General

Free Shipping Day is coming! On December 14, Great Lakes Skipper will offer up to $50 in FREE shipping! Details below. 

We're all about saving you money, so here are some of our favorite stocking stuffers. Enjoy!

It's late October. The leaves are falling and darkness comes early. It's the perfect time to bundle up and gather around a bonfire on the beach to swap ghost stories. There are many nautical spine-tingling tales, but here's our most recent favorite: the ghostly Palatine Light of Block Island. 

Some folks are lucky to live in kind climates with warm temperatures year round. Here in the upper midwestern USA, we know winter is on the way, but the end of summer doesn't spell the end of boating season. As the leaves and temperatures start to fall, we bundle up and boat on!

Tubing and water skiing are summer fun at its finest. While water skiing and wakeboarding take practice and a certain amount of bravery, riding a towable tube is easy for almost everyone. Like so many other fun things, though, water sports are not without risk. With a little knowledge and some common sense, you and your friends can stay safe while you have fun.

Summer at Great Lakes Skipper is bikini bimini season! Did you know that, as long as the size is right, almost any bimini top can be installed on any boat? Here's how to find your bimini top size, whether your boat is big or

Boating is like vanilla ice cream: it's refreshing and enjoyable just as it is, but adding a little something extra makes it really special. Music is the perfect ingredient for a stellar boating experience. It's never been easier to take your tunes wherever you go, including on the boat; a smartphone or MP3 player lets you carry a whole music library right in your pocket, and boat stereos now come with Bluetooth® capability so you don't even need a cord to connect.

Despite all the jokes revolving around beer-soaked boat rides, boats and booze don't always mix well. Having an alcoholic drink or two is all right if you're not the one at the helm, but even for passengers, overindulgence on the water isn't wise for safety's sake. Alcohol slows down reflexes and can play havoc with your balance. If you choose to drink alcohol while on the boat, please don't drive or operate any watercraft. It's not only dangerous, but also illegal. Don't let a bad decision ruin a good time.

Meet Miss Blue, Denise Frye's pride and joy! Denise and her husband, David, have lovingly restored this beautiful Wellcraft Scarab III boat over the last couple of years, using some parts from Great Lakes Skipper. The couple has put an enormous amount of work into this project, and the results are impressive. Denise was kind enough to answer our questions about it and share some photos of Miss Blue. 

With the right boat and a wake surfboard, the surf’s up whenever you want! No one knows for sure who was the first brave soul to try surfing a boat's wake, but the sport has come a long way since the 1960s, with specially-designed boats and boards.

Summer! It's finally time for long, sunny days, warm weather - and storms, which can cause more damage than just wet clothes and dampened spirits. Strong winds can whip up waves to dangerous heights, and lightning can be lethal.