Tag Archives: St. Lawrence Seaway

American Queen Voyages Ocean Navigator Welcomed to Chicago’s Navy Pier

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American Queen Voyages has celebrated the maiden arrival of the Ocean Navigator at Chicago’s Navy Pier.

Through a partnership with sister company City Experiences, American Queen Voyages is the only overnight cruise line to dock at the downtown Chicago destination, the company said, in a press release.

Sister ship Ocean Voyager will also call on Chicago’s Navy Pier for the first time on June 8, as the two boutique coastal ships offer unique Lakes & Oceans experiences designed to navigate the locks of the St. Lawrence Seaway and all five Great Lakes.

City and state leaders including Choose Chicago CEO Lynn Osmond, Navy Pier President & CEO Marilynn Gardner, and Magnificent Mile Association President & CEO Kimberly Bares welcomed American Queen Voyages executives and Captain Gary Kerr to Chicago.

“Today, we celebrate the arrival of American Queen Voyages’ Ocean Navigator and Chicago as a cruise destination,” said Lynn Osmond, chief executive officer, of Choose Chicago. “Chicago’s tourism industry plays a large role contributing to the vibrancy of the city, and we are thrilled to have partners like American Queen Voyages who offer extraordinary experiences for our locals and tourists alike.”

“Travelers are ready to make up for lost time and are eager to deeply discover North America now – and Chicago is a stunning backdrop to embark on that journey,” shared Isis Ruiz, chief commercial officer, American Queen Voyages. “Ocean Navigator’s arrival at Navy Pier is a fitting way to celebrate tourism in Chicago, exploring the city’s bounty of culture and history. We look forward to an exciting season showcasing the many treasures across the Great Lakes.”

American Queen Voyages Great Lakes voyages of 11 to 16-days call on North America’s historic five Great Lakes and the storied St. Lawrence River. Port highlights include exploring the Victorian-era charm of Mackinac Island, historic Soo Locks, breathtaking Manitoulin Island, the largest freshwater island in the world, the Horseshoe Falls of Niagara Falls, the Henry Ford Museum in Detroit and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland.

Photo: From left: Kimberly Bares, Dan Russell, Lynn Osmond, Captain Gary Kerr, Bill Annand, Marilynn Gardner

Viking charting a new course with Great Lakes expeditions

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Welland Canal locks between Lake Erie and Lake Ontario

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. — Viking’s pair of expedition ships will operate winter cruises in Antarctica. But in the offseason, one of the vessels will head to a slightly more unusual destination for an expedition ship: the Great Lakes.

The two ships have ice-rated hulls for polar operations, but their beam and length were calculated specifically to fit through the Welland Canal locks between Lake Erie and Lake Ontario, which provide access to the western portion of the St. Lawrence Seaway.

In introducing the expedition line from the stage at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, Viking chairman Torstein Hagen said, “We do our research, and we know our guests also like to be cruising near to home.”

The unveiling of the Great Lakes itineraries brought exclamations and applause from the audience.

“I think this new cruising area, the Great Lakes, should be a very interesting place,” Hagen said, adding that he thought it had been “underserved.”

The cruises to the lakes on the Viking Octantis will start in the summer of 2022 and sail between Thunder Bay, Ontario, and Milwaukee and between Milwaukee and Toronto. Depending on the itinerary, the ship will visit Georgian Bay in Lake Huron; Mackinac Island, Detroit and Traverse City, Mich.; and Duluth, Minn.

The voyages would mix visits to urban destinations with wildlife sightings, kayaking and hiking.

As with Arctic and Antarctic cruises, scientists will be on board; the Octantis, like its sister ship, the Polaris, has dedicated lab space. On the Great Lakes cruises, scientists from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration will conduct research on the region’s weather, climate and ecosystem and will serve as guest lecturers.

Cruise Ship Crashes Into Wall, Smashes Hole In Bow, Traps Hundreds Of Passengers Onboard

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Eisenhower Lock Interior

A cruise ship crashed into a wall in a lock on the St. Lawrence Seaway in upstate New York Thursday night, injuring 30 people on the ship and blowing a hole in its bow, according to authorities.

The U.S. Coast Guard says the 286-foot Saint Laurent was headed from Montreal to Toronto when it hit a wall in the Eisenhower Lock in Massena, New York, near the Canadian border, around 9:45 p.m. Thursday. There were 273 passengers and crew aboard, most of them French or Swiss nationals, the Associated Press reports.

“When the ship hit the lock, it suffered a hole in its bow and water started coming in,” Coast Guard spokeswoman Lauren Laughlin told The Huffington Post.

Lock workers lowered the level of the water below the hole, Laughlin went on, so “the ship is still floating but it’s not flooding.”

Rescue workers took 30 injured passengers and crew off the ship, according to Laughlin. Twenty-eight of them were treated for their injuries and returned to the ship. Two people are still being treated for serious injuries.

Marine inspectors and salvage inspectors are currently aboard the ship assessing the damage and working out a salvage plan. Because the ship and the lock are on different levels, passengers can’t just walk off the ship, Laughlin said. They may have to clamber down ladders to escape, or be lifted off by cranes.

Laughlin said the passengers trapped on the ship are probably comfortable where they are. “They have all the amenities, they have food, they have water, they have air conditioning,” she said. “The power is on, they’re just not driving.”

In a statement early Friday morning, the Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation, the U.S. government-owned corporation that manages the lock, said that “the ship is stable and no pollution is reported.” According to the SLSDC, the ship is holding up seven commercial vessels waiting to pass through the lock.

The Saint Laurent is owned by International Shipping Partners, and the crash remains under investigation.

The Associated Press contributed reporting.