Mississippi Question

[mikemenza]

Was looking at an Army Corp Bridge Clearance table and it seems a 60 mast is going nowhere. That about right ?

[Stumble]

Where in Mississippi? The Mississippi River has very high bridges.

[valhalla360]

Depends where but I think the goal is to provide 50' clearance (of river levels go up and down a lot.

[mikemenza]

I was looking at coming south from the confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi..
saw an interesting boat along the "Loop". But seems locked in an area by bridges.

[valhalla360]

Originally Posted by mikemenza

I was looking at coming south from the confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi..
saw an interesting boat along the "Loop". But seems locked in an area by bridges.

Pull the mast, strap it on deck and head down. That's what most loopers do.

[rwidman]

Originally Posted by valhalla360

Pull the mast, strap it on deck and head down. That's what most loopers do.

I don't have a mast and I haven't been on the Mississippi River, but in reading the many books on the Great Loop, it seems like the sailboaters remove the mast at the beginning of the Erie Canal and put it back up at the end. So they have their masts up on the Mississippi River.

Active Captain lists bridge clearances so that would be a good place to go for this information.

[CHAZ]

The lowest bridge on the Mississippi river is 59'6"
by captainjohn.org

I would try to google a little more info but I think it's about right.



Good luck and fair winds
Martin

[valhalla360]

Originally Posted by rwidman

I don't have a mast and I haven't been on the Mississippi River, but in reading the many books on the Great Loop, it seems like the sailboaters remove the mast at the beginning of the Erie Canal and put it back up at the end. So they have their masts up on the Mississippi River.

Active Captain lists bridge clearances so that would be a good place to go for this information.

Most pull the mast at the beginning of the Erie Canal but put it back up when they clear the canal (if they take the Trent-Severn route they may hold off until they get to the bottom of Lake Huron).

Then at Chicago, they pull the mast again and put it back up when they hit Mobile unless they can get under 50' in which case some will put it up when they reach the Tennessee river.

I wouldn't want to run the Great Lakes with the mast strapped to the deck. Especially on a monohull which gains a great deal of stability from the mast resisting rolling.

Mississippi might be higher than 50' but on the other part of the river system, I know 50' is the limiting factor.

[Hoosiersailor]

Interesting. I just went on the Active Captain site starting at St Louis and checked every fixed bridge to the Gulf. All of them were over 100 feet but maybe I missed something.

[J Clark H356]

If you are trying to get to the Florida Gulf coast, it is longer to go down the Mississippi than to take the common route from St. Louis to the Ohio, then to the Tennessee and down the Tenn-Tom waterway. Also, there are more services available on the Tenn-Tom route. I know one guy that went down the Mississippi but it was his dream. He did Ok. He went in a small sailboat with his wife several years ago. http://mikeandsharondunsworth.blogspot.com. He has since transitioned to a Trawler and now is going to an RV after several years living on a boat.

I've been down twice and back up once from Kentucky Lake and the Tenn-Tom route is very nice. Max bridge clearance is 52 feet, so you have to take your mast down to go down the Tenn-Tom. Most have them already down when they reach Lighthouse Landing where we are from at Tennessee River Mile 24, but you could have them do it there. You put it back up in Mobile. Turner Marine at Mobile is excellent and did mine both ways.

Taking the mast down and putting it back up is not near as much of a deal as most would think. You will need to build a cradle, but it's not hard nor expensive. You also have to wire and unwire your electrical connections and if you have mast radar, I would recommend you get an extra cable and do a temporary mount. There is a lot of fog on the waterway in the spring and fall and radar is a must unless you want to limit your day significantly and only travel when there is none. You have to transit a number of locks. From Kentucky Dam south you have 14 including Kentucky. Once you have done the locks a couple of times, it is easy.




Sent from my iPad using Cruisers Sailing Forum

[Jammer]

I was studying up on clearance on the Mississippi and found this thread.


Here are my conclusions regarding clearance.


Cliff Notes Version

Controlling vertical clearance for sailboats is 59' under typical, favorable conditions from St. Paul to the Gulf.



Flooding
Clearances are reduced during spring high water conditions and, occasionally, at other times of year due to weather. Clearances are dramatically reduced when this occurs, and the river is dangerous to navigate due to extreme currents and the presence of hazardous debris. In many cases the locks are closed to navigation under these conditions or are closed to recreational craft.


Comments below regarding clearance apply to typical, non-flooding navigation conditions.



Lower Mississippi
The Lower Mississippi is the reach from the Gulf of Mexico to the confluence with the Ohio River at Cairo. River levels are more variable here than in the upper Mississippi due to the absence of locks and dams.


While the prudent mariner would check river levels and bridge clearance individually at each of the 20 bridges in this reach before navigating, there is over 70' of clearance under typical conditions.


Upper Mississippi from Cairo to Grafton
Between the confluence with the Ohio River at Cairo, and the Illinois River at Grafton, the controlling clearance is at New Clark Highway Bridge at river mile 202.4. ACOE reports the clearance under this bridge as 485.4 feet less the upper gauge reading of the Mel Price lock and dam. Normal pool is 412 feet, which provides a clearance of 73.4'. Pool levels fluctuate more in this area than further upstream. As of today, for example, clearance is around 65'.


Downstream of the New Clark Highway Bridge, there is over 70' of clearance under typical conditions.


Upper Mississippi from Grafton to Hastings
Between the confluence with the Illinois River at Grafton, and the confluence with the St. Croix River in Hastings at mile 811, controlling clearance is 60.0' at normal pool at two bridges. These are the I-80 bridge at river mile 495 in the Quad Cities area, and the Prairie du Chien Bridge at mile 634. Summer gauge levels typically exceed normal pool levels by less than one foot in these area, providing a charted controlling clearance under typical conditions of at least 59.0 feet.



Vessels able to pass under these two bridges using extraordinary means, such as by forcing the vessel to heel over while navigating the bridges, will find there to be multiple obstructions with charted clearance between 61.2' and 65' above normal pool.


Upper Mississippi from Hastings to St. Anthony Falls including other navigable rivers in this area


There are multiple low-clearance bridges in this short reach. Summer river levels are usually within about 1 foot of normal pool.


813.7 Hastings RR drawbridge 60.0' above pool (when open; 23' when down)
838.8 Lafayette St/US-52 59.6' above pool
839.2 Roberts St navionics 59.6' above pool
847.8 Ford Parkway 55.0 above pool but bridge is arched and may have greater clearance at center of arch
851.5 Franklin Ave. 55.0' above pool but bridge is arched and may have greater clearance at center of arch


853.0 Burlington Northern bridge reflects the upper limit for most sailboat navigation at 39.4' above pool
853.7 Stone Arch Bridge, 24.5'above pool.


The upper St. Anthony Falls lock at mile 854 is permanently closed and is the upper limit of navigation.



Controlling clearance on the lower St. Croix River, a locally important area for cruising sailboats, is 61.1' over pool at the I-94 bridge. The Stillwater lift bridge has 57' published clearance; at present the bridge is under maintenance and a span has been removed so traffic of unlimited height can pass.



Controlling clearance on the navigable portion of the Minnesota River is 55.5' over pool.

[Jammer]

Gauge links


St. Louis District Gages
RIVER AND RESERVOIR REPORT
Corps Locks - Lock Status Report


Upper Mississippi gauge reference elevations and pool levels are documented in the last few pages of the USACOE chart book.

[CapnCrunch]

What J Clark said with the following additions:

I have been up the Tenn-Tom route from Mobile twice and have just returned from a Little Rock, AR to Biloxi, MS delivery and would join in his recommendation of the former. Having been both routes, I would recommend dropping your mast as you will have very little chance to actually sail on either route.

Anchorages and marinas are plentiful on the Tenn-tom. Demopolis Yacht Basin is a nice facility located at the confluence of the T-T and the Tombigbee River. Bobby's Fish Camp (Ripoff) on the Tombigbee is the only other marina between Demopolis and Mobile but the river offers many anchorages.

The Lower Mississippi is an awe-inspiring route but, depending on time of year, there is lots of barge traffic and only one actual marina (Greenville, MS) between Cape Girardeau, MO and New Orleans. If you do decide on this route, by all means check water levels first as the "Sippi" can be quite rough during high water. I would also recommend taking the Old River Lock (LMR mm 303) west to the Atchafalaya River, then south to Morgan City, LA (115 mi) then east on the Intracoastal (95 miles) back to the Sippy at Harvey Lock (LMR mm 99) then 7 miles south to the Industrial Canal which leads out to Lake Catherine and the Mississippi Sound. It turns out that the distance on the Atchafalaya route is only about 10 miles longer than the Sippy route from Old Lock to NOLA. The Atchafalaya has the advantages of less current, and fewer/smaller barges. There are, however, no marinas until you get to the Morgan City area but we had no trouble finding safe anchorages for a boat with 4.5' draft. And, by the time you get to Old River, you'll be tired of the Mississippi.

Hope this helps,
Gary