Copyright M Live Michigan
GERMFASK, MI – Color season is winding down in the Upper Peninsula, but “Benny the Beard Fisher” will welcome visitors to the Manistique River shore all winter long. Benny the troll is an art installation along the riverbank at Northland Outfitters in Germfask. He’s also a troll character in a children’s book by Danish artist Thomas Dambo. In the two years since Benny was built, the 14-foot-tall troll sculpture has become a popular roadside attraction in the heart of the eastern U.P. “He’s aging a little bit but he’s looking pretty decent,” said Levi Brady, who owns the campground and livery business. Some of the other Dambo trolls in the Pacific Northwest seem to be wearing more rapidly than Benny, Brady said. “We’re hoping that he lasts quite a while. It was a big undertaking to get Thomas Dambo up here, so fingers crossed,” he said. Northland Outfitters has closed for the regular tourism season, including its gift shop. However, visitors can still walk along a boardwalk trail to see Benny throughout the winter months, Brady said. Visitors can park at a lot at 8222 M-77 in Germfask, where a drop box allows them to pay $10 per carload. Then they can walk to the riverside to see the troll. Related: ‘Benny the Beard Fisher’ is the U.P.’s new resident riverside troll “We built a 220-foot-long boardwalk system through the wetlands that connects out to the trail to Benny,” Brady said. He said it’s a great opportunity to stop and “stretch your legs” while traveling along M-77 south of Seney. The stop is near the Seney National Wildlife Refuge. The giant troll sculpture is made from leftover cedar plank pieces from a nearby Amish lumber mill, as well as branches and saplings collected from the local landscape. Its construction along the Manistique River was approved by state environmental regulators.
