For many families, Christmas trees are normally delivered by car, not boat. But for Chicago families, this form of delivery is a tradition decades in the making.
Making its 22nd annual journey from Cheboygan, Michigan, to Navy Pier in Chicago, the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Mackinaw comes bearing roughly 1,200 Christmas trees for families in need. The choppy 140-nautical-mile journey reenacts the odyssey made by the original Christmas tree ship in the early 1900s, the schooner Rouse Simmons.
“We actually did hit some rough seas or lakes on the way down. So that’s why they are tied down pretty well,” U.S. Coast Guardsman Adalea Severs said.
For over 20 years, the Mackinaw has battled inclement weather while crossing Lake Michigan to deliver more than 26,000 Christmas trees in total. And it isn’t letting the COVID-19 pandemic get in the way of that.
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