The Grand Portage National Monument Great Hall is a great gathering place, not just for Rendezvous Days events like this one, but all summer long. Admission to the monument is now free.
Grand Portage National Monument Superintendent Timothy Cochrane has announced that the monument will no longer participate in the National Park Service’s fee collection program. This change will allow those who wish to visit the monument, which features the historic Grand Portage Trail, historic depot area, and recently opened heritage center, to do so free of charge for the first time in decades.
“We are very pleased to be able to offer our neighbors and all visitors the opportunity to visit us without charge,” Cochrane said. “We look forward to welcoming folks to take advantage of all we have to offer at the monument. In these tough economic times, it made little sense to charge fees that kept visitors from coming.
“Our income from fees in the past did not significantly offset the cost of staff time and administrative steps to run the program. Nor was raising the price of our entry fee the right decision to make if it meant fewer people could enjoy the monument and its personalized interpretation. Instead, we want to continue to offer access to one of the most unique national park units in this part of the country.”
For those who haven’t visited in some time, the heritage center has a full array of interactive exhibits along with a special exhibit featuring works by the late Raymond Duhaime, Grand Portage elder craftsman. Duhaime was highly creative, as he used traditional craft materials and styles – in beadwork, wood, and birchbark — in new ways.
The historic depot area has new exhibits as well, and a wide variety of ranger-led programs will be available this summer.
Come rediscover a great National Park Service site in your own “back yard.” The heritage center is open Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Thehistoric depot area will open for the season on Saturday, May 29, 2010.
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