Miedwie Arrives in Duluth

The Miedwie arrived in the Twin Ports about 19:30 Thursday, on its 2nd trip to Duluth.

Built last year in the Mingde shipyard in Nantong, China, near Shanghai, the Miedwie was launched in March 2012 and is the first ship in a series of eight new vessels ordered by Polsteam USA for Great Lakes/Seaway service.

The 623-foot is a Bahama-flagged 30,000-ton vessel. The ship will load about 20,000 metric tons of wheat.

Polsteam, the largest Polish shipowner and one of the largest in Europe, operates 75 ships, including 67 bulk carriers, four sulfur carriers and four ferries. The company has announced plans to build 34 new bulk cargo carriers by 2015.

Duluth Harbor Boat Traffic for Thursday 5/9/2013

BBC Florida (Ant) arrived at 00:20
Mesabi Miner arrived at 04:05
Philip R. Clarke arrived at 13:20
Miedwi(Bahamas) arrived at 19:30
St. Clair departed at 23:55

Harbor History May 9, 1901: The Bon Voyage Sinks

By Tony Dierkins- Zenith City Online

On this day in Duluth in 1901, Singer’s White Line transportation company’s steamer Bon Voyage left Duluth heading for Michigan’s copper country but never made it to Houghton—and neither did five of her passengers. Six miles outside the Portage Ship Canal (aka the Portage Waterway or Keweena Waterway), the vessel caught fire and headed for Red Ridge, the nearest community on Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. A woman described as the “grandmother of the Altman family” jumped into Lake Superior along with her daughter and three granddaughters. All but the youngest child died. An unknown young man also met the same fate. All other passengers were rescued. The Bon Voyage was built in 1891 at Sugatuck, Michigan, measured 153 feet long, and could take on a load of 500 tons. The vessel was a total loss and later removed by Duluth salvagers Clow & Nicholson and scrapped in the Zenith City. Newspaper articles about the event can be found here.

Duluth Harbor Boat Traffic for Wednesday 5/8/2013

St. Clair arrived at 12:45
Pacific Huron departed at 23:15
BBC Florida arrived t 24:00

Duluth Harbor Boat Traffic for Monday 5/6/2013

740 foot CSL Niagara

Paul R. Tregurtha arrived at 05:42

Joseph L. Block arrived at 07:50
Lakes Contender/Ken Boothe, Sr. departed at 09:05
Alder arrived at 12:30
Paul R. Tregurtha departed at 16:33
CSL Niagara arrived at 17:30

What the heck are you doing in my airspace?

A local seagull checks out one of the harborcams thinking it might be a box of popcorn.