“If liberty means anything at all, it means the right
to tell people what they do not want to hear.”

- George Orwell

The Duluth Shipping News has a series of photos of an incident this afternoon where the Dutch ocean-going ship Vlieborg veered into the canal wall while approaching the Aerial Lift Bridge. The Vlieborg was departing Duluth with a load of beets. No injuries have been reported, though there were a number of tourists near the wall when the crash occurred.

For some time now I've enjoyed looking in on the Shipping News site periodically. The editor, Ken Newhams, keeps a running log of the ships in port along with folksy news of what's happening in the vicinity. The best part, however, is his excellent photography. He does an terrific job of capturing and communicating life in and around the harbor in all kinds of weather. The people, the ships, the storms, the tourists are all there and he has extensive archives you can browse. I find his slide shows from the November 2001 and 2003 storms especially fascinating.

Go check out the site, but keep your eyes peeled for runaway beet boats!