Hands-onWinter Workshops Offered at Porcupine Mountains Park

A series of hands-on workshops will be offered this winter at Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park in the western Upper Peninsula. The workshops will start in January, and are being sponsored by the Porcupine Mountains Folk School and the Friends of the Porkies. They will include activities like knitting, skijoring, snowshoe making, spoon carving, black ash basket weaving, and metal punching. All skill levels are welcome.

A knitting retreat will take place Saturday, January 20. Participants will spend the day knitting in front of a warm fire. Participants should bring any knitting project they think they have been intending to finish, and get can help from experienced knitters at the session. Cost is $20.

One day skijoring workshops will be offered January 27 and February 24.

Skijoring is an activity in which a person is towed on cross-country skis by a dog, allowing the person to ski along at a faster pace. Participants will learn the basics of crosscountry skiing with their dog, including using harnesses, commands, and pulling. Harnesses will be provided. Cost is $40.

People can learn to make a pair of Ojibwa snowshoes during a four-day workshop that will start Saturday, February 10 and Sunday, February 11, and will continue Saturday, February 17 through Sunday, February 18.

Participants will learn how to prepare the stock and form the shape of the snowshoes using hot water or steam. Cost for the four days is $200, plus $25 a materials fee.

A wooden spoon carving workshop will be offered Saturday, March 3. Participants will carve a simple, yet elegant spoon from maple or birch wood, using ages-old techniques with hand tools. The cost is $50, plus the $10 materials fee.

A black ash basket weaving workshop will be Saturday, March 17. Participants will learn about the history and function of black ash basketry, and will weave a basket of their own to take home. Cost is $55, plus a $25 materials fee.

A metal punching workshop will be Saturday, March 24. Participants will learn the basics of metal punching, and will create two frame-able, eight-inch by 10-inch punched metal panels to take home. The cost will be announced later.

To enroll in any of the programs, call Kate Bradley at (906) 370-4409, or send E-mail to fop@charter.net.

All workshops have a limited number of spaces, and registrations will be accepted on a firstcome, first-served basis. More information is online at www.porkies.org, by clicking on "Folk School."

All motor vehicles entering a Michigan State Park or Recreation area must display a Motor Vehicle Permit, available for purchase at the park entrance. Cost is $6 for a resident day pass or $24 for an annual pass. Cost of a non-resident day pass is $8, or $29 for an annual pass.