HASTINGS, Minn. — The Motor Vessel Phillip M. Pfeffer with six barges locked through Dam 2 to mark the unofficial start to the 2023 navigation season all the way from the Upper Mississippi at St. Paul to Gulf ports. The Pfeffer, along with Ingram stablemate Neil N. Diehl, broke through the ice in Lake Pepin this past weekend. The lake is the last major barrier for vessels reaching the head of the navigation channel in St. Paul.
Seasonal triumph. The first tow of 2023 passed under Highway 61 bridge at Hastings en route to the navigational headwaters at St. Paul. Image: Patrick Moes
Lake Pepin as obstacle
Lake Pepin, between Wabasha and Red Wing, is the last part of the Mississippi for ice tobreak up because the river is wider and subsequently the current is slower there than it is in other parts of the river. If a tow can make it through Lake Pepin, it can make it all the way to St. Paul. This year’s first tow was about one week ahead of the average. In the last 30 years, the average opening date of the navigation season has been March 20. The latest arrival date in a non-flood year was April 4, 2008. Historic flooding in 2001 delayed the arrival of the first tow until May 11.