The Sad Fate of the Last Ferry from Mackinaw City to St. Ignace

So we have the ferries that take us to Mackinac Island...but how did we get to the U.P. before the bridge was built? Same way...by ferry boat.

The Vacationland was a ferry that transported Michiganders and tourists over to the Upper Peninsula before and during the bridge building from 1952 to 1957. At a cost of almost eight million dollars, the Vacationland was christened in 1951 and according to Wiki, was the last ferry boat built for the Highway Department ferry operation.

It was able to transport a whoppin' 150 cars during the summer months and was even used during the freezing winter to break ice and keep the Straits open for other vessels.

Get our free mobile app

Fine, but how did people get to the U.P. before the boat was built? In 1923, a number of old coal-fueled railroad ferries handled the passengers and broke the winter ice.

FAST FACTS:
Vacationland was 360 feet long
75 feet wide
Carried up to 600 passengers
47 crew members
Captain: Frank Nelson

On November 1, 1957, the Vacationland made her final passenger voyage on the bridge's opening day. The next day was her very last, taking supplies from Mackinaw City to St. Ignace. Afterward, she was put out to pasture and sold three years later.

In 1960 she was bought by the Detroit Atlantic Navigation Company of Detroit, and called the 'Jack Dalton'.

Then in 1961 was sold to the North-South Navigation Company in Canada and re-named the 'Père Nouvel' until 1966.

In 1967 she was sold to another Canadian company, BC Ferries, and called the 'Sunshine Coast Queen' (nicknamed the 'Suzy Q').

In 1977 the ship was planned to be used as an oil-drilling support ship in Alaska. That plan fell through and the ship remained dormant until 1987. The ship was again sold, and was sent to China to be scrapped. As it was being towed to China, a storm came up on the Pacific Ocean, and it sank.

The former Vacationland, a boat that became endeared to many Michiganders and residents of the north, still sits at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean under 12,00 feet of water, 100 miles from the Columbia River. A sad ending for one of Michigan's non-human heroes.