A 72 Second Horn Salute to Start the Day! James R Barker Returns

No sleeping in! James R Barker delivering an early bird special for those waiting on the piers at 7am! The ship, which is usually a regular at Duluth Harbor, has been surprisingly elusive this season, only arriving through the canal twice! The rest of the time she’s been loading in Superior, Silver Bay or Two Harbors. Aside from occasionally at Two Harbors, she does not typically give her signature salute at any of the other locations, so “The Bark” has been mostly absent so far this year from Lake Superior. Her captain seems to be making up for lost time!

The Barker is my favorite vessel, the one that started my journey at 5 years old into ship watching and many of the other hobbies and even major aspects of my life. And she managed to accomplish that without her iconic horn that first time I saw her. So her absence has been felt this year. Was at work the first time she came and went this season, then went over to Superior a couple times to try and see her but never quite got there in time, always ended up having to stop and view from a distance. So when she finally headed for Duluth at an early but doable hour, I made sure to jump on it!

Built in 1976, the Barker was the largest ship on the Lakes at the time, measuring 1,004 ft long. Originally designed with a forward pilothouse (she would have been the very last one with that feature) her design was changed at the last second to move everything to the stern of the ship, a feature that all the other thousand footers built after her would be based on. She was also the first thousand footer built entirely within the Great Lakes.

Since her construction she’s had a basically unblemished career with no major incidents so far and only a few breakdowns. She’s also featured no name changes or sales to other companies (quite rare for a ship her age!). In 2016 she had her twin smokestacks removed and replaced with a single large one, which houses a diesel scrubber in addition to her exhaust system, removing toxins and other pollutants from her plume. In the late 2000s her stern horn was scheduled to be removed and replaced by a new bass horn. The new horn went in, but the old horn never got removed. The error was never fixed because the results were the now iconic two toned horn, which has since been heard by millions and made the ship famous across the globe, she even has her own cell phone ringtone. And her captain knows how to use that horn to maximum effect! Even though it’s worn out a little since its installment (last year it sounded pretty rough until late fall) it’s still quite an experience!

Glad to see you Barker! Come back more often!