The Truth About the Mystery Boat That Has Captivated Wisconsin For Several Months

In October 2024, Milwaukee, Wisconsin's lakefront gained an unexpected attraction: a mysterious boat named "Deep Thought" that washed ashore between Bradford and McKinley beaches. Several months later the boat is still there, but now the big question is; why?

Mysterious Boat Washed Up on Milwaukee Beach

Boats anchored on a beach in Wisconsin is not an uncommon sight, but a big boat, covered in Christmas lights, graffiti, and icicles stranded in the water since October certainly is!

Say hello to Milwaukee's famous "S.S. Minnow", a.k.a., "Deep Thought"...

Ever since this vessel suddenly appeared on the shores of Lake Michigan in October the imaginations of Milwaukee residents have been running wild about where it could have came from, and why no one has come to retrieve it yet.

The boat quickly became a beloved thing to see, (and make fun of), kind of like Chicago's infamous Rat Hole, and it even has it's own mark on Google Maps with plenty of 'positive' reviews to accompany it. Here are some of my favorites;

This boat lacks Deep Thoughts, but what a MKE icon.

This is absolutely everything you expect from a beached boat. Boat. Water. Beach. Sometimes fish.

It stayed for pictures, didn't sign any autographs though.

I had the best ten seconds of my life looking at this boat.

Ginger and Mary-Anne not here otherwise well worth the trip.

10/10, would abandon boat again.

Now, for the big question, is The Minnow/Deep Thought truly abandoned?

The boat's owners have finally been revealed according to WISN 12 in Milwaukee...

Since WISN published the above story, the US Coast Guard issued a statement that said;

The US Coast Guard is not charging any involved party any fees at this time. The statement claiming that the Coast Guard is charging the owners around $400 a day for the boat is false.

I don't know about you, but it sounds to me like the boat's owners, Richard and Sherry Wells, are happy to leave their boat where it is...for now...or until they start racking up major fees to pay. What do you think?