Special Events in Marquette County

Art on the Rocks

There is no more picturesque setting for one of the nation's most popular juried art shows than along the shore of Lake Superior. Art on the Rocks has been named among the top 200 best in the nation by the Sunshine Artists Magazine. For more than 40 years, the July show and sale has brought together over 150 artisans from across the United States and Canada. Submissions include ceramics, paintings, drawings, glass works, photography, wood workings, jewelry, basketry, metal works and more. Now held at Marquette's Lower Harbor Park.

Big Bay Fishing Derby

A village of ice fishing shanties springs up on Lake Independence during February for the annual Big Bay Fishing Derby. More than 500 winter enthusiasts enjoy this family oriented weekend. Bundle up and bait your hook!

Champion Horse Pulling & Mud Drags

Workhorse competitions, mud drags and demolition derbies are the highlights of this annual three-day event that takes place during the last weekend of June. Nearly 150 participants and some 5,000 spectators from across Michigan, Wisconsin and Illinois converge for a weekend of fun ad excitement that includes food booths, refreshment stands, live entertainment, games and souvenirs. Grounds are located just off U.S. Highway 41 on Marquette County Road AI in Champion.

Continental Cup Ski Jumping Tournament

The Continental Cup Ski Jumping Tournament brings international ski jumpers to Ishpeming for an exciting weekend of competition. Be amazed by these dare devils as they leap from the scaffold of a 90-meter hill looking to catch air and fly hundreds of feet down the hill. Sponsored by the Ishpeming Ski Club.

Fourth of July Activities

Fun-filled parades, family picnics and fireworks at dusk could mean nothing more than the excitement of celebration the Fourth of July in Marquette County. No matter where you choose to enjoy the summertime holiday - Marquette, Big Bay, Gwinn, Ishpeming, Michigamme or Republic to name a few hot spots - the sounds and sites of summer fun are bountiful.

Glacier Glide

The Lake Superior Art Association hosts this annual winter outdoor art exhibit in the Saturday in This non-juried show will feature works by regional artists who answer the challenge of creating pieces which will stand up to the elements, while being displayed on the trails of the Presque Isle Park, on the shores of Lake Superior in Marquette. Area youth artists works are displayed inthe park's pavilion.

Heikki Lunta Winter Carnival

The annual Heikki Lunta (Hey-Key Loon-ta) Winterfest, held in January on and around Negaunee's Teal Lake, is a festival of winter fun. Heikki Lunta is a legendary Finnish show "god" who is said to have the ability to perform a dance causing snowfall. The weekend is filled with snowmobile runs across the frozen waters, skijoring events, an ice fishing derby and winter fireworks.

Hiawatha Traditional Music Festival

For nearly 25 years, the Hiawatha Music Co-op has brought a weekend festival of traditional music to Marquette's Tourist Park in July. The festival of traditional music to Marquette's Tourist Park in July. The festival presents nationally known and regional performers offering a wide variety of music and dance including bluegrass, acoustic folks, Cajun, Celtic and blues in stage performances and informal workshops. Hiawatha (www.hiawathamusic.org) also features extensive activities including crafts, music and fun for children and teens. Food vendors, art and craft sales, camping and a beach are all offered in a lovely campground setting. For more information visit www.hiawathamusic.org

International Food Fest

Bring your appetite to this three-day festival held annually during the Fourth of July holiday at the Ellwood Mattson Lower Harbor Park, a two-acre park adjacent to downtown Marquette. Food vendors offer ethnic dishes such as Mexican, German, Chinese, Greek and American entrees. Live music entertains the crowds daily at the bandstand. Sponsored by the Exchange Club.

Ishpeming Art Faire and Renaissance Festival

Join the excitement as Ishpeming's Lake Bancroft Park is turned into a courtyard for kings, queens, jesters and knights from medieval times in an Art Faire and Renaissance Festival. Held in early August, artists, crafters, merchants, food vendors, musicians, actors and spectators gather for a summertime festival that echoes 16th century Italy. The Ishpeming Rock & Mineral Club hosts their annual Show/Sale/Swap across the street at the Ishpeming Elks Lodge the same weekend!

Ishpeming Rock and Mineral Show

Every first Saturday in July, across the street from the Ishpeming Art Faire and Renaissance Festival, is the Ishpeming Rock and Mineral Show.

Marquette Kennel Club Dog Show

Witness some of the nation's finest bred dogs at the annual dog show held in late summer. The event takes place at Marquette's Lakeview Arena and is sponsored by the Marquette Kennel Club.

Michigamme's Fall Festival and Scarecrow Contest

Held in October, Michigamme's Fall Festival and Scarecrow Contest is an opportunity to enjoy autumn in Marquette County. Organizations and individuals get creative building scarecrows for prizes. Shop owners and visitors may cast votes for their favorites. Creations of all kinds from the scariest to the goofiest will entertain festival visitors. Other activities include pumpkin decorating and face painting for the kids and seasonal treats.

Moto-Cross Racing in Republic

Extreme sport enthusiasts head to Republic in July and August for the excitement of Moto-cross racing. The American Motorcycle Association sanctioned races draw cyclists from all over the Midwest, their families and friends and a huge crowd of eager spectators. About 200 racers take to the moguls and jumps for an adrelin rush that is sure to thrill the fans in the stands too! The easily accessibly track is located just of M-95.

Negaunee Invitational Basketball Tournament

Negaunee's Invitational basketball tournament brings players and fans from across the Midwest to Marquette County. More than 120 teams compete in nightly Class A through Class E games that run from mid-March through mid-April. Since the NIT's inception in the mid-60's, the event has grown to be one fo the Midwest's biggest. Thousands of fans turn out for Class A weekend. The final tournament competitions are an opportunity to see players with college and semi-professional experience. Several former NBA players have even been known to take to the Negaunee courts during the top division playoffs. The tournament's reputation for enthusiastic fans is what organizers say brings team back every year.

Noquemanon Ski Marathon

The ever-growing Noquemanon Ski Marathon offers cross-country skiers a spectacular trek through the wilderness of Marquette County. The 51K event starts in Ishpeming at a 1400-foot elevation, climbs to 1700 feet along the ridges overlooking lakes and rivers, and descends 1,000 feet in the last 25K on its way to the shores of Superior. The 25K Ski Hall of Fame Half Marathon begins on Co. Rd. 510 and follows the 51K trail to the finish at the world's largest wooden domed stadium, the Superior Dome. Over 1,000 skiers from all over the United States and Canada participate in the annual freestyle (skate) and classic point-to-point race. Children can participate in the Junior Noque - 2.5 K classic and skate and 1K skate timed races as well as the Torch Light Trek funski. This January event is sponsored by the Superiorland Ski Club.

Northern Michigan University Homecoming

Homecoming weekend at Northern Michigan University is a time-honored tradition started in the early 1900s. Events center around the traditional homecoming football game. Tailgate at the Superior Dome and enjoy the traditional homecoming parade, family activities and alumni awards. For more information visit www.nmu.edu or call the alumni relations office at NMU 906-227-2610.

Ore to Shore Mountain Bike Epic

The Subaru Ore to Shore Mountain Bike Epic is the state's largest mass start mountain bike race. A 25 mile and 48 mile point-to-point trails brings racers through some of the most beautiful terrain in Upper Michigan. Both races begin in historic Negaunee and end pedal strokes away from the Lake Superior shoreline. These courses traverse rolling wooded hills passing by lakes, rivers, ponds and wildlife toward the indoor finish at Marquette's Lakeview Arena.

Outback Art Fair

A non-juried art show and sale set among the trees and Lake Superior shoreline at Picnic Rocks Park in Marquette, the Outback Art Fair includes 80 to 100 displays of jewelry, pottery, paintings, fibers and photography. The late July fair features the work of many Upper Peninsula artists.

Outhouse Races

Every last Saturday in February (which makes this an annual event) if you head to Trenary Michigan you will see outhouses being raced down main street! Homemade outhouses are made of wood, cardboard, etc. which are built on skis and pushed by 2 racers. Some outhouses are very simple and some are so elaborate you wouldn't mind having them in your own backyard! The Outhouses are pushed approximately 500 feet down the Main street of Trenary. The racers with the best times win cash! In addition to the racers, Main Street Trenary provides a day of fun, food and vendors.

Ringing in the Christmas Season

A whole host of community celebrations kick off Marquette County's month-long Christmas season. Christmas parades, tree lighting ceremonies and visits from Santa Claus are among the quaint ways Marquette County rings in the holiday season. Downtown Marquette becomes the city of lights. Intricate white lights illuminate the parameters of historic brick buildings. Historic downtown Ishpeming plays host to a Christmas parade. In Michigamme, Luminaria Night is a special celebration when more than 1,500 luminaries line the streets of seasonal specialty shops. Unique gifts and homemade treats, horse-drawn sleigh rides and Christmas carols help get families in the spirit of the season. A unique celebration in Gwinn is Santa's countdown to lighting the town tree and a long path of community decorated trees in Peter Nordeen Park.

Seafood Fest

Held in August, Marquette's annual Seafood Fest is a weekend full of family fun and great seafood. The Lower Harbor Park along the shore of Lake Superior becomes a market for grilled, baked, steamed and fried seafood. The three day event, sponsored by Marquette Rotary West, features live entertainment, children's activities, a classic car show and more.

Snowmobile Hill Climb

You've never seen - or heard - anything like it! The annual Marquette Mountain Hill Climb is a drag race for snowmobiles held in April. Picture 100 snowmobiles driving up the premiere ski hill in Marquette County competing for prizes. Watching the machines take to the 600-foot vertical climb at top speeds is an adventure you can't miss.

Superior Bike Fest

The Superior Bike Fest in June and the Ore to Shore Mountain Bike Epic in August offer bikers of all abilities the opportunity to pedal through the tantalizing terrain and wilderness trails of Marquette County. The Superior Bike Fest offers a full weekend of road racing and mountain bike competition. A 25 mile, 55 mile and 80 mile road race takes bicyclists up and around a paved loop. An 8 and 25 mile mountain chase cross country race is point to point. There will also be slaloms, downhill, hill climb, and obstacle course at Marquette Mountain.

U.P. Christian Music Fest

A nondenominational uplifting music festival usually held in early August at Mattson's Lower Harbor Park in Marquette.

UP 200 Sled Dog Championship

The annual U.P. 200 Sled Dog Championship, held in February, offers opportunities for fun-filled family participation. The event starts in downtown Marquette to the cheers of thousands of onlookers. While mushers and their eager dogs race off to the darkened trails running along Lake Superior, the Lower Harbor Park hosts weekend-long winter festivities including broomball tournaments, a snowshoe course, skijoring and fireworks. At the end of the race, enthusiastics onlookers once again cheer racers back into Marquette at the Lower Harbor Park. Sponsored by the UP 200 and the City of Marquette Arts & Culture Committee.

Winter Indoor Softball Tournament

Held each February in Northern Michigan University's Superior Dome, the tournament is an all-star show of the finest slow-pitch softball teams in the Midwest. Hundreds of spectators swarm to one of the world's largest wooden domes for the thrill of summer sports in the winter. Admission is free for spectators.