Thunder Bay

Mackinaw here; maybe Thunder Bay later

December 16, 2011 · 2 comments

makinaw20111216_0006 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 Lake.

111212-G-JL323-050 CGC Thunder Bay arrives in Cleveland

The US Coast Guard cutter Thunder Bay departed their home port in Rockland, Maine to come to the Great Lakes to assist in any ice breaking operations that may be needed. Bringing an east coast ship into the Great Lakes has been a Coast Guard tradition for some years, and provides them with an additional opportunity to cross train the crews and put the ship into a different environment, although the Thunder Bay is an ice breaking tug and is very good at that job. The 140-foot icebreaking tug was built to break ice; they use a low-pressure-air hull lubrication or bubbler system that forces air and water between the hull and ice. This system improves icebreaking capabilities by reducing resistance against the hull.

They arrived in Cleveland on December 12, 2011. Although currently based in Maine, she is named for the town of Thunder Bay, Michigan, on Lake Huron near Alpena.

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Mike and Marnie from Thunder Bay

August 31, 2011 · 2 comments

mikewolowichmarnie20110831_5032

Mike Wolowich and his daughter Marnie came down from Thunder Bay to watch the ships come under the Lift Bridge, a trip he has made for many years; Marnie has many  memories  of great family trips to Duluth to see the ships but those trips don’t go back nearly so far as Mike’s. We took pictures of each other while we took pictures of the Adam E. Cornelius coming in. Click pic for large version.

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