Great Lakes Frieghter

My boss just sent me this photo she took of the tug/barge composition ship, Presque Isle. The picture was taken 1/13/20 and a copy was requested from the owners, Great Lakes Fleet Inc. ,to place in their board room. This vessel is 1000'x105' and can handle up to 57,500 tons of cargo. With all that ice on board it looks like it is setting near it's maximum draft of 32' to get over the sill plates of the Poe lock at the Soo locks! I thought this was a pretty impressive photo and thought I would share it with you.

That's amazing. I remember watching the freighters at the Soo locks on vacation as a kid. My dad was stationed in the Sault from 70-73.

Great photo, that is a loaded ship alright!

K snow
Was he airforce or coastguard ?

Air Force, radar squadron (753rd?) at Kinschlow (sp?) supporting KI Sawyer.

I wonder how thick the ice is on that barge.

Ok, yeah we had 3 air force bases around this area at one time, one radar base on the outskirts of town then the bigger base at kincheloe, and a strategic air command base at raco. Lots of air force guys around back then.

Run, zoom in the picture and look at the guy on the right for comparison.

Why would they let it get that covered in heavy ice?Ships usually have steam hoses they use to melt ice if it starts getting to where its an actual burden on the ship.

Incredible picture and I am sure they are glad to be docked with that much ice on it.

They just came off of lake superior and was probably to rough out there to be on deck with all that ice sea spray. They were heading down the Saint Marie's river after locking through, and I'm sure they would de-ice her in the calmer waters.

Thank you.

That ship is NOT a barge. No way to de ice a ship that size on Superior during a storm. On small vessels we chopped ice when the ship began to get top heavy and in danger of capsizing. To get some idea of scale, crew members rode bicycles when they needed to go from one end of the big ships to the other.

Cohunt, I know you know ships... but the Presque Isle is a tug/ barge composit type vessel. Although she was built as a two part vessel, she has pretty much been mated together her whole career.

I stand corrected then. The definition of a barge that I am familiar with is a flat bottomed vessel used to transport goods in shallow waters such as canals or rivers and often not under its own power. Are you saying that she had a tug pushing her?

Looked her up and she is listed as a tug/barge. I learned something new in just the first few minutes of my day. I can go back to sleep now.

Speaking from experience from a different angle, when one is in rough seas and freezing temps, you make due the best you can. Doing anything topside is dangerous and risky. Ship movements, slamming water and wind break ice off high places ; masts and other superstructure. Falling ice can kill a person very easily. Steam hoses are effective on a small scale, but would be like pissing in the wind outside a protected harbor.
Just my .02...

Tradervic, your .02 cents are spot on!

Cohunt, she has her own tug mechanicly locked into a notched in portion of her stern section. She was one of a kind until about ten years ago when the Vanenkevort Tug and Barge Co. out of Escanaba, Mi. started running that type in the 700' class.

Been around these lakes nearly my entire life, and I am fascinated by the whole Great lakes maritime deal. I once new a fellow in the Merchant Marines that lived in southern Florida. He had been the Helmsman (????he steered the ships) on ships the world over. He made one trip in late fall into Superior and it ruined him for life. He said he would never ever enter the Great lakes for any reason again!
Thanks for all the info fellas.

The Witch of november is due any time now, J. Morse!

In my 30 years on Superior with much smaller vessels than the big freighters we encountered icing condition in late fall from time to time. Our 57 foot research vessel R/V Siscowet drew only 9 feet and would get a bit tippy when severely iced. In the later 1980s I got congress to appropriate monies to build a new 107 footer named the R/V Kiyi that replaced the Siscowet and she is a more comfortable platform for Lake Superior research.

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Extending the hull almost 50 ft would certainly improve bouyancy and ride. Considerably. I've never sailed on Lake Superior, took the car ferry round trip, Kewaunee, to Ludington and back, (Lake Michigan) years ago. Been all over the Pacific several times. Love the North and South Shore of Lake Superior.

Cohunt, the R/V Kiyi is a good looking vessel and still roams around here quite often. Last year she spent a lot of time up around White fish point.

Just looked up this ship, I've seen a ship like this run in and out of Ashland, WI.

Home base for the Kiyi is at Ashland WI. The US Govt Lake Superior Research Laboratory is also based there.

Very interesting Cohunt, what types of research were you involved in on Superior?

Interesting. Is this agency within the Dept of Interior ?

May have been this ship I’m not sure but I saw one like it up close this summer fishing out of Silver Bay on Minnesotas north shore. Terrific idea having a pocketed pusher at the rear that could detach.

Osky

On some units it’s a good idea Osky…… not so much in this case. That tug is not very useful without the barge

To questions about the KIYI and etc. The R/V KIYI and the Lake Superior Research Laboratory are units of the Great lakes Science Center located in Ann Arbor MI. There have been several name changes for the Science Center over the past 60+ years but during the time I was a research scientist there it was a Dept Interior laboratory of the US Fish and Wildlife Service. When Clinton-Gore came into office they relocated it into the US Geological Survey which led to my early retirement. My personal research on Lake Superior began in 1970 as a Limnologist who is a person that studies fresh water and the things that live in it. Over the years I did more and more work with mathematical fisheries biology to help clarify the sea lamprey-lake trout interactions and to produce the results needed to advise the states and tribes about the quantities of lake trout in the various political jurisdictions of the US waters of the lake(3 states border Lake Superior and each state has one or more tribal units who eventually claimed commercial fishing rights). I have published about 50 scientific papers in refereed scientific journals including the most recent which is just about to be published as well as about 10 more in journals of the Siberian Academy of Science done in collaboration with Siberian scientists on lake Baikal.

I'm retired USDA-NRCS. The Ashland Field Office was one of sixteen FO's I covered. The USFWS has a pretty big office there. USGS also has an office in Ashland as one of our Soil Scientists moved over to USGS after I retired.

That ship is 2.41 acres. That's impressive!

Keith

Keith: Just for fun calculate how many semi trailers would it take to haul 57,500 TONS of cargo.

2054 C-130 Hercules.....depending on the distance

I of course know there are bigger boats than my 33’er but when that tanker came in close “dwarfed” wasn’t anywhere near a big enough word. I was amazed at how agile it was and how fast the skipper brought it in behind the break to loading position. I believe they told me 10 hrs or less to load her full of ore.

Osky

Thank you.

I of course know there are bigger boats than my 33’er but when that tanker came in close “dwarfed” wasn’t anywhere near a big enough word. I was amazed at how agile it was and how fast the skipper brought it in behind the break to loading position. I believe they told me 10 hrs or less to load her full of ore.

Osky
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Osky, those large vessels do not respond well to the rudder in tight or short distances. Instead they rely on transversly positioned bow and stern thrusters.Those thrusters are large props in a tube through the sides of the ship, and are powered by big GE electric motors. Forward or reversing them gives port/starboard movement, forward and aft. That is what makes them highly maneuverable in tight/ short distances.Very impressive watching them move like that.

Osky, those large vessels do not respond well to the rudder in tight or short distances. Instead they rely on transversly positioned bow and stern thrusters.Those thrusters are large props in a tube through the sides of the ship, and are powered by big GE electric motors. Forward or reversing them gives port/starboard movement, forward and aft. That is what makes them highly maneuverable in tight/ short distances.Very impressive watching them move like that.
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Thanks for that explanation. I knew they had thrusters in front but I’d never really thought about the mechanics of them. Crazy cool how creative and industrious people can be.

Osky

Great thread! To The Top!

That's the same square footage as 233, 53' semi trailers.

Keith

dang good read guys

It would take approximately 2300 semi-trailers, hauling 25 tons each to haul 57,500 tons or 575 rail cars each hauling 100tons to equal that ships hauling capacity. There are several others on the lakes that can haul up to 80,900 tons per trip.

Ttt