As the Express goes on about CalMac’s ‘aging’ ferries again, a bit of perspective:
When you think of travel on Lake Michigan, you likely think of the S.S. Badger. It has been an iconic mode of transportation connecting communities and enhancing travel experiences for decades.
As the last operating coal-fired passenger steamship in the United States, the S.S. Badger carries a rich history that reflects the evolution of car ferries in the Great Lakes region.
This history began in 1875 when the Flint and Pere Marquette Railway launched the 175-foot steamer John Sherman to transport grain, freight and passengers between Ludington, Michigan, and Sheboygan, Wisconsin.
The SS Badger was launched in 1952 and is now 72.
CalMac’s oldest large ferry, the MV Isle of Arran (Ferguson Ailsa) was launched in 1983 and is now a mere 41.
The small, short crossing, MV Isle of Cumbrae was launched in 1976, 24 years after the Badger, and is now a mere 50.
Talking-up Scotland 'Albatraz' 
As someone reminded previously, Waverley, former ferry and the Hebridean Princess, former ferry. Maybe when it’s time to retire the IOA or the LOI we shouldn’t sell them on but convert them to floating hotels and berth them at Brodick, or Islay or anywhere really, we’ve got lots of ferries, providing cheap accommodation for visitors tired of being ripped of by hotels and holiday lets.
Golfnut
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