What's the barge deal?

I've spent a lot of time checking and reading about others who have made a trip similar to our plans and many of these travelers seemed to have become fixated on the barge tows that use the river to transport bulk goods. I've become a little impatient with what I've read and the excessive quantity of tow boat photos I've seen. I honestly don't understand who would take all these pictures and I'm confused by the almost fearful obsession over their size. Yes, they are big but so what? I'm not going to waste my time taking pics of these tows unless I see something out of the ordinary. They'd have to be sinking, exploding, crashing, burning or something along those lines to cause me to grab my camera. They're just not that photo-worthy, unusual, or scary. On the other hand I'll be the first to admit I like the scene of a big chunk of machinery nearly as much as I like to watch a nice sunset.  But that to me is all there is to it. They're just a big machine that floats.

My First, Last, and Only Picture of a Barge Tow.
And I didn't even take it.

OK, I'm being a bit of a knot head here. On the matter of me accusing others of being fearful, I'll admit that I too shrink a few sizes when I'm in the presence of the tow's massiveness. On the other hand, I've passed dozens of them in my life and have never felt nervous about it. I don't recall ever being blasted with a horn, seeing a fist or finger signal presented through the pilots window, or hearing an angry voice on the radio. Maneuvering around them just doesn't seem like it should be that difficult a skill to develop.  About the only thing I'd really fear is loosing power in the proximity of a barge and getting in its path. One should continually run the scenario of  power loss through their head when near a tow and imagine your path out of danger if it should happen. The rules they teach you when driving your car, to maintain a safe distance, apply here too. This can't be over stressed as distance equals time if something unexpected happens. Other than this simple rule I have, as the pilot of my boat, the ability to maneuver in whatever manner needed to maintain a margin of safety. I am after all in the small, speedy boat and have a lot of flexibility so long as I use it correctly, and the way I'd do that is to always move swiftly out of their way.  I'd leave at least a mile before steering across the path ahead of a moving tow as I consider this to be the most dangerous area. Watch the wind, the current, and the river curves and don't get caught between a tow and the shoreline in the direction the wind, the current, or their own momentum would carry them in case they lose control.  Switch this same rule around in the event I lose power and stay positioned where the same wind, current, etc... won't carry me closer to danger. I can watch the little wind socks, streamers, or flags most of the tows have somewhere along their length to help judge the wind direction. If they aren't furling through the wind straight in line with the direction of the tow's travel then I know the wind is working to push them sideways. These indicators are useful in that I don't have to think very hard to a get quick intuitive reading on how the wind is pushing the tow. And in the case where everything goes wrong my strategy of desperation is to simply turn 90 degrees and head straight for the shore. I would pile the boat onto the rocks, brush, or sand if meant getting clear of an entanglement with a tow. (Now that's one of the advantages of being the carefree owner of a small, cheap boat.)  I should add that I've never come even close to a, "ditch maneuver",  as I've described nor would I like to.

This is what the tow captain sees.
His job is to move the goods without running aground and hitting obstructions.
He cannot maneuver around small boats!

View Larger Map

Here's an Interesting aerial photo of two recreational boats passing near a full size, (1 tow - 15 barge - 1200ft), Upper Mississippi tow. The tow is cranking hard to the starboard to round the bend and one of the small boats is right alongside. If you could play this as a movie in you mind I'd guess in less than a minute the tow will have moved sideways enough to be right where that small boats is now. The tow is not going straight ahead but pivoting her tail-end toward the smaller boat. The prop wash being thrust slightly off center is evidence of the turning motion. The second boat in front better keep going too to put more distance between herself and the big boat  Does everything turn out OK in this scene?  Probably, so long as everybody stays their course and the small boats remain under power.  But if something goes wrong here there isn't much margin for safety.


View Larger Map

Another interesting aerial photo shows the churned up river-bottom behind this tow. This is a  demonstration of raw power.  I suppose that tail of mud is more than a mile in length.  In many places the big boat's propeller turns nearly in contact with the river bottom.

And one last and often overlooked detail, realize that a barge need not be in motion to be a hazard.  Those tied up along the river bank with a 2-3 MPH current running under them are just as big a danger. Whether the boat is moving through the water or the water is moving past the boat it's all the same. Become stalled and drift up against them on the upstream side and they'll pull you right under. Pretty much the same affect as if the barge was moving except you'll miss out being ground up by a propeller.



This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

Photo #1 and #2 Barge