Sep 04 2008
UP Jampot Monks Buy 600 Acres for Pilgrimage Park
One of the more famous and unusual Upper Peninsula attractions is the Jampot Bakery near Eagle River along M-26 in the Keweenaw Peninsula. The bakery is run by monks who sell tasty baked goods to raise money for their religious work.
Well, now the monks have purchased 600 acres that will form a new outdoor retreat for visitors from around the world. Excerpt and link to WLUC TV in the UP:
The monks are best known for the Jampot Bakery, filled with jams and sweet treats. But this past winter, the monks purchased nearly 600 acres of land, adding to the 65 they already own.
So what do they plan to do with the property? Build a monastery when they outgrow their current building and offer the public a place to take solitary retreat…a place to meet God.
“We’re trying to preserve the natural qualities of the area,” said Father Basil, one of the five monks at the monastery, ”as well as developing certain portions.”
The parcel runs south behind the Jampot, bordering near Jacob’s Creek, and east to the Eagle Harbor Cut Off Road.
The monks say the property will have multiple functions. When the monks outgrow the current monastery on M-26, they’ll build other monastic housing up along the ridge. They’re also hoping to start a large pilgrimage church to draw international visitors. It’s something they’ve been planning since the Skete started 25 years ago.
Currently they’re working on improving logging roads and building trails to create a monastic park, with small trailside chapels, and possibly retreat cabins for people to experience solitude.
“I think the silence and the solitude provide a space for getting in touch with God; that’s not really possible in most folks’ lives,” Father Basil said.
Last fall the monks cleared an area for an orchard. They plan to plant apple, pear, cherry and plum trees. The monks say the projects will develop slowly, over a ten year period, or longer.