HOUGHTON, Mich. (WJMN) – Following three canceled visits earlier this year, Viking Cruises ship Octantis visited Houghton via the Keweenaw Waterway on Wednesday morning. The ship’s visit marks the second cruise line to visit Houghton this year, joining American Queen Voyages.
The Octantis’ previous scheduled visits were canceled due to inclement weather and wind concerns. The ship is set to visit the Keweenaw three more times throughout the remaining summer and into the fall.
“The community is very excited to have the Octantis and her passengers visiting the Keweenaw today,” shared Brad Barnett, executive director of Visit Keweenaw. “Bringing a ship of that size into the Keweenaw Waterway’s narrow channels can be a bit daunting, but the weather this morning was perfect.”
During the visit, the Octantis will be anchored in Portage Lake. Passengers will be tendered about 3 miles to Bridgeview Park in Houghton.
The Octantis is 665 feet long, nearly double the American Queen Voyages’ Ocean Navigator ship, which had docked west of the Portage Lake Lift Bridge during its visits. The ship can carry up to 378 guests plus crew, with about 90-95% of passengers expected to take part in excursions around the area.
The City of Houghton posted the following photo of the ship to its Facebook page Wednesday morning:
If you would like to take a look at the ship, the best viewing points will be in Dollar Bay and at the Nara Nature Park boardwalk off US-41.
The ship will depart for its next port of call at around 6 p.m., exiting via South Portage Entry near Jacobsville.
For future updates on the ship’s visits, follow the Facebook pages for the City of Houghton and Keweenaw Chamber of Commerce.