The rubber duck towers more than six stories high and nearly 80 feet long. And fun fact, it can’t float.
It has to ride piggy back on a 28 thousand pound pontoon when it’s on the water.
The world's largest rubber duck is part of a weekend event along with a smaller, ten-foot tall duck and three historical ships called the Festival of Sails
Craig Samborski, the owner of the smaller duck and it’s gargantuan brother, said it's been quite the adventure with them throughout the years.
“I’ve had this duck for eight years and every time I inflate it I look at it and I’m like ‘Oh my God, that’s a huge duck’ and I get that same feeling when I see the ships pulling into port. They’re just so awe-inspiring and beautiful.”
Samborski's traveled all across the United States and Canada with the ducks and said it draws in people from around the world, and has an impact you might not expect.
“I remember getting an email a few years ago from a woman who was like a teenager, life was kind of dark and depressing for her. And one day she saw the rubber duck and it, like, changed her outlook on life.
"She became really happy. She got married, she has a family now and she said, ‘you know, I attribute so much of that to seeing your duck. It just was this thing that brought me joy.”
The Festival of Sails will be in Alpena from Friday through Sunday.
