Tuesday, July 25, 2006
Duluth: A little San Francisco with ice
By Henrylito Tacio
I HAVE been to Duluth, Minnesota six times already and every time I visit this "little San Francisco with ice," I am mesmerized by it. Let me tell you why.
Duluth is hundreds of years old, with cobbled streets and mansions built by timber barons and mining tycoons. It's a thousand years older, rich with the cultures and customs of the Ojibwe people and heritage. It's a city of historic splendor and cultural grandeur-preserved so perfectly it's as if time slipped right on by.
The Outside magazine cited Duluth as one "the top 10 dream town." The American Birding Association named it as the "Birdiest Small City." The Golf Digest handpicked Duluth as No. 1 golf destination. Also, Duluth is among the top 10 metropolitan areas in the United States, with the least smog pollution, rated by the American Lung Association.
Duluth sits at the western tip of Lake Superior, the largest fresh-water lake in the world. It's a fairly small city, with just over 80,000 residents claiming it as home. Singer Bob Dylan was born here (although he grew up in nearby city, Hibbing). The late Telly Savalas (of Kojak distinction) owned a house on Park Point.
Sights and thrills
Start your tour at the Waterfront Sculpture Walk. This offers more than beautiful lake views and charming shops and restaurants. Curiously, it is the city's expression of art. A series of prized sculptures representing the social, cultural and historical values of Duluth and its Sister Cities in Vaxjo, Sweden; Thunder Bay, Ontario; Petrozavodsk, Russia; and Ohara, Japan, create a casual stroll through an outdoor gallery of international art.
Don't miss the Historical Architecture Tour, considered "the tour of the century." Literally. Departing from the Historic Union Depot (a once-thriving train station that brought both settlers and cargo to Duluth) on Sunday mornings aboard the Duluth Transit Authority's new trolley, you get the opportunity to see weatherworn buildings, home to dozens of unique shops, antique stores, hotels and wonderful restaurants (50 in the downtown area alone).
Next, your trolley takes you to Old Downtown along brick-paved streets reminiscent of cobblestone. Duluth business still thrives here, and you can spend hours browsing from one shop to the next (via extensive, climate-controlled skywalks).
From downtown, you go toward Glensheen and Mansion District and marvel at truly spectacular examples of 19th and early 20th-century architecture. These grand homes feature intricate stonework, elaborate details and a richness rarely found in such great display.
Final destination is the Fitger's Inn and you walk through the old brewery now renovated to house a four-star hotel, shops and several restaurants. Enjoy a great lunch at Bennett's on the Lake, an exquisite lake view dining experience. After the meal, the trolley resumes through down, circles the city's impressive civic center and returns to the Depot.
If you have more time to spare, explore the city on your own. First stopover: the Great Lakes Aquarium, which I visited the first time in 2000. It is an all-freshwater aquarium that features creatures that live in and near Lake Superior. Here, you can explore the magic of Lake Superior and watch otters scamper under waterfalls, gigantic sturgeon lurk in the two-story aquarium, large lake trout navigate their freshwater habitat, while bald eagle presides over everything. Or, you can pilot a boat through the Great Lakes, create waves, and pet freshwater creatures, including stingrays and sturgeon.
Adventures abound
Near the Great Lakes Aquarium is the Great Lakes Floating Maritime Museum. What to see here? There's the William A. Irvin, the proud flagship of the U.S. Steel's Great lakes Fleet. She provided elegance and comfort to the dignitaries and guests she carried.
From the millions of tons of iron ore she carried, to her magnificently appointed wood-paneled staterooms and fine dining, she was the pride of the fleet.
Another is the U.S. Coast Guard Vessel Sundew, which was launched in 1944. The Sundew tended buoys and served as an icebreaker at several ports on Lake Michigan and Lake Superior as well as the port of Duluth. The Sundew also conducted countless search and rescue missions on the often-treacherous Great Lakes.
See hundreds of animals from around the world at the Lake Superior Zoo! Just 10 minutes from downtown Duluth, the zoo is located at the base of West Duluth's Spirit Mountain in Fairmont Park. The Lake Superior Zoo is one of 210 zoos and aquariums to achieve national accreditation; the only one outside of the Twin Cities metro area. Play catch with Bubba the polar bear, get eye-to-eye with muffin the alligator, pet Tang the snake, and feed Dolly the Iilama.
If you love biking, Duluth is your place. The Superior Hiking Trail was recently honored with a second place finish in `Reader's Digest' magazine's "Five Walks to Remember." Wrote Derek Burnett: "With knockout views of Lake Superior, the path draws 50,000 people a year, some of whom glimpse bear and moose."
No trip to Duluth is complete without experiencing the majestic beauty of Lake Superior aboard the Vista Fleet! See lighthouses, ships, beautiful water and more during your narrated tour aboard the fleet.
There are more things to see and do in Duluth. But for the meantime, these are just some of those you have to contend with.
A bit of history
Duluth was first settled in 1850, and was platted and named in 1856. In 1868, the towns of Duluth, Portland, and Rice's Point consolidated and assumed the name Duluth. Later, the city grew westard, including Oneota and Fond du Lac, and then eastward to Endion, Lakeside and Lakewood. The city is named for Daniel Greysolon, Sir Du Lhut, thought to be the first European explorer in the region.
But before probing deeper, here are some notes about Lake Superior, which Duluth is often associated with. It was named by French explorers as "le lac superieur," meaning "upper lake. Studies have shown that it would take 191 years for the rivers in the drainage basin to refill the lake (it has 3 quadrillion gallons, or 2,900 cubic miles, of water). The average depth is 483 feet while the deepest point is 1,333 feet.
How do you get there? Duluth International Airport offers 11 flights daily with service from Minneapolis and Detroit. It's 2.5-hour drive from Minneapolis/St. Paul via I-35. Full bus and taxi services are also available. What are you waiting for?
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