Bay City’s Appledore IV Drops Anchor in Alpena

Alpena — Folks caught a new sight at the Thunder Bay River in downtown Alpena on Monday.

Bay City’s Appledore IV docked for two nights at the Great Lakes Maritime Heritage Center just south of the Lady Michigan. The ship is a two-mast steel-hold schooner, originally created to sail around the world.

Now, the ship is owned by BaySail, a nonprofit organization that aims to educate different ages on environmental education and sailing training for naval sea cadets. Since it’s foundation in 1998, over 44,000 young people have experienced one of the the educational programs provided by the nonprofit.

“I’ve never sailed before so this is the first time for me and it’s been absolutely incredible,” said Naval Sea Cadet Kelsey Ampe.

Naval Sea Cadets learn to sail the schooner without modern technology, utilizing old maritime techniques to navigate the rough waters of Lake Huron. In Alpena, four Naval Sea Cadets and their officer were able to stretch their legs on land. Ampe has enjoyed building not only her skills but a little community on board.

“You see two different vibes when you’re in sea cadets,” said Ampe. “You see either closeness, togetherness, teamwork or you see the opposite which, thankfully we see more teamwork.”

Cadets will use the time and skills from sailing aboard the Appledore IV as preparation for future careers on a vessel. The schooner is not new to Alpena’s waters. The ship last visited in 2016 with a different captain. As for new Captain Jesse Doucette, a return to Alpena will come very soon.

“With our future voyages this summer, I really plan on making Alpena a good mid-voyage stop at least once or twice more.”

No timetable is set for the next return at this time.

For information on the schooner, visit https://www.baysailbaycity.org/