PEACE ON THE ROAD
North Shore Of Lake
Superior
June 7, 2010
In approximately a month
we have traveled from three miles north of the Mexican border in
Texas to about a hundred miles south of the Canadian border in
Minnesota. The temperature at night has gone from somewhere in the
eighties to barely above the thirties. We have traveled from a place
that water was only found in a few streams to an area where it is
seldom more than a couple miles to a lake. This country is so large
with vast difference from one area to another. And yet there is a
sameness that can be found no matter where we travel. We are really
enjoying the tour across our wonderful country.
It is necessary to be
either on one of the coasts or at some port along the Great Lakes to
see a really big ship up close. Most sea ports are closed to the
casual visitor, partly because they are a working area and also
because of a perceived threat to national security. While this also
seems to be true around the Great Lakes there are places that the
great ships can be closely seen. One of those places is in the Port
of Duluth, Minnesota where the large ore ships pass through a channel
that is only 300 foot wide. Along both sides of the channel are
areas that people can stand just two foot from the waters edge. When
an incoming ship is a half mile out the Duluth Aerial Lift Bridge
that is across the channel starts to raise to allow passage. When
the bridge reaches its full height of 227 feet there is ample height
for the largest ship that sails the Great Lakes hauling iron ore or
grains. This bridge was originally built in 1905 as an aerial
transporter bridge. There were only two of these bridges ever built
in the US. It would transport a gondola with up to 350 people plus
horses and carriages from one side of the canal to the opposite side
in a minute and it made the trip every five minutes. In 1929 it was
converted to a lift bridge to accommodate a greater auto traffic
load. The bridge can lift to its full height in three minutes.
During the busy times of the shipping season the bridge cycles 25 to
30 times a day. It is operated by a
THE 902 FOOT HON. JAMES
L. OBERSTAR HEADED TO PORT AT DULUTH, MINNESOTA
set of batteries which
can be charged with generators. If the power lines to the lift
should fail it can still be operated. The traffic platform is
counterbalanced by two 450 ton weights. The bridge and the ships
that pass beneath it is a large tourist attraction in Duluth. We
have seen a couple 1000 foot ore boats come through the channel. One
of those was at night. The schedule of ships in and out plus
interesting information about the ships is published daily and made
available to the public. Coal is loaded on to ships here, taken to
Quebec City and stored. Then 4 or 5 laker (ships that only can
operate in the Great Lakes) loads are transferred onto a single ocean
going ship and delivered to Northern Europe. The lakers are BIG
ships but must be a lot smaller that ocean going vessels.
I like lighthouses
whether they are old brick or stone ones or simple lights that are
out on the end of breakwaters. There is simply something special,
perhaps romantic, about a structure that is placed in a strategic
location to guide ships and sailors to safe destinations or away from
dangerous rocks. Lighthouses are varied in their design because of
the builder, the location or simply for identification in the
daylight. One lighthouse that I have admired for years is Splitrock
Lighthouse in Minnesota. It is one of the most photographed
lighthouses in the US. It was built and commissioned in 1910. In
November of 1905 three severe storms hit the Great Lakes and caused
the death of 116 sailors, it also damaged 29 iron ore ships, two of
which sank off the Split Rock shore. There have been five other ship
which have been damaged within twelve miles. This area was once
described as the most dangerous waters in the world. Lake Superior
is 602 foot above see level with the cliff being 130 higher and the
light is 54 foot above the cliff. The light itself is a bi-valve
Fresnel lens which was built in Paris, France. It was fired by a
kerosene light from 1910-1939 when it was converted to a 1000 watt
electric bulb which was used from 1940-1969. It was decommissioned
in 1969 due to the use of GPS and other more modern navigational
devices. Before it was electrified the Fresnel lens was rotated by a
SPLITROCK LIGHTHOUSE AT
SPLITROCK, MINNESOTA
clockwork like mechanism
that required the lighthouse keeper to climb the tower and wind the
spring mechanism every two hours. The kerosene lamp burned about
five gallons of fuel every night which needed to be hauled up the
tower. All supplies brought to the lighthouse had to be lifted by a
hoist at the top which was dangerous not only to the operators but
also to the supplies themselves. It was not until the highway, which
became known as the Lake Superior International Highway, was built
close to the lighthouse in 1924 that supplies could be brought in by
land. The close proximity of the highway to the lighthouse also
brought a large influx of tourist that wanted to see and photograph
the beauty of the area. Lighthouse keepers found it necessary to ask
the Lighthouse Service headquarters for guidance on how to work amid
the visitors and it was necessary to erect fences at the cliff edge.
An advantage for the keepers that the highway provided was the
ability for their families to live with them all year instead of just
in the summer. The children were able to go to school at local
towns.
A side note to the
Splitrock Lighthouse is the Edna G., a tugboat that spent its working
years at Two Harbors, Minnesota. In the November storm of 1905 the
Edinborn was towing the barge the Madeira. They separated with the
Edinborn being beached with 25 sailors. The Maderia was broken apart
against rocky cliffs and sank. A crewman was able to climb the cliff
and with a rope rescue 9 other crewmen. Both crews found shelter
with either fishermen or loggers where they stayed until rescued by
the Edna B. a few days later. The Edna B. was built as a coal fired
steam engine tug in 1896. She primarily moved ships and barges
carrying iron ore and taconite For two years during WWI she served
on the east coast. She also participated in the rescues of several
shipwrecks. She now serves as a museum at Two Harbors as the last
coal fired steam engine to operate on the Great Lakes.
COAL FIRED STEAM ENGINE
TUG NEXT TO THE IRON ORE DOCKS IN TWO HARBORS
Till
Later This Is Doug Of,
PEACE
ON THE ROAD
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