The Soo Locks

For our last stop in Michigan, we headed up to Sault Ste. Marie to see the Soo Locks. These locks are located on the US Canadian border in the St. Mary’s River and connect Lake Superior with Lake Huron. A few interesting facts about the locks

• The Soo Locks are 100% gravity-fed and require no pumps.
• To lift or lower a boat, the Poe Lock (the larger one) requires an astonishing 22 million gallons of water.
• It would take 584 train cars to move 70,000 tons of cargo or one 1,000 foot freighter
• The Paul R. Tregurtha is the largest freighter that uses the Poe Lock. It measures in at 1,013.5” in length and 105” wide.

When planning a trip to the Soo, there are several tools you can use to ensure you see ships in the locks during your visit. First, there is a phone number to call with a recorded message. The message will give you the names and the approximate time that ships will be in the locks. The second (and much cooler) way is to check out the web site https://www.marinetraffic.com . Here you can zoom in to the area of the locks and see the approaching ships.

Using this real-time information and estimated time of travel from the maps below, you can plan your trip to the locks.

Here are pictures of the ships we saw in the locks. The smaller boats are tour boats that take you through the locks.

After a fantastic time in Michigan, it was time to head across the UP in to Wisconsin. We enjoyed a beautiful ride with Lake Michigan on our left side for most of the journey. Checkout the video and pictures below.

There are so many places to go and things to do in Michigan. We saw quite a few, but there is so much more to explore. Looks like a return trip to is in order!