Fall colors are painting the Upper Peninsula’s landscape. The Copper Country is capitalizing on the season with Canal Colors Festival with a weekend celebration that combines four community events over two days.
The festival begins on Thursday when the Plaidurday digital passport launches online. Followed on Friday and Saturday with events drawing residents and visitors to experience autumn in the Copper Country. Funds raised during several activities during the two days will help support the Carnegie Museum of Houghton.
“The first week in October has always been a busy one for the City of Houghton and surrounding areas,” said Jesse Wiederhold, Managing Director of Visit Keweenaw. “We’ve always had Fall Fest in Houghton, the Keweenaw Color Run, and something new we did was Plaidurday in 2023 and then Brew Street in 2024. So building off of that, we hate to have multiple events going on at the same time. Why not just lump them together? That’s what we did with Canal Colors Festival.”
Visit Keweenaw will organize the Plaidurday photo at 1 p.m. Friday at the Houghton High School football field. Participants can sign up for a Plaidurday passport and compete for a plaid swag bag.
“We’re going to have a passcode at the Platterday photo,” Wiederhold said. “So if you want to redeem that pass, you have to listen at the photo and we have a secret code at our welcome center.”
Friday evening, the Houghton Social District hosts Brew Street with Visit Keweenaw, featuring local vendors.
The evening will also feature the Lumberjack Lovin’ Singles Fashion Show, where contestants walk the runway dressed as lumberjacks and deliver their best pickup lines to the audience.
“Right now we’ve got a great set of lumberjacks,” Wiederhold said. “Jill’s and Jay’s signed up to compete. So this is for $400 cash. We’re looking for some extra lumberjacks on Friday night to come compete. You’ll have your runway entrance, a pickup line, and an overall beard and look.”
Saturday brings the Color Run, organized by Circle UP, followed by Fall Fest on the waterfront pier hosted by the City of Houghton.
“This is really just that big last hurrah, truly family friendly, and it’s for a good cause,” Wiederhold said. “We’re raising money for the Carnegie Museum. So this is not just another fun weekend. We hope this is something people plan for every year.”
The region’s appeal extends beyond the weekend. Travel and Leisure recently named the Keweenaw its number one fall destination in the Midwest for 2026.
“Folks should expect things to be pretty busy in their shops,” Wiederhold said. “Our hotels are looking good for this weekend, so it is really important for the Keweenaw as a tourism destination in fall.”
For more information about Canal Colors Festival events, visit Visit Keweenaw online.
