Dark Sky Festival

Dec. 12-14, 2024

Cook County is home to one of the darkest skies in the world. Every year, explorers, adventurers, artists and photographers from around the world travel to Cook County to experience the northern lights and night sky. The Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW) has been named as one of only 17 certified International Dark Sky Sanctuaries in the world! And at over a million acres, it is the largest. Help us to celebrate our world-class dark sky at the sixth Dark Sky Festival!

No tickets required for presentations or activities unless listed in description. 

For 2024, we are proud to be bringing a variety of opportunities for you to explore the Night Sky!

• Presentation and book release/signing with Stephanie Vermillion about her new book, 100 Nights of a Lifetime. (Thursday 12/12)
• NASA will be here doing an activity and presentation. (Friday 12/13 & Saturday 12/14). 
• UMD Star Party Planetarium (Saturday 12/14)
• Panels and Presentations with the Star Tribune
• and much much more! 

This event also features: 

• Night Sky Walks and Telescope Viewing
• Presentations
• Documentary Screenings
• Painting the Night Sky 
• Family-Friendly Activities

THURSDAY, DEC. 12th

7 a.m. | Daybreak Hike with Gunflint Lodge Naturalist | Start at main lodge of Gunflint Lodge & Outfitters

Bring your own flashlight and explore the wonders of the woods! 

2 p.m. | The Quest to Understand the Northern Lights Presentation | Nature Center at Gunflint Lodge & Outfitters

4 p.m. | Author Talk & Book Signing / National Geographic's 100 Nights of a Lifetime | Studio 21, Grand Marais

Cue the wanderlust! Author Stephanie Vermillion will kick off this year's Dark Sky Festival by introducing her new National Geographic book, 100 Nights of a Lifetime: The World's Ultimate Adventures After Dark. In this presentation- brought to life with National Geographic's signature imagery- Stephanie will take us on a journey through the world's most awe-inspiring nocturnal experiences, from eye-popping stargazing and northern lights pursuits to bioluminescence, twilight festivals, and exhilarating overnight treks. Get ready to add several -or 100- new after-dark adventures to your bucket list. A Q&A and book signing will follow the presentation; copies of 100 Nights of a Lifetime will be available to purchase onsite. 

*Drury Lane Books will be onsite at Studio 21 to facilitate book sales and provide a Dark Sky Book Pop-Up following the presentation*

3:30-5:00 p.m. | Thursday Art Night: Glow-in-the-Dark Star Ornaments | Joy & Co., Grand Marais

Stop in for Joy & Co.’s free weekly art night program featuring fun demos and projects. This one will focus on Glow-in-the-Dark Star Ornaments.

5:00 p.m. | Dark Skies Paint & Sip | Surfside Ballroom, Tofte

Make your reservation for an evening of painting paired with wine at Bluefin Bay Family of Resorts, Surfside Ballroom. Get your tickets here. 

7:00 p.m. | Presentation & Panel on Light Pollution  | Studio 21, Grand Marais

The night sky has played an important role in the history of humans preserving its history and darkness is important. The BWCA is now designated as a Dark Sky Sanctuary, meaning there is very little light pollution. Come explore light pollution and the importance of darkness. Partake in a unique conversation regarding Light Pollution and its effects.

FRIDAY, DEC. 13

10 a.m. | Candle Making | Nature Center at Gunflint Lodge & Outfitters

Learn the craft of candle making! (Small fee for those not staying at Gunflint Lodge)

2 p.m. | Harmony of Visions: Scientific & Indigenous Knowledge of the Night Sky | Nature Center at Gunflint Lodge & Outfitters
 

4:30 p.m. | Untitled Night, by Morgan Thorson | Grand Marais Rec Park (sledding hill) 

Untitled Night, created and organized by Morgan Thorson, is an outdoor dance event made for extreme geographies and climates. Featuring performers/collaborators Sam Aros-Mitchell, Alexandra Beaumont,  Dienae "D" Hunter, Eva Mohn, Morgan Thorson and Arwen Wilder, this Grand Marais iteration is an invitation to immerse and bathe in the drama of winter night. Drawing down the cosmos, night falls, tumbling dark textures onto the land. As the stars come out, reminding us that it’s always dark in the outer atmosphere, the dance emerges and nestles into the surroundings with little illumination. These collection of dance essays are propelled by micro – movements shared by all living things. Our group articulations collaborate with stars, plants and other forces we cannot see. Because a little dark sky drama dwells inside all of us, we dance to sense and appreciate the night's vastness. After we all gather outside, we drink and talk inside the Folk School nearby.  

This Dark Sky Festival offering is co-presented by MOVO Space and Visit Cook County and is supported by the New England Foundation for the Arts’ National Dance Project Grant. Also, special thanks to Starry Skies North, Grand Marais Art Colony, Red Eye Theater, Kannski Gallery, all the dancers and Malorie.

6:30 p.m. | Spirits Dancing: The Night Sky, Indigenous Knowledge & Living Connections to the Cosmos - Presentation and Book Signing with Travis Novitsky | Grand Portage National Monument

A proud citizen and lifelong resident of the Grand Portage Anishinaabe Nation in northeast Minnesota, Travis Novitsky has been photographing the woods and waters of the north shore of Lake Superior for more than 30 years. He is a self-taught nature and wildlife photographer whose work focuses primarily on his ancestral homelands in Minnesota. Travis is the photographer for the book "Spirits Dancing - The Night Sky, Indigenous Knowledge & Cultural Connections to the Cosmos,"  published in 2023 by the Minnesota Historical Society Press. Written by astrophysicist, artist and director of the Native Skywatchers research and programming initiative, Annette S. Lee, the book explores the wonders of star bathing. Sitting quietly under the stars, knowing that humans have always done this, knowing that we literally come from the stars. 

6:30 p.m. | Wandering around Mars presentation by Andrea Jones, planetary geologist and the Public Engagement Lead of the Solar System Exploration Division at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center  | North House Folk School, Grand Marais

Mars is a pretty exciting place. Rovers, landers, orbiters, and even a helicopter are helping us uncover secrets written in the rocks, ice and gases, swirling around our rusty red neighbor. Come learn about current and recent Mars missions, what it's like to pick a Mars landing site and take new pictures of a planet with a spacecraft camera, and how we're learning about Mars, through Artemis.

7:30 p.m. | Cosmic Perspective: How Astrophotography Shifted My Perspective on the Cosmos & Earth by Kyle Johnson | North House Folk School, Grand Marais

Filmmaker Kyle "KJ" Johnson shares the powerful origin story of astrophotography. Astronomy has been around since the dawn of humanity. It has shaped our perspectives, stories, and culture. Discover how photography is inextricably linked to our studies of the stars, as well as how technology has made exploring the cosmos accessible to everyone. 

8:30 p.m. | Night Hike with Gunflint Lodge Naturalist | Start at Main Lodge of Gunflint Lodge & Outfitters

Bring your own flashlight! 

SATURDAY, DEC. 14

7 a.m. | Daybreak Hike with Gunflint Lodge Naturalist | Start at Main Lodge of Gunflint Lodge & Outfitters

Bring your own flashlight if you have one!

10 A.M- 2 p.m.| Journey to the Moon & Mars: Touchdown! - Build Your Own Lander with NASA | Studio 21, Grand Marais

NASA has been studying the Moon and Mars with numerous rovers, landers, and orbiters for decades. These missions are helping to pave the way for humanity’s return to the surface of the Moon with humans and eventual exploration on to Mars. In preparation for these future Artemis missions, we’ll need to ensure that we can safely land on the surface of each world. This is a challenging task, and you can join the effort by designing, developing, and testing out your very own Moon or Mars lander. You’ll also be able to touch rocks from Earth that you can find on the Moon and Mars as well as “feel” the surfaces of these worlds with 3D prints. Join Andrea Jones and Staci Tiedeken from the Solar System Exploration Division at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center to learn about NASA’s exploration of the Moon and Mars and to build your own lander! Stop in anytime from 10am-2pm!

1 P.M. - 2:30 P.M. | UMD Portable Planetarium | Gunflint Lodge, Gunflint Trail

UMD will be providing shows throughout this timeframe - stop in and check out their portable planetarium!

3:30 P.M. | Asteroids, Meteors, & Comets, Oh My! | Gunflint Lodge

There is a lot of stuff flying out in space. Hear from Chik-Wauk Museum & Nature Center Naturalist Emma Adams to find out about the history and science behind near-earth objects. Near-Earth, objects are more commonly known as asteroids, meteors, and comets. This presentation will also explore the Geminids meteor shower! 

5:00 P.M. | Dining on the Gunflint Trail - Gunflint Lodge or Borderland Lodge 

Reservations Required. 

Gunflint Lodge: Themed items will be offered alongside the regular menu from 5-8 PM. Reservations recommended. click here or call   (800) 328-3325

 Borderland Lodge: call (218) 388-2233

7:30 P.M. | Astro Tourism with Bob Timmons from the Star Tribune | NEW! Northern Lights Lodge at Gunflint Lodge

What astrotourism means for Minnesota

Come hear how astrotourism—travel and tourism focused on taking in the night sky and celestial events—has affected the makeup of who visits Minnesota's wilderness, how they experience the outdoors, and what their impact has been. This panel will be moderated by Bob Timmons, a longtime Minnesota Star Tribune writer and editor. 

Bob Timmons is a veteran journalist who has  worked in various capacities in news and sports at the Minnesota Star Tribune. Formerly the editor of the Strib’s Outdoors Weekend section, he now writes about outdoor recreation, with a particular focus on stories that reflect the different ways Minnesotans connect with the outdoors.

8:30 p.m. | Telescopes & Night Vision - Ultimate Sky Experience | Gunflint Lodge & Outfitters 

Join us outside for telescope viewing with the University of Minnesota Duluth Marshall W. Alworth Planetarium and night vision opportunities with Low Light Experiences. 

8:30 p.m. | Night Hike with Gunflint Lodge Naturalist | Start at the Main Lodge of Gunflint Lodge & Outfitters 

Bring your own flashlight if you have one!

SUNDAY, DEC. 15

10 a.m. | Van Gogh and The Night | Nature Center at Gunflint Lodge & Outfitters

2 p.m. | Presentation by Gunflint Naturalist "Sky Full of Stars" | Nature Center at Gunflint Lodge & Outfitters

1 p.m. - 4 p.m. | Starry Night Mug Painting | Joy & Co

There is a $20 fee 

Happening throughout the Festival

9:00 a.m. -3:00 p.m. | Documentary: Northern Nights, Starry Skies | Grand Portage National Monument Heritage Center

All day long, catch the documentary “Northern Nights, Starry Skies.” A visually stunning celebration of our spectacular starry skies above the world’s largest designated Dark Sky sanctuary. Ojibwe, Dakota cultural astronomers and other experts share the wonders of the heavens. The documentary, which was co-produced by WDSE and Hamline University’s Center for Global Environmental Education, also illuminates ways we can reduce the negative impacts of light pollution.

10 a.m. - 4 p.m. | Art Exhibition: Dark Skies | Johnson Heritage Post Art Gallery, Grand Marais

Opening Reception Dec. 6th from 5pm - 7pm and will run from Dec. 7th - 29th , experience Dark Skies, an exhibit featuring the artwork of Kim Dayton.

Gunflint Lodge Festival Weekend Packages

Geminid Meteor Shower

From December 12 - 14, the prominent night sky constellation is the Geminid meteor shower. It appears to radiate from the constellation Gemini, peaking around the nights of December 13 & 14. 

Dark Sky Festival is a Visit Cook County Produced and Funded Event. 

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