Living on the edge of Lake Superior , I well remember this ship.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hgI8bta-7aw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hgI8bta-7aw
The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald
- Thread starter Flask
- Start date
the great lakes are... well GREAT!!! We have friends that have had a cabin on Lake Michigan near Charlevoix for 3 generations. We try to go up and visit them every year. Fantastic location. Great friends. We take our little RV up there (18' Toyota RV) and this is the view from the back window where we park it
I love the Great Lakes. There are some things that must be seen to be appreciated, and these lakes are among them. They behave like oceans, and storms can be exceedingly dangerous. Sad that vessel and its crew were lost.
garyg
B&B membership has its percs
I recall my mother calling me about the disappearance which it was when she called - a kid I was in Boy Scouts with went down with the Fitz, as it was headed to Cleveland - whenever I get to the UP I stop at Whitefish Point, walk out on the beach
These inland seas are unique in the world, jewels on the hand of North America ..
Another son of the Great Lakes describes it here, if you've never heard Pat Dailey, in the summer he plays Put-In-Bay, winters at Hemingway's Sloppy Joe's Key West ..Sweet Mother Michigan, Father Superior ..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1IHUayJm05U
These inland seas are unique in the world, jewels on the hand of North America ..
Another son of the Great Lakes describes it here, if you've never heard Pat Dailey, in the summer he plays Put-In-Bay, winters at Hemingway's Sloppy Joe's Key West ..Sweet Mother Michigan, Father Superior ..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1IHUayJm05U
I remember being awed the first time I saw Lake Superior when visiting Duluth, MN. The lake is enormous and I was only seeing the smallest tip of it!
I retired from the Coast Guard (US), and my very last tour I finally got Great Lakes duty. While my office regulated shipping, due to our location on southwestern Lake Michigan we didn't have any interaction with the ore ships. However, in the early 1990s an opportunity came up for some professional training/industry familiarization. A warrant officer and I were to spend four days as guests of one of the shipping lines as they loaded and hauled a shipment of taconite pellets (low-grade iron ore) from northern Minnesota to a foundry in Gary, Indiana.
After flying to Duluth, we caught a ride with a local Coast Guardsman up to Two Harbors, Minnesota. That was the main waterfront port for the Mesabi Iron Range. The ore ship we were catching was the Edwin H. Gott. They were just topping off and leveling their load when we arrived, so we were underway within two hours.
Two Harbors is at the extreme western end of Lake Superior. We transited the deeper shipping lanes to the east end of Superior, went through the Soo Locks, headed south across the northern tip of Lake Huron, then due west as we headed into the northern end of Lake Michigan. Once in Lake Michigan, we had to steam the entire length of the lake as Gary is as far south as you can go. The trip took three or four days.
I have posted a photo of Edwin H. Gott. I have also posted a photo of the Edmund Fitzgerald for a crude comparison. The Gott was put into commission in the late 1970s, several years after the Fitzgerald went down. The Gott is just over a 1000' long. The Fitzgerald was about 725'. Once the large "thousand footers" hit the Great Lakes, the smaller ships like the Fitzgerald were quickly put to pasture. The larger vessels could carry twice the amount of cargo, so it was no longer cost beneficial to use the smaller vessels.
To get an idea how big these newer ore ships are, I have enclosed a photo of USS Oriskany , the aircraft carrier I served in (actually on, since I was an airdale up on the flight deck) during the latter Vietnam era. While the Oriskany was by no means the largest of the carriers, they still flew jets on and off. Anyway, that carrier was nearly a 100 feet shorter than the Edwin H. Gott.
To wrap up my rambling
, I wanted to say that what I did get to see of the Great Lakes and some of its shoreline was magnificent. And you're right--when you get out in the middle of Lake Superior, you may as well be at sea. No shoreline to be seen.
After flying to Duluth, we caught a ride with a local Coast Guardsman up to Two Harbors, Minnesota. That was the main waterfront port for the Mesabi Iron Range. The ore ship we were catching was the Edwin H. Gott. They were just topping off and leveling their load when we arrived, so we were underway within two hours.
Two Harbors is at the extreme western end of Lake Superior. We transited the deeper shipping lanes to the east end of Superior, went through the Soo Locks, headed south across the northern tip of Lake Huron, then due west as we headed into the northern end of Lake Michigan. Once in Lake Michigan, we had to steam the entire length of the lake as Gary is as far south as you can go. The trip took three or four days.
I have posted a photo of Edwin H. Gott. I have also posted a photo of the Edmund Fitzgerald for a crude comparison. The Gott was put into commission in the late 1970s, several years after the Fitzgerald went down. The Gott is just over a 1000' long. The Fitzgerald was about 725'. Once the large "thousand footers" hit the Great Lakes, the smaller ships like the Fitzgerald were quickly put to pasture. The larger vessels could carry twice the amount of cargo, so it was no longer cost beneficial to use the smaller vessels.
To get an idea how big these newer ore ships are, I have enclosed a photo of USS Oriskany , the aircraft carrier I served in (actually on, since I was an airdale up on the flight deck) during the latter Vietnam era. While the Oriskany was by no means the largest of the carriers, they still flew jets on and off. Anyway, that carrier was nearly a 100 feet shorter than the Edwin H. Gott.
To wrap up my rambling
, I wanted to say that what I did get to see of the Great Lakes and some of its shoreline was magnificent. And you're right--when you get out in the middle of Lake Superior, you may as well be at sea. No shoreline to be seen.Attachments
Nice shot of Oriskany.
It is good that she is a reef now instead of cut up for scrap like so many before her.
It is good that she is a reef now instead of cut up for scrap like so many before her.
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garyg
B&B membership has its percs
And the Fitz was the pride of the American side when it was launched as I recall, but took 3 tries to break the champange bottle then almost sank when it rolled into the River Rouge ..
Thanks for the shot of the Gott - since the Fitz was designed to be just under the maximum for the St. Laurence seaway, I wonder what changed? Limits on the seaway or the new carriers just stay on the Lakes? Sure see a lot less boats now
Thanks for the shot of the Gott - since the Fitz was designed to be just under the maximum for the St. Laurence seaway, I wonder what changed? Limits on the seaway or the new carriers just stay on the Lakes? Sure see a lot less boats now
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Yes, it's my understanding that the big 1000 footers were built specifically for Great Lakes duty. They were born there and eventually they'll die there. There are less than half the number of lakers now than there were back in the day.
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My understanding is that various locks were rebuilt at different times. Somebody came up with the great idea of building a lock between lacks that would take two seagoing vessles, so somebody else came up with the idea of building the lake boats twice as long.
The reason the 1000 footers are destined to remain forever in the Great Lakes is the Welland Canal. The Welland is a man-made waterway that actually lets vessels bypass Niagara Falls as they transit from Lake Erie to Lake Ontario and vice versa. The length limit for this canal's operation systems is about 750'. Thus, the old Edmund Fitzgerald could have passed through (with little room to spare), but these big 1000' guys can not only not leave the Lakes, they can't even get into Lake Ontario. They had to be constructed in shipyards in Wisconsin, Ohio and the like.
To get another perspective on the size of these super lakers, I have posted two small photos of the Paul R. Tragurtha, which is actually nine or ten feet longer than the Gott. They are decent side-shot perspectives of the great length. In your mind, superimpose that length on the sheer girth of the Gott photo above, and you'll see that ain't hay.
By the way, in the color photo of the Tragurtha on the right, it has run hard aground. I guess when you get close to town, these things are pretty tough to maneuver.
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I grew up on the North Shore of Superior in Thunder bay, as a kid my father would bring me aboard the large ships that his company loaded and we would all get a nice tour and usually a tasty meal. Those vessels were amazing and my Dad has told me that those Captains referred to Gitchigoomie as a small sea, not to be taken lightly.
I still remember the last ship I got on (I believe) was the Orient Star, they had an escape vessel that would slide and drop right off the rear deck, we got to get up inside of the escape vessel and have a look, you strapped in facing backwards for that big drop off the rear deck, the captain or the guy to hit the switch would face forward and be able to see through a small window.
I still remember the last ship I got on (I believe) was the Orient Star, they had an escape vessel that would slide and drop right off the rear deck, we got to get up inside of the escape vessel and have a look, you strapped in facing backwards for that big drop off the rear deck, the captain or the guy to hit the switch would face forward and be able to see through a small window.
