Mackinac Island Settling In For Winter

wsjm949depend-2016-134
wsjm949depend-2016-134

It’s the change of the season on Mackinac Island. The island just wrapped up the season, and the Grand Hotel said goodbye to its last guest earlier this week, according to hotel president and owner Dan Musser. He says it’s isolated, but beautiful in the winter.

“We get down to about 500 individuals in the winter time,” Musser said. “We keep our house open, but I don’t live here all winter, but I’m here at least once a month, and we come for Christmas and New Year’s, and this is home for us.”

Musser says they’ll redo the west side of the hotel’s front porch and renovate four suites during the off season. As for all the horse, Musser says most of them spend the winter at a couple of farms in the Upper Peninsula. Some also stay behind on the island.