Midwest Travel Adventures: The SS Badger

 I have a wonderful longtime friend, Amy, who invited me to come for a visit to their family cottage in northern Michigan. From where I live in Wisconsin, it would be a loooong drive and of course that lovely loop around the bottom of Lake Michigan and Chicago traffic...ugh. However, Amy made the comment that there is a ferry that cuts across Lake Michigan, that might be an idea. Oh , my gosh and what a fun idea it was!  I got busy with the idea with several internet searches and then I got hooked on the idea. I formulated a game plan, and I booked my tickets!

I wasn't saving anything on travel time, but it sure made the travel more enjoyable and broke up the tedious time behind the wheel. If I had driven entirely by car, it would have been approximately 9 1/2 to a 10-hour drive. That time doesn't include meal stops, potty breaks and the evitable: "Oh, my Gosh I have to stop for a minute and get a picture of that...Wow!" People who travel with me know I am a real shutter bug; I can hardly wait to document the trip in photos. So, on the boat I could take as my photos as I wanted and did not have to worry about keeping my eyes on the road. The SS badger leaves from Manitowoc, Wisconsin and takes a scenic, leisurely ride across Lake Michigan and arrives in Ludington, Michigan about 4 hours later.

First and foremost, I love the name SS Badger! What a great tribute to the Wisconsin Badgers.  Upon my arrival in Manitowoc, I decided to go to the port and check out where I would be checking in for the ferry ride the next day. Originally, I was going to make the 4 1/2 jaunt across the state of Wisconsin and try to make it by 1 pm boarding time.  This was supposed to be a fun trip to eliminate stress, not create it. So with encouragement from friends, and my husband, I booked a hotel and would board the next day. Nevertheless, when checking out the waterfront I came across this fellow: a 14 ft. high Badger statue named: "Shipbuilder". The sculptor, Carl Vanderheyden, choose the name to pay homage to the long shipbuilding history in the city of Manitowoc. The fact that it is a Badger in the state of Wisconsin and right by the SS Badger dock...well that is an easy connection to make. It is an interesting statue, although a bit creepy if you look up into his eyes.   It's almost as if he is getting into attack mode.  Although makes for some great photo opps on the waterfront.

 

The SS Badger was originally built in 1952 for transporting railroad cars across Lake Michigan.  She is the largest Great Lakes car ferry ever constructed and is the only coal fired passenger steam ship currently operating in the United States.  After she began operating as a car ferry and cargo ship, car ferry traffic dramatically decreased, and profits declined. The Badger was sold to Michigan Wisconsin Transportation (MWT) company who in 1990 faced bankruptcy.  The ship's fate was rescued by entrepreneur/philanthropist Charles Conrad who purchased MWT and revised that mission for the Badger.  She was revamped to become a passenger focused ferry in 1992.   After transporting millions of passengers across the Lake, she was granted National Historic Landmark status in 2016.  Another tid-bit of information about the water route taken by the Badger, is that the route from Manitowoc to Ludington is officially designated as part of US Highway 10, so the ship completes a 565 stretch of highway spanning across fours states in the Midwest from Fargo, North Dakota to Bay City, Michigan. Not as impressive as Route 66, but nevertheless quite a long pathway.

 The system they have for loading the ship is truly amazing and streamlined. You check in, pull your vehicle up to a designated spot and leave your keys in the car.  This in itself felt weird, but they have a terrific system. Then they have a team of individuals on the "SS Badger Crew" that load all the vehicles on to the ship. That is quite an amazing feat, because this ship can hold up to 180 vehicles and also 600 passengers!  Frankly, the ship is so large and intimidating I was happy to have my vehicle loaded by experienced professionals. I have enough trouble lining my tires up properly in the carwash, much less going up the ramp and not into Lake Michigan! They looked to me like college students who had snagged a really good summer job. Young drivers, but when I was watching them...they did a great job and took great care with every vehicle. And with their bright orange vests it was easy to see that your car was not being taken by just "anybody."

Another bonus on this trip for me, in addition to seeing the beautiful scenery of Lake Michigan, I also got my "lighthouse fix" with great views of three lighthouse: one in Manitowoc, one in Ludington and one in Charlevoix. I enjoyed looking up the histories of these structures and once again marveling at the fact that there is a higher concentration of lighthouses surrounding the Great Lakes than any other place in the world. Which is not a surprise with over 10,000 miles of shoreline. As long as we are discussing lighthouses, it's also interesting that there are more lighthouses in the state of Michigan than any other state: 121 to be exact.

Manitowoc Breakwater Lighthouse
Manitowoc, WI.   

The first lighthouse I saw on this journey, was right in the harbor where the SS Badger resides on the Wisconsin side. Congress had appropriated $5,000 for the construction of a lighthouse at Manitowoc in 1837.  The original operated until 1877.  Construction of a large pier began when it was determined that a light on a breakwater was deemed more suitable. The Manitowoc lighthouse was re-built in 1918 and rises 50' high. It has an interesting design that wraps the lighthouse keeper's quarters around the tower. The previous structure had the tower and the lighthouse keeper residence separate.

Ludington North Breakwater Light
Ludington, MI.

After crossing the Lake on the Badger, drifting into the Ludington harbor I saw another iconic lighthouse: Ludington North Breakwater Light. When reading about the history of this Light, I found out why many structures are just called "lights" and not lighthouses.  Pretty logical explanation: no lighthouse keepers' quarters were attached. Simple enough, but I still have a tendency to call all such structures "lighthouses." At least now I know the distinction. 

The first Ludington light was constructed and lit in 1871. In 1924 the present tower was built with steel plates over a steel skeleton.  The unusual shape was designed to deflect the strong waves of Lake Michigan. With the SS Badger going in and out of the harbor, a summer tradition for folks is walking out on the pier to wave at the passengers passing on that gigantic boat passing by the breakwater. Conversely, as passengers we waved back to those on the breakwater by the lighthouse.  It just felt like mutual admiration and enjoyment of a tranquil, summer day.

The last lighthouse viewing, on this journey anyway, was not from the decks of the Badger, but worth an honorable mention: the Charlevoix South Pier Lighthouse.  My friend Amy and I travelled a little bit north to the city of Charlevoix. Charming little city with great shopping, cuisine and since the city is on Lake Michigan: a lighthouse! It is quite small, by lighthouse standards, but I think has a special charm.  It is owned by the city of Charlevoix, and it maintained and preserved by the Charlevoix Historical Society.  Originally it was built as a simple frame with a lantern on top.  In 1914 it was replaced with a sturdy steel structure and for years it was painted white.  In 1968, in addition to other refurbishing and restoration efforts, it was painted bright red as it remains today.

So many intriguing sights and adventures here in the Midwest!  I have always been a Midwestern gal; there is so much joy to be found right here in the Heartland.