Hon. James L. Oberstar - Leaving City Lights for Dark Waters

Here is the Hon. James L. Oberstar seen departing Duluth, Minnesota at 3:00am on June 6, 2022. She had arrived about 11 hours earlier with a load of limestone, which she discharged at the Hallett 5 dock. When she was done unloading, she departed Duluth empty... bound for Marquette, Michigan to load taconite for delivery to Detroit (her most frequent run).

All of the tourists and fanfare that greeted her arrival in Duluth were replaced with nighttime silence and stillness for her departure. The only sounds to be heard were the raising of the Aerial Lift Bridge and the hum of the Oberstar's diesel engines as she made her way through the shipping canal and onto the inky blackness of Lake Superior, the largest freshwater lake in the world. The Oberstar's captain withheld the traditional captain's salute as a courtesy to residents who live on Park Point, allowing them to sleep a bit longer before they had to start their Monday morning and head off to work.

The 806-foot Hon. James L. Oberstar started service in 1959, originally named the Shenango II. From 1967 to 2011, she was named the Charles M. Beeghly as she sailed for Interlake Steamship. In 2011, she was named in honor of the former Congressman from Minnesota who supported Great Lakes shipping and the maritime industry in general. In 2008, her steam turbine was replaced with two Rolls-Royce Marine Bergen 6-cylinder B32:40L6P diesel engines each rated at 4,079 b.h.p. A scrubbing system is in place to remove particulates and pollutants from her exhaust. She can carry up to 31,000 tons of cargo in her five cargo holds. Those holds are accessed by 25 hatches. A gravity-fed conveyor system allows her to unload her own cargo, using a 250-foot unloading boom.

Видео Hon. James L. Oberstar - Leaving City Lights for Dark Waters канала 1 Long 2 Short