The Saginaw On Her Namesake River

When I saw on AIS that the Saginaw was heading to Bay City and that I had time to catch her, my decision was pretty easy.

 Typically the boats of Lower Lakes Towing are named after one of the rivers that feeds into the Great Lakes.   They typically deliver on many of these rivers.  Occasionally, they will end up on their namesake Rivers.

 Lower Lakes does a fair amount of business on the Saginaw River but usually it is with another ship but I figured the Saginaw would be on her namesake river one of these days.

 She was and it was a nice day to boot.

 Her AIS said "Detroit" but based on where I saw her earlier in the morning, I knew that her destination had to be either Bay City or Saginaw.

 I like catching ships on the Saginaw River because it is a nice setting.  There are many places where I don't get distractions from the background.

 I'm not sure where she picked up her cargo but it turns out that she was delivering to the Bay Aggregates dock.  At least I picked the right park to catch her.

 She starts to make the turn for the dock.

 And she presents a nice head shot.

 It's pretty amazing watching the ships maneuver in these situations.  I guess with the bow thrusters, it makes it easier for them.

 But I know they have all kinds of considerations.  River current.  Wind.  The right wind at the wrong time can lead to a mistake, hence some of the wharf rashes on her hull.

 She continues to make the turn.

 And she starts heading into the dock.

 This was about as close to a beam shot as I would get, but I kind of like the angle. 

 She starts to pass the entrance.

 One of the problems with this particular spot, she gets obscured pretty quickly.

One more shot before moving on.