Overnighter - Casino Gambling Trip - IgoUgo Sault Ste Marie Journal

Overnighter - Casino Gambling Trip

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Overview

Looking down on Sault Ste Marie, MI Photo - Sault Ste Marie, Ontario

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If I played my cards right then this trip could be a freebie as we planned to make our first stop at Kewadin Casino while staying in Sault Ste Marie, Michigan.Sault Ste Marie or the “Soo” resides at the northeast corner of the Upper Peninsular about 1 hour north of the Mackinaw Bridge and is home to about 16,500 residents. It’s noted for being the oldest city in Michigan, and the third oldest in the United States. Just by taking a drive down near its waterfront is clearly evident by this, after seeing rows of unchanged businesses and tourist shops appearing like you would have imagined them in the '50s and with it’s abundant of industrial businesses sprawl everywhere. This town could use a sli...Read More

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Kewadin Casino, Hotel and Convention Center

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Hotel | "Kewadin Casino Hotel"

Kedwadin Hotel and Casino Photo - Kewadin Casino, Hotel and Convention Center, Sault Ste Marie, Ontario

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Getting here is half the battle, and then leaving with some cash in your pocket is the other half. We had the directions coming from I-75 and followed them to a tee and evidently found this place, but only after thinking several times… where the heck are we?Once we arrived, the exterior of the hotel looked large and not unlike a lot of other hotels you might stay at. But once inside you get a totally different feel. A very up northy-outdoorsy feel with a Native American twist. The indoor waterfall display added a nice touch, bringing in a little nature from the outdoors.The 318 room hotel offers an on-site casino, lounge with musical entertainment, restaurant, indoor pool, sauna and whirlpool, exerci...Read More

Getting here is half the battle, and then leaving with some cash in your pocket is the other half. We had the directions coming from I-75 and followed them to a tee and evidently found this place, but only after thinking several times… where the heck are we?Once we arrived, the exterior of the hotel looked large and not unlike a lot of other hotels you might stay at. But once inside you get a totally different feel. A very up northy-outdoorsy feel with a Native American twist. The indoor waterfall display added a nice touch, bringing in a little nature from the outdoors.The 318 room hotel offers an on-site casino, lounge with musical entertainment, restaurant, indoor pool, sauna and whirlpool, exercise room, conference facility, game room, gift shop, and a 1,500 seat theatre that attracts many great artists. My husband, my son (18 at the time) and myself decided to give his place a try one night as we were planning on visiting the Soo Locks the next day and thought some gambling to start off our vacation might be some fun. The gambling age at this casino was 21 so my son’s fun suddenly diminished from hoping to play some blackjack, to playing arcade games for the evening. We had no problems with our online reservations and checked in promptly upon arriving at the hotel. We were charged $76.00 for our non-smoking room. Once we found our room we were pleased by the roomy layout and the bright cheery décor the room offered. The room was very clean with a decent sized bathroom. It had an armoire for the TV and our clothes, a table with 2 chairs, and a coffee pot with some coffee packets. The bathroom's shower/tub was average size, offered enough towels for our needs, included the freebie soap and shampoo bottles in case we forgot ours. That was about it and about all it really needed.We ate at the hotel's restaurant for our dinner and found the buffets entrees and sides mainly satisfying. Most items were tasty, while a few salads dishes, by their looks, were best left for others to try. I felt we received our $16.99 money’s worth and we ate till we were pretty well stuffed.My husband and I enjoyed our stay and felt it was worth every penny we paid for it. I felt even if we were to stay longer than one day and had lost all our gambling money we still could have found things here like swimming, relaxing in the hot-tub, or hanging out in the lounge sipping cocktails to occupy our time.Therefore, in my opinion it's not a bad place to rest your head at. Read Less

Member Rating 3 out of 5 on April 11, 2006

Kewadin Casino, Hotel and Convention Center
2186 Shunk Rd.
Sault Ste Marie 49783
(906) 632-0530

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Lockview Restaurant

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Restaurant

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We were starved and on our way to see the Soo Locks… first things first, find food. Deciding to eat near the Locks would assure we didn’t miss any ships coming in, so we parked and quickly asked a ranger/guard when the next ship was due to arrive. Within the hour so the restaurant needed to be close, and the service fast. Looking no farther than across the street, we spotted this older 50s-style, two-story building with large windows. Its perfect location, with large picture windows, was the ideal spot for our stalk-out and some eats. Lockview wasn't too crowded so we quickly grabbed a table near the window. The crowd inside looked mostly of regulars, reading the newspaper or c...Read More

We were starved and on our way to see the Soo Locks… first things first, find food. Deciding to eat near the Locks would assure we didn’t miss any ships coming in, so we parked and quickly asked a ranger/guard when the next ship was due to arrive. Within the hour so the restaurant needed to be close, and the service fast.

Looking no farther than across the street, we spotted this older 50s-style, two-story building with large windows. Its perfect location, with large picture windows, was the ideal spot for our stalk-out and some eats.

Lockview wasn't too crowded so we quickly grabbed a table near the window. The crowd inside looked mostly of regulars, reading the newspaper or chatting amongst friends. The setting was modest with older tables and chairs, old photographs of ships and buildings on the walls, you got the feeling this place has looked the same for the last 40 years. On the tables sat paper-place mats telling the history of the Locks and a older-style napkin dispenser… a typical "UP" establishment.

We were greeted by a friendly waitress carrying a hot pot of coffee and our menus. She told about a couple breakfast specials and would return shortly. The menus offered a little of everything but only breakfast was being served. We decided on a "Special," which consisted of a couple eggs, toast, potatoes and sausage links all for under $5. We asked to keep the menus which offered some history about the Locks for our reading pleasure.

My husband eyes caught several old framed newspaper articles mounted on the walls reporting how awesome Lockview’s whitefish meals were, and how it was noted for being the freshest in town... and with it's motto "your fish slept yesterday in nearby Whitefish Bay Lake Superior," that’s all it took to lure him in… he was hooked, and quickly plotted a return visit back here and one involving Whitefish.

The food arrived quickly, hot, had generous portions and my favorite lots of onions complimenting my potatoes, per my request. Eggs were done satisfactory, coffee filled regularly, sausage links very plump and juicy, (not sure what else they were filled with besides pork) and all for a great price. We even had plenty of time to catch the next ship coming in… I would definitely return.

Not open during the winter months. Serves; breakfast, lunch, and dinner; eggs, sandwiches, soup, chicken, steak and whitefish. Read Less

Member Rating 3 out of 5 on April 11, 2006

Lockview Restaurant
329 W. Portage Ave.
Sault Ste Marie 49783
(906) 632-2772

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Kewadin Casino Hotel

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Attraction | "Kewadin Casino- Sault Ste Marie"

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With the help of a very generous video poker machine and some luck at the blackjack table, our overnight trip ended up being a freebie. Our room cost $85 including tax, buffet dinner for three around $60 (which included a few cocktails), breakfast was around $20, and with about $30 worth of quarters for the arcade we had less than $200 spent for the night. After about 2 hours of being on the casino floor I left up about $120 from my video poker machine and my husband (for once) was ahead approximately $100 when he left his Blackjack table… so this trip was definitely worth the $20 they paid us to take. This 40,000foot² casino run by a Chippewa Indians Tribe has 700 slot machines, 400...Read More

With the help of a very generous video poker machine and some luck at the blackjack table, our overnight trip ended up being a freebie. Our room cost $85 including tax, buffet dinner for three around $60 (which included a few cocktails), breakfast was around $20, and with about $30 worth of quarters for the arcade we had less than $200 spent for the night. After about 2 hours of being on the casino floor I left up about $120 from my video poker machine and my husband (for once) was ahead approximately $100 when he left his Blackjack table… so this trip was definitely worth the $20 they paid us to take.

This 40,000foot² casino run by a Chippewa Indians Tribe has 700 slot machines, 400 seat bingo rooms, 19 table games, and is open 24-7. Three poker games are played: Texas Hold-EM, Omaha, and 7-Card Stud. Various other table games such as Blackjack, Roulette, Pai Gow Poker, Let it Ride, Craps, and Caribbean Stud are other games you can partake in. Gambling age is 21 at this casino, and is also our state's legal drinking age. Drinks are not free… this isn’t Vegas baby!

Some of my favorite slots are Wheel of Fortune, I dream of Jeanie, The Price is Right, and the double and triple diamond machines are available on the floor. They did have a few video poker machines and some that offered multi-lines. I don’t recall any 1¢ machines, but they did have a good share of nickels, quarters, and dollar machines to choose from . I don’t play higher than $1 machines and I don’t recall how many high-roller machines they may have had.

Blackjack table limits vary from $3 to $1,000 and beside the traditional games they also offer Two Deck Pitch, which is a hand-held BJ game that is dealt with two decks. Most games my husband recalls were the $5-$100 tables limits. Other games offered are KENO and Bingo.

With it’s 16,000foot² convention center, 318 room on-site hotel, two lounges, restaurants, casino, and its 1380-seat “Dream Makers Theater,” which has featured many performances from famous celebrities such as Wayne Newton, Bill Cosby, Gordon Lightfoot, and Kenny Rogers it is understandable why people enjoy coming here in all seasons. But don’t come expecting to hit it big at the machines… this isn’t Vegas baby… Indian Casino’s in Michigan aren’t regulated by the state, so there’s no telling what payback percentage they will be offering. I say if you play the machines only play what you can afford to lose and think of it as entertainment, and if you win… then be thankful and take it and run…
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Member Rating 2 out of 5 on April 14, 2006

Kewadin Casino Hotel
2186 Shunk Road
Sault Ste Marie 49783
(800) 539-2346

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Experience of the Soo Locks

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Story/Tip

Soo Locks Photo - Sault Ste Marie, Ontario

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I couldn’t help it… the song “The Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald” by Gordon Lightfoot kept buzzing in my head as we stood standing on a steel platform some 25 feet from the ground, looking down onto the “Alcocen” freighter as it glided through the Soo Locks. This vessel had come up river from the St. Mary’s River, and had a load of cargo that needed to be delivered that would take him on a journey through the sometimes treacherous waters of Lake Superior. But in order for him to do this he needed the engineering marvel of the Soo Locks to make this voyage possible. All boat traffic regardless of their size that flows into or out of Lake Superior must move through the locks of the St. Mary’s Ri...Read More

I couldn’t help it… the song “The Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald” by Gordon Lightfoot kept buzzing in my head as we stood standing on a steel platform some 25 feet from the ground, looking down onto the “Alcocen” freighter as it glided through the Soo Locks. This vessel had come up river from the St. Mary’s River, and had a load of cargo that needed to be delivered that would take him on a journey through the sometimes treacherous waters of Lake Superior. But in order for him to do this he needed the engineering marvel of the Soo Locks to make this voyage possible.

All boat traffic regardless of their size that flows into or out of Lake Superior must move through the locks of the St. Mary’s River, at Sault Ste. Marie. The St. Mary’s River is the only water connection between Lake Superior and the other Great Lakes but with it’s 21 feet difference in water levels makes it impossible for boats to maneuver through the rapids without the help of the locks.

In the beginning, Ojibwa Indians would stop here, carry their canoes around the rapids just to reach Lake Superior, as these waters were crucial to their health and livelihood. The long hard winters took a toll on them and food was scarce, fish were plentiful here and was needed for their survival. Early pioneers arriving in this territory were also forced to carry their canoes around the rapids and later when settlement of this area brought increase trade as well as larger boats, wagons became necessary to haul cargo around the rapids to load onto other boats to Lake Superior. Therefore the need for the Locks became apparent and opened in June of 1855.

Today the “Soo Locks” have the distinction of being the busiest locks in the world with an average of 12,000 passages each year. All different size boats pass through the locks from small passenger boats to large freighters, some as long as 1000 feet. This facility is operated and maintained by the US Army Corps of Engineers. The locks operate most of the year, but are closed from January 15th to March 25th for yearly maintenance.

We could see the freighter entering the locks from the river side and quickly ran up the stairs of the steel platform for a better view. As it rose to the level of Lake Superior the ships magnitude seem to explode right in front of our eyes. We were now standing directly in front of this enormous vessel and ready to see it off on it’s journey towards White fish Point. It only took a few minutes it seemed for the locks to fill up with water to the level it needed to allow the “Alcocen” to continue on its way. We even got a friendly wave from the crew as it headed out….

On the grounds there is a very informational Visitors Center which has lots of fascinating material regarding the locks such as it construction, navigational charts, maps, artifacts, photographs as well as a working model of the locks. There is also a video that provides a historical perspective on the need and use of this maritime marvel that is very interesting to watch.

If you arrive and there is no ship currently using the locks then head to the Visitor Center to see the posted schedule of arriving ships, which also provide some general information about them as well like there size, the cargo it’s hauling, and its destination. TVs are also mounted on the walls so you can watch the vessels as they approach the locks from the St. Mary's River. The Visitors Center is open from 7am to 11pm from mid-May to November.

There are many park benches around the park to sit on and enjoy the ships as they sail on in, so don’t feel like you have to climb the steel platform to witness them. However, the observation platform will give you the best perspective and almost a birds-eye view. The grounds also offer several permanent outdoor artifacts as well as a model-size exhibit of the locks that we especially liked.

Also offered is a Soo Locks Boat tour that will take you through the locks, exactly like the huge cargo ships do. We didn’t do this, due to a time crunch, but my husband’s cousin worked his way through Lake Superior College by being one of the narrators on these cruises years ago. He said if you get an opportunity… do this, and experience first hand how and why these locks are so impressive.

There’s no doubt about it, the locks are a man-made marvel, and its waterway traffic system is the largest of this kind on earth. There is no where else in the US you can see huge freighters, within a few feet from you rise or fall some 21 feet in just a matter of minutes. So regardless of if you are into boats or not, this is definitely worth the visit if you are in the area.

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Overnighter - Casino Gambling Trip