The Philip R. Clarke Enters the Huron River

Before you start thinking I am going crazy, the Clarke entered the Huron River in Ohio and not the Huron River in Michigan.  I don't think that any ships can enter the Huron River in Michigan.  Well, they can enter it once, I think.  At any rate, after some disappointment earlier in the day, it was nice to get something I was happy catching.

 At the mouth of the River is the lighthouse.  The first lighthouse was built here in the 1830s.  In 1936, this lighthouse was replaced by an Art Deco Lighthouse (that used to have a lantern house that was since removed) which is the one that currently stands there now.  At some point that lighthouse was automated.

 Ships used to call on Huron, Ohio more frequently as there used to be an ore dock there but I believe those docks were closed.  There is still a limestone plant that occasionally receives deliveries by ship.

 This was one of those occasions.  It's amazing how far out you can see the ship.  She pretty much comes in on a straight line.  If I had taken pictures to the west, you could see Cedar Point.

 A little black smoke as the Clarke's speed is adjusted.  It  was quite windy yesterday, so this happened fairly often.

 She starts to turn towards the channel.  It's amazing when you compare the size of the channel to the size of the ship as it looks like there isn't room.

 Another shot of the lighthouse.

 She gets closer.

 And passes the lighthouse.  It was kind of amazing. when I first arrived there, there were only a couple of people.  More people appeared as the ship got closer.

 She gives a sound of her horn in greeting to the assembled crowd.  It was pretty cool.

 She passes the lighthouse and makes some adjustments to her speed.

 She passes by.

 It almost looks like she is docking at some exotic port but believe it or not, there is a proper dock there.  If you ever need a size reference, there is a man waiting for her to dock.

 She slowly enters the dock.

 The light was about perfect.

And one more shot of her pilothouse before leaving.  I will have to admit, it is pretty cool seeing a ship coming into a different port.  It's even cooler when it is a place where they pass so closely like this one.