As we follow the west side of Lake Michigan, we see evidence of lots of fish and folks who say yes to catching them.
And there’s a boat building tradition and
regular visits by an iconic vessel . . . Badger, which I’ve done a number of posts about before now.
Badger is a BIDO and carries a lot of vehicles, including this sub.
BIDO? Back in, drive out.
All photos by Will Van Dorp.
tugster: a waterblog 
4 comments
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July 15, 2016 at 12:44 pm
William Lafferty
Your forlorn tug on the beach is the Erich, built 1943 as the LD 617 for the Corps of Engineers by the Port Houston Iron Works, Houston, Texas. Sold 1953 to Alton Barge Service, Alton, Illinois, as a fleeting tug used around St. Louis and renamed Marilyn. Manitowoc’s McMullen & Pitz bought it in 1957 and renamed it Erich. I believe it has been sitting there since at least 1994, although its documentation lapsed only last year.
July 15, 2016 at 4:20 pm
bowsprite
“She Said ‘No’ when asked if she could find the capacity plate.”
(But, actually, I love that name!)
July 16, 2016 at 12:10 pm
Daniel Meeter
As the sign reminds us, the Badger is also a Federal Highway, US 10.
July 19, 2016 at 10:23 pm
George Schneider
I’d be sure the ERICH was originally given an Army ST number, since they’re the ones who administered the contract with Port Houston Iron Works. Port Houston built the ST 543-576 of that class, but alas, no 617; that number in the Army series was a sister built by Kewaunee SB. The “Design 320” tugs were produced nominally to work as dredge tenders for the Army Corps, whose fleet was controlled by the U.S. Army during WWII. Many of the 320’s remained with the Army Corps after the War and received ACE names.