State Park #7: Historic Mill Creek Discovery Park - Mackinaw City, Michigan

Historic Mill Creek Discovery Park

Demonstration

Timber can help build and rebuild.  For history and adventure, visit the Historic Mill Creek Discovery Park in Mackinaw City Michigan.  Formerly called the Historic Mill Creek State Park, this park has rebuilt historical buildings and more.  Knowing that the rest of my Michigan itinerary listed multiple Mackinac State Historic Parks, my first task was to buy the Mackinac Family Heritage Pass for $85 at the visitor center.  The pass covers entrance fees for the entire family for one season.  I also paid the extra $9.50 per person for the Adventure Tour.  It includes zipline and if you compare prices vs. commercial ziplines, the park offers quite the deal.  If you don't buy the season pass, you'll also need to pay a $9 admission fee for the park per person.  The visitor center also provides a gift shop and short film "The Power of Water."

We arrived at the right time and season.  From May to September, you may see costumed interpreters who tell the history lessons.  Mill Creek established in 1790 to provide timber.  It operated as a farm and orchard too.  In 1984, the creek dam and sawmill was rebuilt and the park opened to the public.  The British workshop was rebuilt in 1994.  The Millwrights house was rebuilt in 2005.  We also timed the visit to see the pit saw method of cutting timber.  The speaker's enthusiasm and engagement of his audience made everyone want to listen and follow him.  We followed him right into the reconstructed sawmill and watched timber cutting using the power of water.

Educational Talk

The "more" refers to the adventure component of the park.  We all suited up for the bridge and zipline.  You'll see nature from up high as you walk across the Forest Canopy Bridge.  The bridge gives you a good view of others on the zipline too.  At 425 foot high, the Eagle Flight Zip Line provides a good thrill for teens and big kids too.  If your kids have not experienced a zip line, this provides a good introduction too.  You can watch your kids fly over the water from a viewing deck.  We heard a lot of laughter over the water too.

Zipline Survivor

The bridge to Zipline fun

The kids also wanted to climb the climbing wall.  The five-story Treetop Discovery Tower stands close to the zipline.  The kids raced to the top.  Before promising a climb up the wall, note the minimum 4 feet tall requirement and 50-250 pound requirement.

Don't stop walking once at the tower.  Hit the trails and you will gain the reward of an amazing view of Mackinac Bridge and Mackinac Island.  You can even see the Grand Hotel from the wooden deck.

 

Industrial Arts - Woodworking & Factory Tour

 If you visit the Netherlands, you will see a lot of wooden shoe gifts to purchase.  The citizens wore wooden shoes for centuries.  Wooden shoes had many advantages for gardening and outdoor wear - less expensive than leather at the time, insulated to keep feet cool in summer and warm and winter, protective if tool dropped, and water resistant.  When we visited Michigan with young kids, we visited a wooden shoe factory and watched the woodworking.  A later trip took us to another woodworking factory tour.

The largest wooden bowl factory actually resides in the United States, not the Netherlands.  I recommend you visit the Holland Bowl Mill in Holland, Michigan.  It first began as the Wooden Shoe Factory by Chester.  HBM began in 1984 and now led by Chester's great grandson.  It's now the largest commercial wooden bowl manufacturer in the country and you can take a tour.  We began by watching the Discover and Science Channels 'How It's Made" 2007 episode for background.  In the factory, we saw all the steps from cutting the fresh log wood to bowl blanks to bowl turning to smoothing.  Factory employees answered questions and we marveled at how one log could turn into multiple nested bowls.  It looked like a process minimizing waste.  Later research confirmed their zero waste philosophy.  The company demands select cutting, choosing larger trees (min. 16" diameter) to leave smaller trees to grow.  Hardwoods including cherry, walnut, beech, maple, and red oak grow and harvest from Michigan, Indiana, and Ohio.  Leftover wood from bowls turn into other wood products such as cutting boards and utensils.  Shavings have a use as horse bedding.

After the tour, you can browse the company store.  While some discounts exist, don't expect cheap products.  These bowls are handmade with no seams or glue and protected with a mineral and bees oil preserver.  You can take care of your bowl with coconut oil.  Don't place your bowl in the dishwasher.  With so many unique bowls with different colors and grain patterns, it took time to choose just one.  They serve as heirloom gifts.  At no extra cost, I had a bowl engraved as a gift to my husband with our wedding date.  Holland Bowl Mill provides a lifetime guarantee for their products.