biggest yachts on the great lakes

$125M super yacht reportedly owned by an English billionaire is cruising the Great Lakes

No, your eyes don't deceive you — that is a 217-foot, $125-million super yacht cruising the Great Lakes. 

The Hampshire, reportedly owned by English billionaire Andrew Currie, has been making its way around the Upper Peninsula this month, stopping in various destinations, including Mackinac Island. 

Currie, a biofuel executive who is a director with chemical company Ineos, is worth about $3.5 billion, making him the 504th richest person on Forbes' billionaires 2019 list . 

While Currie is not publicly connected to the ship, MLive and the Mining Gazette   report the multibillionaire owns the Hampshire. Currie is also connected to Hampshire I, another super yacht that appeared at the Cannes Film Festival in May. 

The Dutch-built Hampshire can sleep 12 guests and carries a crew of 17 people, according to Boat International . The boat also features an on-deck pool.

The yacht stopped in Milwaukee on Aug. 7, according to the  Milwaukee Business Journal , then headed toward Traverse City.  TV6 also caught the yacht Aug. 12 in Marquette's Lower Harbor, where the station reported that crew members stopped on shore to support local business.

A Mackinac Island State Harbor employee said the Hampshire docked at the island Monday and was still there Tuesday morning. According to boat tracking site Vessel Finder , the yacht has a set destination of "cruising Great Lakes."

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$85M Luxury Superyacht Spotted Cruising Michigan Waters

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Aside from the freighters, this may be the biggest vessel on the Great Lakes. The magnificent 209' international luxury yacht 'Scout' is in Michigan waters.

Billionaire James Berwind and his partner Kevin Clark began making sketches on a napkin of a ship designed to be a semi-permanent base from which they could explore the world. A few years and $85 million later, they set sail on their dream voyage. With a helicopter pad and a hot tub with a swim-up bar, this boat just might be nicer than your house.

The $85 million superyacht Scout was spotted June 28 on the St. Clair River heading into Lake Huron after passing under the Blue Water Bridge. As of July 1 it was anchored in Lake Huron off the east side of Mackinac Island .

The luxurious superyacht sleeps 10 guests in 5 cabins and has a crew of 17 to keep her sailing the world. Designed by London's H2 Yacht Design, a Dutch company called Hakvoort was commissioned to construct the international behemoth. With two Caterpillar engines, it can cruise at 15 knots just about anywhere in the world. (See more naval-type tech stats here .)

Of course, there are ample sundecks, areas for relaxation and spacious quarters for the guests. The "private owner’s apartment is accessed via a library studded with nautical-themed artifacts" and includes a "hidden bar area." Scout also has a helicopter pad, a jacuzzi with a swim-up bar and a greenhouse and dog park on board.

You can see more photos here and watch video of the massive $85M luxury superyacht sailing Michigan waters below.

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The Ultimate List of 1,000 Foot Freighters on the Great Lakes

It’s hard to pick a favorite freighter when there are nearly countless vessels that call the Great Lakes home and rely on the Soo Locks to haul cargo. Because traveling into Lake Superior is so important for the shipping industry, there are 13 freighters which push the envelope on how large a freighter can be. Throughout the 1970s and early 1980s, freighters measuring over 1,000 ft. were all the rage. These bulk carriers were designed with the maximum dimensions of the Poe Lock in mind. They’re so large, they can’t travel outside of the Great Lakes. We’re thankful they call the lakes home and are frequent fliers to Sault Ste. Marie.

We’ve gathered up information on all 13 of them to help you keep track of the largest freighters on the Great Lakes. Be sure to hover your cursor over the photos or to tap them on your mobile device to display each vessel’s stats. For more information on these freighters, be sure to visit our TikTok which features facts, trivia, and sometimes just peaceview views of these freighters and more.

Stewart J. Cort

Launched: May 1, 1972

Company: Interlake Steamship Co.

Size: 1,000’00”

Capacity: 58,000 tons

Engine Horsepower: 14,000 bhp

The Stewart J. Cort is the one that started it all. In fact the “#1” painted on her aft house celebrates her distinction as the first 1,000 footer. By being the first 1,000 footer, “Stubby,” as she’s affectionately known was in turn briefly the Queen of the Great Lakes (the crown the largest ship on the lakes wears.) Construction for the Stewart J. Cort’s bow and stern begin in 1970 in Mississippi. She was transported up north and in 1971 she had her hull inserted. Her unusual design and method of fabrication gave her the nickname “Stubby.” Her maiden voyage was on May 1, 1972.

Presque Isle

Launched: Dec. 16, 1973

Company: Great Lakes Fleet

Capacity: 57,500 tons

Engine Horsepower: 14,840

The Presque Isle is the only 1,000-foot tugboat/barge combination on the Great Lakes and is the largest of its kind in the world. Construction cost a reported $35 million, which equates to over $252 million in 2023.

James R. Barker

Launched: Aug. 7, 1976

Size: 1,004’00”

Capacity: 63,300 tons

Engine Horsepower: 16,000

Mesabi Miner

Launched: June 11, 1977

Company: Interlake Steamship Co

Walter J. McCarthy Jr.

Launched: July 12, 1977

Company: American Steamship Co.

Capacity: 89,000 tons

Engine Horsepower: 14,000

American Integrity

Launched: June 8, 1978

Capacity: 80,900 tons

Engine Horsepower: 14,400

American Spirit

Launched: July 15, 1978

Capacity: 62,400 tons

Edwin H. Gott

Launched: July 19, 1978

Capacity: 74,100 tons

Engine Horsepower: 19,500

With two 8-cylinder MaK/Caterpillar 8m43C diesel engines capable of producing 19,500 horsepower, the Edwin H. Gott is the most powerful freighter on the Great Lakes. Her younger sister the Edgar B. Speer is nearly identical.

Indiana Harbor

Launched: March 19, 1979

Capacity: 89,900 tons

Burns Harbor

Launched: Oct. 28, 1979

Edgar B. Speer

Launched: June 4, 1980

Capacity: 73,700 tons

Engine Horsepower: 19,600

American Century

Launched: Nov. 8, 1980

Paul R. Tregurtha

Launched: Feb. 4, 1981

Company: Interlake Steamship co.

Size: 1,013’05”

Capacity: 68,000 tons

Engine Horsepower: 17,120

The Paul R. Tregurtha is the current “Queen of the Great Lakes” and the longest reigning “Queen” the Great Lakes has seen. Big Paulie as she’s affectionately known was the last of the 1,000 ft. freighters capping off a decade of ship builds the Great Lakes has never seen and may never see again. The Tregurtha was the last freighter built on the Great Lakes for nearly 30 years until her newest fleetmate, the Mark W. Barker set sail in 2022. Want to take a look at the PRT? View a TikTok on her here . If you’re into vertical videos, we have feature videos on most of the 1,000 footers available here .

1,013 ft. of Freighter Facts

Looking to learn a bit more about these freighters while visiting the Soo Locks? Be sure to take a look along the fence at the Soo Locks Park. You’ll find 13 banners spaced out over 1,013 ft. with each one featuring one of the 1,000 footers. These banners make for great reading material while waiting to watch one of these giant freighters use the Soo Locks.

These 13 freighters are some of the main reasons people visit Sault Ste. Marie, and they’re a huge part of what makes the Soo a unique travel destination. Which one of these lake freighters is your favorite? Be sure to tag your freighter photos with the hashtag #ilovethesoo on social media while visiting Sault Ste. Marie. And don’t forget to tag us on your post on Facebook,   Twitter ,  Pinterest , TikTok , and Instagram.

Special thank you to BoatNerd.com for being a great resource for freighter information

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See 20 monster boats of the Great Lakes in gorgeous photos

• Published: Apr. 17, 2017, 11:00 a.m.
• Peter Krouse, cleveland.com

The Great Lakes: A boat-watcher's playground

They're called boatnerds, people who relish the commercial ships that navigate the Great Lakes, delivering iron ore, coal and other aggregates from one port, or one lake, to another.

All of us have a little bit of boatnerd in us. The site of a floating, steel-hulled monster nudging its way up the Cuyahoga River is especially captivating.

Now that the ice (what little we had this year) has melted away and the shipping season has begun with the opening of the Soo Locks between Lake Superior and Lake Huron, we offer up a colorful look at several of the boats that call the Great Lakes home.

These lakers are long, multi-hold vessels with storied histories. Many were designed to bring taconite (iron ore) pellets from the iron ranges of Michigan and Minnesota to the steel mills that dot the lakes, including those at the southern tip of Lake Michigan and the North Coast of Northeast Ohio.

Most of the following information used to describe the boats comes from boatnerd.com, a website for those who relish the commercial ships that navigate the inland seas of the United States. Authors of the information on boatnerd.com are noted when applicable.

By Peter Krouse, cleveland.com

Graphic by Phizzy  ( talk ) under Creative Commons license Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported ( CC BY-SA 3.0 )

Interlake Steamship

Herbert C. Jackson

The Herbert C. Jackson is 690 feet long and was the last steamer in the Interlake Steamship fleet to be converted to diesel power in 2016.

It began service in 1959 and was named for Herbert Cooper Jackson, then managing partner of Pickands Mather, which owned Interlake Steamship. It was the penultimate boat built by the Great Lakes Engineering Works in River Rouge, Mich.

It's the shortest laker in the fleet and has occasionally been called on for other duties. In 1970, it helped deliver 50 Christmas trees to the White House, transporting them from a port on Lake Superior to Cleveland.

And in 1986, it rescued two boaters who had been adrift in Lake Michigan for 80 hours.

James L. Oberstar

The 806-foot Hon. James L. Oberstar is an Interlake Steamship vessel named for a former Congressman from Minnesota. It also was the first U.S. flagship to be fitted with exhaust gas scrubbers.

The ship was built by American Ship Building Co. in Toledo for the Shenango Furnace Co. of Pittsburgh and was christened the Shenango II in Cleveland in 1959, according to George Wharton at boatnerd.com. It was sold to Interlake in 1967 and renamed the Charles M. Beeghly, for the then-chairman and CEO of the Jones & Laughlin Steel Corp.

The ship was converted to a self-unloading vessel in 1981 and in 2007 it was renamed for Oberstar, considered a great friend to the Great Lakes shipping industry.

Paul R. Tregurtha

This monster is the longest ship on the Great Lakes, according to George Wharton on boatnerd.com. The Paul R. Tregurtha, also known as "Queen of the Lakes" can carry 68,000 gross tons.

The Tregurtha is so long it was built in two places. The bow and part of the cargo hold were put together by American Ship Building Co. in Toledo and the stern was fashioned in Lorain. The vessel was christened in 1981 and originally named the William J. De Lancey after the then-chairman of Interlake customer Republic Steel.

The relatively new ship came with elevators and finely appointed decor for crew and passengers. It was nicknamed the "Fancy De Lancey," according to Wharton.

The ship was the last Great Lakes vessel built in Lorain and was renamed in 1990 for then-Interlake vice chairman Paul R. Tregurtha in 1990, who was also chairman of the firm's parent company.

Paul Scinocca

H. Lee White, movie star

The H. Lee White, owned by American Steamship, made its maiden voyage in 1974 and over the years has been a favorite of boat-watchers, according to George Wharton on boatnerd.com.

Two things are noteworthy about the ship. It has had a few accidents, including taking out a section of the toll bridge at Grosse Ile, Mich. It's also in the movies.

During the open credits of the movie Major League, you can see the H. Lee White on the Cuyahoga River, according to "The Third Coast: Sailors, Strippers, Fishermen, folksingers, Long-haired Ojibway Painters and God-Save-the-Queen Monarchists of the Great Lakes," by Ted McClelland.

Mesabi Miner

The Mesabi Miner is one of the 13 super carriers of 1,000 feet or more that sail the Great Lakes, according to George Wharton on boatnerd.com. It's maiden voyage in 1977 was from Lorain, to Superior, Wisconsin, to pick up a load of iron ore. It still hauls iron ore and coal for Interlake Steamship.

The ship was christened the Mesabi Miner in Duluth, Minnesota, in 1977 by Muriel Humphrey, wife of Hubert H. Humphrey, former senator from Minnesota and vice president of the United States.

Stewart J. Cort

The Stewart J. Cort was the first boat of at least 1,000 feet in length on the Great Lakes. It holds 58,000 gross tons.

The Cort was named after a former vice president of Bethlehem Steel. Its first trip was in 1972, according to Jody L. Aho on boatnerd.com.

Construction on the Cort began in Pascagoula, Mississippi, and was completed in Erie, Pennsylvania, after being brought into Lake Erie through the Welland Canal, according Aho.

The boat is distinctive because of all the super-long ore boats on the lake, it's the only one with the pilot house at the front of the ship.

Dorothy Ann-Pathfinder

The Dorothy Ann-Pathfinder is well known to Clevelanders as it is short enough to navigate the narrow and winding Cuyahoga River. The Dorothy Ann is a tug and the the Pathfinder is a barge.

The Pathfinder went into service in 1953 as the J.L. Mauthe, according to Jody L. Aho on boatnerd.com. It hauled ore and then mostly grain until it became outdated. Instead of mothballing the ship, it was converted into a barge and connected to the tug Dorothy Ann to become a useful vessel.

Defiance-Ashtabula

The tug Defiance and barge Ashtabula operate as one ship. They began their career shuttling phosphate and coal between Tampa Bay, Florida, and the lower Mississippi River for Beker Industries of Greenwich, Connecticut At that time they were known as the barge Mary Turner and tug Beverly Anderson, according to Tom Hynes on boatnerd.com.

Rand Logistics Inc. bought the barge and tug in 2011 and brought them back to the Great Lakes in 2012 where they began hauling sand.

The Manitowoc was originally christened the Paul Thayer in 1973. It later became the Earl W. Oglebay before being sold to the Wisconsin and Michigan Steamship Co. of Lakewood in 2006 and then to Rand Logistics of New York in 2008, after which it was renamed the Manitowoc, according to Brian Ferguson on boatnerd.com.

Paul Scinooca

Arthur M. Anderson

The Arthur M. Anderson will be forever linked to one of the great maritime tragedies in U.S. history. The Anderson was the last vessel to have contact with the ill-fated Edmund Fitzgerald on Nov. 10, 1975, shortly before it sank to the bottom of stormy Lake Superior, according to George Wharton on boatnerd.com.

It was built for the Pittsburgh Steamship Division of U.S. Steel Corp. and commissioned in 1952. Three other identical boats, the Philip R. Clarke, John G. Munson and since-scrapped William Clay Ford, were commissioned about the same time.

In 1981, the Anderson was converted into a self-unloading vessel.

Cason J. Callaway

When the Calloway first sailed in 1952, it was believed to be the largest vessel capable of turning around in the Conneaut harbor, according to Jody L. Aho on boatnerd.com. Conneaut was a major unloading port for iron ore destined for U.S. Steel.

The Calloway was built in River Rouge, Michigan, at the Great Lakes Engineering Works. Like many of the ships on the Great Lakes, it has had its share of collisions with other boats. When the Calloway struck the B.F. Jones in the St. Mary's River in 1955, the Jones was a total loss.

The ship was named for a Georgian textile magnate who founded Callaway Gardens and was a member of the U.S. Steel board of directors.

Edgar B. Speer

The Edgar B. Speer is a unique ship in that its unloading system can only handle iron ore pellets and only at the ports of Gary, Indiana, and Conneaut, according to George Wharton on boatnerd.com.

The ship was built in two sections, one in Toledo and the other in Lorain, by the American Ship Building. It was commissioned in 1980 and named for a former head of U.S. Steel.

Photo, Paul Scinocca

Great Republic

The Great Republic, formerly known as the American Republic, was built to navigate the narrow and winding Cuyahoga River. It's pilot house was placed at the extreme back end of the boat to give its officers the best view of the twisting river, according to Todd Davidson on boatnerd.com.

The ship was used to deliver the Olympic flame Detroit to Cleveland in 1996.

Roger Blough

The Roger Blough is another biggie. It was launched in 1972 after a delay of nearly a year caused by an engine fired that resulted in the death of four workers who asphyxiated.

The ship is named for a former U.S. Steel chairman. It was built with more flexibility to withstand rough going, as George Wharton explains in boatnerd.com.

"The hull of the Roger Blough was built so that it actually undulates as the vessel works in heavy seas," according to Wharton. "This hull will heave and bend thus arching her back as she negotiates the waves. This form of construction contrasts with older, smaller vessels whose rigid hulls were constructed with two arch supports stretching nearly the full length of the vessel resulting in a 'springing' action while working heavy seas."

Indiana Harbor

The ninth 1,000-foot freighter to be built for operation on the Great Lakes, the Indiana Harbor began service in 1979. It carried a record 69,528 net tons of iron ore through the Soo Locks in 1998, according to George Wharton on boatnerd.com.

The ship also has the distinction of being the first U.S. flagged vessel to have a satellite communication system.

American Mariner

The American Mariner was built by Bay Shipbuilding Co. in Sturgeon Bay, Wisc. Her first voyage in 1979 was from Sturgeon Bay to Escanaba, Michigan, where it picked up iron ore for shipment to Ashtabula, according to George Wharton on boatnerd.com.

John J. Boland

This boat was built in Sturgeon Bay, Wisc., in 1973 by the Bay Shipbuilding Co. It was originally named for Charles E. Wilson, a former CEO of General Electric and U.S. Secretary of Defense. Owner American Steamship renamed the boat after Boland, one of the company's founders, in 2000.

American Courage

If this ship looks familiar because it is the Fred R. White Jr., a frequent traveler up and down the Cuyahoga River. In 2006, Oglebay Norton sold the White and several other ships to American Steamship Co. and its name was changed to American Courage, according to Brian Ferguson on boatnerd.com.

JuanPDP, Creative Commons

William G. Mather

The Mather was built in 1925 and has long been out of service. It's now a museum on the Cleveland waterfront.

Chuck Crow, The Plain Dealer

William G. Mather, the Lego version

If the real version of the William G. Mather doesn't catch your fancy, check out this Lego version of the real thing by Todd Wolfe on display at the Great Lakes Science Center.

Dan Morgan, for Cleveland-Cuyahoga County Port Authority

Fortunagracht

The Cleveland-Cuyahoga County Port Authority began a regular container service between Cleveland and Antwerp, Belgium, in 2014. One of the ships that makes the run is the Dutch-owned Fortunagracht. Unlike the lakers, the Fortunagracht carries containers and other general cargo.

Ships like the Fortunagracht that ply the oceans and also enter the Great Lakes are called "salties."

Travel up the Cuyahoga River on an ore boat (video)

Travel along with the Dorothy Ann-Pathfinder as it makes its way up the Cuyahoga River with a loan of iron ore destined for the Arcelor-Mittal steel plant.

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Great Lakes Charter Cruising

Private charter yacht vacation in great lakes.

An unknown wonderland hidden within the Midwest of America, the Great Lakes cover more than 94,000 square miles and encompass 5 lakes; Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie and Ontario. Explore the vast expanse of interconnecting lakes by private yacht charter and experience the unique mix of mesmerizing landscapes, diverse wildlife and cosmopolitan cities that make the great inland oceans an enchanting yacht charter destination.

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• Charlevoix, MI - Traverse City: Beaver Island, Mackinac Island, Round Island, Petoskey, Traverse City.
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• Power Island - Traverse City: Northport, Charlevoix, Omena Bay/Northport, Elk Rapids, Sutton’s Bay.

Great Lakes Charter Yacht Season

June through September

Great Lakes Charter Vacation Activities

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Got $50 million? Famed Great Lakes yacht for sale

• Vessel was launched in 1921
• Boat once caught fire and sank en route to New York
• Staterooms for 20 guests and a crew of 55

DETROIT -- For sale: a true piece of Detroit's past glory. Asking price: $50 million, or best offer.

The Belgian owners of the steam-powered Delphine, once the pride of the Great Lakes and the personal vessel of automaker Horace Dodge, is for sale at its base in Tunisia in northern Africa.

Listed at 257 feet long with a 35-foot beam and a 14.5-foot draft, the Delphine is believed to be the largest private yacht ever built on the Great Lakes. Horace Dodge, the younger of the two Dodge brothers, had it built in 1920 in River Rouge by the Great Lakes Engineering Co. He named it after his daughter.

Launched in 1921, the boat was the ultimate in luxury, with private staterooms for 20 guests and a crew of 55. The Dodge family used the boat for cocktail parties, watching boat races, and other entertainments.

But the boat has a troubled history. Horace Dodge died before the Delphine was launched. On a trip to New York in the 1920s, the vessel caught fire and sank. Raised and restored, the vessel ran aground in the Great Lakes in 1940. She was sold to the U.S. Navy during World War II and spent the war years tied up at dockside near Washington, D.C., before returning to Dodge family control after the war.

The Delphine left Detroit in the 1960s and went through various owners until 1997, when the current Belgian owners bought it and restored it to modern luxury, operating it out of Monaco as a charter vessel. A minimum one-month charter cost $1.5 million.

The owners now dock the Delphine in Tunisia and are asking 38 million euros, or just shy of $50 million at today's exchange rate.

William Worden, the retired director of the city of Detroit's historic designation office, may have been the last Detroiter to ever ride on the Delphine. As a teenager in the 1960s, he was aboard as the vessel made its way down to Ecorse to be outfitted for its voyage through the St. Lawrence locks to the East Coast, where it became a training vessel for merchant seaman, one of its many roles. Worden's father was a shipyard worker who got him aboard.

"I never got inside except in the engine room. The passenger cabins were locked up tight," Worden said recently. But the engine rooms were done in a unique configuration, he said, a tribute to Horace Dodge's mechanical fascination with trying new ways of doing things.

Worden noted that there are many interesting stories about the Delphine. He recalls hearing that Adm. Ernest King, the U.S. chief of naval operations in World War II, lived on the docked vessel throughout the war so he could qualify for sea pay. King did indeed use the vessel, temporarily renamed the Dauntless, as his flagship, although the story about sea pay could not be otherwise confirmed.

The Delphine spent much of its life at dockside, including at Rose Terrance, the palatial Dodge residence in Grosse Pointe Farms, long since demolished. That may be a reflection of how much it costs to operate a private vessel as big as a small warship.

Great Lakes cruise guide: Best itineraries, planning tips and things to do

The Great Lakes probably isn't the first place that comes to mind when you think of cruising. But in recent years, the region has grown enormously as a cruise destination — and for good reason. Touring the Great Lakes by ship is by far the easiest way to see a wide range of the area's attractions — from vibrant cities to natural wonders — in a single trip.

When planning Great Lakes cruises, you have many things to consider: when to go for the best Great Lakes cruise experience, which cruise line is best suited to your travel style, the best Great Lakes cruise ports to visit and which shoreside activities you want to prioritize. It's not the kind of trip you want to throw together at the last minute, especially since the best fare deals typically go to organized travelers who book early.

For more cruise guides, news and tips, sign up for TPG's cruise newsletter .

Here, The Points Guy offers up a guide to everything you need to know about planning a sailing in the Great Lakes.

Why cruise the Great Lakes?

The Great Lakes region may not be a bucket list destination on the scale of Alaska or Antarctica. But it has a lot to offer — more than many people may realize.

Along the banks of the five lakes that are at the core of the region — Lake Erie, Lake Ontario, Lake Huron, Lake Michigan and Lake Superior — you'll find some of Middle America's greatest cities, charming small towns, historic sites and wonders both natural and human-made. Plus, there are the lakes themselves, which together are roughly the size of the U.K. and make up the largest freshwater ecosystem on the planet. Accounting for 21% of all the world's fresh water, they truly are a marvel.

All this can be seen via an overland trip, of course, and many people explore the Great Lakes region by car or on motorcoach tours. But the region is so sprawling — the Great Lakes touch eight U.S. states and the Canadian province of Ontario — that logistically it's almost impossible to experience the area in a broad way on a single trip without going by ship.

On a single Great Lakes cruise, you can see the world-class architecture and museums of Chicago, take a carriage ride through the carless streets of Mackinac Island, Michigan, and gaze upon the splendor that is Niagara Falls along the New York border — all without having to get behind the wheel of a car or unpacking and re-packing your suitcase more than once.

When do cruises go to the Great Lakes?

The Great Lakes cruise season is a short one, due mostly to the weather. With winters being cold and snowy in the region, cruise lines stick to the warmer months of May to September for Great Lakes sailings.

The weather isn't the only limiting factor. The cruise season in the Great Lakes is also limited in its length by the opening and closing of the St. Lawrence Seaway — the system of locks, canals and channels that connects the Great Lakes to the Atlantic Ocean. Cruise vessels that operate in the Great Lakes can't access the region until the locks on the St. Lawrence Seaway open for the summer, something that typically happens the last week of March. They need to be out of the Great Lakes before the St. Lawrence Seaway closes for the winter (typically in December).

Great Lakes cruise weather can be chilly at the start of the season, with low temperatures in the 40s in May in some areas and highs in the 60s. It warms up considerably by July and August, with high temperatures in the 70s and 80s.

When you want to go will depend on which activities you want to do, how you feel about cool weather and the price. Cruises at the beginning of the Great Lakes cruise season in May are generally a bit less expensive than those in June, July, August and September.

Best Great Lakes itineraries

A relatively small number of ships sail in the Great Lakes during any given year. But, even so, they offer a wide range of Great Lakes itineraries. Some of the ships that operate in the region will alternate between three or even four different routes during the short summer season, giving you lots of choices.

Lengthwise, you'll find Great Lakes voyages ranging from seven to 15 nights. Some of the sailings travel across all five of the Great Lakes. Others focus on just three or four of the interconnected bodies of water. Some of the ships also offer sailings that combine travel on one or more of the Great Lakes with a passage through the St. Lawrence Seaway. In some cases, these latter trips include travel all the way to Montreal.

The diversity in Great Lakes itineraries extends to their start and end points. A large percentage of all Great Lakes cruises begin or end in Chicago, Milwaukee or Toronto. But there also are Great Lakes sailings that begin or end in Thunder Bay, Ontario; Duluth, Minnesota; Montreal and Detroit.

In most cases, Great Lakes sailings are one-way trips. You'll start in, say, Toronto, and work your way west to Chicago — or vice versa.

Some Great Lakes itineraries only include stops at relatively small towns such as Midland, Parry Sound and Little Current in Ontario; and Muskegon, Marquette and Houghton in Michigan. Others mix in calls at some of the bigger cities of the Great Lakes region, notably Chicago, Milwaukee, Detroit, Cleveland and Toronto. On longer sailings, vessels often will overnight in such places as Green Bay, Wisconsin, and Thunder Bay.

Car-free Mackinac Island at the top of Michigan is a common stop on Great Lakes voyages, as is Niagara Falls, which sits between Lake Erie and Lake Ontario.

Pro tip: If your Great Lakes cruise begins or ends in Chicago, Milwaukee or Toronto, add a pre- or post-cruise stay of a night or two in the cities to see them in more depth.

Best Great Lakes cruise lines

Most of the world's biggest cruise lines — including Royal Caribbean , Norwegian Cruise Line and Carnival Cruise Line — can't operate in the Great Lakes because their ships are too big to enter the region through the St. Lawrence Seaway. This has turned the Great Lakes into an exclusive zone for a handful of smaller cruise operators that focus on very small vessels.

The two main players in Great Lakes cruising are Viking (a newcomer in 2022) and Pearl Seas Cruises. Each has one vessel devoted to the region (Viking Octantis and Pearl Mist, respectively).

Both cater to a generally older crowd, which is the main market for Great Lakes cruises. Viking's itineraries have the most outdoorsy options, while Pearl Seas Cruises offers trips with a lot of small-town stops.

Two more lines that occasionally operate sailings in the region are German line Hapag-Lloyd Cruises and France-based Ponant. Tour organizer Smithsonian Journeys also occasionally offers Great Lakes sailings using chartered Ponant vessels.

All of the above lines operate ships in the Great Lakes that carry fewer than 400 passengers. Some carry as few as 202 passengers. In general, the vessels are intimate and relatively high-end, with pricing to match.

As a rule, Great Lakes sailings don't come cheap. For example, seven-night Viking sailings in the region start at $5,995 per person.

Things to do in the Great Lakes

As noted above, the Great Lakes offer a wide mix of attractions and experiences. During a Great Lakes cruise, you might find yourself climbing aboard the bus where Rosa Parks took a stand at the Henry Ford Museum in Detroit on one day and kayaking through the wild marshlands of Point Pelee, Ontario, the next.

Of the two lines operating in the Great Lakes, Viking has the greatest focus on outdoorsy stops such as Point Pelee (a tiny sandspit that juts into the northwestern corner of Lake Erie and is famous as a stopover for migratory birds). Some of Viking's sailings include a call at Alpena, Michigan — the gateway to a National Maritime Sanctuary, where passengers can kayak past shipwrecks in shallow waters. Another destination that Viking visits, Silver Islet, Ontario, brings the opportunity for a trail walk through Ontario's 94-square-mile Sleeping Giant Provincial Park — a rocky, forested park named for a long line of mesas that resemble a giant lying on its back.

The city-oriented stops that Viking and the other lines make, such as visits to Milwaukee or Chicago on Lake Michigan, give you time to explore the urban sensibility of the region. Brew-town Milwaukee offers the chance to explore the city's craft beer and brewing scene or to take a walking tour to the city's many outdoor sculptures. Chicago is famous for its world-leading architecture (which you can see on walking and boat tours), its Magnificent Mile lined with more stores than you've probably ever seen in one place and its world-class cultural institutions.

Then there are stops at quieter places such as Mackinac Island, where your sightseeing might include an excursion by horse-drawn carriage to historical sites. Of the three main lines operating in the Great Lakes, as noted above, Pearl Seas Cruises focuses the most on the region's small towns, with fewer stops at bigger cities.

One thing that all three of the main lines operating in the Great Lakes have in common is that they include tours during at least some stops and sometimes every stop in their base fares. Pearl Seas Cruises and Viking are particularly known for including lots of shore excursions in their base fares.

Included tours are part of what you're paying for when you pay the high prices noted above. So you can go off on your own in any of the places these ships visit. But you might just have a no-extra-charge outing including many of the highlights of each place already planned for your voyage.

Best Great Lakes cruise ports

The best Great Lakes cruise ports include the handful of relatively big cities in the region, such as Chicago, that are loaded with cultural sites, nightspots and restaurants, as well as charming small towns such as Holland, Michigan. Great Lakes cruises also bring days that are all about getting up close to wonders both natural and human-made — from towering Niagara Falls to the engineering marvel that is the Welland Canal.

Thunder Bay, Ontario

Known as "Canada's Gateway to the West" because it's the final navigational point on the Canadian side of Lake Superior, Thunder Bay is one of Ontario's most vibrant cities and a center for art and culture. It's also a hub for outdoorsy pursuits including mountain biking, rock climbing, kayaking and angling, as it's nestled within boreal forests.

Great architecture and cultural institutions such as the Art Institute of Chicago — along with lots of nightlife, shopping and world-class dining — make Chicago the premier city destination in the Great Lakes region. Many Great Lakes cruises begin or end in Chicago, with some including an overnight in the city, allowing time to explore. Don't miss a stroll down the Magnificent Mile and a sightseeing boat ride on the Chicago River (a great way to get an overview of the city and see some of its architectural gems).

Wisconsin's biggest city is often surprisingly delightful to first-time visitors, home as it is to a Santiago Calatrava-designed art museum with a world-class collection, a Harley-Davidson Museum that our sister site Lonely Planet has dubbed "badass" plus stylish eating and shopping enclaves. Settled by Germans in the 1840s, "Brew City," as it's known, also is a mecca of sorts for beer lovers — and not just because it's home to the original Miller Brewing Company complex, which is open daily for tours. You'll also find lots of craft breweries that you can visit on your own or as part of a tour, and you can tour (and drink at) the original Pabst Brewery.

Holland, Michigan

As the name suggests, Holland is a little bit of The Netherlands transported to the Americas. Settled by Dutch immigrants in the 1800s, it's home to the annual Tulip Time Festival, which takes place every May, and offers up such Holland-themed attractions as Windmill Island Gardens, where you'll find a working Dutch windmill, canals and dikes. Holland's downtown is a charmer with cobblestone sidewalks and more than 100 specialty shops, breweries and restaurants.

Sault Saint Marie, Michigan

Located at the northeastern edge of Michigan's Upper Peninsula, Sault Saint Marie is the site of the Soo Locks, a marvel of engineering that connects Lake Superior to Lake Huron. The locks themselves are the big attractions in Sault Saint Marie — head to the observation deck at Soo Locks Park to watch freighters passing by and learn more at the Soo Locks Visitor Center.

But there are other allures, including the Museum Ship Valley Camp. It's a retired Great Lakes freighter (named Valley Camp) that you can climb into and explore. In addition to touring the living quarters for its 29-person crew, you'll find a 20,000-square-foot maritime museum in its cargo hold with exhibits on the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald and more.

Mackinac Island

The Jewel of the Great Lakes has been a summer getaway for Midwesterners since the Victorian era and it retains much of its Victorian-era charm. The iconic attraction on the island is the 135-year-old Grand Hotel , with its seemingly endless, rocker-lined front porch (the longest in the world). Afternoon tea in the hotel's parlor, or a game of croquet at its Tea Garden, are among Mackinac Island's allures. Tours in a horse-drawn carriage are another popular pastime; cars are banned on the island, leaving horse-drawn carriages as one of the main ways of getting around, along with bicycles. When visiting, don't miss Fort Mackinac, which dates to the 1700s.

Niagara Falls

Located on the short waterway between Lake Erie and Lake Ontario, Niagara Falls is one of the world's most spectacular waterfall complexes (it's actually three waterfalls, not one) with a flow rate greater than any other waterfall in North America and a vertical drop of more than 160 feet. Visitors can take it in both from viewing areas on land and from a tour boat.

Note that Great Lakes cruise vessels don't travel directly on the 36-mile-long strait that connects Lake Erie and Lake Ontario, which is known as the Niagara River (lest they go plunging over the falls). Instead, they use the Welland Canal — another marvel of engineering and an attraction in its own right.

Motor City should probably be called Museum City, as it's home to a wonderful array of museums worth a visit, from The Detroit Museum of Art and the Motown Museum to the Charles H. Wright Museum of African-American History. Passengers on Great Lakes cruises will find that stops in Detroit often revolve around an included visit to the Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation, a sprawling history museum complex that is home to the limousine that President Kennedy was in when he was assassinated, George Washington's camp bed, Buckminster Fuller's prototype Dymaxion house, the bus on which Rosa Parks was arrested and countless other rare artifacts.

When to book a Great Lakes cruise

The best time to book a Great Lakes cruise is right when a cruise line first opens bookings on that sailing, often more than a year in advance. You'll have your pick of itineraries and cabins and often the best fares.

Because the Great Lakes has such a short season with a limited number of ships, sailings in the region are often in high demand and people plan early. Newcomer Viking, notably, has told TPG it has seen brisker sales this year for its Great Lakes trips than sailings to Antarctica — one of the world's ultimate bucket list destinations.

If you wait to book, you're not entirely out of luck. Cruise lines often run sales in the fall or in the early months of the year (a period known in the cruise industry as "wave season" ). You can take advantage of discounted fares and other perks. Some of the most desirable cabins might be sold out; being flexible about your sail date or itinerary can help.

In general, waiting until the last minute is not the best idea, unless you live in a gateway city such as Chicago, Milwaukee or Toronto and don't need to book flights. While some less preferred sail dates or cabin categories may have availability a few months out, spurring cruise lines to drop rates, you might have trouble finding affordable airfare and pre- or post-cruise hotel accommodations that do not eat up your cruise savings.

What to bring on a Great Lakes cruise

When it comes to packing for a Great Lakes cruise, your mantra should always be: dress in layers. It can be chilly in the morning in the more northerly parts of the Great Lakes, particularly at the start of the Great Lakes cruising season, but then warm up fast.

If you're planning to do some outdoorsy pursuits, such as kayaking or hiking, be sure to bring appropriate activewear. And don't forget to pack a rain jacket, if not a complete rain gear outfit, including a wide-brimmed waterproof hat, rain pants and waterproof shoes or boots.

Also, and this is critical: Don't forget your passport. Many of the places you'll visit in the Great Lakes will be in the United States and do not require a passport. But every Great Lakes cruise includes at least a few — and sometimes many — stops in Canada, where a valid U.S. passport, passport card or NEXUS card is required to enter if you're a U.S. citizen.

Bottom line

There's a lot to see and do in the Great Lakes region, and it's hard to argue that there's a better way to see and do it than on a cruise. Cruise vessels departing from such cities as Chicago and Toronto can take you to all of the highlights of the region — from the breweries of Milwaukee to thundering Niagara Falls — in a single trip. That's something that you'll be hard-pressed to accomplish any other way.

Planning a cruise? Start with these stories:

• The 5 most desirable cabin locations on any cruise ship
• The 8 worst cabin locations on any cruise ship
• A quick guide to the most popular cruise lines
• 21 tips and tricks that will make your cruise go smoothly
• 15 ways cruisers waste money
• 12 best cruises for people who never want to grow up
• What to pack for your first cruise

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• Charter Management

GREAT LAKES SAILING CO.

Started in 1983 as Bay Breeze Yacht Charters, Great Lakes Sailing Co. has grown to become the most recognizable name in sailing on the Great Lakes.

Our charter fleet is one of the largest fleets of cruising yachts on the Great Lakes and offers meticulously maintained sail and power yachts for bareboat and captained charter.

Our charter management program offers yacht owners affordable and hassle-free ownership. We currently have over 20 yachts in the fleet owned by folks from all over the country who enjoy sailing our pristine fresh water cruising grounds.

Our sailing school is consistently ranked as one of the top ASA schools worldwide. Over 200 adult students come to us every year for sailing instruction on boats ranging in size from 30-50’. Many Great Lakes Sailing Co. sailing school instructors have been named “ASA’s (American Sailing Association) Outstanding Instructor” and Great Lakes Sailing Co. has twice been named “School of the Year”.

New Yacht Sales from Jeanneau . Our new boat owners enjoy customized instruction and yacht systems familiarization as well as service and support long after the sale. We were honored to receive the Jeanneau North American Dealer of the Year award in 2020, 2022, and again in 2023!

Dave Conrad

Dave is the owner, pencil pusher and chief shop vac operator of Great Lakes Sailing Co. Dave was General Manager at Bay Breeze before purchasing the company and changing the name in June of 2008.

Dave has been sailing the Great Lakes, Caribbean, Gulf Coast and beyond for over 20 years. He has extensive experience in captaining charter vessels up to 90 feet and managing charter companies in the Caribbean and the Great Lakes. He holds a USCG Masters 100 ton Captain’s license and is an American Sailing Association Instructor certified for levels 101, 103, 104 and 105.

Joanie Sweitzer

As General Manager, Joanie handles the day-to-day tasks that keep the operation running smoothly.  In addition to her business and accounting background, she’s pretty darn creative. A past upholsterer and pattern maker, Joanie operated a marine canvas business in Seattle before moving back to Traverse City.

Joanie grew up boating on Grand Traverse Bay and thinks a day isn’t complete without a view of the bay. She learned to sail on a boat docked at “Black Mountain Yacht Club” and spent most of a decade racing sailboats in the Puget Sound.

John Dykhuis-Deely

John is the Fleet Manager at Great Lakes Sailing Co, in charge of the service department and maintenance on our charter fleet.

With nearly 30 years in the maritime industry, John has a diverse background working as both Captain and Chief Engineer aboard Traditional Sailing Vessels and Super Yachts, sailing and steaming around the world. His career is built on a firm foundation of education and mentorship and he strives to approach everything with an eye toward process improvement and project management. In his spare time, John enjoys cycling, sailing, and traveling with his family.

Paul Davis is the parts manager and ASA instructor. Paul is an avid racer sailor and has delivered vessels all over the Great Lakes and from Manzanillo, Mexico to LA.

He’s a veteran of numerous Port Huron to Mac and Chicago to Mac races and on his home waters of Traverse City, Paul sails his Lightning and races on Capt. Dan’s Cal 40. Paul has a 50 ton USCG Captain’s License and is certified to teach ASA classes 101, 103, 104, and 105.

Jake, Dirk & Skibo  make up the service team that keeps the fleet humming along. Rigging, fiberglass, electrical, mechanical and electronics – they do it all. Together they are a very talented team of boat technicians, each specializing in their own specific skill set.

Christina, Holly, Elyse, Mack, Karen, Mallory, Zach & Abby  are the magic behind the housekeeping department. They keep everything ship shape and shiny.

Keefer (aka “Spiderman”)   Why are there fewer spiders at Centerpointe Marina? Keefer. He’s the man behind the wand.

Our sailing school instructors consist of over a dozen friendly, professional USCG licensed captains. Click here to meet the instructor staff.

12935 S West Bay Shore Dr

Traverse City, Mi 49684

Great Lakes Cruises

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• Lake Superior
• Lake Michigan
• Lake Ontario

Best time to take a Great Lakes cruise

• Cleveland 
• Niagara Falls (Port Colborne)
• Toronto 
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• Quebec City  ( Quebec )
• Mackinac Island
• Sault Ste. Marie

How to choose a Great Lakes & St. Lawrence River Cruise

The best great lakes for cruising, top things to see and do on a great lakes cruise, faqs: great lakes cruises, top great lakes travel destinations.

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The 20 largest yachts built in the USA

With nearly 96,000 miles of coast teeming with ports and harbours, the United States has been a proud shipbuilding site for more than 250 years. In an Independence Day special, we take a look at the largest and finest yachts constructed across the pond...  

Builder : Swiftships Length : 91.4m Year : 1997

Originally launched by US yard Swiftships in 1997, the 91.4-metre explorer Voyager spent the first two decades of her life as a 63-metre supply ship called Candy Trader , used for commercial works. That all changed in 2016 when she arrived at Dania Cut in Florida to start a three-year conversion into an explorer yacht. When she emerged in 2019, blinking into the East Coast sunshine, Voyager became the largest conversion superyacht ever in the US. She features a bathing platform and helipad, while her five decks host a huge crew of over 70 members.

Builder : Derecktor Shipyards Length : 85.6m Year : 2010

Launched in time for the 2010 Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show from Bridgeport, Connecticut, the 85.6-metre superyacht  Aquila  (formerly Cakewalk ) is a full displacement, oceangoing superyacht with a steel hull and aluminium superstructure. Her refit in 2016 secured her the title of the largest yacht to be refitted in the UK and gave her the added 'wow' factor of a bespoke chandelier from Czech company Preciosa, comprised of more than 850 pieces of hand-blown glass. The chandelier is a staggering 11.2 metres long, cascading through four of Aquila ’s five decks.

SS Delphine

Builder: Great Lakes Ew Length: 78.6m Year: 1921

This motor yacht was a familiar sight around Detroit and Chicago in the 1920s. Automobile manufacturing mogul Horace Dodge named  SS Delphine   after his daughter and designed an unusual quadruple steam expansion engine for the vessel, which gave her an impressive top speed of 15 knots. During World War II she served as the flagship of Admiral King, the Commander-in-Chief of the US Fleet. Laid up in 1962, she was bought by the Seafarers International Union for use as a headquarters ship but fell into disrepair in the early 1990s. She was later acquired by a Singapore company which planned to convert her into a mini-cruise liner for Asian waters, but this sale fell through. Happily, she was purchased by a Belgian buyer, Ineke Bruynooghe, and a thorough restoration and conversion brought both the yacht and her original steam engines back to new condition.

Builder : Trinity Yachts Length : 73.8m Year : 2013

Built to ABS class in steel and aluminium, Cocoa Bean was launched in 2011 as the largest yacht to hit the water in North America at the time. Owned by the late Ali Ghandour, her name presumably refers to one of the Ghandour Company’s best-selling confectionaries - chocolate. In 2020, she emerged from a three-year refit courtesy of Astilleros de Mallorca with her upper deck brows extended, her mast restyled and a freshly-painted red bootstripe. Twin 2,575hp Caterpillar engines give her a range of 6,000 nautical miles and a top speed of 15.5 knots.

Builder : Delta Marine Length : 73.2m Year : 2006

Built in the Pacific Northwest, Laurel  has a steel hull and composite superstructure and is the fourth-largest yacht to be built in North America since the Great Depression. Her sun deck extends fore and aft of a central observation room, the forward part being a belvedere terrace and the aft offering a gym, spa pool and sunbathing. Tenders are stored on the lower deck and launched through doors to port and starboard. Another highlight is the diving room, which opens to a large bathing platform created by opening the stern door.

Builder : Delta Marine Length : 72.2m Year : 2016

Launched from Dakota Creek in September 2016, Albatross is the second-largest yacht from this American yard to date and has since only been used as a private vessel. She sports an exterior by Espen Oeino International and a Francois Zuretti interior with a volume of 2,066 GT. Equipped for exploring, she is capable of 7,400 nautical miles and is fitted with a helicopter landing pad and a large 13-metre beam tender garage. On deck, leisure highlights include an al fresco dining area accompanied by a chef station, a BBQ, oven and a raised eight-person Jacuzzi.

DSSV Pressure Drop

Builder : Tacoma Boat Building Length : 68.3m Year : 1985

The 68.3-metre DSSV Pressure Drop was described by owner and explorer Victor Vescovo as being "not a yacht, and not luxurious". Used as a support vessel for Vescovo's host of deep submersibles, the yacht was originally delivered in 1985. A full refit in 2015 courtesy of Stabbert Maritime saw DSSV Pressure Drop transformed into what it is today, able to accommodate 47 people – including 19 crew and 12 technical specialists. The yacht also features dry and wet science labs, full ocean-deep sonar and an 11.2-metre Triton 36000/2 submersible .

Builder : Bender Length : 67.1m Year : 1982

Described as a "sport utility" vessel by the yard that converted her, Global owes her rugged commercial appearance to her former life as an oil rig support vessel. Formerly known as Allure Shadow , she is half yacht and half toy carrier, offering six double guest cabins with balconies, a saloon, a dining room, a sky lounge with panoramic views opening to a forward observation deck, an eight-metre freshwater swimming pool, a cinema, a games room that also functions as a library and a full gymnasium complete with a spa. Her huge decks can carry, among other toys, a helicopter and its full logistical needs plus a large sport fishing vessel. If all that doesn't impress, Global also has the capacity to host events for 200 people.

Builder : Candies Shipbuilders Length : 67m Year : 1980

Explorer  has lived many lives, starting out as Clipper Cap Haitien and later being converted to a Shadow Marine vessel. In 2011, she had a major hull extension that brought her from 51.8 metres to her current length of 67 metres. The latest refit was undertaken in order to add an additional deck dedicated to the owner’s use, which comprises the owner’s cabin, private lounge, gym and spa. Other refit work included creating a movie theatre and upgrading all the audio-visual and IT systems. Moving the helipad also allowed the creation of a new open sun deck, providing ample entertaining spaces. An elevator was also installed to serve all decks.

Blue Shadow

Builder : Campbell Length : 66.8m Year : 1994

Blue S hadow is best known through her previous owner, HRH Prince Khaled bin Sultan of Saudi Arabia. A keen oceanographer, Prince Khaled made the yacht available for scientific purposes worldwide in support of the Living Oceans Foundation. The yacht carries Golden Eye , an amphibious 10-seater Cessna 208 with Wipair floats, as well as many special-purpose tenders, and offers a range of scientific laboratories and accommodation for up to 11 visiting scientists and pilots. Blue Shadow  was built in the USA by the now-defunct San Diego builder Campbell Industries to the design of Martin Francis and was refitted in 2006.

Builder : Delta Marine Length : 65.5m Year : 2013

Previously known as  Project Invader , Delta Marine's  Invictus is built with an ice-strengthened steel hull and a composite superstructure which was penned by  Delta Design . With such a long-distance cruising range of 7,000 nautical miles and features such as a pool on the sundeck, a theatre and a gym, this boat is designed to keep its guests entertained on long-haul voyages. She was officially delivered in Seattle, Washington to a North American client, but the key is her remarkable 1,945GT volume, which leaves ample space for an innovative layout.

Builder : Palmer Johnson Length : 64m Year : 2013

Lady M is Palmer Johnson's 64-metre flagship and is the largest all-aluminium boat ever built in the United States. Her narrow profile and characterful vertical bow are shared by her much smaller SportYacht sisters, which start at around the 36-metre mark. Outstanding features include a hot tub and large open teak decks that flow into contemporary beachy interiors, courtesy of Italian design house Nuvolari Lenard . Powered by twin diesel MTU engines, Lady M boasts a transatlantic range and top speeds of 28 knots.

Builder : Halter Length : 63.4m Year : 1978

Formerly known as Fierce Contender, this vintage expedition yacht's greatest claim to fame is a stint on the popular television show Deadliest Catch, where it was used as a crabbing vessel. S uRi has since undergone a series of refits after braving the treacherous seas around Alaska's Aleutian Islands. The most substantial was in 2011 at California-based Bay Ship & Yacht Co., which saw 11 metres added to her mid-body. Benefits of this extension included a larger al fresco dining area, sunning and shade areas. A glass-enclosed guest lounge in the existing lounge was also added, which can either be closed and fully climate-controlled or opened up for the indoor-outdoor effect on balmier nights. Following a 2016 refit, this 1,355GT displacement yacht now features new timeless interior décor by Krilloff & Associates .

Builder : Delta Marine Length : 62.8m Year : 2018

Built at the Seattle shipyard in 2018, this 63-metre superyacht is allegedly owned by US billionaire Jay Alix of Alix Partners. All exterior and interior stylings were completed in-house and Satori has since remained very resolutely out of the public eye. Interior photos and amenities have not been released, with exterior photos revealing a helipad on the sundeck, a spacious swim platform and a lateral-opening tender garage and balcony.

According to BOATPro , Satori seems to be spending July 4 cruising along Savusavu Bay in Fiji.

Mia Elise II

Builder : Trinity Yachts Length : 60.4m Year : 2012

With a length of 60.4 metres and a relatively small draft of 2.4 metres, Mia Elise II  is one of the largest yachts still capable of accessing shallow anchorages in the Bahamas and Caribbean. This 916GT yacht was designed by the yard’s in-house team and has a bright, airy interior owed to  Patrick Knowles . The full-beam upper deck houses a sky lounge, an office, a VIP cabin and the master suite forward with a private foredeck, meaning that owners can enjoy unimpeded, secluded ocean views.  Mia Elise II accommodates a total of 13 guests in a master, a VIP and five double cabins including four on the lower deck. 

Builder : Trinity Yachts Length : 59.7m Year : 2009

The first Trinity yacht designed by the Bannenberg and Rowell studio, Bacarella  began life at 55 metres and was extended to her current length mid-build. She features four very large guest cabins on her lower deck and a full-beam main deck master with a large his-and-hers en suite forward. Her 1,052GT volume gives Bacarella  a vast interior, offset by a dramatic interior palette of unusual materials and pale colours. Notably, Bacarella suffered some damage in 2017 after a helicopter crashed into her off the coast of Bergen, Norway. She was refitted most recently in 2020.

Grand Rusalina

Builder : Trinity Yachts Length : 59.6m Year : 2006

Damaged by fire during her construction in 2002 and subsequently rebuilt in Brisbane, Australia, Grand Rusalina (ex- Ulysses ) is a solidly-constructed explorer-type yacht capable of traversing the world’s oceans with ease and in the greatest of comfort. She can accommodate 14 guests and now has a range of 6,000 nautical miles, allegedly boasting upwards of 8,000 in her heyday. This self-sufficient superyacht is MCA compliant and able to stow a vast array of equipment, including several tenders, jet skis, an inflatable dock and pool and a helipad.

Builder : Palmer Johnson Length : 59.4m Year : 1998

Pearl  is the largest yacht to emerge from the Wisconsin-based shipyard and has since sailed under multiple owners (and names). She was launched as  La Baronessa  for a Singaporean owner and was renamed  Frequency  when acquired by a Turkish businessman with an interest in cell phones. She later became Shubra II  and was again renamed, this time becoming Pearl . Naval architecture is by New York-based Sparkman & Stephens , while her styling and interior design are by Italian design house Nuvolari Lenard .

Builder : Trinity Yachts Length : 58.8m Year : 2016

Launched in 2016, the 58.8-metre Imagine is hull number T062 in the Gulfport-based yard's impressive fleet. The exterior styling for this tri-deck motor yacht was created by long-time collaborator  Geoff Van Aller , with both the hull and superstructure built from aluminium to AB classification. Power comes from a pair of 3,386hp Caterpillar engines and her total interior volume is believed to be in excess of 800GT. The yacht also has a bonus cabin that doubles as a massage room – imagine that. 

Builder : C. Welding Length : 58.3m Year : 1950

This 58.3-metre motor yacht was built for American shipping and real estate tycoon Daniel K. Ludwig under the name Argo . Designed by John H. Wells , Hasabi II is a hardy vessel, with a maximum range of 5,300 nautical miles and exterior stylings that have been left relatively unchanged across her impressive 73-year tenure. She has not had a major refit since 2006. According to BOATPro , she was last sighted today at the Corfu Town Yacht Harbour in Greece.

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My Cruiser Life Magazine

The Best Boat for the Great Loop in 2023: Your 6 Boat Options

Embarking on this nautical quest called the Great Loop demands more than wanderlust alone. Selecting the optimal vessel to navigate the Loop’s diverse waterways makes all the difference on this marathon route. Whether you covet the comforts of a spacious trawler, prefer the performance of an agile cruiser or need maximum versatility to “trailer hop” inland rivers, the choice of boat profoundly impacts the journey. In today’s post, I give my recommendations the perfect Great Loop boat.

Table of Contents

6 best boat types for the great loop, what is the great loop, what is involved with the great loop boating adventure, classic trawlers, fast trawlers and downeasts, tug style trawlers, cruisers and motor yachts, power catamarans, the boat you’ve got, great loop size limits, comfortable cabin aboard and long-term living space, engine choices: gas vs. diesel, single vs. twin, 1. draft and height limitations, 2. fuel range and efficiency, 3. living quarters, 4. navigability and handling, 5. type of boat, 6. accessibility and safety features, 8. personal preferences and experience level, 9. research and planning, boat requirements for the great loop, which is your best boat for the great loop, best boat for the great loop faqs.

• Unconventional Boats

The Great Loop stands as one of the premier long-term boating adventures in North America, and arguably, across the globe. Spanning over 6,000 miles, this journey offers boaters an experience akin to a cross-country RV road trip, but on water. It presents a unique opportunity to view the countryside through a different lens, as you navigate through a mix of seaways, canals, and rivers at a relaxed pace.

Let’s explore the ideal boats to embark on this remarkable journey.

Let’s get this out of the way – what’s the Great Loop in the first place?

The Great Loop is an adventure for recreational boaters that takes you on a giant circuit of the eastern half of the United States and Canada . It’s the joining of many smaller waterways, open water stretches, rivers, and canals to make an entire journey that’s about 6,000 nautical miles long. 

Where you begin and end your Great Loop journey usually depends on where you buy or keep your vessel.

Here’s an overview using Norfolk, Virginia, as the starting point.

• Norfolk northbound through Chesapeake Bay, through the C&D Canal, and seaward on Delaware Bay to Cape May, New Jersey.
• Northbound along the Atlantic coast of New Jersey to New York harbor.
• North on the Hudson River to upstate New York. From here, you have several choices depending on how one wants to transit the Great Lakes and how much of the Canadian Heritage Canals one would like to cruise.
• Westbound through the Erie Canal.
• West through the Great Lakes to Chicago.
• South from Chicago through the inland rivers to the Gulf Coast.
• Eastbound along the Gulf Coast to Florida, then southbound on the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway.
• Either through the Okeechobee Waterway in south Florida or around the tip of the state, through the Florida Keys.
• North from south Florida on the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway (ICW) back to Norfolk.

There are many choices to make the Great Loop your own adventure.

Loopers usually put between 5,000 and 7,000 miles under their keels while making the trip. However, it’s not a race, and there are plenty of opportunities to make side trips and adventures off the main route.

For example, the Downeast Loop is an extension that adds Maine, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edwards Island. The St. Lawrence Seaway will then take you west to the Great Lakes by way of Montreal. Another good example is extending your trip on the south end by adding an adventure in the Islands of The Bahamas.

For the most part, the Great Loop is a motorboat adventure . There are many open water spaces where you might sail, but it’s often constrained to a narrow navigable channel, making sailing much less appealing. In other words, even sailboats wind up motoring for most of the trip. 

Furthermore, the trip transits canals and waterways with many bridge spans, both fixed and opening. The fewer bridges you have to have open for you, the easier your trip. Many fixed bridges mean you’ll have to take the mast off for long sections of the trip.

The trip spans many rural areas, interspersed with small towns and a handful of big cities. Many nights you’ll be anchored or docked in the middle of nowhere. Other times, you’ll have a new city to explore and check out. 

Your boat should suit both styles. You will want the best family boat that is comfortable to live on, with sleeping, bathroom, and cooking facilities that you and your crew find comfortable. Yes, you can do the Loop in an open go-fast boat–but you will miss what many consider the best parts of the Loop. 

Six Best Great Loop Boat Options By Type of Boat

There are too many makes and models of boats in the world for anyone to make a specific recommendation here. Instead, here is a list of six types of boats you’ll find doing the Loop and what makes them well suited for this particular adventure. 

Remember, this is anything but an all-inclusive list. There are hundreds of boat makes out there, hundreds more that aren’t built anymore but can be bought used, and even more when you include custom and one-off designs. These lists are provided simply as a starting point for your research!

The classic trawler is basically the power version of a sailboat–slow-moving, heavy, and economical to operate. They have been around forever; tons were built in the 1970s and 1980s, many in Taiwan. That means that the design is time-tested–they are good-looking and seaworthy. Plus, you can readily find them on the used market for reasonable prices. Most have a maximum speed of about 10 knots.

The popular cruising blog Scho and Jo have set out and completed the Loop on their Albin trawler. Check out their Great Loop expenses for information on the adventure and how it’s done. For more about their boat, check out their boat tour.

Examples of Classic Trawlers:

• Monk 36 (no longer built)
• Grand Banks
• Camino Troll (no longer built)
• Nordhavn 40

The fast trawler is a classic one with a modern hull. Thanks to their improved hull design, they’re capable of faster speeds but use a lot of gas going fast. The best thing about them is probably the simple fact that they can do both comfortably–go slowly and economically or cruise faster (about 15 knots) while still giving a nice ride.

Examples of Fast Trawlers and Downeast Boats:

• Beneteau Swift Trawlers

What was once a unique niche in the boating world has caught on, and quite a few companies are now making tugboat-looking trawlers. They’re sportier than the traditional trawler and have an aesthetic that looks right at home on the rivers of the Great Loop.

Examples of Tugs Include:

• Kadey Krogen
• Lord Nelson Victory Tug (no longer made)

A cruiser is built on a planing hull to go faster. That means more miles per day, fewer nights at anchor, and more fuel consumption while doing it. 

There are many sizes and styles that are appropriate for the Loop, so the key is to find the layout that is most comfortable for you. The two most popular styles include express cruisers and aft-cabin cruisers. 

Examples of cruisers and motor yachts include:

• Sea Ray (many of the best models for the Loop are no longer made)
• Cruiser Yachts
• Bayliner Motoryachts (no longer built)
• Hatteras Cruisers (no longer built)

Power catamarans are popular for the same reason that sail cats are. Thanks to their increased interior volume, two hulls make for a more comfortable living space. Your beam should be less than 23 feet, as the Trent Severn Waterway in Canada limits this. Still, that leaves several interesting power cats that would make fantastic Loop boats. 

Examples of power cats that would be good when boating the Great Loop:

• PDQ 34 Power Catamaran (no longer built)
• Endeavour 440 TrawlerCat

Finally, it has to be mentioned that the best boat is always the boat you’ve got. Lin and Larry Pardey once famously said, “Go small, and go now.” If the Loop is on your bucket list, it’s better to find a boat you can get your hands on that will suit you well enough to travel and enjoy the ride. Don’t spend years saving up for a “maybe adventure.”

Examples of unconventional Looper boats:

• Jet skis that camp along the way
• Open runabouts, sport boats, and fishing boats
• Sailboats–just take the mast off and motor like a trawler!
• Trailerable boats that do it in sections–a trailerable boat lets you do a section and then tow the boat to the next section to cruise at your leisure

What Features Make Good Looper Boats?

So, how do you ever choose the right boat for the Loop? Here are some thoughts on what features make the best Looper boats. 

The limits for your perfect Looper boat will be based on its physical dimensions. According to the Loop Cruiser’s Association, the average looper boat is 39.5 feet long, with more than half between 35 and 45 feet. But this doesn’t tell the whole story, as you must consider each vessel’s dimension.

Air Draft (Bridge Clearance or Height Above Water)

The most limiting fixture on the Loop is a fixed railroad bridge in Chicago that will block any vessel taller than 19 feet, 6 inches. 

But, if you want to do the entire Erie Canal, two bridges offer only 15 feet, 6 inches. Another bridge in downtown Chicago is 17 feet. So, the Loop has lower limits, but most can be gone around by bigger boats. 

Four feet or less of draft is ideal and will mean the fewest problems–although caution is still warranted in many areas. Draft is how deep the hull sits in the water and dictates the minimum water depth for a boat . Any deeper than that, and you will need to be extra cautious. Boats with six-foot drafts have reportedly done it, but few recommend it.

The width of your boat is usually limited to about 16 feet due only to marina slips. 

Catamarans with 23 feet or less can make the trip but require T-heads at most marinas. As a result, finding slips on this trip will be difficult, and finding a place to haul out for boat maintenance is even harder. In addition, there are sections where you’ll need to take a slip occasionally, so anchoring isn’t always an option. 

There’s no limit to length. Some yachts up to 70 feet have made the journey, but it’s a tight fit and most boats that long won’t make it under the bridges. Most Looper boats are under 50 feet, after all, for many reasons.

Think of the Great Loop as an RV adventure where you’re taking your home with you. To that end, realize you’ll be spending a lot of time living aboard your boat. Therefore, the boat should be comfortable, with indoor and outdoor living space and all the amenities you’d want or need. 

Here’s a list of things most people want their boat equipped with when they set off on the Great Loop. Many of these are similar to the considerations people make when living on a sailboat , but some are quite different.

• A comfortable bed, usually an “island queen” (not a v-berth)
• A large galley (kitchen) with plenty of cooking space and the appliances they’re used to (fridge, microwave, coffee maker, stove, oven, etc.)
• A comfortable living room (salon) that has a good view, lots of light, and plenty of ventilation
• An outdoor patio (cockpit) area for open-air dining, socializing, and relaxing
• A descent-sized bathroom area with a separate shower
• Air conditioning and heating (which may require a generator if you plan to anchor overnight extensively)
• Inside and outside helm positions (upper deck on a trawler)

Tankage refers to your boat’s storage space for liquids–water, fuel, and sewage. The larger the tanks are, the longer you can stay away from marinas for refills or pump-outs. 

The Loop has several long stretches through the inland river system that go hundreds of miles between facilities and services. Therefore, your boat should have a fuel range of at least 450 nautical miles and hold enough water for at least a week. 

Some river stretches have fewer gasoline sellers, meaning gas-powered boats need a greater range than diesel boats. They’ll need about 450 miles of range, whereas diesel boats can get by with less.

Beyond that, gas and diesel engines will both work fine on the Loop. Generally, the most popular trawlers and boats of this size come with diesels, which are praised for their longevity and reliable, simple operation. In addition, diesel is safer on a boat because it is less explosive, which could lower your insurance premiums.

Likewise, having a single or twin screw boat is a matter of preference. Single-engine boats can make the journey without problems, but two engines give you redundancy should something go wrong with one and better maneuverability in tight spaces. But, of course, operating and maintenance costs are higher with two engines.

How to Find the Best Boat for You for Sailing the Great Loop

The ideal boat will vary based on personal preferences, budget, and specific requirements for the journey. Here are key considerations to help you find the best boat for your Great Loop adventure:

• Draft: The Great Loop has areas with shallow waters, especially in places like the western rivers and parts of the Intracoastal Waterway. A boat with a shallow draft (ideally less than 5 feet) will have more flexibility and fewer navigation concerns.
• Air Draft: Bridges with fixed heights are a consideration along the Great Loop. To avoid detours, your boat’s air draft (the height from the waterline to the highest fixed point on the boat) should be less than 19 feet, though lower is often better to accommodate all routes.
• Opt for a fuel-efficient boat that has a range of at least 300 miles to comfortably reach fueling stations along the Loop without anxiety, considering both the boat’s fuel capacity and its consumption rate.
• Comfort is key for the long journey. Look for boats that offer adequate living space, a functional galley, comfortable sleeping quarters, and sufficient storage. The size and amenities should match your tolerance for space constraints and your lifestyle needs.
• Choose a boat that handles well in various water conditions. Both inland rivers and lakes, as well as coastal sections of the Loop, can present challenges like currents, tides, and weather changes.
• Trawlers, Sailboats (with a retractable mast for bridges), and Motor Yachts are popular choices because they balance living space, fuel efficiency, and navigability.
• Sailboats can offer the advantage of wind power but consider the need to lower the mast for certain sections of the Loop.
• Catamarans are another option, offering stability, shallow draft, and spacious living areas, but be mindful of their beam (width) and how it may limit access to certain marinas or slips.
• Look for boats with easy access to the bow and stern, strong handholds, and a cockpit or helm that offers good visibility and protection from the elements.
• Safety features should include reliable navigation and communication systems, life-saving equipment, and possibly a dinghy for exploring shallow or narrow areas.
• Consider both the purchase price and the ongoing costs, including maintenance, fuel, marina fees, and potential upgrades. Buying a used boat can be a cost-effective option, but ensure a thorough inspection to assess its condition and suitability for the Loop.
• Your comfort with the boat’s operation, maintenance requirements, and overall feel is crucial. Choose a boat that fits your level of boating experience or one that you’re willing and able to learn to handle confidently.
• Join forums and groups, such as America’s Great Loop Cruisers’ Association (AGLCA), to gain insights from experienced Loopers.
• Consider renting or chartering different types of boats for short trips to gain firsthand experience before making a decision.
• Size/Draft: Boats should generally be less than 60 feet with a draft of 6 feet or under to navigate the various locks, rivers, and waterways along the route.
• Propulsion: Twin engines or a single engine with a bow or stern thruster provides the best maneuverability and redundancy for covering long distances.
• Fuel Capacity: A range of 350-400 miles between refueling is recommended to have a buffer given the distances between marinas in some regions.
• Accommodations: Comfortable sleeping quarters, a functional galley, and enclosed head are needed for multi-day and multi-week trips.
• Hull Type: Displacement hull trawlers, cruisers, and motor yachts are well-suited for the journey. Planing hulls can complete it but will take a fuel efficiency hit at slower canal speeds.
• Navigation: GPS chartplotters, radar, depth finders, and other instruments and marine electronics for navigating varying conditions.
• Operation: Vessel and systems should be completely reliable and redundant where possible given the several thousand mile journey.
• Insurance/Documentation: Vessel documentation and insurance is required for coastal, Great Lakes portions.

Hopefully, this article has provided some ideas and examples of what your best Great Loop boat might be. Beyond a few hard limitations, it’s a matter of taste and style. There’s no right or wrong answer–you’ll often see many unexpected vessels doing the Loop. 

If you’re considering the Loop, check out the America’s Great Loop Cruisers Association for more details.

What size boat is best for the Great Loop?

There’s no set size limit for length, but all boats looking to complete the Loop must pass under a low fixed bridge in the Chicago area. If your boat is more than 19 feet, 6 inches above the water, thou shall not pass.

What is the largest boat to complete the Great Loop?

Some people have reported that boats as long as 70 feet have completed the Loop. But taking a vessel of this size is not recommended, as you must navigate numerous tight locks and low bridges along the route. Most Loopers choose boats less than 50 feet long.

What is the smallest recommended boat for the Great Loop?

The smallest boat is the one that you’re comfortable on. Jet skis have completed the Loop, but they’re limited to staying in hotels or camping. It’s best to have a boat that will be comfortable to live on for the better part of a year. Most people want a boat at least 35 feet long to do that.

What is the average time to complete the Great Loop?

Most cruisers take about a year to do the Loop. Several factors affect this plan, and it’s always an individual choice. Generally, you’ll be northbound in the spring to be westbound through the Great Lakes in the summer. Then you “fall down” the rivers in the autumn so that you can over-winter in Florida. But many people take breaks, leave their boats in storage, and complete the Loop in sections. Furthermore, many folks want to take their time and enjoy the scenery. It’s not a race, after all.

Matt has been boating around Florida for over 25 years in everything from small powerboats to large cruising catamarans. He currently lives aboard a 38-foot Cabo Rico sailboat with his wife Lucy and adventure dog Chelsea. Together, they cruise between winters in The Bahamas and summers in the Chesapeake Bay.

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13 Great Sailing Destinations on the Great Lakes

The Great Lakes are a hugely popular sailing destination, known for their cruising grounds and fun lakeside locations. When the temperature starts to creep up in Chicago, savvy sailors begin to turn their thoughts to days spent out on the Great Lakes - sailing, sunbathing and socializing in one of the many lakeside communities. This list brings together some of the top sailing destinations on the Great Lakes, so you can get out and enjoy them as soon as the summer hits.

13 Top Sailing Destinations on the Great Lakes:

Saugatuck, lake michigan, door county, lake michigan, erie, lake erie, endymion island, lake ontario, manitoulin island, lake huron, saint ignace island, lake superior, bad river, lake huron, bowers harbor, lake michigan, beaver island, lake michigan, the apostle islands, lake superior, michigan city, lake michigan, mackinac island, lake huron, little presque isle, lake superior.

Read on for more details on each Great Lakes destination to find one that’s right for you… or better yet, try to visit them all!

A brilliant starting point for sailing Lake Michigan. Saugatuck can be found 90 miles northwest of Chicago. The town’s harbor has capacity for over 900 boats, which is enough to demonstrate its popularity as a top Great Lakes destination for sailors. From Saugatuck harbor, it’s a short journey down the Kalamazoo River and into the channel, passing the pier heads and out into the open waters of Lake Michigan.

One of the main draws of Saugatuck is its natural beauty. From stunning views of Lake Michigan stretching to impressive sand dunes and long sandy beaches, this part of the lake is perfect if you’re looking for a picturesque sailing experience. Hike up to Mount Baldhead or ‘Mount Baldy’, an easy 1.8-mile hike, and get a new perspective on the harbor. Saugatuck is also known informally by another name, the Art Coast of Michigan, thanks to the Ox-Bow School of Arts, which is linked to the Art Institute of Chicago. It also has over 30 galleries dotted around the area.

Door County is a haven for sailors, offering scattered islands to explore, on top of the beautiful Door Peninsula itself. The Door Peninsula separates the southern area of Green Bay from Lake Michigan and from there you can sail to Washington Island, Plum Island, Cana Island, and The Grand Traverse Islands.

All these stops are perfect for hiking and the Grand Traverse Islands - Rock Island, Gull Island, Little Gull Island and Gravelly Island - are particularly rich in biodiversity. They remain almost entirely undeveloped so you can find a slice of wilderness just a short sail away. Things to look out for are rare wild orchids, butterflies and bats. The seas in this part of Lake Michigan can get choppy so choose your weather window carefully. However, in the right conditions and especially in the summer, it doesn’t get much more delightful than these sailing grounds.

The peninsula of the Presque Isle State Park provides the city of Erie with a vast natural harbor that has helped it grow into a major port city. Located in Pennsylvania, Erie is an all-round destination for visiting sailors, ideal if you’re also interested in water sports, swimming and scooting around in dinghies.

As it’s a much bigger city than many other locations on this list, Erie also has a range of marina facilities and yacht clubs to choose from, as well as restaurants, museums, water parks and hotels. The lake can get busy in mid-summer so it’s best to go earlier or later in the season to avoid the crowds - June or September are the best options.

The fourth largest of the great lakes, Lake Erie is also the shallowest and the warmest! This makes it a nice choice for swimmers, but sailors should note that the shallow depth can also lead to some impressive waves. Thanks to its clean and nutrient-rich waters, Lake Erie boasts rich biological diversity and fish numbers - this is helped by a rigorous conservation strategy that has helped to rescue Lake Erie from chronic pollution and habitat destruction in recent years.

Formed from ancient mountains, Endymion Island is a captivating sailing destination in Lake Ontario. Connecting New York’s Adirondack Mountains and The Canadian Shield or the Laurentian Plateau, Endymion island has been worn down and chiseled away by natural processes over millions of years to form the flatter landmass sailors can find today.

Endymion Island is included in Canada’s Thousand Islands National Park and is only accessible by boat. There are two public docks on the island and a good number of anchorages available. Unlike the activities and amenities on offer at other Great Lakes destinations, the appeal of Endymion Island is getting lost in a day of sailing around the surrounding islands, seeking out secret hideaways to enjoy the summer months in peace.

If you’re keen to find a more cultural destination in the Great Lakes, choose Manitoulin Island. This island, which covers an area of approximately 80-miles by 40-miles, is known for its art museums and galleries. Visitors can pass many happy hours wandering in and out of the shops and galleries, stopping for lunch or an ice cream cone or two. Little Current is the largest town on the island and it’s just 100 yards from the mainland, across the North Channel of Lake Huron.

With four marinas around the island and a great many more hidden anchorages along its shores, Manitoulin Island has much to offer intrepid sailors out on Lake Huron. However, thanks to the narrower regions of the North Channel the currents can change rapidly, making it a more challenging sail. The interior of Manitoulin Island is also striking with a number of enormous inland lakes, the biggest of which is Lake Mindamoya. The Kagawog River, which flows from Lake Kagawog to the North Channel, forms the beautiful Bridal Veil Falls near the town of Kagawog and is definitely worth a trip.

The largest and deepest of the great lakes, Lake Superior is the most challenging choice of sailing grounds among the Great Lakes. The weather can change quickly, with thick, heavy fog and fierce winds, not to mention the cold! It also happens to be the size of Austria.

Lake Superior is a truly unique sailing destination and Saint Ignace Island is an excellent place to start. One of the largest lake islands in the world, Saint Ignace offers a vast number of secluded coves, friendly campsites and stunning hiking routes. It’s also part of the Lake Superior National Marine Conservation Area. From Saint Ignace Island, you can sail round to Duncan Cove, just south of Saint Ignace Island.

Lake Huron also boasts an enormous number of stunning sailing areas and is a popular destination for many sailors looking to explore the Great Lakes. Bad River is a particularly picturesque part of the lake thanks to its collection of narrow inlets and empty wilderness.

As well as touring by boat, it’s well suited to kayaking and canoeing too. For keen fishermen, the bass, pike and walleye should be enough of a draw. One thing to watch out for around the Bad River area is shallow rocks and reefs so follow your charts and cruising directions carefully.

Known for its calm waters, Bowers Harbor is the perfect place to relax and enjoy the view, look out for Traverse City in the south. This deep, natural harbor is situated north of Power Island in West Grand Traverse Bay. It offers protection from the north and east and makes a great stopping point for picnics and sunbathing.

With a wide range of activities available on land as well as on the water, Bowers Harbor is a nice, varied destination on the Great Lakes. You might like to visit Bowers Harbor Vineyards where you can join tasting sessions and tours of the vineyards. Alternatively, you could play a round of tennis or grab a bite to eat in one of Bower Harbor’s local restaurants. When you fancy a change of scenery, sail on to Suttons Bay for more adventures. One of the best things about Michigan’s Grand Traverse Bay is that it’s about five hours from Chicago and four hours from Detroit, but it has all the drama and vast, empty space that the Northern Great Lakes are famous for.

This evocatively named archipelago, located 32 miles northwest of Charlevoix, was originally known as the land of the beavers by Odawa fishermen. Just 13 miles long and six miles wide, Beaver Island is now known for its welcoming island community, along with excellent fishing, hunting and hiking trails. The largest settlement on the island is the village of St. James, which still keeps its old world charm harking back to the original village established in the 1800s.

Beaver Island is known among fisherman as one of the top locations for fly fishing in Lake Michigan. It’s home to some of the best flats in the Great Lakes for fly fishing giant carp and it’s also an outstanding destination for smallmouth bass. Inland, the island also has four lakes with pan fish, perch, pike and largemouth bass, as well as walleye in Lake Geneserath. However, to avoid overfishing, Beaver Island residents request that if you’re visiting the inland lakes, you release the majority of your catch to preserve their stocks.

Found just off Wisconsin Shore, the Apostle Islands are a group of 21 islands close to the Bayfield Peninsula. This makes Bayfield an easy starting point for sailing between the islands and you can choose your pick of the islands to set up camp and make the most of the spectacular hiking trails crisscrossing through the interior.

This area is also known for its incredible sea caves, formed from the erosion of the iron-rich sandstone bedrock. Hollowed out by the waves, the sea caves punctuate the cliffs of the Apostle Islands, ranging from small dimples to enormous caverns. The caves are best explored by kayak or alternatively, jump into the water and swim for a closer look.

For another big city starting point on the Great Lakes, Michigan City is a popular choice. The annual In-Water Boat Show is one of the largest in the Midwest. Michigan City is also a stop in the Labor Day Tri-State Regatta, which sees sailors race from Chicago to St. Joseph to Michigan City to Chicago - it’s now been running for more than 60 years. It’s not a race for the faint hearted, to compete you’ll need endurance, determination and the wind on your side!

The first thing that strikes visitors about Mackinac Island is its tranquility. Thanks to a ban on motorized vehicles, Mackinac Island benefits from a slower, calmer pace of life. This makes it an ideal location for sailors looking for a lazier afternoon exploring the island after a good morning’s sailing.

The approach to the island involves passing under the Mackinac Bridge. The island can be found in the eastern region of the Strait of Mackinac, the stretch of water separating Lake Huron from Lake Michigan. You can moor your boat at the Mackinac Island State Harbor and venture inland. Visitors can hire bikes and breeze around the island, taking in the sights and stopping to sample some of the famous local fudge!

Twice a year, Mackinac Island becomes a hub for yachts thanks to the 333-mile annual Chicago Yacht Club Race to Mackinac and the Bayview Mackinac Race. The Chicago Yacht Club Race to Mackinac proudly holds the title of oldest annual freshwater distance race in the world, dating back to 1898.

Known as the crown jewel of Lake Superior, Little Presque Isle lies 7 miles northwest of Marquette. With thick forests and empty sandy beaches, this area is fantastically beautiful, even more so because of the rough cliffs that line the shoreline of Lake Superior over an area of 4 miles. These rocks are some of the oldest exposed formations on the lake, dated to around 2.3 billion years old. The bedrock, granitic, is also the rarest bedrock along the Great Lakes shoreline. The natural beauty of this stretch of coast is enough of a reason to visit Lake Superior this summer.

Which of these Great Lakes destinations will you choose?

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Marine News from the Great Lakes

Dream yacht charter takes the top spot as the world’s largest yacht charter operator.

Published: Thursday, December 21, 2017

Dream Yacht Charter has grown to become the largest yacht charter company in the world, with a fleet of 987 boats across the most destinations with 47 bases.

The company started out with just six boats operating from the Seychelles seventeen years ago, and now thousands of customers are turning dreams into reality with all-inclusive sailing experiences or navigating new destinations while at the helm.

Dream Yacht Charter founder, Loic Bonnet, said: “This is such an achievement as we started out small with some pretty big ideas! We are expecting our growth to continue with additions to our fleet for next year.

“We’re proud to be known for our pioneering approach, opening up new cruising grounds, such as Cuba and New Caledonia, and making sailing accessible to non-sailors through new experiences, such as booking cabins on crewed charters.”

This year has been unprecedented for the yacht charter industry following the severity of the hurricane season in the Caribbean.

Loic added: “The reason we’ve been able to return quickly to the Caribbean is because of the size of our fleet and our worldwide network. It was great to see the first charters going out from the British Virgin Islands and St. Martin earlier last month.”

Dream Yacht Charter’s booth at the 2017 Nautic Paris Boat Show

Media Contact: Dan Lockyer, Dream Yacht Charter North America General Manager [email protected] 857 330 4330

Our 2018 brochure is available now - https://view.publitas.com/dream-yacht-charter/dyc_brochure_2017_us_aw_pages/page/1

tags: Travel , Caribbean Islands , Charters

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Total solar eclipse in Ohio in 2024: Public events and camping options for the big day

The once-in-a-lifetime solar eclipse in Ohio is almost here.

And that means you should start making your viewing plans now, as thousands are expected to descend on Ohio to see the total solar eclipse.

On Monday, April 8, 2024, Ohio residents (and the thousands who will flock from out-of-state ) will be able to view a total solar eclipse, the first time this will happen in Ohio in over 200 years, The Dispatch previously reported. The path of totality will cross the state from southwest to northeast, passing through cities like Cleveland, Akron and just north of Columbus. During the eclipse, the moon will completely block out the sun, casting a shadow on the Earth.

In Ohio for the eclipse? Here's eight free things to do in Ohio from museums to bison watching

People within a 124-mile-wide band in Ohio will experience the rare total solar eclipse. The path of totality will cross the state from southwest to northeast, passing through cities such as Toledo, Bowling Green, Lima, Mansfield, Akron, Cleveland, Springfield and Dayton. The total eclipse will last for approximately three minutes and 40 seconds in parts of the path.

Here's some of the top events to consider for the 2024 solar eclipse in Ohio:

Cleveland area: Great Lakes Science Center Total Eclipse Fest 2024

From April 6 to 8, The Great Lakes Science Center will be hosting a Total Eclipse Fest at the museum in Cleveland.

This outdoor, family-friendly event will feature hands-on science activities, a free community concert performance by The Cleveland Orchestra on Sunday, April 7, food vendors, entertainment and free eclipse viewing glasses (while supplies last), according to the science center.

NASA experts will be on-site to educate the public about the sun and the eclipse, and NASA TV will be broadcasting live from the event Monday, April 8.

Dayton area: Wright Patterson Air Force Base

The grounds of the free National Museum of the U.S. Air Force at Wright Patterson Air Force Base will be a primary viewing site for the eclipse in the Dayton area, according to The Dayton Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Richland County Fairgrounds

The Richland County Fairgrounds in Mansfield will be hosting over 2,500 ticketed seats and 200 campsites at the fairgrounds for a viewing event. Tickets range from $20 on the day of admission to $500 for a camping site on the grounds.

Tickets and more information are available on Eventbrite .

Columbus: Viewing event at COSI

The Center of Science and Industry (COSI) , located in Downtown Columbus, will be hosting a party there. While out of the path of totality, Columbus will still be at 99.6% totality.

On Monday, April 8, COSI will be distributing thousands of free eclipse glasses and offering hands-on astronomy education and how to properly view the eclipse.

Watch party at Bowling Green's State University's Doyt Perry Stadium

Bowling Green State University will host a large-scale watch party during the hours before and after our three minutes of totality at Doyt Perry Stadium located on campus. This family friendly event will include fun and educational activities, demonstrations, music, telescope viewing, food and more, according to BGSU.

The event is free and open to the public.

Toledo: Imagination Station viewing party

Imagination Station in Toledo is hosting a viewing party right along the Maumee River at the Promenade Park in Toledo on April 8.

The event will include food, games and educational opportunities.

Staying in a state park like Hueston Woods, John Bryan and Mohican

Limited electric and non-electric campsites are still available in some state parks within the totality zone. Visit the Ohio State Parks Reservation System to find and reserve available campsites. Popular state park destinations like Hueston Woods, John Bryan, Mohican and others will be in or near the path of complete totality.

No arrivals or departures will be allowed on April 8, 2024. You must arrive on April 7 or sooner.

ODNR is anticipating that state parks will be very crowded, and traffic in and out of the parks will be heavy. Plan to stay a bit longer and pack for extra days away from home.

Don't see your event? Reach out to [email protected] for an addition to this list.

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Healthy Great Lakes, Communities, and Wildlife

Nwf’s 2024 great lakes policy agenda.

If you can clearly see your home from outer space, you live in a special place. Here at the Great Lakes Regional Center, we are privileged to live in a region that provides so much to enhance our quality of life. Most of all, we enjoy abundant fresh water (95% of all freshwater in North America and 20% of the worlds freshwater). If you were to dump out all five of the Great Lakes across all of North America, you would fill up the Grand Canyon and submerge the rest of the continent. That’s the enormity of this iconic natural resource.

Working together with our state affiliates and other partners over the past year, the National Wildlife Federations Great Lakes Regional Center have witnessed significant progress in protecting and restoring our Great Lakes, but much more needs to be done. Even with the historic increased federal funding these last two years that has allowed states and the federal government to address some key issues, including water infrastructure and the cleanup of contaminated sites, we still have too many communities without access to clean water and increasing loss of wildlife habitat. Invasive species continue to threaten our waters and wildlife, excessive nutrient runoff continues to negatively affect our water quality, and toxic forever chemicals like PFAS continue to impact our communities and drinking water. 

In our 2024 Great Lakes Federal Policy Priorities , we’ve identified the top five opportunities for Congress and the Administration to address these challenges. For the upcoming year, Congress and the administration must pass a budget that provides states with adequate federal resources to repair our aging water infrastructure; pass a strong Farm Bill that enhances private land conservation and reduce the flow of nutrient pollution into the lakes; maintain efforts to combat the spread of invasive species like invasive carp ; and provide funding and reauthorization for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative to continue support cleaning up our waters for people and wildlife.

Each year, National Wildlife Federation’s Great Lakes Regional Center develops a comprehensive federal Great Lakes policy agenda. Our top five priorities for Congress and the Administration are:

PROTECT OUR NATURAL RESOURCES AND WILDLIFE

SAFEGUARD OUR DRINKING WATER

RESTORE REGIONAL WATER RESOURCES

PROTECT PUBLIC LANDS AND WILDLIFE

ADVANCE CLIMATE SOLUTIONS AND RESILIENCY

The priorities above are non-partisan and enjoy broad support from a diverse set of communities throughout the Great Lakes. Our role at NWF is to help keep these Great Lakes protected for our kids, their kids, and future generations. Therefore, we urge our region’s Congressional leaders to demonstrate their support for the Great Lakes, our region’s water resources, and the people, businesses, and wildlife that depend on them.

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