The Tug Sharon M1 and her Barge the Huron Spirit

 I decided to head down to Riverside Park today.  There was a ship that I was hoping to catch.

As I was waiting for the ship I came over for to come down, I saw this vessel coming up.

The tug is the Sharon M I and the barge is the Huron Spirit.

The destination was listed on Marine Traffic as Windsor but it was pretty clear that she was leaving there.

As I type this, she is currently on Lake Huron.  I think that means she is heading up to Sault Ste. Marie.

I think while there, she will pick up coils of steel and bring them back.

She passes the Ambassador Bridge.

An almost stern shot.

And she continues on her way.

A Rainy Day Boatwatching

 So I decided to go boatwatching today.  It was fine as I started to head out but I could see the gray in the sky to the west.  I thought I would have plenty of time.

First I thought I was going to catch the Leitch in Marine City but I didn't leave in enough time because I had some errands to to.  Then I thought I would catch her in Algonac but I saw her passing by.  I wasn't sure about catching her in Detroit as the rain was getting worse.

So I headed up to Port Huron where I saw that there were a couple of ships coming down.  I got to Port Huron in time.

the Huron Spirit was coming back after delivering a pilot to the first ship that I would see.

The next ship would be a saltie, as such she requires a pilot.

Port Huron is one of the pilot transfer points.

So occasionally, I get to see the pilot boat.

The straight on shot.

And one more.

The Huron Spirit Returns

 In one of my previous pictures, I had this boat as she rode aside of the Happy Rover.

The Huron Spirit would have been changing pilots on the Happy Rover.

All saltwater vessels that enter the Great Lakes are required to have a pilot.

This pilot is knowledgeable of the rivers and stuff of the Great Lakes but more importantly, they are knowledgeable of the laws and regulations of the Great Lakes.

Both functions are important.

The Federal Beaufort Heads into Lake Huron

 After Embury Road, I decided to head over to Port Huron.  I was hoping that there would be a ship that I could catch.  Well, I saw one that I thought I could catch.

I made it in time to catch it as it headed to Lake Huron.  The ship in question was the Federal Beaufort and was heading to Thunder Bay.  I presume it was going to get a load of grain.  The Huron Spirit was catching up to do a pilot transfer.  Even though it is a stern shot, I'm fairly happy with it.  I kind of like how the mist obscures it.

A New Visitor to This Blog

 So  I saw that there was a ship I haven't caught before.  She wasn't too far behind the Alpena, so I decided to wait in Port Huron for her.

The ship in question was the Unisea.  She is a heavy lift ship and I thought that she might be carrying windmill blades.

She was heading up to Marinette.

She was built in 2011 at Quingdao Heshun Shipyard Co.Ltd in Shandong Province in China.

She can carry containers.

She is roughly 45 feet wide.

And almost 300 feet long.

the Huron Spirit going out to catch her.

She can carry almost 10,000 tons of cargo.

I switched to my drone.

The Blue Water Bridge frames her.

I was able to keep the Huron Spirit in pictures with her.

I really like this shot.

She continues up to Lake Huron.

I wasn't able to get out far enough to watch the pilot boat.

One more shot.

The Sharon MI on the Saginaw River

 While I was getting pictures of the Alpena, I noticed that ship was making her way inbound.

The tug is the Sharon MI and the barge is the Huron Spirit.

I've seen this combination before but usually she is hauling steel.

The Wenonah Spirit is passing behind her.

It turns out that she was heading to the Bay Aggregate dock.

This is an angle that I can't usually get.

I'll have to say it was pretty cool.

It's amazing how little room they have.

One more.

And the Huron Spirit

 Since the Ronnie is a salty, it would stand to reason that I would be seeing the pilot boat.

All saltwater vessels on the Great Lakes are required to have a Great Lakes certified pilot.

One of the pilot change points is Port Huron.  From here, the pilot will take the ship either to Detour where there will be another pilot change or to their destination in Indiana.

Another pilot change point is Detroit.

Anyway, this is a pretty neat looking boat.

The Huron Spirit Blows By

 I was not expecting to see the next boat but the again, I should have as I knew there was a salty downbound.

The Huron Spirit had delivered a pilot to the boat that will be in the next post.

She was heading back to where she docks.

The sun was hitting her just right.

 One more picture before the next ship.