[naturechannelone]

Besides Sault Ste Marie, where are some great places to see freighters up close. Are there better days of the week and better times of the day? I know they are sporadic and hit and miss.

Grosse Ile area - where is the best place to see freighters? Also, do the deer cross at dusk or dawn? You may be able to tell that I have deer around me, but they don't have water to cross. That would be cool to see. Thanks,

[mofromcheboygankalamazoo]

beside the soo....anywhere near the straits of mackinac shores of cheboygan or mackinaw city are great for viewing-mackinac island itself-watchign them pass between mackinac island and round island-very cool......watching them go by at whitefish point is cool too but up close the straits......

[Bluefly]

They come and go from Marquette all the time.

Hardly get any attention except when they have an oil spill in Lake Superior (like a few weeks ago). You can walk right down to the beach and watch them at the lower ore docks pretty close or dropping off coal for the power plant. That's a long way from Grosse Ile, though.

[cardwellave]

Port Huron. Right at the Blue Water Bridges. Simply incredible. (And from an avid Boatwatcher, you can trust me ) Soo used to be great but now there is soooo much security.

[jeeg]

You can also see them VERY close in Manistee when they go through the canal. My grandmother used to live in the senior housing apartments right on the canal up on the fourth floor and you would look directly out her windows onto the freighters

[mofromcheboygankalamazoo]

Originally Posted by cardwellave

Port Huron. Right at the Blue Water Bridges. Simply incredible. (And from an avid Boatwatcher, you can trust me ) Soo used to be great but now there is soooo much security.

haven't been there in a year and a half but that wasn't too long ago-i was at the soo locks watching freighters go through basically standing directly above them........

[bryan61]

A freighter pulls into Gladstone about 8-10 times a year. When they park in the one and only deep water port it looks like next door. Kind of freaks my dog out

[ImaMichigander]

Did you know that the only floating zip code in the country is in Detroit, right under the Ambassador Bridge? It is the J.W. Westcott. That is the boat that delivers the mail to the freighters that travel the Detroit River. They also send supplies, are a spot for people working on the freighters to come and go from the ship and occassionally, they send the guys on the boat a pizza! It is very cool. My parents both worked there for a time. One of the coolest places to watch the Freedom Festival Fireworks too! I don't know how open to the public is it, but worth checking out....

[cardwellave]

There are lots of decent places on the Detroit River to watch also, though the St. Clair River is the second busiest waterway in the world next to the Panama Canal, so your chances of seeing a freighter in Port Huron is much better than the Detroit River.

[tuebor]

Muskegon has a commercial port, but I don't know how many freighters it gets in a season. One ran aground on its way in last year due to falling lake levels.