I'm planning a trip across Lake Michigan on the ferry ( Lake Express) this summer from Muskegon to Milwaulkee. Does anyone have any tips or input on tiedowns, ETC.

 

i have taken the other ferry from Ludington to Manitowock ...needed to bring your own straps and chocks, we had to secure to some grating in the floor, and they really packed us tight, make sure the bikes on each side of you are also secure. it was a calm day but i still snuck down to check the bikes several times,( you arent suppose to go down ther when underway) was alot of fun and beats riding thru chicago

 

RK, I am from Manitowoc and have taken the ferry across to Ludington several times. Bring a couple of tie-downs as you will need them to keep things secure. I can't speak for the Milwaukee ferry, but up here I know of no problems or damage to any bikes during the crossings. The ride is generaly smoother on the Manitiowoc ferry just by nature of the boat design, although it is slower. When travelling east, it literally saves me a day travel and money. I take the Friday night 1130 crossing. The bike and passenger fares are 20% off and a stateroom is only $35.00. I'm aboard by 11pm - asleep shortly after. Ride off the ferry at 530 AM and can be in Buffolo NY by 4 in the afternoon Saturday. I'll do anything to avoid the CHicago traffic!! Smooth sailing --- Tom

 

Took the same ferry two years ago on my Ultra. we had a group of 30 bikes along that day.

While they will supply 2 tiedowns for you, I would rather have my own, and I carried and used 4.

Make sure its tied down tight, and help other bikes around you so you can judge thier stability too. Its a great ride, only takes 2 hours, and well worth the trip.

One other thing..BE EARLY. Bikes load first, and you want to be closer the front of the line if at all possible, so you are against one wall, and have no worries from that side.

We arrived over 30 minutes before we were told to be there, and we were the first ones on, and the first bikes off.

 

+1 on the bring your own tie downs. When I lived in MI, I took the ferry over from Ludington to WI a few times. The guys who packed our bikes seemed to know what they were doing, but I felt better knowing it was my quality tie down strapping my bike down, and they were cool about me 'supervising'. One one of our trips, we were returning another way, so I had a pre-stamped box and just mailed my tie downs home so I didn't have to carry them as well.

 

Always bring your own tie downs!

 

I see everyone says to bring your own tie downs but didn't see anyone mention soft ties. I took a 5-1/2 hour ferry ride from Newfoundland to Nova Scotia a couple of years ago. The ferry had tiedowns big enough to hold a car but they didn't have anything to keep from marring the chrome. Luckily another rider had some extra soft ties.

My recommendations are:

Take four soft ties with you. You can get them at just about any dirt or street motorcycle dealer.

Don't go overboard but take at least two ratcheting tie downs with you. Between your two tie downs and those provided by the ferry you will be able to hang your bike upside down from the ceiling. I see absolutely no need for chocks if a bike is properly tied down.

Don't crank down too tightly with the tie downs. You want them very snug but you are not stringing a piano. Tie downs are usually stronger than they look.

The tie downs will work better if you move them out on about a 45 degree angle from the bike. In other words, they do not work as well if you go straight down to the floor.

If you have a center stand, do NOT use it. If it slips off the center stand it may create slack in the tie downs, which won't be good. The jiffy stand works fine if your tie downs are properly adjusted.

As stated above, it doesn't matter how well your bike is tied down if the bike next to yours falls over onto yours.

You may feel rushed by the ferry personnel to get it tied down and move out of the way. Take your time and tie it down properly. The ferry personnel or another rider may even help you. If you are not sure about what you are doing, ask for help. Those ferry workers should be experts at tying anything down.

Tie down straps, especially new ones, may stretch a bit and require some adjustment. I never checked my bike on my ferry trip and it stayed secure. I trailered my bikes once and had to take quite a bit of slack out of the tie downs after a couple hundred miles but they stayed secure for the next 500 miles. Unless the water is very rough I wouldn't feel the need to check my bike during the crossing.

Do not set your alarm if you have one. It will probably just go off every 30 seconds and wear your battery down.

If your bike leaks a little gas after you fill it up you may not want to fill up immediately before you load your bike. If you want to see the ferry workers freak out a little just let them see a little gas leaking out of your bike.

If the ferry has a stateroom it will be worth the few extra bucks to be able to get some sleep so you get off the ferry well rested.

Hope this helps.

Have a great trip!

 

To me, soft ties are a part of the tie down. I never tie without them.

The only reason that I don't want to use the ferry's tie downs, is that I don't know where its been, if it has grease or oil on it, nor what condition it may be in. I trust my equipmet because I know how I take care of it.

 

I brought up the soft ties because the tie down I have didn't have soft ties included in the package. They were a seperate purchase that some people may not know about.

I don't know anyone who would use an obviously contaminated tie down provided by the ferry but I'm sure they have a few hundred more to choose from if you get a dirty one or you can carry your own if you have the room and don't mind the extra weight. The only thing that would keep me from using a ferry-provided tie down is the hook may not have a plastic coating to protect your chrome. Hence the need for the soft ties.

 

The wife and I did the Ludington to Manitowoc trip on the SS Badger last summer. And I would highly recommend it! And although they may have tie downs they tell you on their website to bring two. Just the history of the ship was fascinating to me. Where else can you take a coal fired steam ship!

http://ssbadger.com/home.aspx