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Sugar Loaf Rock is a breccia mass that rises 75 feet above the ground<br />
and is the largest of Mackinac Island’s many limestone stacks. Centuries<br />
ago a huge lake that geologists call Lake Algonquin covered all but the<br />
center of Mackinac Island. Sugar Loaf was then a small, eroding island<br />
cut off from the surrounding land area. When the water receded, the<br />
stack was left standing as a tower of rock.<br />
Photo by Dave Weiman<br />
The harbor at Mackinac Island.<br />
Photo by Dave Weiman<br />
In 1951, R.D. (Dan) Musser joined the hotel staff and in<br />
1960, W. Stewart Woodfill appointed Musser president. The<br />
Mussers purchased the Grand Hotel in 1979.<br />
In 1957, the Michigan Historical Association selected the<br />
Grand Hotel as a state historical building.<br />
R.D. (Dan) Musser III was named president of the<br />
Grand Hotel in 1989, the East Wing was added, and the<br />
U.S. Department of Interior designated the hotel a national<br />
historic landmark.<br />
In 1998, five new rooms were named in honor of former<br />
First Ladies Lady Bird Johnson, Betty Ford, Rosalynn Carter,<br />
Nancy Reagan, and Barbara Bush. In 2002, the Jacqueline<br />
Kennedy Suite was added.<br />
Construction began on the Millennium Wing in 2000<br />
– a 200-seat addition to the main dining room and 42 new<br />
guest rooms. The Grand Hotel is the ultimate place to go<br />
for the $100.00 hamburger, but food prices are much more<br />
reasonably priced than that.<br />
While many of the original timbers used to build the<br />
foundation of the hotel are still in use, the Grand Hotel has<br />
made numerous improvements since then and was certified<br />
as a Green Lodging Michigan Leader by the Michigan<br />
Department of Energy, Labor & Economic Growth in 2009.<br />
Like most vacation destinations, don’t go to Mackinac<br />
Island unless you are willing to spend some money, but even<br />
the Grand Hotel offers special packages, and depending on<br />
the time of the year you visit, there are deals to be had.<br />
We were pleased to learn that the Grand Hotel has a<br />
Cessna 421C, operated by North Country Aviation in<br />
Gaylord, Michigan, which it uses to transport guests from<br />
anywhere in the country to Mackinac Island.<br />
In 2012, the Grand Hotel celebrated its 125th anniversary.<br />
For additional information and reservations, refer to their<br />
website at www.grandhotel.com or call 906-847-3331.<br />
EDITOR’S NOTE: 100LL and Jet A are available across<br />
the bay at Mackinac County Airport (83D) in St. Ignace,<br />
Michigan.<br />
Canada, Here We Come!<br />
Join Dave Weiman of <strong>Midwest</strong> <strong>Flyer</strong> <strong>Magazine</strong> & Fly Your<br />
Own Plane To Miminiska Lodge, Ontario, Canada<br />
August 13-18, 2013 – 5 Nights/4 Days of Fishing!<br />
* 196 nm North of Thunder Bay<br />
Remote, But Not That Far For First-Time <strong>Flyer</strong>s To Canada<br />
* 2400 Ft. Grass Airstrip Awaits Your Arrival<br />
For Special Group Rates & Reservations<br />
Email Krista@WildernessNorth.com or Call<br />
888-465-3474<br />
As Featured In <strong>Midwest</strong> <strong>Flyer</strong> <strong>Magazine</strong> "10 Planes To Miminiska"<br />
www.<strong>Midwest</strong><strong>Flyer</strong>.com<br />
This Canadian fishing trip is a service of Miminiska Lodge and its parent company, Wilderness North. Dave Weiman is<br />
acting only as a fellow participant on the trip, and neither he, <strong>Midwest</strong> <strong>Flyer</strong> <strong>Magazine</strong>, <strong>Flyer</strong> Publications, Inc., or their<br />
staffs and owners assume any liability for the participation of others on the trip or for the trip itself.<br />
From Bismarck To Madison<br />
Only 10 Minutes Away! - At 870 mph!<br />
– Pat O’Malley’s Jet Room Restaurant –<br />
Dane County Regional Airport – Madison, Wis. (MSN)<br />
www.jetroomrestaurant.com - Find us on<br />
Wisconsin Aviation – East Ramp<br />
Breakfast & Lunch<br />
6 a.m. - 2 p.m. Mon. thru Sat.<br />
8 a.m. - 2 p.m. Sunday<br />
608-268-5010<br />
Pam & Pat O’Malley<br />
JUNE/JULY 2013 MIDWEST FLYER MAGAZINE 49<br />
OMalley Ad JuneJuly2013.indd 1<br />
5/16/13 4:44 PM