Viking Cruises to sail from Duluth to Antarctica and South America in 2023
DULUTH, MN – Cruise passengers boarding the Viking Polaris in Duluth in the autumn of 2023 will embark on an epic 71-day, eight-country, three-continent voyage that includes stops in Canada, New York City and Mexico, a transit of the Panama Canal and a week in Antarctica, before disembarking in Argentina.
Viking Cruises’ expedition ship Octantis has already begun plying the Great Lakes this spring, with Duluth as one port of call. Its new sister ship Polaris will sail from Duluth to Toronto and back on Great Lakes grand tours next summer.
But now the Swiss-based cruise line has quietly started selling tickets for a blockbuster new itinerary that starts in Duluth on Sept. 12, 2023. The “Longitudinal World Cruise II” will explore the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway, the U.S. East Coast and the Caribbean, Chilean fjords and glaciers and parts of Antarctica, before terminating on Nov. 21 in Ushuaia, Argentina, some 7,000 miles south of Duluth.
That makes it a roughly north-south voyage between the world’s farthest-inland seaport (Duluth) and the southernmost city in the world (Ushuaia). Pricing for this novel itinerary starts at an equally eye-opening $49,995. A current promotion on Viking’s website offers unspecified savings and free international airfare through June 30, 2022.
“Viking’s world cruise from Minnesota is totally unprecedented,” said Colleen McDaniel, editor in chief of Cruise Critic, a TripAdvisor website. “It’s an incredible itinerary that no other cruise line offers. The price is perfectly in line with other ships of similar nature — and the fare includes a ton too, which helps deliver even greater value to travelers.”
The “Longitudinal” journey is what’s known as a repositioning cruise, in which a cruise ship transitions between regions — such as moving from the Mediterranean to the Caribbean — at the beginning or end of a season. In this case, the Viking Polaris will be concluding its Great Lakes season and repositioning to the Antarctic region for the Southern Hemisphere summer.
The Duluth-to-Ushuaia cruise will be Viking’s second “Longitudinal” voyage of 2023. For the first one, the Octantis will reposition from Buenos Aires to Milwaukee from March 2 to May 5, excluding Duluth. That 65-day voyage starts at $44,995.
The midsize, 378-capacity Octantis and Polaris are themselves unprecedented in Great Lakes cruising. The Polar Class 6 luxury expedition vessels feature an in-ship marina called the Hangar, which can launch expeditions on special boats, kayaks and even six-passenger submarines.
“We’re seeing an enormous interest in these types of world cruises,” said McDaniel. “They’re an exciting vacation option for those who are eager to see the world, and do so in a comfortable and convenient way.
StarTribune
St. Marys Rapids to see highest flow level since 2019
SAULT STE. MARIE – Anglers and people using the St. Marys Rapids are advised that the area will see the highest flow since 2019 after June 6.
The compensating works gate movements are scheduled for June 6 and will increase the flow to approximately 720 cubic meters per second, or 25.4 thousand cubic feet per second. More detailed information about the change is available below in the International Lake Superior Board of Control release:
Anglers and other users of the St. Marys Rapids, please be advised of the increased flows and water levels that will be experienced in the Rapids in June. After the Compensating Works gate movements scheduled for Monday June 6, the St. Marys Rapids flow is expected to be approximately 720 cubic meters per second (m3/s) (25.4 thousand cubic feet per second (tcfs)) which is the highest flow in the Rapids since 2019.
At these flows, some flooding of low-lying areas of Whitefish Island is expected as additional gates are opened and flows increase. As a result, some recreational trails and features in these areas will likely be flooded, and users are encouraged to use extreme caution.
he water level of Lake Superior rose significantly in May after another month of significantly wetter than average conditions in the basin. Lake Superior increased 22 cm (8.7 in) last month, while on average the lake rises 10 cm (3.9 in) in May. Water supplies were closer to average in the Lake Michigan-Huron basin. Lake Michigan-Huron rose 8 cm (3.2 in) last month, which is the seasonal long-term average for that month. Outflows from Lake Superior and into Lake Michigan-Huron continue to be set in consideration of water levels upstream and downstream.
The Board expects the total outflow to be 2,470 m3/s (87.2 tcfs) in June, which is as prescribed by Lake Superior Regulation Plan 2012. As a result of this increase in total outflow, combined with ongoing repairs at the Canadian hydropower plant, the gate setting at the Compensating Works will be increased to the equivalent of approximately five gates fully open on Monday, June 6. This will be achieved by raising Gates #7 through #12 to a setting of 162 cm (64 in) open. Gate #16 will be opened to a setting 5 cm (2 in) to provide improved efficiency of sea lamprey trapping conducted annually by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. There will be no change to the setting of Gate #1, which supplies a flow of about 15 m3/s to the channel north of the Fishery Remedial Dike.
At the beginning of June, the lake wide water level of Lake Superior is 12 cm (4.7 in) above the seasonal long-term average (1918-2021) and 2 cm (0.8 in) above the level of a year ago. At the beginning of June, the lake-wide level of Lake Michigan-Huron is 27 cm (10.6 in) above average, 14 cm (5.5 in) below the level of a year ago.
Depending on the weather and water supply conditions during the next month, Lake Superior may rise by as much as 15 cm (5.9 in) and Lake Michigan-Huron water levels may rise by as much as 12 cm (4.7 in) in June.
Soo Today
Second printing of 2022 Know Your Ships now available
For the second year in a row, Know Your Ships has had to do a second printing of the standard-bound edition. Replacing the Stewart J. Cort for the cover of the second printing is the Roger Blough. In the announcement post, author Roger LeLievre stated, “She is 50 years old this year, and since her future is uncertain, we felt she deserved the honor. Note the second printing is for the standard-bound book only… we have plenty of the spiral-bound book with the Cort on the cover and those will continue to be available.”
You can order a copy at http://www.knowyourships.com/catalog.html
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