Above 63

If I’m alert, I can see the Lake Express Ferry arrive and depart Milwaukee most days during the season. It’s unmistakable as it speeds out of the harbor at more than 30 knots. I’ve been taking some form of a ferry across Lake Michigan for 45 years. I’m always struck by the number of people who haven’t had the opportunity to take this transport mode somewhere. I recommend it to you all.

I love taking ferries and I often use them when I travel. The ferry is an “action pause” in the trip. When I’m sitting on the ferry I can relax, think, reflect, or nap. Sometimes I can do all of those things. Even short runs offer a few moments to sit, relax, and grab a cup of coffee while continuing forward on the journey. I was pausing on this idea the other day and realized how many ferries I have taken and how many I still want to take. I began to think of them in three categories: transport ferries, commuter ferries, and tourist ferries (however like all categories–there is overlap). There are also the ferries I hope to take.

There is a novelty about a ferry ride for people who don’t/haven’t taken them as an ordinary means of transportation. I once did a consultation for a college in western Michigan. They offered to fly me in and I suggested that they buy me a ferry ticket and that would be easier because I could bring my car. After they checked to see if they could reimburse a ferry ride, I had a lovely October trip across Lake Michigan. During the 2-day consultation, I was introduced at every session as “This is Julio Rivera, and he took the ferry.” My expertise and qualifications were skipped over for this novel tidbit about me.

Transport Ferries

SS Badger–The first time I crossed Lake Michigan was on the SS Badger in 1981 from Ludington to Milwaukee. I’ve always liked to say that I went back to college by boat one year. The ship had been built to move railroad cars across Lake Michigan and it also carried autos and passengers. The ship was almost 30 years old and had seen better days. The business model of the ferries was in trouble. Still, I got a cabin for the overnight crossing and woke up in Milwaukee the next morning. Its sister ship, the SS Spartan sits at the dock in Ludington and has served as a source for spare parts for the Badger since 1979.

By the 1990s the Badger had new owners and the ship had been upgraded for car and passenger service between Michigan and Wisconsin. By the early 2000s there was interest in creating a high-speed line across the lake. Although I didn’t work for Milwaukee, I did a consulting job for another community looking at the economic viability of a ferry. I told them to move forward and that the idea should work. Milwaukee moved faster. The ferry not only saves time, but I get to relax for 2 hours instead of spending the time and effort driving through Chicago and Northern Indiana.

The Lake Express Ferry (as well as the other ferries I’ve taken) is an elegant shortcut. I don’t want to suggest that I’m saving a lot of time. I am taking a more direct route. It’s one of my favorite ways to travel in and out of the city. In a about two and a half hours I can find myself in Michigan and then a short drive to visit friends or places across the state. I once got to spend 15 minutes with a high school classmate I hadn’t seen in years as we discovered each other at the docks.

Killimer–Tarbert Ferry, Ireland–This runs between Killimer and Tarbert and was a negotiation with the friend I was traveling with. He liked to drive and wanted to take the extra 1.5 hours to drive the countryside. I wanted to have a ferry ride. As you can see it was a good day for me.

Ometepe, Nicaragua–For a number of years I brought students to Ometepe Island in Nicaragua to work with locals and experience rural Latin America. There were a variety of ferries that served the route in those years, ranging from small banana boats to larger car ferries. The lake is also part of the “never built” Nicaragua Canal.

Commuter Ferries

I love the Washington State Ferries. They have this elegant green and white motif and feel like transportation from another time. I know people who do use the ferry to get to work in Seattle. I’ve often thought that living on Bainbridge Island and commuting into Seattle would be a lovely pause after the pressures of work all day. My wife and I were on the ferry between Whidbey Island and Port Townsend during the week when the pandemic began to shut down the world. The ferry was eerily empty–even for the off season. Still the crossing was beautiful.

New York City ferries are fast and efficient. I was staying in New York and meeting a friend for breakfast in Hoboken. It was below 0°F and exceptionally cold that day as we buzzed across the Hudson River. Somehow I’ve never taken the Staten Island Ferry. I’m not sure how that happened, but now I have a friend who lives on the Island and I’m going to make the journey.

Tourist Ferries

I was introduced to the tourist ferry at an early age on a trip to Mackinac Island. Since then I’ve been on a number of ferries that cater to tourists. Even though these are tourist ferries, most serve residents that rely on them for supplies and transport to the mainland.

Mackinac Island Ferries–Like many who grew up in Michigan, I made the summer trek north to the straits of Mackinac and took the ferry from Mackinaw City or St. Ignace to Mackinac Island. I also worked at a summer camp near Gaylord where we took the campers to visit the island. At one time during the 18th century, this area was one of the world’s economic hubs and military strongholds because of the fur trade. If you have not been there, today tourists launch from Mackinaw City or St. Ignace to spend a day on the island without automobiles, eating fudge, and buying souvenirs. My favorite thing to do is bicycle around the island.

This past summer I had a special trip on one of their ferries between Mackinaw City and St. Ignace. They were doing some special runs after the Mackinac Bridge walk because the bridge was partially closed and traffic was heavy after the walk. It was the same route used before the bridge opened in 1957.

Isle Royale Ferries–We took the Isle Royale Queen out of Copper Harbor, Michigan on our honeymoon. It was a 4 hour crossing on Lake Superior to arrive at the most moose populated place on the planet. It was a rough crossing that day, but the beauty of the island made it worth it. The trip back was smooth. There is a shorter ferry in Minnesota, but we were in Michigan.

Playa del Carmen to Cozumel–To be honest, all I remember about this ferry is that it was blazing hot, crowded and there were a lot of vendors on board. I thought I had a photo of it, but it must only be etched in my mind. I also remember it was fast, which was a blessing that day.

Hebrides Ferries–I can’t count the number of ferries in the Inner and Outer Hebrides. While visiting Scotland I enjoyed a few of them as we went between Mull, Iona, and Staffa. I would recommend Staffa for puffin watching.

Washington Island–I have friends who live here and I’ve made the Death’s Door Crossing a number of times–even in winter. For the island residents it isn’t a tourist ferry, but during the high season there are a number of day trip transits.

Governors Island–I have a friend in NYC who loves to go here. It used to be home to US Coast Guard personnel and their families. You can now visit or stay there overnight for glamping.

Ferry Flaws

Ferries are not perfect. Like other forms of transportation, there are weather delays and sometimes mishaps. I’m on the email list for both the Badger and the Lake Express. Occasionally Lake Michigan is a fierce sea and they will suspend operations for the day. Once when traveling they emailed me to let me know there was a mechanical failure and that there was no transit that day. I was reminded during the whole drive around Lake Michigan how much I like the ferry.

When I used to take students to work in rural Nicaragua the ferry to Ometepe Island was a different adventure every year. Some years it was a big boat, some years it was a small boat, some years the crossing was easy–others not so much. The most exciting year was when the ferry sank the day before our departure. We took a different, smaller boat from a nearby town the next day, but we were able to see our original boat being raised off the harbor floor in Rivas.

Ferries I’d Like to Take

I began to think of them in three overlapping categories: transport ferries, commuter ferries, and tourist ferries. Then There are a few I’m hoping to take:

• Vestmannaeyjabær (Westman Islands), Iceland–I didn’t make it there when I lived there. It’s one of my regrets from my stay in the country.
• The English Channel–I want to make the crossing.
• Catalina Island–I was reminded of this when I heard the song by the 4 Preps (26 Miles).
• Ferry between Shetland and Aberdeen–I’ve watched too many episodes of Shetland.
• Ferry between Denmark and Iceland–I was reminded of this because of a recent news story about a possible ferry between Scotland and Iceland.
• Ferry to Vieques–as often as I’ve been to Puerto Rico and to Fajardo (my dad’s hometown) near Ceiba, I haven’t done the ferry to Vieques–yet.
• Bay of Fundy–Big tides and big water sound like fun.
• Spain to Morocco (and so many more Mediterranean crossings). I like the idea of taking a ferry between Europe and Africa.

There are plenty of crossings left to make. What keeps drawing me back is that action pause: a little time to sit, watch the water, and keep moving.

There is something about watching the shore drift away, even when I know what waits on the other side. For a while, I’m out on the water, feeling the wind and watching another coastline come into view. Some of the crossings I’m dreaming about will take me to unfamiliar ports. Others will bring me back to places I’ve loved. I want to be on board for both. Part of the pleasure is the crossing itself. For a while, I can leave the buzz of the world and watch the shoreline, and have a cup of coffee. I’m taking a break, and I’m still on my way.