How the festival year works
Grand Marais is a small town with something on the calendar in every season. Local organizations run most of the events: the Lions Club, North House Folk School, the Grand Marais Art Colony, the Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, Visit Cook County and a few race committees. Many happen downtown or on the harbor, within a few blocks of each other.
Dates are as of September 30, 2026. Where an organizer has published its next dates, they are listed. Where it has not, you get the usual timing and the last dates held. Confirm with the organizer before you book a room.
Coming up: fall 2026 through June 2027
| Dates | Event | Where | Organizer |
|---|---|---|---|
| September 25 to October 4, 2026 | Art Along the Lake: Fall Studio Tour | Studios from Tofte to Grand Portage | Listed by Visit Cook County |
| October 6 to 13, 2026 | Basket Week | North House Folk School | North House Folk School |
| October 15 to 17, 2026 | Moose Madness Family Festival | Downtown Grand Marais | Listed by Visit Cook County |
| October 16 to 17, 2026 | Family Weekend | North House Folk School | North House Folk School |
| November 20 to 22, 2026 | Winterers' Gathering and Arctic Film Festival | North House Folk School | North House Folk School |
| November 27, 2026 | Oh Ole Night parade, tree lighting and fireworks | Downtown Grand Marais | Listed by Visit Cook County |
| November 28, 2026 | Hovland Winter Art Show | Hovland Town Hall | Hovland Arts Festival |
| December 10 to 12, 2026 | Dark Sky Festival | Around Cook County | Visit Cook County |
| January 17, 2027 | Gunflint Mail Run sled dog race | Gunflint Trail | Gunflint Mail Run |
| January 31, 2027 | John Beargrease Sled Dog Marathon starts | Duluth to Grand Portage | John Beargrease Sled Dog Marathon |
| February 5 to 15, 2027 | Hygge Festival | Around Cook County | Visit Cook County |
| February 9 to 16, 2027 | Fiber Week | North House Folk School | North House Folk School |
| March 9 to 16, 2027 | Wood Week | North House Folk School | North House Folk School |
| May 28 to 30, 2027 | Northern Landscapes Festival | North House Folk School | North House Folk School |
| June 18 to 20, 2027 | Summer Solstice and Wooden Boat Festival | North House Folk School | North House Folk School |
| June 26, 2027 | Lutsen 99er mountain bike race | Lutsen | Life Time |
The Hygge Festival dates are from Explore Minnesota. Visit Cook County has not yet posted its 2027 schedule.
The year, month by month
January and February: sled dogs and hygge
The Gunflint Mail Run is a sled dog race on the Gunflint Trail, run in two equal legs with a mandatory layover between them. The 2027 race is Sunday, January 17. In 2026 the first team left Trail Center Lodge at 8 a.m. The race's spectator page lists the lodges and road crossings where you can watch.
The John Beargrease Sled Dog Marathon starts its 42nd running on January 31, 2027. Teams travel about 300 miles from the Duluth area to a finish at Grand Portage, and more than half of the trail is in Cook County. Recent routes have used checkpoints on the Sawbill Trail north of Tofte, at Trail Center on the Gunflint Trail, at Skyport Lodge on Devil Track Lake and at Mineral Center. The Sawbill checkpoint has no cell coverage and only vault toilets, so print the driving directions from beargrease.com before you leave town.
The Hygge Festival is Visit Cook County's mid-winter stretch of cozy events at businesses around the county, paired with a month-long Winter Fireplace Tour. It ran February 6 to 16 in 2026.
May and June: bikes and boats
Le Grand du Nord is a gravel cycling event from Heck of the North Productions that starts in downtown Grand Marais and climbs into the Sawtooth Range. It was held Saturday, May 23, 2026, with 110, 54 and 26 mile routes. The 2027 date has not been published. The organizer recommends tires 35 to 45 mm wide.
The Northern Landscapes Festival is North House Folk School's late-May festival, set for May 28 to 30, 2027. The school posts the program on its events page.
The Summer Solstice and Wooden Boat Festival is North House's solstice weekend on the harbor, with a boat walk, hands-on craft stations, music, contra dancing and a solstice pageant. It ran June 19 to 21, 2026 and returns June 18 to 20, 2027. Most of it is free. The chowder tasting and the schooner sails are ticketed, and courses need registration.
The Lutsen 99er is a Life Time mountain bike race that starts at Superior National golf course in Lutsen, with four distances. The next one is June 26, 2027. The course opens with a long climb away from the lake.
July: art festivals
The Hovland Arts Festival fills the historic Hovland Town Hall with local artists and live music twice a year, on the first weekend of July and the Saturday after Thanksgiving. A not-for-profit community group runs it. It ran July 4 and 5, 2026, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
The Grand Marais Arts Festival is the Grand Marais Art Colony's juried show, with 60 artists in 13 categories along Wisconsin Street and in Harbor Park. It ran July 11 and 12, 2026, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday. The Art Colony posts a booth map, and there are food trucks and live music.
August: the picnic, the rendezvous and the night sky
Fisherman's Picnic is the Grand Marais Lions Club's four-day downtown festival, the 97th in 2026 (July 30 to August 2). Expect sidewalk sales, a craft show, music on the Harbor Park stage, a loon calling contest, a fish toss, a trail run, fireworks on Saturday night and a parade on Sunday afternoon. The Lions sell fishburgers made with Lake Superior herring. Buy the collectible button. It is your pass to take part in the contests.
Grand Portage Rendezvous Days and Pow Wow fall on the second weekend of August. Grand Portage National Monument marks the fur trade rendezvous with costumed interpreters, music, dancing, games and craft demonstrations. Admission is free, and shuttles run between the monument and the pow wow grounds. The same weekend, the Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa hosts its Rendezvous Days Celebration Pow Wow on the pow wow grounds, within walking distance. Both ran August 7 to 9, 2026. At the pow wow, listen to the emcee, stand and remove your hat when asked, take photos only when it is allowed, and do not bring pets. For pow wow details call the Tribal Council office at 218-475-2277. The Grand Portage guide has more.
The Dark Sky Caravan comes up the shore in mid August, timed near the Perseid meteor shower, when the Marshall W. Alworth Planetarium brings telescopes and sky tours. The ninth caravan ran August 10 to 15, 2026, with Cook County stops at North House Folk School, the Schaap Community Center and Chik-Wauk Museum and Nature Center. It goes ahead under clouds, with activities and digital sky tours.
September and October: color season
The Radio Waves Music Festival is cancelled for 2026. WTIP North Shore Community Radio announced that it would not hold the festival in 2026, citing reduced money from Minnesota's Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund and uncertainty about future funding. The station is putting its effort into a year-round live music series called North by North Shore. Check WTIP for shows.
Unplugged is North House Folk School's fall weekend of free concerts, craft demonstrations and a ticketed fundraiser, the Birch Bark Bash. It ran September 25 and 26, 2026. Tickets for the Saturday evening event go on sale July 1.
Art Along the Lake: Fall Studio Tour is ten days of open studios and galleries from Tofte to Grand Portage and up the Gunflint Trail, open daily 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. during peak color. In 2026 it runs September 25 to October 4.
The Moose Madness Family Festival is a moose-themed family weekend downtown in mid October, with a medallion hunt, a scavenger hunt that pays out in Moose Bucks and a storefront window contest. It runs October 15 to 17, 2026. The listing includes self-guided moose driving routes of one to two hours.
November and December: winter arrives
The Winterers' Gathering and Arctic Film Festival is North House's celebration of winter travel and northern life, November 20 to 22, 2026. The presentations and film screenings are free. Friday opens with a dinner cooked over open fires and a contra dance. Saturday has a gear and ski sale and a chili feed. Bring your own food for the Friday fire.
Oh Ole Night is the day after Thanksgiving, November 27, 2026. Downtown shops hold holiday sales, then comes a parade, a tree lighting at the harbor and fireworks. In 2025 the parade started at 5:30 p.m.
The Dark Sky Festival is Visit Cook County's celebration of the county's night sky on the second weekend of December, with presentations and activities. It runs December 10 to 12, 2026. Not every back road is plowed in winter, so download maps first and use the listed viewing spots.
Planning tips
- Book lodging first. Rooms and campsites go early for the big summer weekends and for fall color. See where to stay and the campground guide.
- Check the weather. The harbor is often much cooler than the woods a few miles inland. See live conditions.
- Confirm the date. Visit Cook County keeps the county-wide festival list, and its Information Center answers at 218-387-2524.
