by statmk » July 17, 2017, 6:18 am
I sailed for 11 years as a mate when I was young. I now live in Green Bay and have an office on the river between Walnut and Mason St. From my sailing days, the currents in the Fox can be treacherous at high water. One time we were pinned to the railroad bridge by Fort Howard. The past several days the water is unusually high so the current is unusually strong. When you get around Main St., with the East River flowing into the Fox just north of the bridge, you get some really odd and counter intuitive currents. Barker had its thruster running but it could not overcome the overall effect of the current on the vessel. Something similar happened to us years ago and we struck the Grosse Ile toll bridge going to McClouth in Trenton. The current did what it never did--set us left instead of right. Looks like that is a likely cause here. It happens and is a hazard of the trade.
I sailed for 11 years as a mate when I was young. I now live in Green Bay and have an office on the river between Walnut and Mason St. From my sailing days, the currents in the Fox can be treacherous at high water. One time we were pinned to the railroad bridge by Fort Howard. The past several days the water is unusually high so the current is unusually strong. When you get around Main St., with the East River flowing into the Fox just north of the bridge, you get some really odd and counter intuitive currents. Barker had its thruster running but it could not overcome the overall effect of the current on the vessel. Something similar happened to us years ago and we struck the Grosse Ile toll bridge going to McClouth in Trenton. The current did what it never did--set us left instead of right. Looks like that is a likely cause here. It happens and is a hazard of the trade.