The Right Honorable Paul J. Martin Passes Barbeau

I wanted to find a place that is called the Rock Cut.  The Rock Cut is a blasted out navigational channel that is used by downbound ships.  It is to the east of the Upper Peninsula and the west of Neebish Island.  Sadly, I couldn't get to a spot where I could take a good picture of it.

 I wasn't expecting to see a ship there, but I did.  So I waited to get a picture as she passes by.

 While I was waiting, I caught a goose stuck on an ice flow.

 One of the navitgational aids that leads into the Rock Cut.  The cut itself is 5000' long and 300' feet wide.

 Another shot of the goose.

 The Neebish Islander stands quiet until April First.

 The Paul J. Martin was the ship I was waiting for.  She's been on this blog before, so I will spare you the details.

 She is owned by Canada Steamship Lines.  In the time that I've been doing this, I've never seen so much ice around a ship.  It's amazing that she could plow through this as the ice lane wasn't much wider than her.

 As it was, I was introduced to a new sound.  I've never heard the sound of a ship breaking through the ice before.  It was accompanied by the sound of the hull creaking and protesting that it had to be doing this.

 But still, it was a nice day and the ice gave me a different setting for the ship.

 A shot of her pilothouse.

 And she starts to approach the  Rock Cut.

 I wanted to take this picture because if you look to the right, you will see an orange and white sign.  That is used to tell the ship that she is lined up with the channel.  There is another sign further back.  When those to are line up, the ship is lined up.

 A couple more shots as she passes by.

And one more before I head off to the Soo.