Wednesday, December 10, 2014

Crounse Week, Day 5: A cold day at Catlettsburg

On Dec. 11, 2011, Adam and I went down to Catlettsburg, Ky., to see what we could see. If you like watching river traffic, Catlettsburg is one of the best places in our area to do that because of all the activity there. Coal docks and an oil refinery on the Big Sandy River feed a lot of long-distance Ohio River traffic, and there are some boat repair places in the area.

This particular evening was cold. We got there after the sun had set behind the hill in Catlettsburg, but across the river, South Point, Ohio, was still bathed in evening light. As we were there, the Sandy Drake came by to pick up some empty barges. We used the occasion to get some pictures of boat workers doing what they're paid to do.

Here are some photos from that evening, offered without comment except to say they give an idea of the scale of things on the river.








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After I put this post together, I thought about one other picture that I got this summer. I don't remember which boat was pushing these barges through the Robert C. Byrd locks on Aug. 31, but those are Crounse barges.


In keeping with this past Sunday's entry, you might be able to make out the markings on the barge closest to the camera. It looks like the barge was drawing 11'2" or 11'3".

UPDATE: One reader has noted these are Crounse barges, but there may be a different boat pushing them, based on the flag there on the middle barge. I can't say one way or the other because I photographed the barges and not the boat. Here is a closeup of the flag, which appears to say "National Marine:.



My bad, and my apologies. And my thanks to the reader for pointing this else. Maybe I can save face by saying not only are Crounse boats everywhere, but their barges are, too.