More Mail from the Westcott

Well it's time for a lone picture of the Westcott which can only mean one thing....it's mailbag time.  I can't believe it has been close to three months since the last time I've reached into the mail bag.  Oh well....

But first a couple of shout outs.  First to tugboathunter for providing some good feedback on my blog.  Second to my friend for getting his blog back going again.

Now for the mail bag:

What is the biggest ship you've seen in the MacArthur Lock?

I would want to say that it was Algoma Transport.  Usually when I see big ships they are in the Poe Lock but then again the MacArthur Lock is closer, so they seem bigger.

How many salutes from the Sykes?

None.  She was too far out.

Where were you standing for the plane shots in Minneapolis?

I was waiting for my plane to California and I always take my camera with me.  I love planes.

I didn't see to many other questions, so I'm going to ask one of my own.  Is there anything you would like me to feature on my blog?  Are there suggestions for improvements?  Do you like the ships?

One more thing, I've started a group on Facebook, so check it out.  

And to my spamming friends...go take a Gott sized walk on the Alpena.  That is all.

Mail from the Wescott

A lone picture of the Westcott can mean only one thing.  It's the time when I reach into the mailbag and and answer some of the comments from the people who left them in the comments section.

So first let's start with the shoutouts from these posts:  Teaser Post from Belle Isle and Guess the Ship.  The first one was in fact the Lee Tregurtha and I think a shout out goes to my dad who again might have gotten some insider information.  The second one was the Roger Blough, so shout outs go to tugboathunter, my friend Chris and again to my dad I think.  At any rate, check out the two blog links they are both pretty good.  Now to the mailbag.

 A common question has been where do I take my ship pictures.
My favorite spot to take ship pictures is Belle Isle.  Although that might not be as good as the summer starts to heat up.  The end of Belle Isle that faces Lake St. Clair is awesome because you can get pictures of the ships as they come in and you don't get much of a background.  My second favorite place is Riverside Park in Detroit.  This is mainly because of the ability to get pictures of the Westcott.  However, it seems like that place may be out of play as it appears to be closed.  I've also taken pictures from Milliken State Park.  I think I like it a little more because for the most part there aren't many people there and I get a decent view of the ships.  Hart Plaza isn't too bad.  Someone on Facebook pointed out Del Ray park to me and that's not too bad.

Someone else asked if they could use my pictures.
I don't have a problem with people using my pictures as long they properly credit their source.

tugster (another wonderful blog) asked why many of the Great Lakes ships are U.S. Flagged.
I think it has to do with a US law called the Jones Act.  The law basically states that travel between US ports has to be on US owned and crewed ships.  There are people trying to get rid of this law and I'm not sure that's such a good idea though.

And thanks to people that have helped me identify either ships, birds or flowers.  Don't forget to tip your waitstaff and leave comments.

A Message from the Westcott

A lone picture of the Westcott can mean only one thing...I reach into the comments and try to answer them.  Or something to that effect.

But before I do, a bit of a shout out.  A couple weeks ago, I made this post.  In it I asked people to identify the ship.  Two people answered the challege and were correct.  First was my dad but I think he may have had inside information.  Second was the author of tugboathunter.  If you haven't done so before, check out his blog, it has some pretty good stuff on it.

And now the questions....

One reader asked me what kind of camera I use.
I used a Canon 50D which is one of the mid-level SLR cameras.  I really like the camera and I am learned more about it as I go along.  For it, I only have the lens that came with it, a cheap 75 to 300mm and a 175 to 500 mm lens.  One of the things about shooting basketball is that I really need to upgrade my lenses.  The camera is fine but I need lenses with higher f-stops.

Thank you to the readers that have helped with identifying birds or flowers.  I like taking pictures of both but I do not know much about either.  As I do this blog more often, I will learn more I suppose.

The Livingstone Lighthouse drew a comment.
I did not realize it was the only lighthouse in the United States made of marble.

Another comment asked if I've been on the Valley Camp.
No, but I am working on it.  I have been on the freighter in Toledo though and one of these days I will wander over to Cleveland to get on the freighter there.  I would like to get on the Valley Camp but my dream is to get on one of the current ones running.  I would prefer the Blough but I will take anything right now.

Another reader asked me about the panoramic shots from the Soo.
Yes, those pictures are stitched.  And unfortunately, those are pictures that show the limitations of the photo-stitch program.  They end up looking like a Mobius ship.

Another reader mentioned a Lego Stewart Cort ship.
That was pretty cool.  Unfortunately, I don't have that kind of talent.  Although, I would love to build a model of a lake freighter one of these days.

One more reader asked about the Michigan Hat.
No, I still have my Michigan hat but if I had gone down to Detroit tonight, I'm afraid that the Detroit River would have dined on another Block M hat.

Quite a few readers want me to check their porn sites and were nice enough to include links.
Um no.  Although I guess with the other readers mentioning viagra...Hmm.

Well on that note, this concludes another group of messages from the Westcott.  Keep the comments coming...I have plenty of pictures of the Westcott.

Mail from the Westcott...Again...

So it's that time again.  Namely where I post a picture of the Westcott and answer questions and comments that have been posted on my blog.  I've been getting a few more comments lately and I appreciate them.

To the people that posted from the Belle Isle Aquarium.
Thank you for your posts and I hope that there was a large enough turnout at the Shiver on the River to justify reopening the Aquarium.  From the sounds of your posts on Facebook, this is becoming a reality.  I really hope so.

In regards to the Detroit Churches.
Yes, I will try to get inside one of these days.  Like I said when I made the posts, if they looked that cool on the outside, I can only imagine what the insides look like.

To the folks from Bay City that posted.
Yes, it was Billings.  I used to go there all of the time when I was kid.  They had lots of neat trinkets.  It is a shame that they closed down.  But then again many stores that gave Bay City character closed down.

My valentines day got a bit more traffic.  Thanks for that.

Is the ice tree still on Belle Isle?
The tree is but it wasn't covered with ice when I went down there.  I'm hoping this remains the case.

Viagra or Cialis?
Seriously people, quit leaving your spam comments on my blog.  I think it's great that you think I have enough traffic to warrant that but still.  I don't understand Russian, Polish or Spanish.  I don't really care about helper drugs.  I don't want a Prada purse.  So leave me alone...please?

So the Westcott heads back to its spot by Riverside Park in Detroit.  Another mail session complete and another freighter on its way upbound or downbound.  As always, feel free to leave comments and I will address them in the next session of the Westcott.

Mail from the Westcott

It's that time again.  The time where I answer e-mail or comments from the people that have decided to ask me questions.

The first question is in regards to the website I use to track shipping on the Great Lakes.
There are actually two websites that I use to track shipping.  The one I started to use was http://www.boatnerd.com.  If you go to the link that says "Vessel Passages" and click the area you want to know about, it gives you a pretty good idea of what's coming down.  A better one is put out by boatnerd.  It tracks the ships realtime and is at http://ais.boatnerd.com.  On that one you can find a pulldown menu that limits your search.

The next question is in regards to the eagles that I take pictures of.
All I can tell you about that one is that they are in Bay City, Michigan.  It seems like there are enough people that go there and I don't want it to become more of a circus.

Is In-N-Out ever coming to Michigan?
I don't think that will ever happen.  Evidently, they have their own meat processing plant and they deliver fresh so that pretty much limits them to the West Coast.

Cialis or Viagra?
Um...why the hell do you people keep posting these comments on my blog?  Please leave me alone.  Thank you.

I also had a pretty cool comment on one of my Huron Lightship posts.

I also want to thank the various people that have pointed out mistakes on my blog or have helped me identify some of the things that I was unable to identify.

I've got many more pictures of the Westcott that I can use....so please use either the comments section or send me e-mail to kozzie_13 at yahoo dot com.

Thank you.

Letters from the Westcott

A picture of the Westcott can mean of one of two things.  One, I was down at Riverside Park today or two, I'm going to start a mailbag feature.  Well since the Westcott is laid up for the winter, the other possibility is number 2.  I don't get as many comments or e-mails as I would like but I get a few so here goes.

One reader commented that one of the pictures I took of the Kaye Barker was while her son was taking his maiden voyage after graduating from Maritime College.
I wish that woman's son the best of luck and hope that his voyages are pleasant ones.  My grandpa was a merchant marine before World War II and I wish I could have asked him more about it.  I guess this is one way to try to make that connection.
Another reader asked if the Manitoba runs all year around.
I do not think she does.  At some point she is going to put in lay up to do maintenance but I think the shipping companies like to keep them out as long as the lakes aren't completely frozen over.  The mitigating factor is when they close the Soo Locks for maintenance which I think is coming soon.
Another reader asked how I liked the Empire Builder.
For two years in a row, I have taken a fairly extensive train trip.  Last year it was the Empire Builder to part of the Coast Starlight and to the California Zephyr.  This year, it was the California Zephyr to the rest of the Coast Starlight and onto the Southwest Chief.  Of the four major legs I took, I would have to say the California Zephyr was my favorite but the Empire Builder was a close second.  The scenery on the Zephyr from Denver to Emeryville was too spectactular but the Glacier Mountain part of the Empire Builder was pretty cool.  So I think next year might see me on the Empire Builder again.
Another reader showed me the link to a really cool website http://detroit138squaremiles.com/detroit-138-square-miles.

So that's all for this installment.  Please leave comments on my blog or send me an e-mail at kozzie_13 at yahoo dot com.  I would like to make this a more regular feature.

A Request to my Readers

I'm looking for picture ideas.  If there is a part of the state that you would like to see, either post it in the comments section or send me an e-mail at kozzie_13 at yahoo dot com.  Also at some point, I would like to do a mailbag post where I answer reader questions.  So again, send me an e-mail or leave me a question in the comments section.