Finally had the worst week of dredging in 8 years

Last Monday the cutterhead jammed up on some old steel cable buried in the silt. Took me 6 hours with a cutting torch to get it free. Then on Wednesday the hydraulic pump started whining and by Friday the whole suction line had a crack dumping slurry into the bilge. Turns out the cable was from a old dock foundation nobody mapped. Has anyone else run into random buried debris that just ruins your whole week?

2 comments

2 Comments

wade_young8615d ago

Pulled up a whole concrete anchor block last spring that some fishing boat must have lost decades ago. Took me two full shifts with a crane barge just to get it clear of the dredge head. Honestly felt like the silt was personally out to get me that week.

craig.reese15d ago

Man that "silt was personally out to get me" line hit home hard. I swear when you're fighting something that heavy and the mud just won't let go, it starts feeling like the whole river bottom is alive and mad at you. Two full shifts with a crane barge sounds brutal, I've been in spots where every inch of progress costs you an hour of grunting and cussing. Makes you wonder how many more of those anchors are out there just waiting to snag someone else's week. Good on you for getting it clear though, that's the kind of win that keeps you coming back.