83rd Annual Port Huron to Mackinac Race

This year marks the 83rd year for the annual Port Huron to Mackinac Race. Festivities for boat week will begin Monday, July 16th and run through Saturday, July 21st. The downtown area of Port Huron will be blocked off and activities will be happening everywhere, every day of the week. There will be fun, food and entertainment all around you as you walk through the downtown streets. Vendors will be set up all over as well, selling Mackinac Race merchandise shirts, hats, as well as many other items.

Monday kicks off the week long events with side walk sales through out the downtown district. Tuesday the carnival begins, brought to you by McDonagh Amusements. The carnival will be located in the southern McMoran parking lot. Wednesday features the 43rd Rotary International Day parade. This begins at 6:30 p.m. and will be routed down Military Street and Huron Avenue.

In addition, Thursday night is designated as family night. Families can bring their kids down to join the fun and see all the boats. There will be a movie featured on an outside screen at vantage point. The movie which will be played is Happy Feet. This begins at dusk. The Yacht club will be having a beer tent on Thursday as well, which will be open from 4 p.m. to 1 a.m. The beer tent will also be going on the following day from noon to 1 a.m. There will be a band, dancing, food and lots of fun. Friday is the biggest party night of all and is referred to as Boat Night. All the bars in the downtown area will be packed as thousands of people flood the streets to enjoy Port Huron's boat week activities. There is a beer tent along the Black River as well, behind St. Clair County Community College.

The event that all of these activities in downtown Port Huron lead up to happens Saturday morning. It's when all the boats that have gathered in the Black River leave for the Port Huron to Mackinac Race. The first boats leave at 11:30 a.m. and will be leaving the Black river starting at 9:00 a.m. There is about 250 boats in the race, divided up into different classes. You can view the boats at the start of the race which is 4.5 miles north of the Blue Water Bridge. Viewing goes all along the river from the Blue Water Bridge to Lakeside beach.