Great Lakes Boat Blog

MV Manitowoc arrives in Manistee

April 9, 2025

Photos by Rob Alway, Editor-in-Chief MANISTEE — The 630-foot long MV Manitowoc arrived in Manistee today, the first freighter of the new shipping season. It is docked in Filer City and appears to be delivering coal. The River Class vessel is owned by Rand Logistics and operated under its subsidiary Grand River Navigation Company. The self-unloading vessel was built in…

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Jr. Capt. Gabriel’s SS Badger ferry adventure

April 6, 2025

GRIMMS, Wis. — Mary Svacina has had a tradition of taking each of her grandsons on a Round Trip Mini Cruise on the SS Badger ever since they each turned 5 years old. Last summer, she took her youngest grandson, Gabriel. Svacina, 71, lives in Grimms, Wis., located in Manitowoc County, about 15 miles from the Badger’s Manitowoc dock. She said the Lake…

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2025 Badger sailing season offers new food and beverage choices

April 3, 2025

LUDINGTON — The S.S. Badger cross lake ferry features some of the best food and drinks on Lake Michigan. The 2025 sailing season features enhanced culinary and beverage choices. “We have listened to our passengers and are providing some new options to make their cruise an even more enjoyable experience,” said Wesley Paggeot, Lake Michigan Carferry director of hospitality. The…

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For Shari Vandervest, the Badger is more than a job, it’s family

March 26, 2025

By Rob Alway, Editor-in-Chief LUDINGTON — Lake Michigan Carferry Office Manager Shari Vandervest knows a thing or two about the car ferry operation. She has worked for LMC for three decades. “I was hired as a temporary worker with Manpower in 1994. I was only supposed to be here for six months,” Vandervest said. “Thirty-one years later, I’m still here…

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Badger turns 72 today

March 21, 2025

By Rob Alway, Editor-in-Chief LUDINGTON — The SS Badger turns 72 years ago today. On March 21, 1953, the 410-foot Badger made its maiden voyage from Ludington to Milwaukee. It was the last of the great cross-lake ferries built for service on Lake Michigan, a tradition that began in Ludington 150 years ago this year. In 1951, the C&O Railroad…

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