On Memorial Day afternoon, I decided to take a trip down to Belle Isle (for the first time in over a month!) to catch some ships. It was a nice day when I arrived at the island, with a nice boat arriving as well.
It’s the lovely John G. Munson. This is apparently a tradition for me, as I’ve now seen the Munson on three Memorial Days: 2012, 2014, and now 2015. Why not 2013? Well, the Munson didn’t operate that year, and I didn’t go boatwatching on Memorial Day.
I didn’t realize any of this until I was down there shooting her… but she is my Memorial Day boat.
A classic steamer dating from 1952, the Munson continues to be one of the hardest-working boats on the Great Lakes.
In my opinion, she is one of the five best-looking ships operating on the Lakes (I do have a top five).
On this particular trip, the Munson is loaded deep with ore for Conneaut, Ohio.
The 768 foot long ship is powered by a single General Electric steam turbine that puts out 7,700 horsepower.
There are only five other steamers running on the Lakes this season – the Alpena, Cason J. Callaway, Herbert C. Jackson, Philip R. Clarke, and Wilfred Sykes. The era of steam-powered freighters is coming to a close.
But for now we still have these six, plus the Arthur M. Anderson, which is laid up this season but will probably back out in 2016.
This ends another Memorial Day meeting with the John G. Munson, and coming up next is the ship I actually came out here for.
While waiting, I took some subtle nature shots.
Someday I need to explore the entire island, rather than just this part.
But that day was not today.
Unfortunately, the weather got very cloudy as the CSL St-Laurent made her way off Lake St. Clair.
This is my first meeting with the St-Laurent, and she currently holds the title of being the newest ship on the Great Lakes.
Last month, I caught her sister CSL Welland on her maiden Detroit River voyage. I had missed the St-Laurent on her first several passages, but finally got her today.
She is on her way to Montreal with a wheat cargo loaded in Thunder Bay, which is pretty much her main purpose as a straight decker.
I know I barely posted any shots of her, but I doubled her up at Riverside Park, so keep reading…
The first boat to greet me when I arrived at Riverside was the J.W. Westcott II. It’s been awhile since I got any good photos of her.
The Westcott was returning from a delivery to the Munson, and the St-Laurent did not receive any mail when she passed.
I liked the shots here much better than the Belle Isle ones because of the lighting.
And getting the Westcott in is a bonus, too.
She pulls in at her dock next to the pilot boat Huron Maid.
Meanwhile, the CSL St-Laurent is fighting the wind as the passes the University of Windsor.
She is the final ship of CSL’s newbuild program that began in 2012 with the Baie St. Paul.
They’re all handsome ships with nice names, and will be prominent members of the Great Lakes fleet for decades to come.
The CSL St-Laurent in particular may be my favorite name of the series. I’m not a huge fan of the “CSL” prefix, but I like the suffix honoring the St. Lawrence River, which is so vital to the economy of the Great Lakes region.
And now, the CSL St-Laurent is checked off my list.
Before I left, the fisherman next to me asked me to take a photo of him and his catch. Hopefully he sees this!
And that was it for me today, so I departed Riverside Park satisfied (that’s the American Mariner on the right, if you’re wondering).
Happy Memorial Day to all who read this, and remember to honor all those who have fallen.
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Filed under: Canada Steamship Lines, Great Lakes Fleet Tagged: CSL St-Laurent, J.W. Westcott II, John G. Munson
