"Beginning on Sunday, November 1, all bridge openings will be BY REQUEST ONLY." The capital letters are in the City of South Haven's own October 15 release from the Department of Public Works. This Saturday, October 31, is the last day bridge tenders work their regular shifts on Dyckman Avenue.
It reads like a boating notice, and boaters do need it. It's also the day the bridge changes sides. All summer, the Black River gets right of way on a fixed clock and drivers fit around it. From Sunday until spring, the bridge stays down for the road, and a boat that wants through has to call ahead.
About 35 Scheduled Openings a Day, Then None
The city's posted schedule has the Dyckman Bascule Bridge opening on the hour and half-hour from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m., Sunday through Thursday, and until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays. WSJM reported in April that the same pattern started April 6 this year, with the later Friday and Saturday hours added May 1.
Count every scheduled slot between 6 a.m. and 11 p.m. and you get 35 chances a day for the span to go up, and a couple more on weekend nights. Some of those slots pass with no lift, because a scheduled time gives a waiting boat a chance to go through, not a promise that one will. For anyone driving or walking across the river, the schedule meant one thing: in season, the half-hour mark could stop you.
Starting November 1, the number of scheduled slots drops to zero. Unless someone has called in a request at least 12 hours ahead, the bridge simply stays down.
| Through October 31 | November 1 into April 2027 | |
|---|---|---|
| Openings | On the hour and half-hour, 6 a.m. to 11 p.m., later on Fri and Sat | By request only |
| Notice a boater needs | None during scheduled hours | At least 12 hours |
| Staffing | Bridge tenders on regular shifts | No regular tender shifts |
| Radio | Tenders monitor VHF 9, transmit on VHF 12 | Call DPW or the Information Center |
Why the Crossing Matters More Than the Lift
The city describes the bridge as the link between South Haven's north and south sides by way of Dyckman Avenue. The Michigan Maritime Museum sits on the north side of the drawbridge, less than a 10-minute walk from downtown. According to the city's beach page, South Beach is the only public beach on the river's south side, and North Beach and the other beach accesses are on the north side.
So a walk from downtown to North Beach, a drive to the museum, and a run between the two beaches all cross this one span. In summer, each of those trips might hit a scheduled lift. From November into spring, they almost never will.
Some of the season's events start right at the north end of the bridge. Holiday in the Haven on Saturday, December 5, begins at the Michigan Maritime Museum, and the 5 p.m. parade runs through downtown to Dyckman Park for the tree lighting. That's an evening with no lifts on the schedule, on a bridge that spent the summer opening every half hour.
Two Calendars That Don't Quite Line Up
If you keep a boat on the river, this is the detail to have straight before your last fall run. Two different dates are in play.
The first comes from federal rules. Under 33 CFR 117.624, openings outside normal hours need 12 hours' notice from October 15 through April 30. From May 1 through October 14, three hours' notice is enough. The federal in-season schedule is lighter than what South Haven actually runs. It requires openings on the hour and half-hour only from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m., and on weekdays it allows the noon and 1 p.m. openings to be skipped. Commercial vessels and public-safety or distressed vessels are passed as soon as possible.
The second date is the city's staffing schedule. South Haven starts its openings at 6 a.m., an hour earlier than the federal minimum, and kept tenders on regular shifts through October 31 this year. For the last two weeks of October, the 12-hour federal notice rule already covered after-hours requests while staffed daytime openings carried on. Sunday is when the staffed openings end.
The tenders themselves are seasonal hires. WSJM reported in May that the city brought on about 60 seasonal employees for summer, bridge tenders among them. When the season ends, so do the tender shifts.
How a Boat Gets Through After November 1
According to the city's release, requests must come in at least 12 hours ahead, and who you call depends on when you call:
- Weekdays, 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.: the Department of Public Works, at (269) 637-0737 or [email protected].
- After 3:30 p.m., overnight, weekends and holidays: the South Haven Information Center, at (269) 637-5151.
In practice, a boater who wants to go out on a Saturday morning should call the Information Center by Friday evening, since DPW's office hours will be over by then. Once the tenders are gone, the radio channels they use in season, 9 for listening and 12 for transmitting, won't get a boat through the bridge.
These are the city's and the federal government's operating rules, summed up here as general information. They aren't legal advice, so if you're unsure about a particular trip, check with DPW or the Information Center first.
The Quiet Months Are When the Bridge Gets Worked On
Request-only season doesn't promise six months of an open road. The months when the bridge rarely lifts are also when the city can take it out of service for repairs.
In March 2025, WSJM reported that weekday maintenance would keep the bridge raised from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Cars and pedestrians couldn't cross during those hours, drivers headed for the north harbor were sent around on a Baseline Road detour, and the bridge came down on weekends. The riprap reinforcement finished ahead of schedule, and WSJM reported on March 18 that regular operations were back.
Some work disturbs boats instead of cars. WWMT reported that divers inspected the bridge underwater on September 18, 2025. Road traffic wasn't expected to be disrupted, but boats had to coordinate and give 15 minutes' warning while the divers worked. This spring, WSJM's April 1 report said maintenance was complete, with the bridge staying on its off-season schedule until hourly and half-hourly openings resumed April 6.
The city hasn't announced work for the coming winter. The pattern from the last two springs is that bridge work tends to land in the stretch before scheduled openings return.
A Crossing Older Than the Span
People have been bridging the river at this spot for a long time. Visit South Haven's history timeline dates the first wooden drawbridge to 1859 and an iron swing bridge to 1889. The sources disagree on the current span's age. The city's bridge page says it was built in 1967, while the Visit South Haven timeline says the current Dyckman bridge opened in 1988. According to the city, it's a Scherzer-type rolling lift bascule bridge, built to let both cars and boats through.
The city's release says seasonal bridge operations resume in April 2027. If spring follows this year's pattern, the half-hour lifts will come back in early April, and the later Friday and Saturday hours will follow in May.
If you own on the river or near the north beaches and you're thinking about how your property fits South Haven's year-round rhythm, Amy O'Sullivan can walk you through what it's worth in the off-season as well as in July. Get your home valuation.
