BY AMANDA HARRISON
Spring may have officially arrived last week, but for residents on Mackinac Island, spring really begins when ferry service resumes.
That finally happened Tuesday
It took an hour and a half for the first ferry of 2013 to make the trip to Mackinac Island, and apparently it arrived just in time.
Bob Brown is the general manager of the Arnold Transit Company. He said the island was running low on gas.
"They were getting a little nervous but they found that there was some here on the island that the state had and they were able to do some trading and I don't think there's any emergency left now. And of course we can haul some over on a limited basis until we get our freight boat going." Brown said.
Ferries are the main link to Mackinac Island for most of the year, but during the winter months, that link is cut off, leaving only a small airport for residents to get back and forth from the mainland.
The Coast Guard, Brown said, broke up most of the ice between St. Ignace and the island, but some still remains.
He said last year, ferries were able to begin service in February.