• Saturday-What'sUP May 26 - 07:51 pm

This week the Pasty Cam began with trains, and ends with trains... and boats.

Rod Burdick was on hand to photograph an occurrence which only happens a few times a year in the small Lake Superior port of Munising. That being the M.V.H. Lee White freighter as she busily unloads her cargo of coal to be used at the local paper mill. From what Rod says, this is one of three to five cargos of coal the mill receives each year. Interesting angles Rod shot all three photos from, especially the one with the Pictured Rocks tour boats lined up and ready for the tourist season to begin.

Good morning! Neat pictures of the freighter.

Great pictures again by Rob. Brings back memories of back in the 40's when the "coal boats" came into Hubbell and Mason thru the "Cuts". Do the freighters come in to Munising east or west of Grand Island. I have seen green and red bouys as far down as Christmas, Mich. Have a happy and safe weekend everyone and remember those who have served to protect our nations freedom.

Wow. Great pics!! I love Munising. I used to day trip there from the Soo as a kid to pic berries. I grew up with the Soo locks as my back yard. And the sounds and sights of the Lake freighters almost brings me to tears. Sure I get lots of Ocean going vessels here in Florida to look at, but memories of a smile and a wave hello from a fellow American walking the ropes as they passed thru the locks is no comparison.

I'm with you Theresa. We always had a boat of something or another in Ashland. Gram lived two blocks from the lake shore and Gramps worked as watchman. Those really are old memories. The biggest boat we see here is someone headed south to Galveston with their yacht.

We watch the boats load up near my aunt & uncles place in cedarville, they come in so high and leave so low.

Brooke OMG yes I remember cedarville, too. So many Slate stone beaches. Not much sand but as pretty as the Jacobsville sandstone walks we used to take. What am I doing in Florida!! I miss everything about the spring and summers and falls of the U.P. I guess its the winters that were hard on me lol.

The way I understand it, EddyFitz, is that freighters coming to unload at Munising come in on the east side of Grand Island, next to Pictured Rocks. Any boats or ships that are in need of a harbour of refuge during a storm use the west and south route along Grand Island next to Christmas. I had always wondered that as well until I got to know an older gentleman in Munising who did underwater salvage work and dive tours of the shipwrecks in the area. He said that it was used as a navigation route in an emergency like storms. There are also a lot of reefs and rocky knobs in that of Grand Island area as well that are markes by various buoys...

I have said this before, but I can't tell you how many times I use pictures from the Pasty Cam to teach my fourth graders. Last week, we went on a field trip to the Ft. Gratiot Lighthouse and the Huron Lightship in Port Huron. In preparation for our trip, we studied about different kinds of freighters. They were especially interested in self-unloading ships. These pictures will be great to show the kids when I return to school on Tuesdaay. Thanks for the great shots!

I use them too Cindy. Actually I have told my class about the
marshes with muskrats in your area too. Everytime I cross to
Michigan at Port Huron or Detroit my eyes are scanning the water
for freighters. I have postcards of freighters all over the wall of my
tiny classroom office. It's pretty exciting to cross the St. Clair River
on a ferry boat and look up at the freighters from that vantage
point.

I remember when they used to unload coal in $ Bay. Those were the good old days when you could actually see the lake from the road for most of the trip from Houghton-Hancock.

Me too, Deb! When us kids would hear the boats blowing as they came into the channel by Sandy Bottom we would run down to the lake behind the school to watch them. That was so much fun. Shot, I guess all of that property along the lake is now private property.New houses all along the lake there. I am not happy with that. Another beautiful natural area GONE and another spot for kids to play gone.Us kids spent many happy hours playing there in the woods behind the school and along that shore.

We spent time at Sandy Bottom too, Fran. It was a great time. There is soon going to be nowhere for kids to go. It's sad! At least we had the pleasure when we were kids.