Pere Marquette Last Vessel Out Of St. Paul

The mv. Pere Marquette was the last vessel to depart St. Paul, Minn., in 2017, leaving November 28 and pushing five barges filled with grains and soybeans, the St. Paul Engineer District reported

The district locked its last tow of the season December 7 to end the navigation season on the Upper Mississippi River. The mv. Bernard G locked through Lock and Dam 10, in Guttenberg, Iowa, early in the morning, pushing 11 barges filled with corn and soybeans.

The district’s locks officially closed December 10, completing another year of navigation on the Upper Mississippi River from St. Paul, Minn., to the district’s most southern facility, Lock and Dam 10.

The mv. Stephen L. Colby was the first tow to reach St. Paul this season. It arrived with 12 barges March 9, marking the start to the 2017 navigation season.

The Corps closed Lower St. Anthony Falls Lock and Dam and Lock and Dam 1, both in Minneapolis, to navigation November 19. Upper St. Anthony Falls Lock and Dam was permanently closed to all navigation in 2015.