Badger Fires Boilers for 71st Season; Water Levels Strong

Chris Izworski, reporting from Bay City for the Great Lakes Gazette, notes that the season is truly underway: the Lake Michigan carferry *Badger* lit her boilers Tuesday and is set to begin her 71st sailing season this week. The iconic 410-foot coal-fired passenger steamer departs Ludington tomorrow bound for Manitowoc, Wisconsin, carrying 600 passengers and 180 vehicles—motorcycles, RVs, and commercial trucks alongside standard cars. As the last coal-fired passenger steamship operating in the United States, the *Badger* remains the workhorse of Great Lakes car ferry service, and her firing up signals that navigation season is in full swing across the system. Inland, Superior's shipyard activity is brisk as well. The self-unloader *Kaye E. Barker* arrived at Fraser Shipyards in Superior, Wisconsin, on Monday for thruster work and a required five-year survey, with completion expected in about ten days. Meanwhile, Algoma Central Corp. reported strong first-quarter earnings driven by increased domestic dry-bulk volumes—particularly de-icing salt shipments that benefited from colder winter conditions—and robust tanker demand across the Great Lakes and East Coast. Water levels remain favorable across the system. Lake Superior sits 1.28 feet above Low Water Datum, Lake Michigan 1.92 feet, Lake Huron 2.18 feet, Lake Erie 2.89 feet, and Lake Ontario 3.78 feet. Marine forecasts call for mild conditions: Lake Michigan and Erie expect calm to light seas as high pressure settles overhead, while Lake Superior faces a low-pressure trough moving southeast with 3-foot waves today before moderating. On a historical note, the SS *Meteor*, a 130-year-old whaleback built in 1896, celebrates her birthday Sunday in Superior. The rounded-hull design—which gave the vessel her distinctive name—allowed her to sit exceptionally low in the water when loaded, a feature that made her a marvel of her era and still draws visitors to Superior Museums.