How to go Through a Lock (Mississippi River)
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- Опубликовано: 26 июл 2024
- How to go through a lock
Additional note, Locks are no wake areas
Need a Radio? here is a couple options: (I have an Amazon Associates account which give me a small return on a purchase if you use my links, thanks!)
Marine Radio Cobra: amzn.to/3Zs6KsQ
Marine Radio Uniden: amzn.to/3Zx1Quo
How does a lock work? watch this:
• How Does a Lock Work (...
00:00-Intro
01:03-On approach
01:15-Pull the Cord
01:35-Calling the Lock
02:58-Call on Marine Radio
03:28-Entering the Lock
04:05-Hold the Mooring Lines
04:33-Leaving the Lock
05:13-Having to Wait
05:54-Avoid Commercial Traffic
06:25-Good Behavior in the Locks
07:00-Outro 
Авто/Мото
Many people dont understand how a lock works, here is a video explaining how they function ruclips.net/video/75wu1jlxBhA/видео.html
In the olden days a kayaker would have portaged each time I would not want to be around the barges or tugs in a kayak. Good that you are educating people with your experience.
after hundreds of miles paddled, portaging 12 dams on the upper Mississippi and the upper and lower st. anthony locks in minneapolis its nice to be able to stay in a boat for once. plus its a neat experience
@@escapewithjay The first time I ever saw a lock-through was while motor-traveling and I just stopped to look at the locks. A regular open fiberglass fishing boat, no more that 20' locked through as I observed. It looked like great fun until they dropped those folks down to the lower level. At that point there wasn't much sky showing to the fishing boat, it was deep inside those walls. And then the gates open and all is good again.
I'm a radio guy. I'll have a marine radio if I plan a trip through locks, but I'm not on that sort of water much. Thanks for the vid.
@@wadepatton2433 The structures can be a bit much to be around. There is current, concrete, gates, doors other boats and tows with many barges. Like anything you get used to going through them but in the beginning it can be quite an experience the first time
this was tremendously informative. Planning a trip from Dubuque to St Louis this summer and the locks have always been my biggest question. Thank you for the vid!
Great! I hope you enjoy it! will you be in a kayak/canoe?
@@escapewithjay me and my brother are in the planning stages right now. Trying to figure out whether or not to buy, or rent from his university. If we buy it'll be kayaks, but if it's rental it'll likely be whatever is available from the university.
@@StephenSpring1 Sure, If you have not seen them i have an entire series where i paddled the entire river. may help to answer any other questions you might have. also have you ever heard of the mississippi river paddlers group on facebook? great people who answer tons of questions people have on paddling the big river. have fun and id love to hear how it goes!!
Awesome! We have a lock on a local lake here and I always wondered how to properly use it and wondered what it's like in a kayak. Watching your videos I've got a first hand look at it, thanks!
yeah there is not much to them and its a cool thing to experience!
Reading Minn of the Mississippi with my kiddos and this helped us better visualize what goes on there. Thanks so much!!
Absolutely! Im glad i could help!
I'm planning a trip from the illinois river to the mississippi river, and honestly the biggest thing I've been worried about has been the locks since I know they exist but I've never done one before. This video helped to put me a bit at ease, thank you for the information!
You are welcome! if there is any thing specific you want to know about I have a pair of friends who just completed the Illinois river just days ago. Id be happy to reach out to them. Happy paddling!
I grew up in Alton and navigated the river many times. The locks are a breeze and should be recorded on your craft as to which ones you’ve passed. Have fun and be safe!
@@michaelleroi9077 I hear lock 26 is having some repairs done do to a crack? Yeah the locks were very easy to use and most of the operators were great to talk to
When I started working on the river,a lot of locks on the Upper Mississippi & Ohio still had fixed pins so as you went up or down,you had to move the line repeatedly.
Those floating pins are the cat's @**.
Remember that if you cannot see the wheelhouse windows, the towboat Captain & pilot cannot see you.
Make sure to talk to the deck crew & they will point out that"Cap,we got a kayak on the port head' so they'd know that you are there.
Good advice, I always tell people unless you make verbal contact with the tow treat the situation as if they have no idea you are there
@@escapewithjay There's people who expect the towboat to see them even if they're right by the barges & can barely see the wheelhouse themselves.
Nice fish jump catch @0:30 Thanks for sharing.
Thank you for sharing your experience with us. Very informative and interesting! Happy paddling brother.
You bet! Thanks for watching
Strong work! I grew up on the river at lock 19, learned to fish, ski, canoe there. Your narrative style is on point. I have been watching and rewatching all your videos. I am gearing up for a trip this august. Many more paddles!
Thank you Jerry, lock 19 truly is awesome! everything about that structure is unique compared to the others. i really looked forward to that one! Look forward to following your progress! Have fun planning!
Does one of the floating timberheads still stick in the lower position going upstream?
Awesome
Thanks for the upload! I'm planning on soloing the Mississippi in 2021. Your channel is the first I've found to explain in great detail what to expect as you go down.
You are welcome! I hope i dont give too much away!!!
have fun planning!
@@escapewithjay I've watched a few channels do their documentary of it and it looks like a blast. Spoilers of the trip won't hurt my feelings any this is a monster river and I need to be as prepared as possible.
Keep the uploads coming.
@@WooglesOutdoors yeah i get it, i couldnt get enough before i went! let me know if there is anything specific you are wondering or if you have any questions!
Another well done video. You are "DA MAN".
Thanks Hamma!
Great video again! Great work as always!
thank you my friend!
That's awesome, I didn't know , now it added to my kayak to do list!
Well if you truly start planning a trip down the Mississippi feel free to reach out with questions!
Great info
Very cool video and informative.
Thanks Rich! It was a pretty awesome trip down the river and the locks are pretty neat to be around!
Great info. Got my sub
Thanks J Blue!!
Even tho my 10’ raft is really stable, still looks scary af. Walking around seams like a 1000 foot plus detour in most places and not feasible.😳🍻
There was a gal that became the first woman to paddle board the Mississippi. They said she was not allowed to use any of the locks on a paddle board and had to portage them all. it is possible but it would be a real pain. I am happy to answer any questions you may have about the locks, maybe help elevate your fear a bit.
Great information!
Thanks!
Thanks brother very informative
You bet, thanks!
Cool video dude, thanks !
@@user-ei1bl5jx1o you are welcome, thank you!
I love this one!
thanks man
One thing to consider, at least here in Germany, is that most river locks are pretty relaxed about letting you pass in a single kayak, but no canal lock will ever do that. The reason is the abundance of water used for the lock to operate, which is not present in canals, so either you have to get permission to pass with commercial traffic, or have to portage the lock.
Seems like a very, very intimidating sight, that kayak on that massive river, even I didn´t feel so lost on my trip on the East Sea alone by kayak.
that is interesting about the canals and the nice thing about the locks on the rivers. plenty of water to use!
They still prefer to conserve the water that they do have by locking through as many small craft as possible & make sure that the lockages alternate directions.
Cool video! Didn't know you could do this. Just subscribed!
Thanks! i didnt know either just a few years ago, great trip and what an experience! there is an entire series from beginning to end on my channel if you are interested! thanks for the support!
@@escapewithjay I'll be watching.
Good info good video. Thanks cuz
thanks man! now you have all the info YOU need to go!
so cool
I have been extremely curious about this. Honestly until my trip last year I didn't really know that you could pass through a dam like that.
o yeah you can go through. Upper and lower st. anthony locks are closed and lock 1 is on limited operating hours. All the rest are still fully operational and ready for use!
@@escapewithjay so with the closed ones do you need to portage around them then?
Thanks.
you are welcome
Awesome video, man! You got my sub. I dreamed about doing this as a kid. Looking forward to watching the entire Mississippi journey!
Thanks! In addition to the Mississippi i just kayaked the Atchafalaya river this year which is the other way people take to the gulf. Are you at all planning on doing the Mississippi? I am happy to answer any questions you may have
@@escapewithjay I’ll check it out! I used to live in Arkansas near the Mississippi, but now I live overseas… Not sure if or when I’d be able to, but would definitely be a fun adventure! Thanks! I also see that you respond to every comment and reply, that’s great interaction with your viewers. Hope your channel keeps growing! Enjoy your travels and stay safe!
@@ago5022 I enjoy the comments and will respond to people as long as I can keep up. Where did you move to overseas? Pretty cool
@@escapewithjay I’m currently in China, but looking to transition to the Philippines within the next few months
@@ago5022 wow
would love to ask ya a bunch of questions about life there... but maybe after you leave! :^)
Sometimes a whirlpool forms above the upper gate when filling the lock.
At Lock # 19, it's on the left wall, if heading down river.
They used to have a bent up aluminum boat there. Supposedly got caught in the whirlpool.
I heard there were several large whirlpool spots on the river apparently a big on near cape Gerardo. Luckly i never had any issues with them, i stayed plenty clear of the ones i did see!
I never have kayaked Pittsburgh but I know it’s common to have to go through if you want to kayak more than a single pool
Yeah lots of dams out there. Unfortunately if you do rivers you may have to deal with them
@@escapewithjay I do lots of kayaking in the middle to upper Allegheny river watershed and tributaries really scenic and peaceful stretches of water. Lived in the Pittsburgh area for 7 years now haven’t brought the kayak down yet.
Your information is excellent THANKS
(Do you take people on their own canoes to learn in practice?)
Hey Carlos!
I have not taken people out to practice. I do talk with many folks planning trips down the river and answer their questions. People I know and am close to I have taken out for their first time "water camping" trips.
I have locked through at St. Anthony upper(before they permanently closed it) and lower lock and locks #1,2 and three in a canoe. The Army Corps have always been friendly and courteous. Don’t let the lock be intimidating, it is kind of fun to ride them.
Just be aware these upper lock have limited hours of operation.
ive been working with the chief of locks in the st.paul district to try to establish a portage for lock 1. its been a tough portage for people this year
@@escapewithjay
Yes, I know the trail above the lock very well, I live very close and canoe pool #1 often, just an up the river and back no lockage needed. It is a pretty slippery and steep trail after rain, so I bought a pair of football cleats, much more sure footed now. To portage around lock #1 It is a long walk down to the end of Minnehaha Creek too. It would be great if they could arrange a shorter more direct portage, but where would they put it?
For the time being I limit my adventures involving lock #1 to the weekends.
@@mplsmark222 i used to fish and climb around down by the creek/river so i have some fairly decent knowledge of the area from the falls down to the miss.
are you on the mississippi river paddlers group on face book by chance?
for the placement of a portage the ultimate goal would be having one right at the lock. the ACE has plenty of money to build one just need to convince them too
@@escapewithjay
Wow, that would be great it they would get it done. Looking at google maps of lock, there is not much room between the lock structure and the bluff wall. What is there is all in a security area. I doubt the Army Corps likes the idea of having people access their property, vandals, thieves ect.
With all the big plans for the Park Service down at Watergate Marina, perhaps a portage at #1 would be part of that project. Unfortunately that could be years from completion.
I’ll look into that Facebook group, although I like that company less and less all the time.
@@mplsmark222 i hear ya on the facebook thing. the group is just a dedicated group of people that help others paddle the river, many source to sea paddlers. your knowledge of the area there could be a big help.
yeah ACE kind of crapped the bed with the reduced hours of lock 1 as they are supposed to either operate the lock or have a portage. we have the right to travel the river and the unique location of lock 1 makes it very hard to portage with fully loaded boats. they are also looking at possible running the lock remotely just to get people through but i cautioned against that as if something went wrong no one would be onsite to help.
hopefully they figure out something
“Alexa, turn on Lock 9 please”
Ha! not there yet
Beware ! A lock is an enclosed area. A tow boat with several thousand horse power engines pushing barges generates a LOT of current in the enclosed area. Try to adequately moor your vessel to at least one point, with someone minding each point. The best way to lock with large vessels is to ask permission to tie on their quarter, under the spring line. If you ask, they don't mind, and it is WAY safer and less scarey. It saves a lot of vessel damage too. Also beware that waiting half a day is common with some lockmasters. Sometimes, I think they are trying to save water, but, mostly, they are being lazy. Bridge tenders aren't nearly as much trouble.... based on experience, although, I just thought of an exception.
It’s more fun to wait until the gates are almost closed and try to dart through them.
Ha, better make sure you timing is on point!
Thank you! Do you know if it's possible to pedal kayak upstream in the Mississippi ?
To be honest I am really not sure. I have never used a peddle kayak. I would say, this would be the time to try with how low the river levels currently are
maybe bring a paddle along as well just in case you cant make it on peddles alone?
I'm planning to do a week on the Ohio River. Can't find any info on that trip so I'm asking you how many miles do you do a day? Is 30 possible? On the Muskingum we do between 25-30 miles a day in canoes. That still runs the oldest hand power locks in the us. I will be running my Seaward Luna kayak on this trip.
Here is a link to a guy that did the ohio in 2019, kayaked to raise awareness for mental illness his name is joseph. nice guy will likely answer your questions, tell him escape with jay sent ya facebook.com/goingthedistance2019
I cant speak to miles on the ohio but here is a link to my video of daily miles on the mississippi, might be helpful? ruclips.net/video/jnaGlh_PnlQ/видео.html
just a guess i would assume you can get in 30 a day
Hi very informative video. Do you feel it’s safer to use the locks rather than avoid them?
If you are traveling with a bunch of gear going through the lock is much easier than portaging them as a lot of the shorelines are rock-lined what you would make it really difficult to get all your stuff up and out of the river. I never had any issues going through the locks sometimes wind can be whipping up the water on the Downriver side so if it's really windy just be ready for that. And make sure you avoid the barges and Tow boats. Communicate with the lock operators they will tell you if you ask if there are any vessels coming through. Let me know if you have more questions thanks
escape with jay that makes total sense. Thanks for replying.
Do you have to notify them when you're clear of the Lock?
Also did you ever just get out and portage around instead of waiting?
i never notified them of a departure but often thanked them for the lock through.
they do stand near the gates being opened so i assume they watched me leaving.
no waiting was eaiser than portaging the locks as they often have a rocky shoreline and emptying the kayak takes a lot of time and effort. after portaging the 12 dams on the upper river i was more than ready to sit and rest for a bit
Will this work on the Arkansas River locks as well?
I would guess it does but i am not certain... sorry
Which channel would you use to hail the lock? 16?
should be ch 14, most of the lock on the Mississippi are accept a couple
What radio do you use for that?
i used this one.. www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00AU5XROG/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1
uniden MHS126 VHF marine raido. I would buy one that charges on a usb if you are going to get one...
What frequency do you call the locks on?
On the Mississippi most are on 14. Not sure on other rivers
It's listed in cruising guides or if you have a VHF, you can ask on ch 13
How do get this kind of radio and keep charged
i got this one from amazon it runs on AAA batts. there are some that charge off of a usb which is what i wish i had bought
its 2021 man...they make solar chargers for phones, headphones, etc. anything with a USB
Locks a dams terrify me.
they are not without an element of risk but i never felt like i was in danger while in them
@@escapewithjay I've never even been close to one in person. However, I do look at pictures of them and just seeing them on the internet freaks me out. I don't even know why lol
Me too. I have a recurring nightmare about getting stuck against them.
They got to do all that work for tiny boats
😂 push 5 buttons, hand the paddler a rope and wish them a safe journey...? the operators are tough, they can handle it with ease
@@escapewithjaydo the gate have to open all the way? Wouldn’t that be a big rush of water on you? I got to study locks more.
@@standback5806 Thats a good question! Short answer is no you are not rushed with water and no, they dont have to open the gates all the way. Check out this video, not exciting but I made it to explain lock operation. Hope it helps! ruclips.net/video/75wu1jlxBhA/видео.html
@@escapewithjay I just watched the video you had for us as to how locks work. Thank you.
One more question. How in the world could an upper gate hold back water because it is not perfectly sealed? Thank you.
@@standback5806 the angle of the miter gates, pointing up river, as they close the water pressure pushes the gates together creating a really good seal between the 2
You couldn’t pay me to go through a lock that is just to scary I have been near them I have seen big ships go through them and that water coming in or emptying is enough for me to never be in that canal
Ha i get it! the nice thing is going down river I never had to deal with the big swirling currents as they were always down river of where I was. When the chamber fills there are boils but when it empties they are on the outside of the gates
Good info. What’s your email?
@@escapewithjay got it
I worked pointing the floor of the motor rooms floor with apoxi the sell candy an snacks too the men on the boats an I thought it
was free an ate
It all an got ntrouboe
are you referring to the resupply boats that catch up to the tows while they are on the river? I seen a few of them out there
Seems like a waste of resources and man power to have a kayaker go thru a lock.
please elaborate
Operators are standing by--why not give them something to do. And by all means--feel free to jump out and portage yourself around the structure for the sake of efficiency. I'm sure it's faster in most cases and will amuse the lock personnel.
so cool
Thanks Autumn!