Munson Comes out in a Mood (with some extra Wholesome Moments)

John G Munson departing Duluth on a beautiful fall Sunday with crowds of tourists waiting for her, and they didn’t disappoint! The salutes started long before reaching the Canal and continued all the way through to the lighthouses. Meanwhile it was busy enough that I was having trouble finding parking, so dropped off my girlfriend Shelby at the pier with the camera in case I couldn’t make it in time, and went off looking. Found one eventually and was able to film her in the Canal but Shelby did a great job! Heard Munson’s first salute while walking and knew we were in for a good show. As she passed there were a lot of fun moments in the crowd, as well as a call from one of the ship’s deck crew members to a girl on the piers that was really sweet. All in all a good day! She departed fully loaded for Indiana Harbor in the South Chicago area.

Built in 1952 and measuring 768ft long, John G Munson is one of the most iconic lakers sailing today, known for her sleek lines and deep booming horn, which while it doesn’t always play all that well for cameras it can shake up your whole body and even the piers themselves vibrate a bit, a horn you feel more than hear! She was originally built to 666ft long as the largest self-unloading vessel in the world at the time, and was expanded to her current size in 1975. She was originally a coal-fired steamship, converted to oil burning at the same time as her lengthening, then finally converted to modern diesel engines in 2016. She has had several incidents in her career including striking a Ohio breakwater in 1974, a fire in 1983, and significantly damaging a fuel dock in 2003 after pulling in too quickly. The last two years have seen her cargoholds re-lined with new steel and a full refit in Toledo over this last winter. A broken engine bearing took her out of action for over a month in late spring this year, but she’s been back in action since!

Hope you enjoy!