255KB)

Commerical Lake Trout Fishery

Harbor Friends supports the efforts of commerical fisherman working along the North Shore of Lake Superior to open a commercial fishery.

After long and productive committee work, the Minnesota DNR ignored consensus agreements worked out between commerical fishermen, sports fishermen, environmental groups and fisheries experts, denying requests to open the a fisher for limited commercial catch of Lake Trout.

Read our support letter. (PDF 1.3MB)

Contact Us:

Harbor Center
8 North Broadway
Grand Marais, MN 55604
Hours: 10 am - 4 pm Thurs. - Mon.

Harbor Friends
PO Box 1119
Grand Marais MN 55604
218.387.1639
contact@harborfriends.org