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Cover photo credit: Matthew Uthe
Editor’s Note: Our daily photo galleries are currently down due to technical issues.
Duluth, MN – Superior, WI – Joshua Hebeisen
As she has several times this season, cruise ship Viking Octantis started the morning’s traffic with a beautiful sunrise arrival beneath the Aerial Lift Bridge. Her port calls, carefully timed out to align with the break of dawn reflecting against her clean white hull, have been getting progressively later in the morning as the days get shorter. This particular arrival would be logged at 06:16. Mesabi Miner followed the Octantis in at 07:12, passing the luxurious liner in the inner harbor while making her way to the port terminal to patiently wait out the Paul R. Tregurtha’s load at SMET. In the meantime, Arthur M. Anderson was inbound at 11:58 from Stoneport with, predictably, stone. The steamer spent the afternoon offloading her cargo at C. Reiss; as of midnight, she was pulling in at CN Dock 6 to load at the gravity dock. Currently occupying the shiploader is Algoma Sault. The Queen of the Lakes departed Duluth at 13:26, allowing her fleetmate Miner to shift over to the coal dock to begin her own load. This trip will see the Tregurtha make stops at St. Clair and Essexville with a 38,000-ton/30,000-ton split, respectively. In comparison, the Miner’s 58,000-ton load will be a 38,000/20,000 loadout for St. Clair and Monroe. With her passenger tenders hauled up on deck, Viking Octantis got underway in the early evening and departed for the last time this summer at 18:02. The vessel still has two trips to the Twin Ports scheduled for next month. Burns Harbor was inbound Superior at the same time with considerably less fanfare, heading to BNSF for her typical weekly load. Business as usual.
Thunder Bay, ON – Know Your Ships
Algoma Central’s Tim S. Dool left winter layup at Thunder Bay, ON, Monday headed for Superior, WI, to load.
Marquette, MI – Joshua Hebeisen
The north side of Marquette’s LS&I ore dock was met with a two-headed attack of VanEnkevort tug/barge units on Monday, starting with Joyce L. VanEnkevort and her barge Great Lakes Trader at 00:42. After departing exactly eight hours later for Indiana Harbor, their fleetmates Clyde S. VanEnkevort/Erie Trader held down the fort after a 19:32 arrival.
St. Marys River – Know Your Ships
Herbert C. Jackson unloaded sand from Brevort, MI, at the new Soo Lock project site on Monday. After finishing, the Jackson departed upbound for Marquette.
Port Inland, MI – Andrew Meyer
Since the Undaunted/Pere Marquette left early Monday morning, there hasn’t been any traffic in Port Inland. Lee A. Tregurtha is due at 0600 on Tuesday.
Southern Lake Michigan Ports – Andrew Meyer
Chicago, IL: Federal Shimanto made port at 0543, followed shortly thereafter by Wagenborg’s Volgaborg. Federal Kumano still sits on the hook outside Chicago, but is expected at Burns Harbor.
Indiana Harbor, IN: No traffic has occurred in Indy since last time, and none will occur until the Great Lakes Trader and her consort tug Joyce L. VanEnkevort arrive sometime Wednesday. She had just left the locks as of 2000 Monday evening.
Gary, IN: Edgar B. Speer is taking her time getting down the lake, but is due in Gary this evening to unload her iron range ore. Fellow GLF vessel Great Republic is due on Wednesday afternoon.
Burns Harbor, IN: Joseph L. Block arrived late evening on Sunday. She is supposed to be joined by the Federal Kumano, which is at anchor at the Chicago anchorage, sometime later Monday night. James R. Barker is downbound from the twin ports and is due sometime Tuesday; AIS suggests 1300 but her progress indicates it may be sooner than that.
Benton Harbor, MI – Joshua Hebeisen
Manitowoc was in port from 16:47 to 23:23 to unload trap rock from Bruce Mines at Rieth-Riley’s Central Dock.
Muskegon, MI – Joshua Hebeisen
American Integrity arrived with a rare load of limestone at 08:25, marking an exciting opportunity for all involved and potentially a glimpse into a future. The first 1,000-footer to visit Muskegon in seven years departed at midnight for a more typically Twin Ports destination.
Drummond Island, MI – Andrew Meyer
It has been quiet in Drummond and will be until Algoma Compass arrives early on Tuesday morning.
Bruce Mines, ON – Joshua Hebeisen
American Courage backed in to load along the upper shore of Lake Huron at 16:00.
Meldrum Bay, ON – Joshua Hebeisen
Making an early-morning appearance and due next to load at the dock, Defiance/Ashtabula occupied themselves with a series of loops in the lake until Algoma Buffalo cleared for Windsor at 06:45. The backup would continue around 15:00 when Calumet took up anchor just north of Cockburn Island; she would get in at 18:15 after the tug/barge departed for Ludington.
Calcite, MI – Andrew Meyer
American Mariner arrived at 1511. Due next is the Philip R. Clarke at 0400 on Tuesday, to be followed by the fairly infrequent visitor Saginaw at 1500.
Detroit, MI – Windsor, ON – Joshua Hebeisen
All loaded up with ore from Marquette, Kaye E. Barker went on the hook off downtown Detroit at around 02:00 Monday, presumably waiting her turn for a River Rouge transit. Following the departure of Algoma Intrepid outbound the river for Sarnia, Interlake’s classic looked sharp as always getting underway to unload at Dearborn. She would later depart for Toledo at 20:44. At 03:20, Atlantic Huron and Alpena made simultaneous entrances and exits, respectively, for the Mistersky fuel dock and Port of Toledo. The former continued upbound for Superior at 06:51, still sporting her broken nose. Next in port were Samuel de Champlain/Innovation at Holcim from midmorning to midevening. Like Alpena, the pair continued downbound for Toledo to unload the next portion of their cement cargo. Across the border in Windsor, Algoma Innovator pulled up to Coco Aggregates shortly before 13:00 to unload part of an aggregate cargo from Bruce Mines. Passport in hand, the laker shifted over to Detroit’s Levy dock at 18:00 to finish unloading. Baie Comeau fueled at Sterling from 14:00 to 16:25 while on her way to Superior.
Lake Erie Ports – Bill Kloss
Monroe, MI: New York/Double Skim 509A is in port.
Toledo, OH: Wilfred Sykes departed for Drummond Island at 07:21. The Hon. James L. Oberstar arrived at Torco at 08:47, unloaded and left for Marquette at 17:35. Samuel deChamplain/Innovation was a late night arrival to unload at Holcim.
Marblehead, OH: Cuyahoga left for Kingsville and H. Lee White docked at Holcim at 03:52.
Kingsville, ON: Cuyahoga arrived at 07:11 and unloaded stone at Southwestern Sales and departed for Marblehead at 19:34.
Sandusky, OH: Algoma Mariner departed with coal for Sydney, NS late Sunday night. Manitoulin moved under the loader. Arriving mid morning was John D. Leitch. She berthed behind Manitoulin. Manitoulin left at 20:29 with coal for Algoma Steel at the Soo. John D. Leitch then moved under the loader.
Cleveland, OH: G.L. Ostrander/Integrity departed for Alpena at 06:27. At the Port docks are Houtmangracht at 26E, Federal Leda at 26W, Federal Barents at 24E and Florence Spirit at 22E. Sam Laud is loading a shuttle for Cliffs and Mark W. Barker moved to Cargill to load salt.
Fairport Harbor, OH: The tug barge combo Victory/ Maumee arrived at 15:43 and unloaded stone at Osborne.
Conneaut, OH: Walter J. McCarthy, Jr. arrived at the P&C dock at 17:43 to unload ore.
Nanticoke, ON: Departures were Baie Comeau for Superior, WI and Algoterra for Halifax, NS. Algoscotia was a late night arrival.