Boatnerd Discussion Forum

With a vessel coming in the somewhat narrow and shallow Sturgeon Bay Canal and then having to line up for two bridges before arriving at the shipyard, the strength and the direction of the wind come into play. You need a certain amount of speed so you don't drift sideways in the canal, but you have to make the turns into the bridges which is better done at a lower speed. With a ship pretty well pumped out to go into the yard, you have a large sail that the wind can catch and push the vessel sideways. Mike

Most likely it was too windy. Or, Maybe they are having thruster problems, or only running on one engine...or some other mechanical problems and want to stay in open water..a portion of the canal is very narrow.

Its a very narrow canal for footers.

Maybe the Burns Harbor was having a mechanical issue that necessitated going the long way?

Do captains take issue with the Sturgeon Bay canal? On several occasions now, I've noticed boats go all the way up and around the penninsula, rather than use the canal. Most recently the Burns Harbor going from Chicago to bay ship, went all the way around rather than use the canal. Just curious.