Update: Badger Trip to Shipyard Delayed Due to Weather
Due to inclement weather, the SS Badger’s April 29 departure to Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, will be delayed for 24 hours. The National Weather Service forecast is predicting gale force winds on Lake Michigan with surface winds to 50 knots possible.
With the delay, the Badger is expected to depart Ludington, Michigan, on April 30, between 6 a.m. to 8 a.m. and the trip will take approximately 12-hours.
The Badger will be traveling to Sturgeon Bay for repairs in preparation of the upcoming sailing season which begins on Friday, May 16. The ship will sail, under its own power, to Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding where it will undergo a propeller shaft bearing repair.
Following the repairs, the ship is expected to return to Ludington on May 11.
S.S. Badger: Lake Michigan Carferry
Victory Cruise Lines’ passenger vessel
Victory I christened Sunday in Toronto
TORONTO, ON – A reborn Victory Cruise Lines christened the Victory I on Sunday in Toronto, just over a year after John Waggoner decided to come out of retirement and jump back into cruising.
Victory I’s christening will be followed by Victory II’s on May 12 in Chicago.
Waggoner purchased the two ships in American Queen Voyages’ bankruptcy auction last April, and soon after announced plans to return them to service on the Great Lakes after a refurbishment. The ships had sailed the Great Lakes as the Ocean Voyager and Ocean Navigator for American Queen Voyages, which ceased operations in February 2024.
Waggoner was the CEO of American Queen Voyages when it acquired Victory Cruise Lines in 2019. Waggoner founded American Queen Steamboat Co. in 2011 — the company was renamed American Queen Voyages in 2021.
“As we celebrate the return of Victory Cruise Lines to the Great Lakes, I must reflect on the amazing feat by an incredible team that has brought this vision to life once again,” Waggoner said. “Thank you to everyone here, as well as those not in the room today, that have believed in us and this dream to share our passion for cruising here on the Great Lakes.”
Waggoner’s daughter Emily Coleman, Victory I’s godmother, christened the ship with a bottle of Crown Royal Canadian Whisky. The national anthems of the United States and Canada were performed.
Waggoner purchased the two ships with a bid of $1.9 million. That began a whirlwind year of coming out of retirement and getting a cruise company up and running in time for a spring 2025 launch.
The Victory I’s maiden cruise departed April 17 from Portland, Maine. The cruise was a 10-day voyage to Toronto with Waggoner and his wife Claudette aboard.
The Victory ships, built in 2001, each carry 190 passengers and were designed for coastal cruising by American Classic Voyages. Since that company’s bankruptcy after the 9/11 attacks, the ships have had several owners.
Victory Cruise Lines is sailing 33 voyages this year, each traversing all five Great Lakes.
Travel Pulse
Frontenac opens Midland shipping season
MIDLAND, ON – Congratulations to Captain Louri Makarenko of the Canada Steamship Lines’ M.V. Frontenac for being the first commercial vessel of the season.
The Top Hat Ceremony is a 100+ years old tradition started by Canadian shipowner James Playfair, which added some friendly competition amongst commercial vessels. The ceremony celebrates the first ship to arrive in the harbor each year, with the captain being “crowned” with Mr. Playfair’s own silk top hat.
This tradition carries on, as the arrival of the first commercial vessel is a moment that deserves recognition and celebration. The vintage silk top hat used in this annual ceremony is from Mr. Playfair’s personal collection.
Congratulations to the captain, the ship’s crew, the shipping company, and all those who have made this moment possible.
Town Of Midland
Two groups offer raffles for trips on the Edwin H. Gott
The Lake Superior Marine Museum Association and The Soo Locks Visitors’ Center Association are raffling off a round-trip cruise on the 1,000-footer Edwin H. Gott.
Visit these websites or see fliers in the gallery below.
https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=1052918876872355&set=a.458641912966724
https://www.lsmma.com/
