The Motor Vessel Joseph Patrick Eckstein, pushing 12 barges en route to St. Paul, locked through Lock and Dam 2 in Hastings on March 17.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers considers the first tow to arrive at Lock and Dam 2 as the unofficial start of the Mississippi River navigation season because it means all of the locks are accessible to commercial and recreational vessels.
The earliest date for an up-bound tow to reach Lock and Dam 2 was March 4 in 1983, 1984 and 2000. The average start date of the navigation season is March 22, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
The first tow in 2023 arrived on March 12, when Motor Vessel Phillip M Pfeffer with six barges passed through Lock and Dam 2. The last tow of 2023 happened on Dec. 5, when the Motor Vessel Thomas Erickson departed Lock and Dam 10 near Guttenberg, Iowa, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
This past winter, four locks and dams were closed for maintenance, including locks 2, 3, 4 and 7, and that work was completed March 16, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
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