Fifteen Ships

Ice coverage in the Upper Great Lakes has stalled shipping so that ships are anchored in the lower part of Lake Huron, just north of the Blue Water Bridges, while waiting for the weather to get warmer and the ice to clear. I counted fifteen ships anchored today.

The ships look like small vessels when you see them from the shoreline, but most of them are probably in the 500 to 700 foot range -- big ships. It is quite something when you think that in order to see this many ships, you would have to hang out at the Soo Locks during the shipping season for a few days.

An article in today's Port Huron Times Herald quoted one shipping official as saying that it could be at least another week before some of these vessels continue on their journeys. This shipping dilemma underscores the severity of the Winter of 2013-14, a winter to remember.

Boatnerd's AIS system reports these 16 ships at this location as of 8:50 pm EDT today. Most are at anchor, but at least two are underway tonight. It is interesting to click on the names of the ships as displayed on the Boatnerd site and read about where they are from, where they are going, how big each ship is, what cargos they carry, and so on.

Federal Miramichi
Orla
Drawsko
Olza
Prosna
Apollon
Diana
Federal EMS
CL Hanse Gate
BBC Xingang
Emilie
Federal Rhine
Bluebill
Algorail -- underway, bound for Goderich
Zealand Delilah -- underway, bound for Montreal
Wicko