Mother Boat & Baby Boat

Last Thursday around noon, I saw two boats coming down the St. Marys River and it looked to me like a mother boat and her baby. It was actually the Walter J. McCarthy Jr. and a tug and barge. But it was a cute sight. I'm sure that the tug didn't feel like her mother was behind her with that 1,000 footer bearing down on her.

Cormorant Control

We sat at Mission Point this summer and watched cormorants dive into the deep water of the channel repeatedly. We have read and heard about the problem cormorants have been causing to the fish population around the Great Lakes.

I read an article today Government killing once-endangered cormorant that explains the history of the cormorant population which have gone from near extinction to over population in a short time. The government is now trying to find ways to reduce the numbers of birds but no one is sure if their methods are successful yet. They may only be causing the birds to move to other locations.

I'd like to hear from my readers about cormorant problems and if you are still experiencing them.

We certainly have had problems with Canada geese and sea gulls here on the St. Marys River. I am sure that their presence has added some pollution to our stretch of the river.

Any thoughts on this?

Back on the River

The Calloway just went up. I took this picture last year.

Tom & I arrived back at the Cabin last night and found things in good order. Our kind neighbors kept the grass cut. That is how things work in our neighborhood. The people next door have very similar lifestyles to us. They are retired with a home here and one down state with lots of travel between. Our neighbor's mother is also in an assisted living home just like Tom's mother and that means we like to see our mother's often too so there is lots of travel downstate and back. Whoever cuts the grass tries to do both yards if possible. It works great for both of us.

Last night was so cool that we finally lit our furnace and I'm glad we did. We had gotten through the entire summer without the furnace with the thought that it was going to warm up soon. We used an electric heater many mornings but we gave up last night with the temperature forecast to be in the low 40's. It actually only got to 47 degrees but I was so happy to have it warm in here this morning.

I woke up around 3 AM and couldn't sleep but I could just enjoy the beauty of the St. Marys River at night and sat and watched the clear night and many blinking lights on the river. The stars were out in full force and there was a boat coming up the river which made a wonderful picture because it was fully lit up.

This morning the Cason J. Calloway just went up stream, sounding a salute out front a bit up from us. I've heard the Calloway do that before so there must be someone living there that the crew knows. I would love to get a boat to sound a salute for me. I'm now friends with several crew members on Facebook and absolutely love the pictures and videos they post. I'm seeing what sights they see from the ship as they travel the Great Lakes.

My small vegetable garden has been sorely neglected so that is the order for the day once the dew burns off and it warms up a bit. There might even be some veggies out there to harvest for a great dinner.

Where Have I Been?

I know that I have been terribly negligent about posting this past week and I felt that I owed my faithful and not so faithful readers an explanation.

Believe me, I've been having fun. I had an opportunity to do something that I had only dreamed of doing. So here it is.

Great Lakes shipping is one of my hobbies but I have several others. For the past year and a half I have been writing a weekly column for a NASCAR web site. I became a NASCAR fan after my oldest daughter moved to Concord, North Carolina for a teaching job. Concord is right in the middle of NASCAR country and visiting there we got hooked on the spectacle of NASCAR. After I retired my teaching, I found an opportunity to write the column and I've been doing it faithfully whether I had something important to say or not. You can read my past columns at Brenda Benedict Columns.

NASCAR recently opened up their definition of the media to include web-sites which had been excluded in the past. This was partly due to the economic downturn for newspapers and also an acknowledgment of the popularity and legitimacy of the internet in news reporting.

The website that I write for is Insider Racing News and it was one of the 29 sites chosen by NASCAR to obtain media rights at races. So my editor suggested that I represent IRN at the race at Michigan International Speedway and I jumped at the chance. So last weekend, I traveled to Brooklyn, Michigan near Jackson and got to live the live of a sports reporter for the weekend. I loved every minute of it. I was rubbing shoulders with reporters from ESPN, USA Today, NASCAR.com and Scene Daily. I basically sat back and learned how the system operated. The media is heavily weighed with males and there were not many gray haired grandma's there so I stuck out. I didn't care. I got to see everything close up and then write about it. My idea of a good time.

I attended the driver press conferences. Here, Tony Stewart is answering questions which ranged from technical to really weird and he maintained his composure during all of it. Some of the drivers weren't so diplomatic.

My credentials included a 'hot pass' which means I had full access to the garages. Here Kasey Kahne's engine is being replaced prior to qualifying. It was a quick and smooth process with lots of workers who each had their job and did it efficiently and quickly.
Michael Waltrip's team is making adjustments to his car during practice. I had to be very aware of race cars and my main job was staying out of their way.

The opening ceremonies and especially the flyover were wonderful up close.

Watching the race from the press box may have spoiled me for future races in my living room. I could see the whole track and wasn't depending on the TV to show me one section of the track at a time. The room was air-conditioned with snacks provided. The best part for me was that race data was everywhere and I was constantly aware of what was happening every lap. NASCAR PR kept bringing us updates of what was happening in the race. I loved that. But nothing can be better than a recliner to watch the race from and taking a nap during those laps when the drone of the cars puts me to sleep.
Are any of you NASCAR fans? Let me know who your favorite drivers are. I'd love to hear about it.

This week I've been working as a consultant and literacy coach in Grand Rapids Public Schools which I've been doing on a contract for the past year. My contract expires on Sept. 30 and I don't know what the future will hold. I may be a full-time resident on the St. Mary's River and that can only be good!

Spectacular Sunrise

We had a spectacular sunrise over Sugar Island this morning. The sun is coming up later now and so I get to see it more often. In June, the day was breaking between 5 and 5:30 AM and that was just a bit too early for life here at the Cabin. Back home, when I'm working, I'm up and out to run or walk by that time. I have my walking friends and my running buddy and so I get out most days of the week. But the sun is making her appearance around 6 AM now so I am getting to enjoy it.

My bedroom faces the river so the first thing I saw this morning, after my eyes focused, was the sun above the Edwin H Gott as she silently slipped up the St. Marys River which was as smooth as glass. There were a few wisps of fogs sitting on the water. This makes one of those mornings I would like to hang on to all year but with everything in nature, it is fleeting and gone in a few short minutes.

Yesterday, I observed the Burns Harbor before leaving the cabin for a day in the Soo. I saw the Canadian Olympic entering the Locks while going to Pullar Stadium for the annual Chili Cook-off for the United Way. It was a great time and so wonderful to see a community event so well-supported by many Soo citizens. You wouldn't believe the many different kinds of chili in just three categories-hot, mild and white.

I'm off on a new adventure this morning. We're heading home to Caledonia so I can get ready for this weekend. I'll be attending the NASCAR race at Michigan International Speedway as a reporter. I will be representing the website Insider Racing News.com. I've been writing a weekly column for them since February 2008 and I'm really looking forward to this time at the track. I will keep you posted how it goes. I'll also be posting on Facebook under Brenda Hoath Benedict and Twitter under twitter.com/nascarfaithful.

Bill, can you keep us posted about boat traffic for the next week. I'll also be working for three days while we're home. I'm a literacy coach for Grand Rapids Public Schools. This is a part-time job where I assist classroom teachers as they work to build the reading and writing schools of their students. My work has mainly been in three Hispanic elementary schools which I just love. This next year is still up in the air because I'm working under a grant and every year is different.

One last thought this morning. Yesterday Tom and I saw the movie Julie and Julia. I loved it, of course, because it was about blogging. Tom found it a little slow moving (meaning no car chases or killing) but thought it was ok. Have any of you seen it? I'm going out to get Julia Child's book-Mastering the Art of French Cooking as soon as a Barnes and Noble comes into sight!

Alpena in the Fog

Last Friday morning, one of my Facebook friends, Teresa Parker, from St. Joseph's Island took these wonderful photos of the Alpena as she came up the St. Marys River in the early morning fog. She graciously agreed go let me share them with you.

She took the pictures at Sailors Encampment on St. Joseph's Island. They are very beautiful.





Today was a great boat-watching day after a clunker yesterday. I only saw the Algosoo on Sunday but here is what I spotted today.

Upbound
Saginaw
Tim S. Dool-anchored for a couple of hours out front but moved on around 5 PM
Liamare-Saltie from Netherlands-first time I've seen in here
Walter J. McCarthy Jr.
Canadian Enterprise

Downbound
Edgar B. Speer
Adam E. Cornelius
Alpena

Our temperature almost reached 80 today but it is heading back into the 60's tomorrow. It was a beautiful , calm day on the water. We saw lots of fishing boats and wave runners in spite of the 'Do not touch' order from the Health Dept. because of sewage that was dumped in the river. :(

Trouble in the St. Marys River

Yesterday a 'no contact' order was issued for our part of the St. Marys River. I don't ever remember this happening before and I don't know the source of the problem. I'll keep you posted as I learn more.

HEALTH ADVISORY ISSUED FOR UPPER PENINSULA RIVER
Hot temperatures this week are going to have many people in the viewing
area heading for the beach.  But there's one area the Chippewa County
Health Department says people need to stay away from.  The lower St.
Mary's River down to Neebish Island is under a "no contact body advisory."
The Health Department issued the advisory early yesterday morning after a
sewage overflow was released into the river.  They say people should avoid
body contact with the water until they announce the situation clears up.