Timberstone Recieves 5 Stars

Golf Digest rates TimberStone as one of the top 24 golf courses in North America

TimberStone at Pine Mountain in Iron Mountain, Michigan, gateway to the Upper Peninsula and only 100 miles North of Green Bay, WI, has once again joined a very exclusive group and been given Golf Digest Magazine’s highest honor, a 5 STAR Rating. Quoting Jerry Tarde, Chairman and Editor-In-Chief of Golf Digest Magazine, “as one of our five-star courses, you should be proud to know that our readers have selected your course as offering ‘golf at it’s ultimate best. To assign 2008-9 star ratings to more than 6,000 courses in North America, Mexico and the Caribbean, we asked Golf Digest subscribers to rate those courses (on a scale of 1 to 5) in the categories of course condition, pace of play, service, value for the money and overall golf experience. Roughly 20,000 readers sent in their ratings by mail and on-line”.
This year, 24 courses received the highest rating of 5 stars that Golf Digest defines as “Golf at its absolute best. Pay any price at least once in your life.”
TimberStone in Iron Mountain, Michigan, joins some very exclusive company. Some notable others making the 5 star list for 2008-9 include Arcadia Bluffs Golf Club (Arcadia, MI); Teeth of the Dog Course, Dominican Republic; The Ocean Course at Kiawah Island Golf Resort (S.C.), Pebble Beach Golf Links (Cal.); Pinehurst (No. 2) (N.C.); Princeville Resort (Prince) (Hawaii); Shadow Creek Golf Course, (Las Vegas, NV); Spyglass Hill Golf Course (Pebble Beach, CA); Whistling Straits G.C. (Straits), (Sheboygan, Wis.), along with 14 others.
TimberStone is celebrating its second year as part of Pine Mountain Ski & Golf Resort, which includes the Lodge and Conference Center, the Cedar and Mountain Haus Condominiums and Pine Mountain Ski Hill, making Pine Mountain Resort truly a “Resort for all Seasons”.

To see more about TimberStone and Pine Mountain Resort visit www.pinemountainresort.com. Tee times are available by calling 906-776-0111

The UP North Experience

“THE UP NORTH EXPERIENCE”
A weekend of seeing, hearing, touching and experiencing nature

The first annual “UP North Experience” Weekend will be held August 8 & 9. This “mini” Event, with guided trips and ‘experiences’ will be the start of bigger events to come. This first year will include:

*BAT AND MINE ADVENTURE PROGRAM...Friday August 8, Iron Mountain Iron Mine in Vulcan. This event is first come first serve...Cost is $10/person, trips every hour from 4-8pm.

Underground tours of this iron mine will showcase the mining history of the Upper Peninsula. Special to this event will, Bats & Mines Specialist Bill Scullon from the Michigan Department of Natural Resources will guide underground walking tours featuring discussion species of bats that call this mine home. There will be exciting opportunity to see live bats in this critical habitat and learn more about these beneficial and very unique wildlife species that call the Upper Peninsula home. Come and learn more about these creatures of the night, experience the thrill of being underground and experience living history. Temperatures in the mine is about 50 degrees so appropriate dress is recommended.

*LaSalle Falls Hike Saturday August 9
Stu Boren, WI DNR forester and wild river historian, will lead this unforgettable hike into LaSalle Falls on the Pine River. As the river drops dramatically over a 22-foot chasm between rock outcroppings, you’ll be mesmerized by the power of the river. The 1-mile hike into the falls will cross Florence County Forest and the Pine-Popple Wild Rivers Property. Stu will talk about the history of the area and some of the forestry practices in the area. This hike will be from 8-12 on Saturday August 9. Hikers will meet at the Florence Natural Resource Center at 8 am.


*Skulls and Furs Florence Natural Resource Center, Saturday August 9, 1 to 2:30 PM.
At one point or another, everyone has found an animal skull while walking through a field or forest. Have you ever wondered what it was? Nathan Ruble, an avid skull collector, will show participants how to look for clues to determine what animal it came from. Nathan will have his skull collection on hand that includes some of the smallest (pygmy shrew) and largest mammals (bison and moose) in North America, and many in between. The Wisconsin DNR fur collection will be on hand for participants to see some of the local animal furs. This program is typically done for elementary school children, but people of all ages can enjoy it.

*Guided Nature Interpretive Paddle Northwoods Wilderness Outfitters. Saturday August 9. Meet at the Northwoods Wilderness Outfitter shop on US-2 (west of Iron Mountain) at 2 PM (CST) and leave for the launch site by 2:30 PM (CST). Plan to be on the water for 2 1/2 to 3 hours during the paddle tour. By reservation only!

Enjoy a guided trip on one of the real "wild" places in the local area - our favorite body of scenic and wild water bounded by woods and rock. Wildlife abounds.

$10 per watercraft if you bring your own kayak or canoe. $20 per watercraft if a rental is needed (a limited number of rental kayaks or canoes are available through Northwoods Wilderness Outfitters - reserve early) Limit to about 15 watercraft (kayaks or canoes only).
Some paddling experience is required. Age limit for paddlers is 14 years old. Age limit for passengers is 6 years old. All participants must wear PFD (life jackets). Bring water to drink and a light snack. Call Northwood Wilderness Outfitters for reservations: 1-800-530-8859


For More information: Dickinson Area Partnership 1-800-236-2447

Iron Mountain’s City Park adds to its natural attractions.

Iron Mountain’s City Park once had buffalo, and a bear. Now it has something it has something new that has the area ‘a buzz’. An albino deer was recently born at the park. The newborn was difficult to locate at first, as its mother kept it hidden in the long grass or behind logs. But recently the young deer has been more active and has been easier to view. The youngster has been seen often with its twin, who is not an albino.

The deer have been a part of the Iron Mountain City Park for many years, more than 40 years, and this is the first time I remember there being an albino born inside the park.

The enclosed pictures were taken by local artist, Gene Ducharme.

Pine Mountain Ski Jumping Tournament

On February 15-17, the 69th Pine Mountain Ski Jumping tournament will be held. Top jumpers from around the world travel to compete on one of the top hills in North America.

Here is a little history on the jump:

The development of Pine Mountain was undertaken by the Dickinson County Board of Park Trustees in 1937 at the request of various civic and governmental bodies. Some work had been done earlier by Ted Kingsford and Hold Eskil, then Breitung Township supervisor, but the job was unable to be completed, so the deed to the property was given to the park group with the understanding that the park trustees complete the construction.

The board submitted a W.P.A. project covering all necessary remaining work, calling for the construction of a steel scaffold, 156 feet high, and clearing and grading of the landing area. Work on the ski slide was completed late in 1938, and the first tournament was held early the following year, with the Kiwanis Ski Club as host, and the newly formed Iron Mountain-Kingsford Winter Sports Association, a non-profit organization, acting as sponsor.

At the first Pine Mountain Tournament, Bob Roecker, riding for the Duluth Ski Club, shattered the American jumping record held by Alf Engen, of Salt Lake City, with a leap of 257 feet for a new American record.

Pine Mountain Slide has been renovated several times. In 1948 the landing hill was dug out for longer jumps, and in 1977 a fire burned out the top of the slide. New starting gates were added and the slide made higher.

Thanks to the Kiwanis Ski Club for this info.

Another top 10 Ranking for the UP of Michigan

The Upper Peninsula of Michigan was ranked #6 by the Weather Channel in their top 10 winter family destinations.

Here is a link to their article... http://www.weather.com/activities/recreation/outdoors/topten/winterintro.html

Of course when is comes to variety of activities, events, scenery and affordability...we really should have been #1.

Chris