Not even a vast ice field that blew into Whitefish Bay, temporarily clogging the Soo Locks, could stop the research vessel Lake Char from arriving at its new home port of Marquette.

The maiden voyage of the newest addition to the fisheries research fleet for the Michigan Department of Natural Resources was a three-day journey.

Launched at the mouth of the Kalamazoo River, she traveled more than 450 miles, cruising up Lake Michigan, through the northern end of Lake Huron, jockeying among the freighters in the St. Marys River, navigating past the locks and the ice and, finally, heading west, halfway across Lake Superior.

"It was a trip long-awaited and eagerly anticipated by the entire staff at the Marquette Fisheries Research Station," said Phil Schneeberger, station manager. "She will serve as the DNR's primary work platform on Lake Superior."

To the cheers from about 20 department employees and guests, Schneeberger and the Marquette boat crew christened the Lake Char with water from Lake Superior in Marquette's lower harbor May 1.

"Lake char is a variation on the name for lake trout, which is the top native predator fish in Lake Superior," Schneeberger said. "The name is fitting in view of her location and the primary work she'll perform."

The Lake Char is 56 feet long with a 16-foot beam and a draft of four-and-a-half feet. She is constructed of welded aluminum alloy and has a displacement of about 26 tons. Powered by twin diesel engines, she has a cruising speed of about 19 knots (22 mph).

The vessel was designed by Tim Graul, a naval architect in Sturgeon Bay, Wis., and built by Dave Andersen of Andersen Boat Works in Douglas, Mich. The installation of the machinery on board was done by Paul Jensen of Marine Management Ltd. in Muskegon.

The Lake Char was funded by DNR Game and Fish funds that were appropriated by the Legislature through a Capital Outlay bill in 2002. She replaces the Judy, which spent 53 years on the Great Lakes, the last 28 for the DNR Fisheries Division.

In addition to being new and up-to-date, the Lake Char features major improvements in safety, including having a compartmentalized hull to greatly reduce the danger of sinking and an enclosed work area to protect her crew from the elements.

"She has twin screws so we can still return to shore if one engine fails, and she has enough speed to get us to safe haven in an emergency or when threatening weather comes on," said Schneeberger.

The DNR Fisheries Division operates four research vessels, each serving as a direct link to the aquatic resources of lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron and Erie.

The vessels allow the DNR to collect important data used to estimate relative abundance, biomass, age and growth, health, diet, survival rates, natural reproduction and movements of fish in the Great Lakes.

Containing 20% of the world's fresh water, the Great Lakes are undeniably important on a global scale. Recreational boating on the Great Lakes each year is valued at $16 billion. The commercial and sport fishery is collectively valued at more than $4 billion annually, and the tourism-related value to hundreds of Great Lakes coastal communities is billions more.

Although other Great Lakes states, tribes and the federal governments of the U.S. and Canada share with stewardship commitments, the state of Michigan has management responsibility for 43%, or 38,575 square miles, of the Great Lakes -- much more than any other entity.

In addition to her primary duties for assessing lake trout populations in Lake Superior and tracking other fish stocks by their geographical and biological characteristics, the Lake Char will enable DNR fisheries biologists to follow lamprey wounding trends, do contaminant analysis, and document effects and spread of exotics and diseases.

Schneeberger said the vessel data collected by the Lake Char also will be used to help evaluate current fishing regulations and the success of the DNR's stocking efforts (strains, survival, return to creel, cost efficiencies).

"Much of the work is closely tied to collaborative agreements with other management agencies and governments, such as the legal mandates imposed by the 2000 Consent Decree," he said.

During his nearly 20 years at the Marquette Fisheries Research Station, Schneeberger said vessel data from the Judy in Lake Superior have contributed to an impressive number of studies and research reports and journal articles produced for the DNR's Great Lakes research program.

The Lake Char now offers greater possibilities for new research.

"The Lake Char was designed and built to last 50-plus years," Schneeberger said. "She is capable of handling everything we do at present, everything we foresee the need to do in the future, and room to adapt to things we haven't even thought of yet."

For more information on the status of all fisheries research being conducted by the DNR, visit the DNR Web site at www.michigan.gov/dnr and click on "Fishing."