Port and vessel activity from Sunday, July 9, 2023, unless stated otherwise. Please send future port reports to news@boatnerd.net.
Two Harbors, MN – Silver Bay, MN – Gary Putney
James R. Barker upbound Lake Superior at Keweenaw heading for Two Harbors. Algoma Guardian loaded in Two Harbors for Hamilton. At 18:00 the American Century was loading in Two Harbors.
Joseph L. Block bound for Marquette after departing Silver Bay.
Thunder Bay, ON – Joshua Hebeisen
Well, I should have saved my “lazy start to the weekend” line for today… Besides Polsteam’s Lubie going to anchor around 21:00, no activity was recorded in Thunder Bay on Sunday. Fellow salties Andean, Eider, and Federal Biscay remain in port at MobilEx, Keefer, and Thunder Bay Terminals, respectively.
Marquette, MI – Joshua Hebeisen
Monthly Marquette visits continued for the American Spirit at 08:57 Sunday morning. Arriving stern-first, the footer backed her way beneath the chutes on the north side of LS&I Dock 2 and took on the first part of her taconite load, later pulling out midafternoon to spin and reenter with her bow facing forward. This maneuver ensures the vessel will be evenly loaded across her massive 105-foot beam.
With nightfall came a curious case of Joseph L. Block at the ex-Shiras dock. The vessel arrived the Twin Ports earlier in the week with stone before heading to Silver Bay, MN, on Friday. From there, she departed early Sunday morning before making port in Marquette at 23:10, so it’s very possible the Block is simply unloading cargo she picked up in Silver Bay. Of note, a trip to Shiras less than two weeks ago preceded a long stay in port that presumably involved repairs of some sort.
St. Joseph, MI – Benton Harbor, MI – Michael Moran
Samuel de Champlain/Innovation arrived at 22:16 on July 8 with cement and slag for Holcim. This is the pair’s fifth visit to our port this season. They cleared for Alpena, MI, at 15:02 on July 9.
Holland, MI – Muskegon, MI – Joshua Hebeisen
Loaded with stone from Meldrum Bay, ON, river-class vessel Manitowoc was puffing black smoke from her twin Alco engines and blasting salutes on her Kahlenberg air horns as part of a double feature on the eastern shores of Lake Michigan. Manny first arrived Muskegon at 11:21 to unload a portion of her cargo at Cobb Verplank, later departing at 17:45 for a quick trip down the shore to Brewer’s City Dock in Holland. Her official time of arrival at Lake Macatawa was 20:37.
Not to be forgotten, G.L. Ostrander/Integrity departed Muskegon from Holcim at 09:37 en route to Green Bay, WI.
Grand Haven, MI – Joshua Hebeisen
Great Republic departed for Port Dolomite, MI, at 04:18 after unloading at Verplank.
McGregor Bay, ON – Joshua Hebeisen
On a change of pace from her typical Lake Michigan routes, 81-year-old Alpena steamed up into Georgian Bay with a delivery of cement products for the remote Whitefish River Terminal. Her 03:15 arrival was followed by a 20:45 departure back down to her namesake port of Alpena, MI.
Goderich, ON – Bruce Douglas
Algoma Innovator arrived at 20:06 Friday and is loading at Compass Minerals. This is the Innovator’s 12th appearance here this season.
Algoma Sault arrived at 06:08 Saturday and is at the elevators. This is the Sault’s 3rd appearance here this year. Algoma Intrepid arrived at 08:56 Saturday and tied up along North Pier to load salt next. This is the Intrepid’s 8th appearance here this season.
Lake Erie Ports – Bill Kloss
Toledo, OH: Clyde S. VanEnkevort/Erie Trader moved to load at CSX. Departing were H. Lee White to Charlevoix, Prentiss Brown/St. Marys Challenger to Cleveland and Saginaw to Sault Ste. Marie.
Marblehead, OH: Dorothy Ann/Pathfinder arrived late Sunday night to load at Holcim.
Cleveland, OH: Wilfred Sykes departed for Cedarville. Algoma Buffalo unloaded stone at West 3rd St. American Courage is on a shuttle. The tanker Selenka is unloading palm oil at the Port of Cleveland’s new liquid receiving pad at the mouth of the Cuyahoga River.
Ashtabula, OH: Blacky departed with no updated destination.
Conneaut, OH: Walter J. McCarthy Jr. arrived with ore for the P&C dock.
Nanticoke, ON: Algotitan departed for Sept-Iles, PQ and Algocanada to Sarnia. Algoterra is at Imperial Oil. Algoma Sault left for Goderich.
Welland Canal – Joshua Hebeisen
Per Facebook posts by Janey Anderson, the Welland Canal was reportedly experiencing a power outage as of late Sunday night. Several boats are standing by waiting for passage with at least one (John D. Leitch) stuck in the locks.
We do not currently have daily summaries for the following ports, but their respective port authority websites post schedules of vessel traffic that are featured below. Each schedule is a miniature webpage within a box. Scroll with your cursor in the box (or slide your finger within the box on a mobile device) to move through the schedule as you would a normal webpage. To move up or down the actual Port Reports page itself, make sure your cursor/finger is outside of the box.
Green Bay, WI – Port of Green Bay
Click on vessel image for voyage info.
Hamilton, ON – Hamilton–Oshawa Port Authority
Scroll past AIS map for arrival/departure schedule.
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- Indiana Harbor loads in the dark at CN Dock 6 as clouds block out a promising hint of vibrant color. David Schauer (Duluth, MN – July 9)
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- Textured clouds and a hint of color on the horizon greet American Century into Duluth, MN, on a quick stop for fuel. David Schauer (Duluth, MN – July 9)
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- Rust-streaked bulker Algoma Guardian clears Agate Bay with a load of taconite pellets bound for Hamilton, ON. Adam Bjornberg (Two Harbors, MN – July 9)
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- Piping-hot St. Joughnuts for the crew of Samuel de Champlain/Innovation! Michael Moran (St. Joseph, MI – July 9)
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- Smoke pours out from the stacks as Manitowoc arrives the Holland, MI, pierheads with a partial load of stone. Jason Bhaskaran (Holland, MI – July 9)
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- Captain Dave looks out the pilothouse windows while cooking up another salute on the vessel’s twin Kahlenberg air horns. Jason Bhaskaran (Holland, MI – July 9)
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- Joyce L. VanEnkevort/Great Lakes Trader, the largest vessel to transit the Grand River when combined, back out to the lake after a rare visit. Tyler Fairfield (Grand Haven, MI – July 8)
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- Ocean Navigator and Radcliffe R. Latimer are two vessels waiting out the power outage for an upbound transit of the Welland Canal. Alain Gindroz (Port Colborne, ON – July 9)
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- Lucky Viking Polaris appears to have locked through before the problems started. Alain Gindroz (Port Colborne, ON – July 9)
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- The Navigator goes back to Wharf 16 for the night. Alain Gindroz (Port Colborne, ON – July 9)
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- John D. Leitch is stuck in Lock 4. Kyle Fernandes (St. Catherines, ON – July 9)