LANSDOWNE SCRAPPING UPDATE

An article in Thursday's Buffalo News highlights the LANSDOWNE's scrapping, which I first reported here on March 26. Apparently, demolition work on the vessel will be completed by May 1, leaving the 124-year-old vessel to be just another memory.

Certainly some will cheer at the dilapadated vessel's demise; however, I am not one of them. The LANSDOWNE represents a lot of Great Lakes history, and its present state of disrepair was one caused solely by neglect on the part of Specialty Restaurants, the vessel's last owner. With the vessel's loss another priceless piece of maritime and railroad history is gone forever.

I will continue to follow this story and will hopefully within the next couple of weeks have photos to post of the vessel's scrapping.

Historical: April 3

Historical arrivals and departures for April 3:

1974: Cleveland Tankers' POLARIS arrives at the United Oil Company dock with a cargo of gasoline, becoming the first ship of the season.

1993: J.L. MAUTHE departs winter layup at Erie Marine Enterprises, bound for Superior to load wheat for Buffalo. This is the vessel's last season of operating as a steam-powered ship; MAUTHE lays up in Superior at the end of the season and is converted to the barge PATHFINDER three years later.

BRISTOL BAY arrives in port

Only about a half-hour after I posted earlier today that the Coast Guard icebreaker BRISTOL BAY was working in Lake Erie, the vessel arrived in Erie and secured at the Coast Guard station for supplies. The 140-foot "Bay Class" U.S. Coast Guard icebreaking tug was inbound at 1045 hours this morning and secured at the North Pier along the Coast Guard property.

The last time BRISTOL BAY was in Erie was May 4, 2007, when the vessel brought its buoy barge into port to replace the winter markers with the summer aids to navigation.


BRISTOL BAY at the Coast Guard Station at 1230 this afternoon.


Another view.


Stern view.


BRISTOL BAY at dock.

Wind Complicates Ice

Yesterday's high winds seriously complicated efforts to ease the burden of an ice-covered Lake Erie.

After warm temperatures over the past few days had moved the ice off-shore and weakened it, the wind gusts of 40 miles per hour or more on Tuesday moved most of the ice to the south shore again, clogging up the approaches to harbors and making the movement of commercial traffic harder.

Currently, the USCGC BRISTOL BAY is working on Lake Erie to assist shipping. Yesterday the vessel was working with the CANADIAN ENTERPRISE on its trip across the Lake.

Historical Season Openings: April 1

Historical arrivals for April 1:

1998- DAVID Z. NORTON arrives with stone for the Old Ore Dock, becoming the first vessel of the 1998 season. The vessel is in service today for Lower Lakes Transportation as CALUMET.

Historical Arrivals: March 31

Historical arrivals for March 31:

2002- LEE A. TREGURTHA arrives in Erie to open the 2002 season with stone from Stoneport, Michigan. This is the first of two visits for the TREGURTHA to Erie in 2002; the vessel has not visited Erie since.

CALLAWAY, AMERICAN REPUBLIC Collide in Straits

CASON J. CALLAWAY and another past Erie visitor, the AMERICAN REPUBLIC, collided Friday in the Straits of Mackinaw, which connect Lakes Huron and Michigan. Reports are that the downbound CALLAWAY, loaded with iron ore for Gary, Indiana on its first trip of the season, was passing close to the REPUBLIC, stuck fast in ice, to try and break it free. The CALLAWAY apparently was pushed by the ice into the REPUBLIC, holing the REPUBLIC in its number one ballast tank, and the CALLAWAY above the water line.

Both vessels are headed for Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin and Bay Shipbuilding Company for repairs.

GE Planning on Shipping Locomotives

At Friday's meeting of the Erie Western-Pennsylvania Port Authority, chairman Ray Shreckengost announced that General Electric is planning on exporting 25 locomotives through the port of Erie in October.

I'm not sure at the moment who the customer is for these units, but I'll continue to follow this story and will have more details as they unfold.

Historical Arrivals: March 28

1997: CUYAHOGA arrives in Erie with stone from Port Colborne, docking at the Mountfort Terminal behind the laid up RICHARD REISS. Her visit is the earliest opening the port has had.

Ice continues to pose problems on Lake Erie

Ice on the eastern end of Lake Erie is continuing to give commercial shipping problems, and is an ongoing headache for both the U.S. and Canadian Coast Guards. Overnight, two ships, the CANADIAN ENTERPRISE, bound for Conneaut, Ohio to load coal, and the CEDARGLEN, bound for Ashtabula to unload titanium slag, became stuck in ice off of Erie. Both vessels remained there throughout the night, requiring the assistance of U.S. Coast Guard cutter NEAH BAY to get underway this morning.

Yesterday, the Rt. Hon. PAUL J. MARTIN became stuck off of Long Point and required assistance from NEAH BAY all the way to Ashtabula.

Although this year's ice cover on Lake Erie is worse than normal, the conditions are nothing in comparison to Lake Superior, where the Canadian Coast Guard Cutter SAMUEL RISLEY and U.S. cutters MACKINAW, BISCAYNE BAY, and KATMAI BAY, along with private tug companies, are struggling to keep the St. Mary's River and Soo Locks open to commercial traffic, and keep ships moving through windrows of ice reported to be up to six feet thick in places.

LANSDOWNE SOLD FOR SCRAP

Specialty Restaurants, owners of the LANSDOWNE, which called the Sassafras Street dock home until the Erie Western-Pennsylvania Port Authority evicted the vessel in July 2006, has reportedly been sold for scrap to a company in Buffalo, where she is now languishing.

Work on demolishing the 1884-built vessel will begin around May 1, reportedly. The two Milwaukee Road Skytop railcars on the stern of the ship, the subject of many preservation attempts by railroad enthusiasts, are in jeopardy of seeing the cutter's torch along with the LANSDOWNE.

The following is the text of an email I received earlier this evening:

Earlier this month, Specialty Restaurants sold the Lansdowne investment
to a local scrap iron company which is slated to disassemble the
structure within the coming weeks. Unfortunately, despite Specialty's
new receptiveness to part with the cars, we were unable to rally the
same support and interest that we did a couple years back. The firm
charged with disposing of the Lansdowne is open to selling the skytops
at scrap value and has affirmed the ability to remove the cars in one
piece. There are a few individuals who have shown interest and backing
to support preservation of one or both cars; however this must be
matched with a reasonable plan and support to vacate the cars from the
site prior to May 1st. Sadly, reality dictates that the resources
necessary to mobilize for such an endeavor is likely not practical at
this point.

Anyone interested in more information about the preservation efforts can email Lee Edgar.

It's unfortunate that this seems to be the fate of the LANSDOWNE, whose owners had grand plans to restore the vessel to a floating restaurant when she arrived in Erie under tow of the tug MANITOU on November 1, 1999.

I will continue to follow this story and will update as I receive more information.

CALLAWAY, PRESQUE ISLE Open Sault

CASON J. CALLAWAY and PRESQUE ISLE, both bound for Two Harbors, MN after spending the winter in Erie, were the first two vessels to pass through the locks at Sault Ste. Marie, MI. this morning. The locks separate Lake Huron from Lake Superior, and had been closed for the winter since January 15.

PRESQUE ISLE Video

I'm still having problems uploading a version of the videos for download, but here is video of the PRESQUE ISLE sailing from Erie on Saturday.

CALLAWAY Video

I've uploaded a video of the CASON J. CALLAWAY's departure to Youtube, but am having problems with my own file server. I will have a downloadable version of this video, along with the video of the PRESQUE ISLE, tomorrow.

PRESQUE ISLE DEPARTS

CASON J. CALLAWAY was freed by the Canadian Coast Guard cutter GRIFFON last night at midnight and is now on her way across Lake Erie for Detroit and eventually, Two Harbors, Minnesota.

A shift in wind direction overnight gave the PRESQUE ISLE's captain and crew some concern before the vessel departed early this afternoon. The wind had shifted and was blowing from the east, causing ice to jam up at the end of the channel.

As such, the PRESQUE ISLE departed the Mountfort Terminal at 1215 hours this afternoon, but unlike any of the vessel's previous visits to the port, did not choose to back through the channel and turn in Lake Erie. Instead, the captain chose, in front of around 100 onlookers, to turn in Presque Isle Bay and proceed bow-first through the channel and out into Lake Erie. The GRIFFON, meanwhile, stood by while working with USCG NEAH BAY to break tracks through the ice for ships sailing between Conneaut, Ohio, and Nanticoke, Ontario.

PRESQUE ISLE blew a master's salute to the crowds gathered on the piers to see the vessel off. They are next bound for either Duluth or Two Harbors, Minnesota to load taconite pellets for Conneaut.

I will post video of both the CALLAWAY and PRESQUE ISLE departures either tonight or tomorrow.

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PRESQUE ISLE prepares to leave the Mountfort Terminal this morning.


Moving away from the Mountfort Terminal.


Another view.


PRESQUE ISLE proceeds into Presque Isle Bay.


Turning around.


Heading into the channel.


PRESQUE ISLE in her namesake bay, lined up for the channel.


Entering the channel.


Outbound.


Close up of the tug.


Stern view.


PRESQUE ISLE passing the lighthouse.


Another view. This photo and those below by Jim Thoreson.


Heading into the ice field.


Though the vessel slowed, the PRESQUE ISLE made good time through this ice field.


Ice was visible as far as the eye could see.