McFarland House is a cozy cottage home nestled in the woods yet right on the main road to town. Comfortable, secure and private, McFarland House has been lovingly furnished and arranged so it can be your home away from home. It comfortably accomodates 4. Throughout the home you will find art work created by local artisans. The house features the following living spaces:
- a wide front porch with comfy loveseat for that early morning cup of java or sunset sip of tea
- a living/dining area with table and 4 chairs, futon style couch (that can fold into a queen sized bed) and big matching chair. Book shelves feature books of local interest, games, puzzles and family oriented DVDs and VHS tapes.
- a cozy kitchen equipped with: drip coffee maker, microwave, toaster, 4 burner range with oven, refrigerator, dishware for 8, T-fal stainless steel cookware, cutting board and more
- a transition room to bath and bedrooms providing a side door for egress to private outdoor patio area complete with grill and picnic table
- 2 adjoining bedrooms: one with queen sized bed and 2 small dressers, the other set up as sitting / TV / writing or computer area with a luxurious futon couch that can fold into a bed. A charming secretary desk makes this weel lit room an ideal writer's retreat. This room has a TV and DVD/VHS player.
Looking for a quiet retreat where you might sit back, relax, reflect and think creative thoughts? Or are you an outdoor enthusiast looking for a staging area for day trips into the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness or Superior Hiking Trail? Taking a class at the North House Folk School or the Grand Marais Art Colony? Why not share the house with fellow students and make a friend (or 2)? Is your family looking for the economy of making meals at home with enough space for some to be able to stretch out on a couch while others play games around the dining room table, while another uses your computer in the back room?
McFarland House is set up and ideally situated to meet your needs.
McFarland House is about 1/2 mile from downtown Grand Marais, directly across from the paved multi-use trail (walk, bike, snowmobile). It is an easy 15 minute walk to shopping, restaurants, downtown music venues and any festival that might be happening around the harbor area. Enjoy a small town festival, listen to music on the deck of a number of downtown restaurants and come home to your quiet, secure home away from home. You're a 5 minute walk to the Rec. Park indoor public swimming pool, whirlpool and sauna, playgrounds, picnic areas, nature walks and harbor beach. Enjoy breakfast at The Pie Place; walk to putt-putt golf and family center, visit the Allen Campbell Scottish restaurant and Gateway to Canada (visitor information center) - all less than 5 blocks away.
Whether you enjoy the outdoors as an angler or photographer, bird watcher or hunter, cross country skiier or snowmobiler, hiker, biker, ATV entusiast, canoeist, kayaker, or motor boater you will feel welcome here. Is the wilderness a place of spiritual renewal for you? Or is it inspiration for your art? Come up in the spring to do some early bird watching - see the first loons on the big Lake. Enjoy the many rushing waterfalls along the scenic North Shore Drive. Summer brings us a number of unique small-town festivals like the Grand Marais Arts Festival, Dragonboat Festival, Fisherman's Picnic, and Grand Portage August Pow-wow. Many people come up in summer just to relax and be 'cooler by the lake'. Comb the beach for Lake Superior agates or driftwood. Skip rocks in the harbor. Try something new: kayaking, charter fishing (lake trout, cohos and other big fish), pleine air painting, moose viewing from a Beaver that lands in the harbor. Or take a sunset sail on the Hjordis schooner. Autumn brings another bird migration; this time the majesty of countless hawks and eagles, as well as the beauty of changing leaf color. Winter activites abound up here: downhill and cross country skiing, snowmobiling, winter camping, snowshoeing, ice fishing and Lake Superior is often at her most spectacular spewing huge waves and creating hauntingly beautiful ice sculptures with dawn and dusk lighting to delight and challenge the photographer in you.
With all these sources of natural beauty, it is no wonder that Grand Marais is a hub of creativity, home to many artists, photographers, writers, and crafts artisans. Many offer studio visits and tours. Downtown is home to a number of galleries: The Sivertson Gallery, Betsy Bowen's studio and gallery, Johnson Heritage Post to name a few. Special events, meet the artist and gallery hops occur year-round.
Perhaps the most profound experience we can offer you who visit this area is that of silence. There is nothing more renewing than the gentle sighing of wind through the pines or the lap of water on rock. Even in the middle of what can be a very busy summer, life gets very quiet up here after dark. Especially at McFarland House.
Keywords: Cottage, Clean, Comfy, Close to town, bikepath close, snowmobile trail access, family and pet friendly, quiet retreat, 3 season porch, outside patio, close to Lake Superior, arts community, ski, snowshoe, hike, bike, North Shore, Minutes from Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness
