The Sault in February

We had a great trip to the Sault two weeks ago. There just isn't that much snow this year. We traveled around and took a few pictures of the St. Marys River to share with you. This passenger train was in the train yard by the International Bridge Plaza. Wouldn't it be good if passenger train service became available?

Things are very quiet at the Locks-at least on the outside. Did you see the Dirty Jobs feature on the Locks in the winter. It was amazing -showing what goes on to keep the Locks clean and free of debris. You can see some short clips at Dirty Jobs.

The only sign of shipping was this barge PML 9000 moored at the Carbide Dock. Didn't see any activity around it.

It is a sad sight at Clydes to see it all closed up. Can't wait until summer.

The Sugar Islander is keeping her appointed times.

Here's the driveway to our cabin. We weren't able to get in but it won't be long now until we're back.

March starts Monday and after that it is just a few short weeks until March 25 and shipping resumes. Any of you going to be there to see the first ship?

Full Moon Over the River

These outstanding pictures were taken on January 29, 2010 as the full moon was rising over the St. Marys River. My Facebook friend, Cathy, took them last night and graciously shared them with us.

The January full moon is called the Wolf Moon by Native American tradition and it is very fitting. The moon is the largest and brightest of the year. It is 30% brighter and 14% larger than any other full moon of the year. What a spectacular occurrence.

The July full moon is always wonderful as it comes up over Sugar Island and sends moonbeams across the river. But I'm sure this January moon is something to behold. I hope that maybe January 2011, I'll be there to see it. It will be January 19, 2011. Let's meet in the Sault!

Prospects look good for 2010 Shipping Season

The shipping season for 2009 hit a level of ore shipments that was record-breaking but not in a good way. The tons of ore shipped was the same as that of 1938. That can't be good. You can read about it in this article from Superior Telegraph: Ore Shipments at Great Depression Levels.

But the good news in the article is that the 2010 shipping season is already looking up because steel mills are ramping up production and the mines in Minnesota are calling workers back from layoff.

That's great news for boat watchers on the St. Marys River this year. The shipping season is just drawing to a close this week. The Soo Locks will be closing on Jan. 15. From the pictures I'm seeing, it looks like ice is forming quickly. They've had some really cold mornings according to my parents.

There have been some great pictures from boatnerds on the Internet of boats in the ice. Today I posted two taken by Cathy K. near DeTour of the Lee A. Tregurtha, a boat with an illustrious history including service in WWII for which she received 2 battle stars. You can read a more detailed history at http://www.boatnerd.com/ and put the name Lee A. Tregurtha in the search box.

Since being converted to an ore carrier, she has sailed the waters of the Great Lakes under several names. Lee A. Tregurtha became her name in 1989. Mrs.Dorothy Lee Anderson Tregurtha was the wife of Paul R. Tregurtha, the owner of Interlake Steamship Co. at that time.

Winter River Pictures

Cathy K. is a Facebook friend of mine. She takes great pictures of the St. Marys River and the boats. She has graciously allowed me to post these pictures so all of you can enjoy them. Cathy says that she takes to the pictures to show "how the ice and snow change everything about the boats ...how they navigate, their lacy ice shirts and their ice clogged 'noses'. Great description Cathy. Thank you for sharing with us.

This is the Walter J. McCarthy Jr. She's a 1,000 footer owned by the American Steamship Company. You can read about her at Walter J. McCarthy Jr.

The Charles M. Beeghly is a 806 foot vessel owned by the Interlake Steamship Co. We frequently saw both ships this summer. But what a difference there is for these ice covered vessels.

The shipping season is drawing to a close and the Soo Locks will be shut down on January 15. But that means that spring is just a few months away. My grandson is talking about going to the Soo to see the first boat of the season. I can't say no to a request like that.

W

Watching St. Marys River Water Levels

This week we had a very scary incident on the St. Marys River. Thanks to boatnerd.com for the updates. I don't know who is writing those updates but I really appreciated the information.

The Edwin H. Gott, a 1,000 footer, went aground just south of Neebish Island. It took 4 tugs to free her but it looks to me like the water level in the St. Marys River was a help too.

The water level of the river can raise and lower frequently during the course. From living on the river, I have seen a correlation between the wind direction and sometimes the atmospheric pressure and the water level.

The few inches that the depth fluctuates is not an issue in most of the river but in the Rock Cut it is definitely important. It is not unusual for a ship to be waiting up from the Rock Cut because the water is too low. You can hear the ship's captain on the scanner asking for the water level in the Rock Cut.

You can follow the level in the Rock Cut on-line. The National Weather Service provides a Water Level Monitoring Station. There is a list of locations on the left. Scroll down to Rock Cut, MI and clip on the number to the left of it. The first chart is water level.

To read the chart, observe the red line. When it is above 0, the water is above datum. Datum is where the level needs to be for safe shipping. I'm sure an engineer could give a better explanation for datum, but that's the bottom line.

There is other information available there too such as wind direction and air pressure.

Early Wednesday morning the water level dipped 11 inches. That may have had something to do with the grounding of the Gott. The Gott wasn't freed until the water level raised.

Very interesting for you river watchers.

Edwin H. Gott is Aground

The blizzard that is hitting Michigan right now seems to have caused havoc on the St. Marys River. The latest I've heard from my Facebook friends is the the Edwin H. Gott is aground just below Neebish Island. It appears that two tugs are coming along her to aid.

As I get more information I will post it.

Shoveling Sand or Snow?

What would you rather shovel-sand or snow? This is the question that comes to mind after reading yooperyarns.com account of clean-up from the recent storm in North Carolina.

Cathy Clementz and her husband are owners of North Country Campground near Newberry. Cathy writes about their life there at Yooper Yarns. Her humorous writing style makes her blog one that I look forward to reading every day.

Cathy and Dan are on a new adventure this winter. They closed up North Country and took their 5th wheel to North Carolina to work at Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge. They were there last week for the big storm that hit the coast. Cathy's account of the damage to the nearby Atlantic coast is amazing. Here is an excerpt from Yooper Yarns.

Our snow drops from the sky, the wind howls from the north and west (normally) and we know that our snow storms aren’t usually going to occur till November through April. For these people, sand is there all the time, as is the force of the ocean and the Nor’easters that push it inland. I can’t recall any time where the snow storms have changed the face of the earth, but these dunes are GONE. The landscape is flattened.

The pictures show the extent of the damage. I'm looking forward to hearing more from Cathy as she and Dan continue on their adventure. I'm living vicariously through her writing.