Correction: Corrected September 17, 2026: the water-level paragraph now reports the archived NOAA station observations and their limits. Unsupported navigation implications were withdrawn. NOAA measurement context.
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There are two VanEnkevort hulls on the water this Tuesday, and they are pointed in opposite directions.
The Dirk S. VanEnkevort was downbound from Keweenaw toward the Soo Locks as of 03:11 this morning, carrying a 19:33 ETA at the locks. She has the full length of Lake Superior still to cross before she reaches the St. Marys River.
Her fleet sister, Joyce L. VanEnkevort, was already deep in the lower lakes at the same hour. She logged upbound from Grassy Island with a 09:16 ETA at Vantage Point in Port Huron. One boat is still on Superior. The other is threading the St. Clair corridor. Same name on the registry. Nothing else about this morning matches.
Edwin H. Gott was downbound from Harbor Beach as of 05:00 this morning, carrying a 09:05 ETA at Port Huron and a 13:01 ETA at the Dossin Museum waypoint in Detroit. That is the full lower corridor in a single Tuesday push.
Presque Isle, also downbound, held a 07:12 Detroit River ETA after last reporting from Algonac at 04:17, running well ahead of the Gott through the river.
CSL Assiniboine was downbound from Keweenaw with a 14:19 ETA at the Soo Locks Tuesday afternoon. That puts two commercial lakers queuing for the locks before sunset: Assiniboine in the early afternoon, Dirk S. VanEnkevort in the evening.
In Toledo on Tuesday, arrivals included Joyce L. VanEnkevort and her consort Great Lakes Trader to the CSX dock, and Clyde S. VanEnkevort and her consort Erie Trader to Ironville. A third family tug-barge pair, Caroline McKee and Commander, arrived at SMC Toledo.
Archived NOAA station observations: Lake Superior, Sault Ste. Marie (NOAA station 9076027): 1.772 feet relative to local Low Water Datum, observed 2026-08-17 23:54 local standard time. Lake Michigan, Chicago (NOAA station 9087031): 2.064 feet relative to local Low Water Datum, observed 2026-08-17 23:54 local standard time. Lake Huron, Harbor Beach, MI (NOAA station 9075002): 2.119 feet relative to local Low Water Datum, observed 2026-08-17 23:54 local standard time. Lake Erie, Cleveland (NOAA station 9063053): 3.087 feet relative to local Low Water Datum, observed 2026-08-17 23:54 local standard time. Lake Ontario, Rochester, NY (NOAA station 9052030): 3.402 feet relative to local Low Water Datum, observed 2026-08-17 23:54 local standard time. These are individual gauge readings, not lake-wide averages or channel depths. They do not establish vessel clearance, cargo limits or comparative navigability.
A cold front will push across Lake Michigan this afternoon and evening, dragging southwest winds behind it. The same front crosses Lake Erie on Wednesday before high pressure at 30.20 inches builds Thursday and Friday. Lake Superior and Huron are both running 1-foot seas today; Michigan and Erie are at 2 feet. The front's passage tonight is the one variable worth watching for any vessel on Lake Michigan's northern waters.
The Thunder Bay Maritime Festival runs August 21 through 23 in Alpena, in the middle of Michigan's shipwreck alley. Events include tall ship excursions on Thunder Bay, deck tours, a Battle of the Paddles race open to kayaks, canoes, and paddleboards, and a community boat parade on the Thunder Bay River. Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary, which stewards one of the densest collections of freshwater shipwrecks on the continent, is among the organizers. For anyone watching today's AIS traffic on Lake Huron, Alpena sits roughly midway up the Michigan shore.