Tour Lake Michigan’s only 240

GRAND HAVEN, MI -- The Coast Guard Festival is in full swing, including an opportunity for the public to tour the ships.

Three U.S. Coast Guard cutters the: USCGC Bristol Bay (WTGB-102), USCGC Katmai Bay (WTGB-101) and USCGC Mackinaw (WLBB-30) paraded past thousands of onlookers as they ported in “Coast Guard City USA” on Monday, July 31.

MLive was on aboard the USCGC Mackinaw when it opened to the public Monday evening for tours of the main deck of cutter and the bridge.

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The 240-foot Mackinaw (WLBB-30) was launched in 2005 and is the only heavy icebreaker on the Great Lakes. The ship is configured to handle a variety of roles including buoy maintenance, search and rescue and handling environmental spills.

The current cutter replaced the Mackinaw (WAGB-83), which served the Great Lakes for over 60 years. The Mackinaw’s home port is located in Cheboygan.

The original Mackinaw was constructed during World War II in response to the need to keep shipping active during the winter months to maintain production of steel. Today the original Mackinaw serves as a lakeside museum in Mackinaw City.

Visitors can also tour the Bristol Bay (WTGB-102), a 140-foot icebreaking tug based out of Detroit. The Bristol Bay is one of two Bay class cutters that work in conjunction with a special barge. The ships primary responsibility is opening and maintaining icebound shipping lanes in the Great Lakes. It also performs missions such as search and rescue, marine environmental protection, law enforcement, and port security and safety.

RELATED: 2023 Grand Haven Coast Guard Festival ultimate guide: Live music, ship tours on deck

The 140-foot Katmai Bay (WTGB-101) is homeported in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. The unit missions include icebreaking, homeland security patrols, light house projects and law enforcement.

The ships will be open to the public for tours all week.

Here is the tour schedule:

Additionally the Canadian Coast Guard’s Samuel Risley is expected to port later in the week. Tours for Ottawa based icebreaker are listed below:

Ship tour rules include:

More information at Coast Guard Festival 2023 can be found at www.coastguardfest.org.

Also on MLive:

Will it float? Makeshift cardboard boats take to the water during Coast Guard Festival

Congresswoman Scholten hosting Grand Haven town hall

World of Winter bringing 6 large art installations to Grand Rapids next year

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