HOUGHTON, MI (AP)-- You don’t have to be an Olympic speedskater to glide along an icy loop in the Upper Peninsula.
The city of Houghton has created a skating path at Kestner Park on the waterfront. Five laps around the “ice ribbon” equals about a mile. Brad Barnett of the Keweenaw Convention & Visitors Bureau says it's another way to enjoy winter in the U.P. The ice was created by flooding a paved path inside the park. It’s kept up with a sort of Zamboni rigged off the back of a pickup truck.
Officials were inspired to do something after seeing the popularity of a frozen Portage Canal in December. Skaters, hockey players and the curious flocked to the ice.
Officials think they might have to re-create the ice ribbon next year.
