Last week was our third year straight year of a tradition in going up to Duluth for Thanksgiving, and equally, our third year visiting Bentleyville, the holiday lights extravaganza hosted right on a pier (Bayfront Festival Park) jutting towards Lake Superior off the downtown drag.
Admittedly, I’m not a huge holiday guy. Seasonal changes are great in the midwest, but the holidays’ commercialism can weigh heavily on the soul. Yet the lighting decor this time of year is pleasant escapism into winter, and I do enjoy it.
So... what better than to supercharge your senses with the Bentleyville experience. It’s free, has over 5 million lights, including tunnels and animated scenes, and offers plenty of free snacks along the trek — quite a remarkable event to kick in annually (21 years running).
We stayed at Pier B Resort this time, and if you are there (or park in the nearby lots), you can hop on this ATV-propelled winter ride, which cruises back and forth between Bentleyville entrance and fire pit all evening long. Also, free.
Once we got there, there was already underway a light, patchy snowflake fall in slow motion around the city, and it sparkled radiantly against the neon. When we approached one of the early outbuildings (the Cookie House), it was on full display, and when the attendant inside asked us kindly if we wanted a free hot chocolate and cookie, we couldn’t get it out of our minds that we had erroneously stepped into a holiday movie set.
There are several other pitstops along, including firing up s’mores atop firepits in the central hub, gift shops, etc. You know, plenty to do and see, at your own pace. But that Cookie House encounter hit just right. It's worth visiting!
Heading back to Pier B.