''Isle Royale Queen IV'' is a passenger ferry operating on

Lake Superior Lake Superior in central North America is the largest freshwater lake in the world by surface areaThe Caspian Sea is the largest lake, but is saline, not freshwater. and the third-largest by volume, holding 10% of the world's surface fresh wa ...

between

Copper Harbor, Michigan Copper Harbor is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) located in Keweenaw County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is located within Grant Township. The population of the CDP was 136 as of the 2020 census. The communit ...

, and

Isle Royale National Park Isle Royale National Park is an American national park consisting of Isle Royale – known as Minong to the native Ojibwe – along with more than 400 small adjacent islands and the surrounding waters of Lake Superior, in the state of Michigan ...

, the largest island on Lake Superior and the State of Michigan's only national park. The ferry operates from mid-May to the end of September each year. In the months of June, July, and August the ferry operates nearly every day. The crossing distance between the port of Copper Harbor and the Smithwick Channel entrance to Rock Harbor at Isle Royale is . The ''Queen IV'' makes this crossing in three hours, fifteen minutes, depending on weather conditions on Lake Superior. The ''Queen IV'' is owned and operated by the Donald E. and Elizabeth A. Kilpela family who now operate the ferry and all the business operations associated with the Isle Royale Line. Inc. (formerly known as the

Isle Royale Ferry Service The Isle Royale Line – previously Isle Royale Ferry Service – is a transportation service between Copper Harbor, Michigan and Isle Royale National Park. It is the successor of a series of ferry services between the Keewenaw Peninsula and Isle ...

, the private corporation that owns the service. The corporation is a contracted concessionaire of the U.S.

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propert ...

). The ''Queen IV'' is the third ferry the family has operated on the Lake Superior run since 1971. The ferry began operations on the run in 2005 after being purchased by the family in Port Canaveral, Florida, in 2004. The ferry was built in 1980 in Louisiana, but operated for many years as a tour boat named the ''John Jay'' in New York's lower harbor. In late July 2015, the vessel ran aground, and the ''

Ranger III ''Ranger III'' is a 648-ton vessel built to carry visitors to Isle Royale National Park, on Lake Superior. She was built in 1958, and has undergone several refits. The vessel is designed to carry 125 passengers, as well as 100 tons of cargo. Sh ...

'' was called upon to bring the ''Isle Royale Queen IV''s passenger back to the mainland.

References

External links

*
The Isle Royale Line, Inc.
1980 ships Ferries of Michigan Isle Royale National Park Transportation in Keweenaw County, Michigan Ships built in Louisiana {{Michigan-transport-stub