Boat Tour
We “locked” up and downstream through the MacArthur lock, viewed the International Bridge and saw many historic waterfronts of Michigan and Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario.
Entering MacArthur Lock
The Arthur M Anderson, a749 ft Laker type ship, exited the Poe lock as we waited to lock downstream. This is the first ship to aid the Edmund Fitzgerald and the last ship to have contact with "The Big Fitz" before it sank off Whitefish Point in 1975. 
Scenic Drive Highlights
Iroquois Point Light Station guided ships through the channel for 107 years.
Iroquois Point Light Station
Whitefish Point Lighthouse dates from 1849. It’s believed to be the oldest active lighthouse on Lake Superior. The lighthouse keepers made about $600 per year.
Great Lakes freighter off Whitefish Point
Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum is located on Whitefish Point. The museum describes some of the events surrounding the loss of over 300 ships on the Great Lakes.
The Fish House wasn’t described in the National Geographic guide, but it was along the route. It’s located in Paradise (honest) just a few miles from Whitefish Point. It’s owned and operated by 4th generation fishermen. The facility is unimpressive, but … they only open when they have a catch of the day to serve. We had whitefish. The meal and the service was OUTSTANDING. 
Did you know?
Lake Huron is 21 ft lower than Lake Superior. The St. Mary’s River connects the two lakes and the elevation change occurs at St. Mary’s Rapids where the Soo Locks are located.
There are four Soo locks – MacArthur, Poe, Davis and Sabin.
The Poe Lock (no pun intended) is 1,200 ft long and 110 ft wide. A 1,000 ft ship has 2.5 ft of clearance on each side when inside the Poe Lock.
There is no fee for passing through the Soo locks … for any vessel from any country.
I've had a chance to experience going through the locks. Beth's brother has a large boat and has traveled the "great circle route" from Chicago to Chicago via the Mississippi river, the gulf, the east coast, the St. Lawrence Seaway, and the great lakes. We've joined him a couple of times from here, and it is certainly amazing how those locks work, even for small boats.
ReplyDeleteWe've also been to Beth's other brother (the one who lives in Morristown, NY, and since he lives right on the St. Lawrence, we can see across to Canada (as you remember) and see all those freighters go by. This past month while we were there, a freighter got stuck on a shoal because its steering system failed!
Dick, you are quite the punster! I guess you and I file words "acoustically" rather than alphabetically!
By the way, is there a problem that the fudge store makes 200 tons of fudge ...??? :-)