Correction: Corrected September 17, 2026: the water-level paragraph was withdrawn because this imported legacy edition does not retain its underlying gauge snapshot. Its numerical readings and navigation implications are unverified. NOAA measurement context.
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The 2026 Great Lakes shipping season is ramping up with purpose. Federal Nagara, a Marshall Islands-flagged vessel, arrived at Port Milwaukee on Friday, April 3, marking the first international arrival of the year. She came through the St. Lawrence Seaway from Spain and Belgium carrying specialty steel products, with the Logistec terminal ready to receive her cargo. The Seaway locks opened for the season on March 22, reconnecting the Great Lakes to Atlantic shipping lanes after the winter shutdown.
Upstream, the St. Marys River remained active Monday despite persistent ice. Federal Nagara was spotted in the East Neebish Channel alongside the U.S. Coast Guard cutter Mackinaw, where icebreaker assistance continued to be essential, especially at the Stribling and Johnson’s Point turns. Two other salties, Ocean7 Ranger and Stewart J. Cort, moved through upbound, with Cort holding above Johnson’s Point overnight. Afternoon northwest winds shifted large plate ice slabs, forcing Soo Traffic to close the river above the locks between Light 26 and Whitefish Point. Since the Soo Locks opened, the U.S. and Canadian Coast Guards have assisted 43 commercial vessels through the St. Marys River corridor as part of Operation Taconite.
The original water-level paragraph has been withdrawn. This legacy edition was imported from a WordPress draft without the underlying gauge snapshot, so its numerical readings and navigation implications cannot be verified from the archived source data.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers also marked a milestone when the new tug R.G. Pearce, a 76-footer fresh from Conrad Shipyard in Louisiana, arrived at her Sault Ste. Marie home port Easter Sunday. Named for a 35-year Soo Locks veteran, she joins a growing fleet supporting the season.