Nice for the boats; winter arrived here within minutes of the Heritage Marine tug Nels J making sure the last boat to come in, the Edwin H. Gott, was secure against the dock at the Port Terminal on Wednesday morning, January 18, 2012. The temperature plunged, down to -31 at my home, and a big snow storm, the largest we have had yet, at least ¾ of an inch, maybe even 1/8 more. TheAlder was close by but was not needed, so she went back to her dock, probably not moving from there until March 7th or so.
The Edwin H. Gott will be the last boat to come in for winter layup. This morning (January 17, 2012), the Mesabi Miner (above) arrived here after delivering her last cargo of the season in Taconite Harbor. She will spend the winter at the Midwest Energy Resources coal dock in Superior. That will make it real convenient to start the 2012 season in only two more months. She will likely load more coal for a port within Lake Superior, before the Soo Locks open (usually around March 25th). The Miner may get two coal deliveries done by then. See video below
The world’s largest rail car is the Schnabel car, or as Bill Bingman, the Schnabelmeister, calls it, the CEBX800. It has spent a large part of its life in Duluth waiting for the few jobs that call for the world’s largest rail car. Engineers are not dumb and they don’t build things that can’t be delivered to the customer, so they don’t build anything bigger than the world’s largest railcar if they will need to transport anything by rail. When they build it for the Schnabel car, it is brought to Duluth by ship and discharged at the Port Terminal directly onto the Schnabel car, where Bill and his crew take over.
When the Schnabel car is loaded, as she is just above while coming over the Grassy Point Bridge from Duluth to Superior on December 1st, 2005 on her way to Alberta, the cargo actually becomes a part of the car as it is carried between two holding sections. Click either picture for larger version.
There may be some changes coming. Several weeks ago, Bill came into town to take the car to Georgia for some heavy lift work. It is not clear if it will ever be back here, although probably, it has never been very clear where it will go or be used since it was built in 1980 in Germany.
When Bill told me he had to take the car to New Castle, Pennsylvania (just outside Pittsburgh) for some maintenance work, I was overjoyed. Having grown up in the Pittsburgh area, I naturally have a Duluth Shipping News office there. Until now, my staff there has not had much to do. I called to alert them to their first task in over 16 years, greet Bill and his car, get some pictures of them with Bill and the car and send them to me.
The car made good time on the way to Chicago but a train wreck in Indiana delayed things for a week. By the time he made it to New Castle, Bill had no time left to visit as he had to leave very quickly for Georgia. He found someone in the yard to take this picture and told me he might be back in the Spring.
Sadly, I have had to lay off my Pittsburgh staff there again, at least until the spring.
The Edwin H. Gott arrived in Port on Wednesday evening, January 11, 2012 at 6:50 to load iron ore pellets at the CN dock in West Duluth. She left Duluth around noon today (above) to deliver her cargo to Detroit. She will return in about a week for winter layup in Duluth.
It took her 50 minutes to go from the Duluth piers to her berth at the Port Terminal. Watch 17 minutes of that trip here; not overly exciting, a little slow but what do you expect from 1,000 feet of Great Lakes freighter at the end of a long season. The American Spirit arrived in [...]
The video out my window was pretty dark and the ship never blew her whistle but I got this picture while the CSL Laurentien went by my window with her cargo holds filled with CN’s best iron ore pellets.
This is the 6th time the John J. Boland has come under the Lift Bridge this season. On her 5 previous visits this year, all after September 20, she usually brought limestone in and loaded coal for her departing cargo. On her September 20th trip here, she discharged limestone and then went to Two Harbors [...]
LOCATION (Updated 1/18/12) VESSEL ARRIVAL DATE CARRIER Port Terminal Berth 1 Edwin H. Gott 1/18/12 GLF/ Key Lakes Port Terminal Berth 4 Roger Blough 1/14/12 GLF/ Key Lakes Garfield Berth C American Spirit 1/7/12 American Steamship Co. Midwest Energy Mesabi Miner 1/17/12 Interlake Steamship Fraser Shipyards Edward L. Ryerson 5/18/09 Central Marine Logistics Fraser [...]
The Edwin H. Gott (background), the most powerful vessel on the Great Lakes, arrived this morning (January 4, 2012) at 7:11. She is here to load fuel and then go over to Burlington Northern to load iron ore pellets. The Schnabel car (foreground) has been in the Twin Ports for several years. She is the [...]
The Paul R. Tregurtha departed Duluth on Monday morning, December 26, 2011 after loading 64,000 tons of coal for her usual destination, the Detroit Edison power plant at St. Clair Michigan. A little over an hour later, the Lee A. Tregurtha (right) came in to get fuel and then load iron ore pellets at the [...]
The John J. Boland came into port around 2 am on Wednesday, December 21, 2011 to load coal at Midwest Energy in Superior. She left around 3:30 in the afternoon (above) for Marquette, Michigan. Listen as she sounded a salute to the bridge, and to those of us greeting her.
At 5:00 Sunday afternoon, December 18, 2011, the lights at Bentleyville were turned on. Half an hour later, the Paul R. Tregurtha came by to say hello on her way out the door with a Christmas present for Detroit Edison, 64,000 tons of coal. If it is bad to get a lump of coal in [...]
The Coast Guard cutter Mackinaw has been in the Twin Ports for a couple weeks for bow thruster repairs at the Fraser Shipyards. She is currently (Friday, December 16, 2011) moored at the DECC (above) but is expected to depart in the next couple days to begin another season of ice breaking on the Great [...]
That is the Coast Guard cutter Biscayne Bay docked behind the DECC. Coincidently (??), the first ice of the season is just in front of her. I am entertaining captions for the picture. She has been here many times to help us fight the ice. Go to the Biscayne Bay page to see more pictures [...]
… loaded in Ust Luga, a relatively new Russian port, close to St. Petersburg. The Moezelborg arrived in Duluth at 1:57 am on Sunday morning, December 4, 2011.
The Paul R. Tregurtha, at 1,013 feet long, is the largest boat on the Great Lakes. She is here approaching the Duluth ship canal on her way to the Midwest Energy Resources coal dock to load 64,000 tons of coal for Detroit Edison power plants in Monroe and St. Clair, Michigan. Listen as she sounded [...]
The Great Lakes Trader made her first trip to the Twin Ports in September, 2000 and has been to the Twin Ports 127 times since. Today (November 29, 2011) is her 12th visit this season. On this trip, she brought in limestone to discharge before leaving to load iron ore pellets in Silver Bay. Often [...]
The James R. Barker deserves an award for remembering those of us who are standing at the Duluth ship canal when she goes under the Duluth Aerial Lift Bridge, or might be watching her on DSNTV. Today, Sunday, November 27, 2011, she departed around 3 in the afternoon with coal loaded at Midwest Energy Resources [...]
The Duluth Shipping News has finally hit the big time; we were the subject for an Anne Kunkel Journalism project at UMD recently. Check it out below. Anne is in her third year at the University of Minnesota Duluth with a major in Journalism and minor in Communication. Besides school, she works a full time [...]
The Sam Laud departed Duluth on Saturday afternoon, November 26, 2011, after discharging limestone. She is going up to Silver Bay to load iron ore pellets. Listen to her whistle as she approached the Duluth Aerial Lift Bridge
I know the weather is a little bad today but I wasn’t expecting to see the best ice breaker on the Great Lakes in town today (Saturday, November 26, 2011). The Canadian flagged Samuel Risley, usually here only when the ice is very bad, came to get a buoy that the Alder picked up for [...]
At 7:15 this morning (November 25, 2011), the Cason J. Calloway (at left) came under the Duluth Aerial Lift Bridge with limestone as the Mesabi Miner was departing with coal for Detroit Edison.
The Isa arrived in Duluth this afternoon (November 16, 2011) for her 16th trip here since she came here in August, 1999, on a long trip that started in Japan. The Isa was built in Chiba, Japan. After launch festivities, they left the shipyard for Fukuyama, where they loaded steel slabs and headed out [...]
The Varnebank departed Duluth today (November 11, 2011) after load beet pulp pellets that will be used for animal feed in Europe. Listen to her whistle as she left the Twin Ports.
Sometimes, I just have to look out my windows and walk to work to find out what is going on, or at least what I think is going on. Take today (Wednesday, November 9, 2011). Or last night first, I looked out my window and saw the pile of salt that the John D. Leitch [...]
The Adriaticborg arrived on November 2, 2011 to discharge wind turbine parts loaded in Aarhus, Denmark. She brought 15 hubs, 3 power units and one 20 foot container; the cargo was loaded in Aarhus, Denmark for Siemens. Wind turbine technology keeps advancing. These hubs are bigger than earlier ones and they have to be plugged [...]
It has been pointed out to me that I did not have to fly all the way to New York City to see the Statue of Liberty. Any one want to guess where in Duluth this one is located? Beth Duncan, at the Marine Museum, is not eligible to enter this contest since she told [...]
The Quebecois is here discharging cement at the Holcim facility, formerly St. Lawrence Cement. Earlier this year, she, along with the entire Upper Lakes Group fleet, was sold to Algoma Central. Her name has been changed to the Algoma Quebec although she is still sailing under her previous name. Listen to her whistle as she [...]
Steve Anderson took this picture of the American Integrity at the dock at Silver Bay on October 27, 2011 from a unique angle at a port we don’t see so often on this page. He was nice enough to share it with me so I now share it with you. After making two round trips [...]
The Edwin H. Gott was in Duluth today (October 30, 2011) for only the second time this season. She loaded iron ore pellets at the CN dock in West Duluth and is seen (and heard) here leaving to take her cargo to Conneaut, Ohio. While she often takes iron ore pellets to Conneaut, this season [...]
I have a live web cam pointed at the Lift Bridge so we can watch the ships that come and go under it, but there is probably only a ship in the picture 10 to 20 minutes a day. While you can see traffic going over the bridge most all the time, we can already [...]
The Algomarine came into port on Friday afternoon, October 28th, 2011. She is here to load iron ore pellets at the CN dock in West Duluth. Listen to her whistle as she came under the Lift Bridge.
Despite her preference for warm weather in the winter and a questionable love of a particular football team, we all love Jill, seen her watching her favorite boat, the Buffalo, go by in August, 2010. The Buffalo passed by my window today (Friday, October 28, 2011) but it was soo cold out there that I [...]
The Great Republic came into port today (October 26, 2011) with limestone to discharge at the CN dock and then to load iron ore pellets. Listen here to her arrival this morning. Listen here to her whistle as she arrived today (October 26, 2011)
The Herbert C. Jackson is here to discharge at Hallett Dock #5. She will then move a slip down the St. Louis River to the CN Dock to load iron ore pellets. Listen here to her whistle as she arrived today (October 26, 2011)
The Alder looked like they had a lot of folks on board enjoying the sun when they came into port on Saturday, October 22, 2011. They may have some sunny days from now until the end of the shipping season in mid-January, 2012 but the days won’t be so warm and the blue water will [...]
Late afternoon on October 21, 2011, the Algolake departed with iron ore pellets and shortly after she went under, the Cason J. Callaway departed on the same lift. Listen to each salute the bridge: first the Algolake and then the Callaway
The American Mariner arrived Duluth on Friday, October 21st around noon. She is loading wheat at General Mills in Superior to take to Buffalo. She follows the path that the Kinsman Independent (now called the Ojibway) used to take for many years, keeping General Mills flour mills filled with wheat so they can make lots [...]
After discharging limestone at the CN dock in West Duluth, the Presque Isle departed Duluth and made her turn to Two Harbors where she will load iron ore pellets. Listen to her whistle and the Duluth Aerial Lift Bridge response.
It was a beautiful Fall day in Duluth (October 15, 2011) when the Mesabi Miner departed the port after loading iron ore pellets at the CN dock in West Duluth. Listen to her whistle and the Duluth Aerial Lift Bridge response.
The Medemborg arrived Duluth on Friday afternoon, October 14, 2011. This is her 10th visit to the Twin Ports since she was built in 1997, her first visit this season. She was here twice last year. She will be loading bentonite on this trip; in past trips, she has loaded beet pulp pellets and other [...]
The Joseph L. Block came into port on Tuesday, October 11, 2011 with a cargo of limestone to discharge; she will then load iron ore pellets at the CN Dock and depart. Listen to her whistle, twice , first to the bridge while in the ship canal and then to the passing Vista Queen after [...]
