Читать книгу Grandparents Minnesota Style - Mike Link - Страница 11

Canal Park

There’s no single place that says, “Duluth,” like Canal Park. The lift bridge, the restaurants, the harbor view and the canal encompass the essence of what makes Duluth so unique in the Midwest. This is the place where the great sea voyages of international vessels come to an end, where people line the walkways to wave their greetings at incoming sailors. Canal Park is also the starting point for ships laden with iron ore. It is a place to celebrate sport and industry, inland and coastal.

With a lighthouse on each side, the canal is a picturesque place to begin exploring Lake Superior. Take your grandchild to the Lake Superior Maritime Visitor Center, which keeps track of incoming vessels and lifts the bridge when needed. The center also provides wonderful displays of Lake Superior’s history, so you can combine the past with the present and learn about Great Lakes navigation, including stories of sunken ships.

Next, spend some time outdoors. This is one of the most interesting places in the state, filled with history and chances to share a wealth of information. Skip rocks on the lake, walk along the boardwalk, and hike part of the 4.2-mile lakewalk. You don’t get many chances like this one—to hang out under the sun in such a beautiful setting.

The lift bridge is likely to be your grandchild’s favorite. It was built in 1905 and has adorned postcards and brochures ever since. It connects Duluth’s commercial-business section with the long, narrow sand spit known as Minnesota Point. At the end of the point you’ll find a small-plane airport, a boat launch, a picnic area, natural dunes, a forest and a swimming beach.

Duluth’s canal originally came about as shipping on Lake Superior began to increase. Businessmen on the Duluth side of the harbor were dismayed to see that Superior, Wisconsin’s, port was receiving more activity. They decided to dredge a canal through the narrowest part of Minnesota Point. The town of Superior filed a court injunction to halt the dredging and got their ruling. But while the papers were being delivered, the Duluth citizens worked around the clock and had the canal completed by the time the papers arrived. The rest is history!

Bonding and bridging:

Lake Superior is as close as we can get to a coastal experience. From Canal Park, the view to the east is an open horizon. The water curves over the edge of the round earth twelve to twenty miles away, depending upon where you are standing. On warm days, upside-down mirages appear before the vessels and sometimes seem to ride atop the ships.

Imagine the lives led by the sailors on these boats. How and why did they choose their careers? Ask your grandchild what he thinks. Share with him the rewards and dangers of life as a sailor. Then ask what he wants to be when he grows up and what he will do to accomplish that goal. College? Studying? Special training? This is a great way to get your grandchild thinking about how his actions today may affect his success in the future.

A word to the wise:

Standing along the canal when the horns blare and the bridge rises is a wonderfully exciting moment. The incoming ship seems so large that you almost feel as if you can touch it.

Age of grandchild: All

Best season: Summer

Contact: Lake Superior Maritime Visitor Center (Army Corps of Engineers), 600 Lake Avenue South, Duluth, MN 55802 • (218) 727-2497, Extension 1 • info@lsmma.com • www.lsmma.com

Also check out:

Lake Harriet, Minneapolis; (612) 230-6475; www.minneapolisparks.org

Grandparents somehow sprinkle a sense of stardust over grandchildren. ALEX HALEY