The classic 689ft long laker Michipicoten departing on a gorgeous May evening! While she’s not as frequently seen as she was last year, she’s still one of the most consistent ships to visit the Twin Ports this season with 6 trips so far between Duluth and Superior. That said, she’s been a slippery ship, coming and going at odd hours, while I’m working or just otherwise unavailable. So this was my first time actually catching her this season!
Originally built in 1952 in Massachusetts as the Elton Hoyt II, she and her two sister ships were built before the completion of the St Lawrence Seaway, so they arrived in the Lakes the hard way. Sailing around the East Coast into the Mississippi River, they then sailed up to the Illinois River and through Chicago, some if the largest vessels to ever make this trip. Because of this, the lakers had to be specially designed with this trip in mind. Their pilothouses and superstructures could be easily dismantled and stowed inside the holds in order to fit underneath tight bridges. Their length was limited to 626ft originally to allow the passage and fit up the narrow river. Once in Chicago the ship was reassembled and started her Great Lakes career, now in its 72nd year.
She was originally operated by Bethlehem Steel, who quickly lengthened the ship 72ft to her current size in 1957 to increase her capacity to 23,000 tons. In 1966 she was sold off to the Picklands & Mather Company (now known as Interlake Steamship Company) and kept her original name while in their service. In 1980 she was converted to a self unloader to keep her in service after the dockside unloaders started being decommissioned. One of her two sisters, Johnstown, was not as lucky and was scrapped. Despite her conversion, throughout the 1980s and 90s the ship was taken out of service several times for long term layup due to her relatively small size for the time, and limited use. In the mid 90s the holds were redesigned to allow grain shipping, but she still spend many years laid up in the Soo region.
In 2003 the ship was sold to Lower Lakes Towing and renamed Michipicoten. They immediately found use for her, using her smaller size to access smaller, often overlooked harbors such as the Algoma Steel Mill at Sault Ste Marie, and very fast load times to their advantage. In 2010 her steam engines were replaced with modern diesels. She has since been a major component of their fleet, running notoriously quick runs across the lakes. In 2023 she averaged a trip to Duluth every 3 days in a shuttle run to the Soo area. This year her tasks have been more varied but still arrives regularly, and we love seeing her!
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