The CSL Laurentien

The ship that I was waiting for was the CSL Laurentien. It would be coming up the Detroit River at about the time I was around Detroit so I figured I would wait for it especially since it was one of the ships I didn't have a picture for.

I took this picture because I wanted a picture of the Ambassador Bridge. You see the CSL Laurentien as a little spec under the bridge. The amazing part about boatwatching is that it seems like it takes forever for the ship to finally appear but when it does, you better be quick about snapping pictures because it's not around for long.

The ship appears as more than a little spec. I didn't bring my longer lens down with me, so I couldn't quite get a bigger shot than this. I still kind of like it though as it is not too bad of a shot of the Ambassador Bridge.

The ship is getting closer.

The Hart Plaza is not too bad for shipwatching but it is not the greatest as you have to contend with buildings in the background.

Here is the ship as she is almost straight on, she has a length of 739 feet and can carry a little over 37,000 tons of cargo.

A shot of the superstructure.

The ship as she is leaving.

The ship was built at Collingwood Shipyards in Collingwood, Ontario in 1978. She was and still is owned by the Canada Steamship Lines in Montreal. Her original name was the Louis R. Desmairis. She is powered by two V-10 Cylinder 4,500 Horsepower diesel engines.

The ship was a participant in the ship to ship coal program. This permitted it to load the large ocean ships which couldn't enter certain ports. The ship also participated in the rescue of crew from the burning ship Cartiercliffe Hall.

In 2000, she had her front hull cut away and she was enlarged. After this she was re-christened as the CSL Laurentien.