"Tote that barge. Lift that bail."
Old Man River –Showboat
Safety in navigating, while sharing waterways and rivers with barge traffic, should always be top of mind for boaters. Recreational boaters must take every precaution to keep their distance from barges, considering their size and maneuverability. Skippers should acquaint themselves with geographical knowledge of barge waterways, and the boating navigational "rules of the road" of such.
The United States inland waterways provide a valuable inter-model system with their ability to convey large volumes of bulk commodities moving long distances efficiently. The inland waterways of the US include more than 25,000 mi (40,000 km) of navigable waters. The Mississippi River and its tributaries and the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway carry the most substantial volume of barge traffic in the states.
The Gulf Intercoastal Waterway is the Intracoastal Waterway portion located along the Gulf Coast of the United States. It is a navigable inland waterway running approximately 1,050 mi (1,690 km) from Carrabelle, Florida, to Brownsville, Texas.
Barges are well suited for the movement of large quantities of bulk commodities and raw materials at relatively low cost. The inland and Intracoastal waterway system handle about 630 million tons of cargo annually or about 17 percent of all intercity freight by volume.
The cargo carried by barges is primarily raw materials or primary manufactured products that are typically stored for further processing or consumption, or shipped to overseas markets.
Towboats push barges lashed together to form a "tow". A tow may consist of 4 to 6 barges on smaller waterways more than 40 barges on the Mississippi River below its confluence with the Ohio River. A 15-barge tow is typical on the larger rivers with locks, such as the Ohio, Upper Mississippi, Illinois, and Tennessee rivers. Such tows are an extremely efficient mode of transportation, moving about 22,500 tons of cargo as a single unit. A single 15-barge tow is equivalent to about 225 railroad cars or 870 tractor-trailer trucks. If the cargo transported on the inland waterways each year had to be moved by another mode, it would take an additional 6.3 million rail cars or 25.2 million trucks to carry the load.
In simple terms, a barge is a shoal-draft flat-bottomed boat, built mainly for river and canal transport of bulk goods. Today, barges may be self-propelled, usually with a slow-revving diesel engine and a large-diameter fixed-pitch propeller.
Throughout history, barges have played a significant role in transporting goods throughout the country's waterways. In the 1800s, mules were used to tow barges through the Erie Canal, the first fast and cheap route through the Appalachian Mountains.
Safety Tips for Recreational Boaters*:
• Do not anchor in a channel and never tie off a navigation buoy.
• Blind spots can extend for several hundred feet in front of and to the sides of a barge.
• Stay out of turbulent waters behind the towboat created by the propellers.
• When you cross the main channel of the river, always proceed in high visibility areas.
• Take extra caution when boating at night. The navigation lights on the front and rear of a barge can be as far apart as a quarter-mile.
• Know the danger signal: five or more short whistle blasts indicate that you are in immediate danger.
• Avoid excessive speed.
• Always wear a personal flotation device.
• Use your VHF radio to hail the barge or tow captain if necessary.
• Use your Navigation system to monitor all barge traffic in your area.
Be safe. Stay alert. Enjoy your day on the water.
Fair Winds. Smooth Sailing
*Tennessee Valley Authority
To obtain more information about products, please contact CLR Marine https://www.clrmarine.com/.
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Award-winning author Cheryl Kuba has been at the helm for more than 30 years sailing the Great Lakes, with side trips to the British Virgin Islands and St. Maarten. She has served as past- Commodore of Great Lakes Fleet 21 -Chicago region. 3happycampers.com
©Copyright Cheryl Kuba, 3happycampers.com
