Good morning, lakeshore. The Musical Fountain is saying goodbye this weekend, and it's not being subtle about it. Saturday's season finale is literally called Goodbye Grand Haven. Tonight's show takes one last lap through the decades first, so you get two shots before the water shuts off until next summer.

In this week’s Lowdown:

Kites (maybe) on the beach
Every county football game tonight
The dune Muskegon lost

Let’s get into it.

- Sam Johnson, The Lakeshore Lowdown

BLOWIN' IN THE WIND

King of the Great Lakes hits Grand Haven 🪁

Grand Haven is hosting one of the Great Lakes' biggest kiteboarding weekends, and the wind might skip it. The marine forecast calls for light breezes and waves under a foot through Sunday. That's perfect for everyone on the beach except the people who brought $125,000 worth of kites.

MACkite runs King of the Great Lakes at Grand Haven City Beach today through Sunday anyway, with eFoils and a wake boat on standby if the kites stay grounded. The top kite and foil brands bring full demo fleets, and experienced riders test gear right off the sand. You don't need to ride to go. Spectators get in free all three days, beach clinics included, so the kite-curious can get a real look at the sport and talk gear with the people who make it.

Friday's demo runs roughly 1 to 5:30 PM, with a kickoff party at the MACkite warehouse at 6:30. Saturday is the big day, with demos from 10:30 AM to 6 PM and the 2 PM cornhole tournament that's become a KoGL tradition. Pass holders head to Odd Side Ales from 7 to 9. Sunday opens for freeride at 11 and wraps around 5.

📍 Grand Haven City Beach
🗓️ Fri, Sept 25 through Sun, Sept 27.
🎟️ Free for spectators, with beach and rider passes at mackiteboarding.com

💼 Local Business Spotlight

Sponsored by Pure M Café

Pure M Café sits just steps from Lake Michigan on the Maranatha Bible & Missionary Conference campus off Lake Harbor Road, and it's easy to treat as a regular stop, not just a conference amenity. They pour quality coffee and handcrafted espresso drinks in a peaceful, worshipful atmosphere built for reflection and good conversation. It's more than a coffee counter too, browse a curated shelf of Bibles, devotionals, Christian books, and Maranatha merchandise while you sip, with proceeds supporting the ministry's work. It's a great stop for meeting a friend, grabbing coffee on your way through, or pulling off the new bike path to Hoffmaster for a break. Visit Pure M Café

📍 1900 Tibet Rd, Norton Shores, MI 49441
🕐 Daily, 7 AM–2 PM
📞 231.246.2552

🎉 Weekend Preview

Pick one. Or pick four, the weather's on your side.

🎈 = family-friendly

All weekend
🎈🪁 King of the Great Lakes – Free kite and foil demos at Grand Haven City Beach. Fri, Sat and Sun.
🎈🌾 Harvest Hay Bale Trail – Decorated bales around Hackley Park and downtown Muskegon. Vote through Oct 31 at mkgcity.com/haybales.

Friday
😂 Laughter on the Lakeshore – Comedians Bob Phillips and Sal Demilio at the Frauenthal.
🏒 Lumberjacks home opener – Eastern Conference banner goes up at Trinity Health Arena. 7 PM.

Saturday
🎈🥕 Fall Harvest Festival – At the Muskegon Farmers Market, 8 AM to 2 PM. Grand Haven's market runs 8 AM to 1 PM.
🎈🍄 Family Fungi and Foraging – Guided hunt at Hoffmaster's Gillette Visitor Center, 10 AM to noon. $30, ages 10+, DNR registration.
🎶 Flannel Fest – Live music on Western Ave starting at 2 PM, ahead of the Lumberjacks' 6 PM game.

Sunday
🎈🎬 Free Family Movie Day: Zootopia – The Frauenthal, 3 PM.

Coming up
💀 Bones About Town – 150+ decorated skeletons take over downtown and Centertown Grand Haven starting Thursday, Oct 1.

🌊 Shore Things

🍺 Bank Shot – Odd Side Ales opened Odd Side Social Brews in an old bank in downtown Fruitport, 50 Park St. The dining room is in the vault, the original safety deposit boxes are still part of the room, and it runs from morning coffee to evening cocktails. Get the steak crostini.

🚧 Boardwalk Break – The Lighthouse Connector Park boardwalk in Grand Haven is under repair, with work expected to wrap the week of Oct 12.

🏐 Serve's Up – Grand Haven's state-ranked girls volleyball team swept its own invitational for the third straight year, and Miss Volleyball finalist Mallory Woiteshek had 49 kills on the day. Fruitport swept Monday's quad at North Muskegon, including a win over Division 3 No. 8 Hart.

⚽ Jud's Day – Whitehall's boys soccer team beat Manistee 4-1 Monday behind two goals from sophomore Kyle Jud.

🎣 Glow Time – The latest DNR report has Muskegon boats catching salmon out to 80 feet on glow spoons and plugs. Grand Haven pier anglers are getting coho and Chinook the same way.

🏈 Local Sports

Tonight's county board has two games circled. Mona Shores (3-1) makes the short trip to Reeths-Puffer (2-2). Montague (2-2) visits Whitehall in the Battle for the Bell, a rivalry that's been going for more than a century. Whitehall (0-4) came within a point of its first win last week, and there's no better night to get it than against the Wildcats.

Muskegon (2-2) heads to Byron Center fresh off its 45-14 win over R-P, and Grand Haven (2-2) is at Rockford. It's also homecoming at Muskegon Catholic Central, where the Crusaders host Clarkston Everest after breaking through with their first win last week. Ravenna (3-1) opens conference play at home against Shelby, and Oakridge (1-3) looks to build on its shutout of Hart when Ludington comes to town.

Tonight, Friday, Sept 25, 7 PM:

Mona Shores at Reeths-Puffer
Montague at Whitehall
Muskegon at Byron Center
Grand Haven at Rockford
Clarkston Everest at Muskegon Catholic Central
Grand Rapids Christian at Spring Lake
Shelby at Ravenna
Ludington at Oakridge
Orchard View at Hart
North Muskegon at Hesperia
Kelloggsville at Fruitport
Marcellus at Muskegon Heights
Holton at Bear Lake

☀️ Weather Report

Friday 68 🌡️ 47 | ☀️ | Dry | 💨 E 5-15 knots
Saturday 66 🌡️ 48 | 🌤️ | Dry | 💨 SE 5-15 knots
Sunday 65 | ⛅ | Dry | 💨 SE, turning SW in the afternoon

🌊 Waves 1 ft or less all weekend | 💧 Water in the 60s

The verdict: Spend the days outside, and bring a jacket for the fountain.

🎵 Live Music Picks

Last call for outdoor shows. Nights drop into the upper 40s, so dress for it.

🌳 = Outdoor show

Friday
🌳 Musical Fountain | Through The Decades | 8:20–9:20 PM

Saturday
🌳 Flannel Fest, Western Ave | Live music | 2 PM
🌳 Musical Fountain | Goodbye Grand Haven (season finale) | Evening

Wednesday, Sept 30
Muskegon Brewing Company | Lynn Thompson | 6–9 PM
Frauenthal | World Ballet Company: Swan Lake, live orchestra

DUNE AND DUSTED

🌟Only in Muskegon and Grand Haven

Muskegon used to have a mountain of sand. Pigeon Hill rose about 217 feet over the channel where Muskegon Lake meets Lake Michigan, named for the passenger pigeons that rested there by the hundreds, and sailors used it to find their way into port. In the 1920s it was sold off to feed the foundries, and locals took the fight to save it all the way to the Michigan Supreme Court and lost. By 1938 the dune was leveled. Today it's the Harbour Towne condos, and the name lives on mostly as a brewery downtown.