It's A Tough Job
There are only two ways on and off of Beaver Island -- by plane or by boat.
But when Lake Michigan freezes, the ferry boats are pulled from the water and the only option to supply the island is through the air.
Eric Lloyd returns with Tough Jobs Tuesday and this time has more details on the people tasked with making modern life possible on Beaver Island.
There are many inhabited islands in the Great Lakes, but none as remote as Beaver Island. Thirty-two miles off the shore of Charlevoix, the only way to get there is by boat or by plane.
"Our boat stops running to the island in December, typically the 10th through the 20th, so the moment that happens, this is what happens," explained Angela Lefevre-Welke, president and owner of Island Airways. "We get all the freight going to the island. So it's the grocery store, the restaurants, the bars. A typical day this time of year is 7,000 to 10,000 pounds of freight."
Angela Lefevre-Welke is the president and owner of Island Airways, the main airline tasked with getting freight and people to and from the island. The number of flights is set each day by demand.
"You're telling me that's a light load?" Lloyd asked.
"Yes, that's a light load," replied Lefevre-Welke. "That's probably 60 or 70 packages and in the summer it's not unusual to have over 100 packages. There are days when the summer population goes up -- around July 4th there are days there are probably 2000 people on the island, and if they are there for a week or two, they order things. So between Fedex and UPS, we can deliver 200-300 packages a day."
"And you guys are taking all the supplies the island needs, but people that live there have gotten savvy and realized they can order whatever they want?" asked Lloyd.
"Absolutely," said Lefevre-Welke. "A lot of people order their medicines online, office supplies, you know, the things that instead of going to Traverse City for the day, you can get office supplies and clothes."
By ordering and having it shipped, the customer avoids the freight costs. They just pay normal shipping. But, in the winter there is no other option. Whatever it is, if an islander needs it, it has to be flown over.
"I rode in a flight last year with six dog crates full of baby goats, baby turkeys, some lambs. We did lambs once, we had 14 lambs in dog crates. I got on a flight once with a ferret. I didn't know it was in the back and then all of a sudden it was like, that kids got a ferret on his lap. Just a little bit of everything."
Everyday is like this, packing up to 1600 pounds in each plane to get it across.
There is only one thing that will ground the airlines.
"Weather, weather," said Lefevre-Welke.
"Today its negative one degrees but its bright blue skies," said Lloyd.
"It's gorgeous," replied Lefevre-Welke. "Friday we got one flight in, our pilot got stuck on the island for the night. One of the mechanics who lives here, but works there got stuck. We got the first flight in and then never flew again."
Beaver Island has its own ecosystem. Weather can be drastically different between the island and Charlevoix. Today, we are clear on both ends.
"Wait until you guys get to the island today, there is snow everywhere, we had probably got ten inches of snow."
"I figured for my first flight I would dress the part, but this is only my first flight," said Lloyd. "Today they are going to make five round trips to the island and back. Now that's busy for a winter Monday, but for a day around the 4th of July weekend, they are doing dozens of flights, maybe even 30 of them because so many people want to enjoy the island life."
It's a small plane and I am a big guy so my only goal was not to touch anything. I'll left that to this guy, Ashley Messenger, a former commercial pilot that who wasn't ready to retire from flying but wanted to stay close to home. A flight log full of 60 mile round trips was perfect.
"I had never heard of Beaver Island," said Messenger. "I knew there were inhabited islands in Lake Michigan, but I didn't pay much attention to it. I had never come here for vacation or anything. I had to realize there was a thriving community there. And they have come to rely on the airplane. The airplane rather much makes life on the island a bit more like life on the mainland."
And with that, we were ready to take off with a load of mail and packages waiting to be delivered.
"You ready to go? Let's fly!"
A tight squeeze, but a beautiful view. The ice chunks forming in the lake proving ferry travel would be impossible.
"The flight of this length is about nine minutes to 13 minutes. Today on this flight we have a tail wind."
Ashley gave us the scenic tour, circling the island, highlighting the town of Saint James on the island's northern tip.
"The vast majority of the housing is located along the shoreline, so it rings the island on the perimeter of the island. Once you get inland, there's very few structures."
There aren't any superstores and prices are a little bit more expensive. But thanks to the connection the planes and pilots provide, life on Beaver Island is idyllic for those searching for quiet. So far away, yet just off shore.
"I knew when I moved there it was gonna be different," said Lefevre-Welke. "There was gonna be some things I couldn't get as easily and for that remoteness there was gonna be a price that you put on that, it's a little mark up."
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