Take the 50 Minute Trip Through the Soo Locks in Under 90 Seconds
The Soo Locks are key to Great Lakes shipping- navigate the 21' rise from Lake Huron to Lake Superior in this time-lapse video
Each Winter as ice restricts travel on the Great Lakes without a coast guard escort, the Soo Locks close for maintenance. Michiganders know Spring is coming when the waterway is again open for business, enabling freighters, barges, tugboats and vessels of any size to travel between Lake Huron and Lake Superior.
The 21 foot difference in the water levels of the two bodies of water is equalized gradually, as you will see in this time-lapse video. Watch as the boat motors down the narrow channel and pauses while the water level rises. This is the last section of the locks as the TS State of Michigan then sails on under the International Bridge and the down the St. Mary's River.
The Soo Locks are scheduled to open for shipping traffic on March 25.