Any port in a storm: What about Arcadia Harbor?

Dredging Arcadia Harbor, June 21, 2019. Photo by Stewart A. McFerran.

By Stewart A. McFerran

“Any port in a storm” refers to the desperation of captains of vessels that are being buffeted by wind and waves. When in danger, they seek to enter any port or channel that offers shelter.

When the 19th-century schooner Minnehaha hit sand offshore in Arcadia and wrecked, most of the crew perished. The hold of the Minnehaha was filled with tons of corn that washed ashore when the ship broke apart. Swine owned by Arcadia’s farmers were reportedly well fed that winter. (Read more of story, “Minnehaha on the Move,” in Freshwater Reporter, April 2020.)

Today, Arcadia Harbor includes a clearly marked tower and a light that flashes all night from a long stretch of shore with nothing but sandy bluffs. This tower and light promise shelter to Lake Michigan boaters.

Is shelter available to all vessels drawn to Arcadia’s harbor? Currently the answer is “no,” according to Steve Bruford, an Arcadia Harbor/Marina Committee member. A recently measured depth of 4.5 feet at the end of the Arcadia channel puts vessels in danger and risks crew lives.

In 2007, the crew of the Barracuda was imperiled when their sailboat sank after running aground at the mouth of Portage Lake Harbor. The late Onekama yachtsman Holland Capper was familiar with the details of the Barracuda’s tragedy. In a forum on SailingAnarchy.com, he posted: 

“When a mariner sails between two piers marking the entrance to a harbor he does not expect his life to be placed in jeopardy by an unmarked and uncharted shallow sand bar. But that is the very situation in the entrance to Portage Lake, Michigan and it caused the tragic sinking of the Sail Yacht “Barracuda” out of Chicago, Illinois.”

Seasonal boats dock at Veterans Memorial Marina in Arcadia. They draw 7 feet, far more than the present 4.5-foot channel depth.

On the Arcadia, Michigan website page of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, it is stated: “Major stakeholders (of the dredging project) include Arcadia Township, County of Manistee, and several marinas and charter fishing interests.”

Chris Schropp, a civil engineer with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, said the only dredging projects underway along Michigan’s west coast this year are in Grand Haven and Holland. He also explained that the water level in Lake Michigan is presently 10 inches lower that it was at this time last year.

Sand carried by strong currents along the shore also cause shallow water at Arcadia Harbor, as it has done since U.S. Senator William Alden Smith (R-Michigan, served 1907-1919) presided over investigations into the sinking of the RMS Titanic. Smith fought to keep the channel into Arcadia Harbor open. Despite his efforts, it was closed to all commercial traffic and stayed closed for 46 years.

Arcadia Township, with the help of the Waterways Commission, dredged the channel in 1961. Periodic dredging commenced.

Once again, however, sand threatens to close the channel at Arcadia.

There is a window of opportunity this spring to mount a dredging operation to deepen the channel and bring the water back to a safe level. The Michigan Dept. of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy has a preferred time to dredge for each harbor.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is not scheduled to dredge this year, so the board of the Township of Arcadia must apply for a permit and complete the dredging soon while considering state regulations.

Safety comes first, of course. Yet, there’s more at stake.

Full disclosure: This writer works seasonally as an assistant harbor master at Veterans Memorial Marina, one of the stakeholders identified on the corps’ website page (lre.usace.army.mil). On the page, the costs of not dredging Arcadia Harbor are identified: loss of jobs, loss of destination for many transient boaters, loss of recreational and charter fishing in the area and plummeting property values.

It should be noted that on that fateful night in 2007, the Barracuda did attempt (unsuccessfully) to enter the Arcadia channel. The captain was able to turn back into deep water, only to meet with tragedy at the Portage Lake channel. The lesson is still fresh in many minds.

Currents and storms deposit sand in harbors up and down the west coast of Michigan. This is a given. Is swift action by citizens to protect the lives, property, and livelihoods of boaters and their associated services also a given?  

Veterans Memorial Marina is scheduled to open May 1.

Stewart A. McFerran illuminates current environmental issues in an historic context. He hopes readers will gain understanding and insight into ways people interact with their environment. He is Freshwater Reporter’s Ambassador-At-Large.