It’s ‘Boat Bash’ Season in Northern Michigan, and the Locals Love to See It

I saw this post about a "Boat Bash" in Traverse city this summer, and was intrigued. Sounds like a cool party, and when you involve boats and cool waters in the summer, it's even better, right?

Well... wrong kinda "bash" I guess. This actually has to do more with boats BASHING into each other, and the shore. It's become such a common event in the summer, that locals have now dubbed the annual cleanup of the lost vessels, "Boat Bash."

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On a post to a facebook group called "Boat Buddies," someone wrote the following caption under four photos of boats, and large inflatables that had drifted off from their moorings, and "bashed" themselves into the shore (and other boats) on a nearby coast.

"In my beautiful hometown, Traverse City, Michigan, there's an annual event known as the Boat Bash. It's always held on a weekday, after all the knuckleheads, who don't know how to properly secure a boat, leave their boats 'anchored' on West Bay, and go back to work. Inevitably, the north wind picks up, and the fun begins. Enjoy."

Yeah, those photos are brutal, and even without knowing much about boats, I can tell you that's an expensive mess right there.

But it's true, every year, these "knuckleheads," as the OP put it, will think they have their boats secured with an anchor in the West Arm Grand Traverse Bay, but inevitably, strong winds off Lake Michigan will push them up the coast... and then INTO the coast, damaging many of them beyond repair.

Thus, "Boat Bash" season.