A Safe Harbor (EDIT on 10/25/14)

I came home Sunday evening, walked up my stairs, looked out my window, and saw this:

Bryan took this awesome photo...you can even see its self-loading gear! He's good at taking night photos without a tripod...

The Great Republic was anchored in Good Harbor Bay, and was quite a sight. No matter how many times I see these ships they always fascinate me. "Beautiful" is an unusual word to describe it, yet is the only word that fits it. When I opened the window I could hear the hum of its engines between giant gusts of wind. It's quite relaxing.

Here's a photo from boatnerd.com (click on the link for some info on this ship), taken during the day:

The Great Republic (photo: boatnerd.com)

Last fall we hosted the Philip R. Clarke in Good Harbor Bay:

The Philip R. Clarke anchored in Good Harbor Bay, November 16, 2013.

Philip R. Clarke (photo: boatnerd.com)

I saw it pulling in one fall November morning and my curiosity was piqued. I scoured the internet for information on it and why it was there. I first found the internet real-time AIS maps (the ship had a name!). As I continued my investigation I finally, after taken a handful of hours researching (more than it should have taken :) ), discovered that the Philip R. Clarke, along with all of the Great Lakes Fleet, where anchored due to a prediction of dangerous weather. I can only assume that the Great Republic was anchoring for the same reason (although, I was not able to find any info to confirm or deny this).

Since I've discovered all of these different ship/shipping resources online it's become a hobby to track and document the different ships when I see them sail through the Manitou Passage. Currently I have 73 ships logged, and this is only since I began tracking them this past May (I'd have many more if I would have began documenting in the 2013 shipping season). Also, we still have about 2-1/2 months before the Soo Locks close for the season (things definitely slow down before this because of winter weather, but seems to be pretty much at a standstill after the locks close--at least this is what I noticed last year).

As of 2011 the Great Republic has sailed for the Great Lakes fleet out of Duluth, MN. I was surprised to learn this because it doesn't have the trademark GLF paint job. It has a somewhat interesting history, including its participation in the 1996 Olympic Torch Relay.

I checked the ship's itinerary and it seemed to have continued on its journey around 3:30 a.m. I'd hoped that it would be around in the morning so that I could go get some photos. Maybe next time...