Portage Avenue shops and beyond
The blocks of West Portage Avenue facing Locks Park are lined with shops selling fudge, ice cream, moccasins, T shirts and such, gifts, and fun novelties for kids—fun souvenirs often with retro flair.Two studio/galleries are relatively recent arrivals. Both stress that their merchandise is made locally.
SAULT REALISM (906-253-1693), at 205 West Portage across from the Palace Restaurant, has evolved from Eric Demaray's digital photography studio into three storefronts housing his studio, his wife Kathy's frame shop, and their consignment LOCAL ART GALLERY, with jewelry, sculpture, paintings, prints, and more. Eric uses ink jet technology and archival papers and canvas to make fine art (giclée) prints. He can enlarge, enhance, colorize, and/or mount photos on museum-size boards. Open year-round, Mon-Fri 10-6, Sat noon-5.
RIVERSTONE (906-635-6033) is at 321 West Portage next to the Lockview Restaurant. Greg and Donna Steele and their daughter, Allyson, work together. Greg takes scenic photos of Lake Superior and St. Mary's River scenes, freighters, lighthouses, and more, then screens them onto metal and tile murals, for what the Steeles call "decorator impact without the expense of framing or matting." Photos are on mugs, too. Custom jewelry incorporates Michigan stones, including agates, epidote, jasper hematite, kona dolomite, and Petoskey stones. Open May through October, daily 9 to 6. Call for late-season hours. Wheelchair access: side door.
ALBERTA HOUSE (906-635-1312) is past the west end of Locks Park, a short way down Ferris. It is the home of the Sault Area Art Council, which mounts monthly exhibits. The juried GALLERY SHOP showcases works by some of the area's many active artists: pottery, watercolors, prints, expensive and inexpensive jewelry, pine needle baskets, hand-blown and stained glass, carved Native American items, including walking sticks and carved horns, hand-woven area rugs, and note cards, some appliquéd. Open Tues-Sat 11-4. Handicap access: side door by parking.
Return to Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan
POINTS OF INTEREST
Portage Avenue shops and beyond. Shops of note in the central part of town ... more
Soo Brewing Company. Serious ale brewer will fill you growler for $8 ... more
Soo Locks Boat Tour. This 2-hour excursion provides a dramatic look at the big locks, the quaint Canadian locks, and the Twin Soo's waterfronts. ... more
River of History Museum. Life-size dioramas bring to life scenes from Sault Ste. Marie's long history and prehistory. ... more
Riverfront walk along Water Street and Brady Park. See upbound boats waiting at the locks at beautiful Brady Park, site of the 19th c. fort. See interesting historic monuments from Sault Ste. Marie's aspiring years, including idiosyncratic Chase Osborn, the only U.P. governor. ... more
Bingham Avenue historic buildings. An avenue of grand 19th-century buildings, from a time when locals saw a grander future for the city than actually unfolded ... more
Tower of History. An oustanding view of the area from a 21-story tower. ... more
St. Mary's Pro-cathedral. This 1880s cathedral has a wonderful interior, with richly colored stained glass and striking wall accents ... more
Water Street Historic Block. Three of the earliest and most significant houses in Upper Peninsula history ... more
George Kemp Downtown Marina . A nice picnic area at a beautiful marina ... more
Museum Ship Valley Camp . A 1917 Great Lakes steamship is the vehicle for an interesting maritime museum ... more
St. Mary's River Lighthouse Cruise. A 4-hour journey past landmarks like the lighthouse at the entrance to the St. Marys River ... more
Edison Sault Power Plant & Alford Park. This 1902 quarter-mile-long landmark never attracted the industries it was built to serve, but still generates electricity ... more
Mission Point, Aune Osborn Park & Sugar Island Ferry. It's been called the #1 place anywhere to see Great Lakes freighters in motion ... more
Sugar Island. Once a favorite Chippewa sugaring spot, the island still has many maples and still is a popular stop for migrating birds ... more
New Fort Brady/Lake Superior State University. Begun in 1893 as an Army fort and barracks for 20,000 troops, this overlook now is the site of 3,300-student Lake Superior State University ... more
International Bridge. Connecting the 5,000-mile Trans-Canada Highway with 2,000-mile I-75 to Florida, this 1962 bridge does much more than connect the two Soos ... more
Sault Ste. Marie Wi-fi Hotspots. Bayliss Public Library has public computers. 541 Library Drive. Take last US exit on I-75, turn right on Easterday, turn left at traffic light onto Ashland St. to Library Drive. • Lake Superior State University campus is a wi-fi hotspot. 650 W. Easterday. ... more
Hunt's Map Guide to the Upper Peninsula
• 13 detailed U.P. maps
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