First Ship of the Season Reaches Two Harbors

It was mid afternoon when we finished doing some shopping. As we were driving down toward the harbor in Duluth we noticed that a ship had just gone under the Aerial Lift Bridge. It was the Kaye E. Barker which we had seen over in Frasier Shipyards earlier in the day. It was the first ship to leave Duluth for the season. Since it didn’t have any cargo I was wondering where it was going. I checked Marine Tracker and saw that it was headed for Two Harbors to pick up a load of taconite.  I also noticed that it was being escorted to Two Harbors by the Mackinaw. It was a beautiful day so we decided to drive up to Two Harbors and catch the action.

On the way up we took photos of the two ships.

The Mackinaw arrived first and promptly sailed into the harbor to start breaking ice.

I’m always amazed at the number of people who come down to the harbor to watch the ships come in.

When the Mackinaw was finished breaking ice it sailed out into Lake Superior to break a trail to the Soo Locks. The next day the ice shifted and a couple of ships were caught in the ice. The Alder had to sail up from Duluth to free them. The Kaye E. Barker had been waiting out in the lake. When the Mackinaw finished it slowly sailed into the harbor and worked its way into the docks. There was a tug in the harbor but it made it without any assistance.

 

 

 

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Breaking out the Ships at Frasier Shipyards

This was the second time we had the good fortune to be at Frasier Shipyards when tugs were working to break out the ships from winter layup. We had planed to drive over to Frasier Shipyards to take a few photos of the ships that were in winter layup and in for repair. When we arrived we discovered that a tug was working to free the ships from the ice so they could begin the shipping season. The Kaye E. Barker had already been freed from the ice

The Tug North Carolina was working to free  the Lee A. Tregurtha.

The Tim S. Dool was in Frasier for major overhaul,

The William A. Irvin was moved to Frasier from its dock in Duluth last fall for a much needed refurbishing. It is a major tourist attraction in Duluth.

One last shot of the ships as the tug was finishing its work.

Winter Layup Duluth/Superior Harbor

When the Lake Superior shipping season ended the third week of January some of the ships that ply the great lakes head for Duluth/Superior for winter layup. This season a smaller number of ships than normal are in winter layup. Five ships in all can be seen this winter. A sixth ship, the Edwin H. Gott , was scheduled to layup but it could not make it through the Soo Locks before they closed.

The John G. Munson was the last ship to come into port on January 20th and is in Fraser Shipyard for winter layup.

The Kaye E. Barker is in dry dock also at the Fraser Shipyard.

The Mesabi Miner came in on Monday morning, January 19, 2015 and can be found at the Midwest Energy Resources dock.

The American Integrity was the first of 6 vessels scheduled to arrive in Duluth/Superior for winter layup. She arrived on January 7and can be found at the Carrier Port Terminal Berth 1.

The Indiana Harbor arrived January 17th entering the Superior entrance and is at the Enbridge Ogdensburg Pier. We happened to be at Wisconsin Point when the Indiana Harbor arrived.

Lake Superior shipping should resume in about a month.