Niebish Island is separated from the Upper Peninsula mainland by the narrow channel of the St. Mary’s River.
The ferry journey takes only 5 minutes.
But soon, the ferries no longer ran as slowly or as frequently as before, and the island’s dozens of permanent residents and the hundreds of others who came during the summer were worried that the ferries would clog Niebish Island’s lifeline. I’m worried that it won’t happen.
“Our very livelihood, and the power of the entire island, is being regressed,” said Phyllis Reed, president of the Niebish Island Improvement Association. We don’t support anything. ”
The 21-square-mile island once had two year-round stores, four schools and two churches, but the school and most of its school-age children are gone. One remaining church and one remaining store are seasonal.
Mr Reed said without the ferries operating after 7pm in the summer, it would be difficult for summer residents to pop into the island for a weekend getaway.
Without ferries operating after 6 p.m. from December to April, it would be difficult for all islanders to carry out daily activities such as going to the doctor, eating out, and shopping for groceries.
“We can’t have anyone come to the island,” Reed said. “Why do people want to shop here and say this is like a second home? You can’t even come here on a long weekend and go there because there’s no late ferry.”
Pete Paramski, executive director of the Eastern Upper Peninsula Transportation Authority (also known as EUPTA), which has operated ferry service to the island since 1981, said there are two reasons for the ferry schedule change.
The ferry used to run until 10 p.m. on weekdays during the summer, but Paramsky said the service after that wasn’t used enough to make it worthwhile. EUPTA announced the exemption last fall.
“The sound wasn’t worth paying for a 10 o’clock run that very few people were using,” he says.
The second set of changes, expected to be approved by the EUPTA board next week, were initiated by the US Coast Guard, which regulates ferry operations.
Coast Guard regulations state that crew members may not work shifts for more than 12 hours in a 24-hour period.
On Niebish Island, ferry crews have been working more than 12 hours a day “for years,” Palamsky said.
“It’s a very rural island. There’s not a huge population,” he said. “There’s no business there or anything, so it operates on a very limited schedule, with lots of breaks throughout the day. It doesn’t run hourly like the ferry service at Drummond or Sugar Island. there is no.”
Palamski said he had been granted an exemption due to the extended vacation, but the Coast Guard told EUPTA earlier this year that it would not work.
“Our primary concern is the safety of the passengers, crew and vessel,” said Lt. Philip Gurtler, a spokesman for the Coast Guard District 9. Just in the span of 24 hours he’s, frankly, you’re kind of inviting an incident. ”
There was no answer as to why the ferry was able to sail before.
Palamski said hiring a third ferry crew would be cost-prohibitive, and EUPTA is currently moving back crossings from 8pm weekdays in the summer to 7pm and 11pm on Fridays and Saturdays. He said he is proposing a schedule that would eliminate time travel.
Additionally, the winter schedule, which currently runs from mid-January to March, will be extended from December to April. The last ferry service in the winter is at 6 p.m. When the strait to the mainland freezes, ferries no longer operate, but residents can cross on foot or by snowmobile.
Niebish islanders are used to being self-sufficient and accept a certain degree of isolation from the outside world.
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But several residents said changes already made and proposed to the ferry schedule would create too much distance.
To justify the change, transportation officials keep saying that “the population of Niebish Island continues to decline,” said Helen Fogle, whose family has been coming to the island for more than a century. “Well, the situation is getting worse because people feel they can’t live on the island and they can leave the island and go to work.”
And there are other reasons too.
Lori Miller moved to Neebish Island with her husband, Ed, 10 years ago. Ed Miller and his brothers spent many years of their childhood on the island. First her sister came back. Others followed.
Ed Miller passed away from the coronavirus in 2022. Lori Miller moved from the island last year because her health was failing and she couldn’t get the help she needed.
“When we moved here, we knew what we were facing, so we were able to stay on schedule while avoiding the lack of services and amenities,” she says. I did. Away. “
“All we want is an evening boat,” she said.
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