CROW departs Saturday, taking PAV 103 with it

Tug CROW, after a week in port, departed Erie early Saturday morning with the third of six deck barges under construction at Erie Shipbuilding, the PAV 103, in tow. The tug, which is too high and, with the barge, too long for the Erie Canal section of the New York State Canal System, arrived in Port Colborne, Ontario after dark on Saturday afternoon and secured at Wharf 16 of the Welland Canal.

After undergoing inspection by St. Lawrence Seaway authorities on Sunday morning, the tug pushed the barge downbound through the Welland Canal on Sunday, bound for Oswego, New York. At Oswego, the tug would enter the New York State Barge Canal bound for Albany, New York.

The PAV 103 came out of drydock only three weeks after the completion of PAV 102. The three remaining deck barges, PAV 104, PAV 105, and PAV 106, will likely be completed by Erie Shipbuilding and remain in Erie over the winter, as the New York State Canal System is scheduled to close for the winter on Thursday. This means that delivering the remaining deck barges would require tugs to take them through the St. Lawrence Seaway, around Canada, and into New York harbor and up the Hudson River to Albany. This would be a long, expensive voyage for the barges.


CROW and PAV 103 secured above Lock 7 of the Welland Canal on Sunday morning, awaiting dowbound transit.


Close up of the CROW.


Stern view of the tug and barge.

CROW Moves, CSX Suffers Derailment on Bayfront Track

On Tuesday, the tug CROW moved from her position north of the WITTE 4003 and is now moored south of the barge, facing north in the West Slip.

Wednesday afternoon at 1500, as the train was backing into the rail siding leading into the Erie Coke plant, the CSX local train suffered a derailment of one engine and two empty coke cars. The train tripped the signal at West 6th and the Bayfront Connector, delaying traffic for almost an hour until the signal was fixed.


CROW tied up in the West Slip on Wednesday.


Bow view.


CROW and the WITTE 4003.


CSX engine 6097 derailed aside of West 6th Street.


Another view. Note how far off the rails the empty coal hopper is.

CROW, WHITE Arrive

Port Albany Ventures' 86-foot long, 1963-built canal tug CROW arrived in Erie this morning at 0630 and docked ahead of the WITTE 4003 at the West Slip. The tug has no ETD at this time.

The H. LEE WHITE arrived in Erie at 1820 this evening with stone from Calcite, docking at the Old Ore Dock to unload.


CROW at dock


Side view


Stern view


WITTE 4003


Another view of the tug CROW


H. LEE WHITE inbound


Stern view.

Port Albany Ventures' Tug CROW due

Port Albany Ventures' 85-foot long tug CROW is currently upbound in the Welland Canal and due in Erie at 0700 Saturday morning.