I believe Spring is finally here and this past Saturday was a beautiful and unusually warm day. I knew I wanted to adventure outdoors and remembered the River walk in Marshall. Last year, we originally visited the historic town of Marshall which you can read all about here. Though we had a great time exploring our first visit, it was a very cold day so we did not have the opportunity to check out the River walk and vowed to return.
When Garrin & I talk of Marshall, he often comments that he must return for “his” sandwich. This trip, I knew we would need to fulfill that wish, making our first stop Winston’s Pub.
Garrin was super excited to eat the Two Napkin Beef Brisket again.
I thought of trying something new on the menu as there are a lot of tasty choices, however my fond memories of the Triple Cheese Sandwich with spinach and Schuler’s Swiss Onion soup won out and I also repeated my order.
After a wonderful meal, we walked over to the Honolulu House. Admission is only $5.00 per adult. It was fun to checkout this museum that was originally a home built in 1860. The house originally belonged to the first U.S. consul to the Sandwich (Hawaiian) islands, Judge Abner Pratt. Judge Pratt loved the islands and attempted to create a replica home in Marshall.
The Honolulu house is a unique structure to not only the Midwest but the entire United States. The front features an elaborate nine-bay porch. It has tropical features such as the raised veranda, 15 foot ceilings, 10 foot doors and circular freestanding staircase leading to the observation platform. The living room showcases two faux marble fireplaces that highlight the space and the walls offer painted scenes from the islands. Perhaps the most amazing detail are the ornate ceilings painted in such elaborate and beautiful detail rarely seen.
My favorite thing about the Honolulu house was the old wood burning stove in the kitchen. It reminded me of childhood memories and my grandparents stove on the farm in Midland.
After touring this museum, we crossed the street to City Hall and stopped by the welcome center. This Chamber of Commerce has such a friendly helpful staff and I highly recommend stopping by if you visit. We picked up a walking map brochure and asked for best way to access the River walk. We chose to walk to the path though there are options for driving and parking as well.
The River walk is along the Kalamazoo river and features lovely bridges and boardwalk paths with a prime view of the river.
We noticed there was quite a bit of tree damage with broken limbs from the winter in the area which I am sure will be cleaned up shortly. I imagine this walk is even prettier in the summer when the trees and flowers are in full bloom.
We stopped along the path to admire some Soft-shell turtles who were sunbathing on logs in the river.
The River walk is almost a mile in length and was a beautiful easy walk allowing us to enjoy the lovely weather.
At the end of the river walk, we found ourselves in Stuart’s Landing, a pretty park with a band-shell and a gazebo.
We then headed into town traveling through Capital Hill on the way. We viewed the Governor’s Mansion located here due to discussions during the 1830’s and 1840’s about Marshall becoming the capital of Michigan. Though this did not come to fruition, the historic area is quite fun to see.
Before leaving, we walked downtown shops and I picked up some souvenirs. An item I hope to include in a future Mitten Adventure box so I won’t spoil the potential surprise here. Also a lovely MantraBand bracelet which states “Enjoy the Journey”. It is a perfect mantra for me.
Marshall was fun to visit the second time around and I recommend checking out this quaint town full of history during your travels.
