Poe Lock welcomes first freighter of the 2023 shipping season

Brendan Wiesner, The Sault News
·1 min read
The Edwin H. Gott was the first freighter to come through the Poe Lock for the 2023 shipping season at midnight on March 24.
The Edwin H. Gott was the first freighter to come through the Poe Lock for the 2023 shipping season at midnight on March 24.

SAULT STE. MARIE — Hundreds of people were ready and waiting at midnight on March 24 to see the very first ship of the 2023 shipping season pass through the Soo Locks.

The Edwin H. Gott, a 1,000-foot freighter, was welcomed as the first ship of the season as it passed through the locks on its way to pick up cargo.

The Soo Locks are one of the largest freighter shipping lanes in the Western Hemisphere. The locks opened at midnight on March 24 for the beginning of the 2023 spring shipping season.
The Soo Locks are one of the largest freighter shipping lanes in the Western Hemisphere. The locks opened at midnight on March 24 for the beginning of the 2023 spring shipping season.

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Sailors on the Edwin H. Gott and engineers from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers dock the freighter as it makes the season's first trip through the Soo Locks on March 25, 2023.
Sailors on the Edwin H. Gott and engineers from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers dock the freighter as it makes the season's first trip through the Soo Locks on March 25, 2023.

The Soo Locks temporarily close every winter season as ships cannot make it through the frozen lakes, but they open again in the spring.

The Poe Lock, the largest and most used of the Soo Locks, opened its gates at midnight on March 24. The only other lock in use, the MacArthur Lock, will be opening for freighter traffic on April 24. The two locks will remain open until the ending of the shipping season in January 2024.

— Contact Brendan Wiesner: BWiesner@Sooeveningnews.com

This article originally appeared on The Sault News: Poe Lock welcomes first freighter of the 2023 shipping season