NIAGARA-ON-THE-LAKE - At 26 years old, Niagara-on-the-Lake resident Lawrence Hartwick is one of the youngest navigation officers to have worked the biggest cruise ship in the world. He is now aboard the MS Chi-Cheemaun, the beloved ferry that is celebrating its 50th birthday this year.
This summer, The Local caught up with second officer Hartwick for an in-depth tour of the ferry linking Tobermory to Manitoulin Island, and to learn more about what it means to be a navigational officer.
In the 1970s, demand was high for ferry travel crossing the body of water linking Georgian Bay to Lake Huron, and even the Norisle and the Norgoma, two small ferries making multiple trips a day, could not keep up with the volume.
On Jan. 12, 1974, Collingwood Shipbuilding launched the MS Chi-Cheemaun, a ferry capable of transporting 600 passengers and nearly 150 vehicles with a crossing time of two hours or less. This was more than twice the capacity of the other ferries.
The new vessel was also nearly twice as long and twice as wide as its predecessors, and to accommodate it, new docks and ramps were built in both Tobermory and South Baymouth, on the south shore of Manitoulin Island. They also widened the channel leading into South Baymouth because, in rough seas, navigating the big ship through the narrow channel would have been very challenging.
The Chi-Cheemaun, whose name is Anishinaabemowin for Big Canoe, loads vehicles in one end and out the other, unlike the previous ferries which loaded from the side. Hartwick’s main job is to safely navigate the ship across Lake Huron and to also assist with loading and unloading of vehicles. While on duty, he is always on watch, but “it's usually pretty quiet,” said Hartwick. “Every once in a while we get some traffic in Tobermory.”
The largest passenger ferry on the Great Lakes completes two rounds trips each day during the spring and fall, and an extra on Fridays, and in the summer, three daily round trips. Hartwick works five days on and five days off, and drives home to Niagara-on-the-Lake during his off days.
A graduate of AN Myer, Hartwick attended the Nautical Institute, part of Nova Scotia Community College, for the four-year marine navigation technology program.
Upon graduation he navigated Fundy Rose, a ferry on the often foggy Bay of Fundy which crosses daily between Saint John, New Brunswick and Digby, Nova Scotia. This was a busy job for the second officer because of a high volume of fishing boats. Hartwick recalled a time the Fundy Rose saw a boat from each side crossing in front of the ferry, and two more approaching it. “The CPA (closest point of approach), which is tracked by radar, was pretty much zero for all vessels,” meaning that all boats could meet up at the same point at the same time unless evasive action was taken” (it was).
Next, Hartwick was hired as the second officer on the biggest cruise ship in the world at the time, Royal Caribbean’s Harmony of the Seas. His role was to safely navigate the ship and train the crew of 2,200. “It's just constant training, for 14 weeks on and 14 weeks off.”
He enjoyed the challenges presented on such a large ship, but felt he wanted to be closer to home, so he navigated lake boats for McKeil Marine for awhile, before working on the Maid of the Mist “which was good because you get a lot of manoeuvring due to the current,” he said.
Hartwick loves navigating. “That's the downside about being here” aboard the Chi-Cheemaun. “There's not much navigation. That was probably my favourite part working on other ships is actually getting to alter courses for collision avoidance,” he said.
Unfortunately Hartwick has had to deal with more bad drivers than he thought possible while navigating a ship — and he is talking about the cars and trucks that he ferries across Lake Huron. His stories include one driver who ripped off his entire bumper and then just drove off, without it.
He has had experience with fires onboard, as well. On the Royal Caribbean, “we had a fire in the funnel casing at 3:00 in the morning. I got off watch at 12:30 at night and I woke up from the alarm going off.” As second officer, Hartwick was part of the fire team who suited up to put out the fire.
He has earned all certifications necessary to test for his chief mate’s exam, which he plans to do soon. “I just have to pass navigation safety level 2 and then I have to do an oral exam.”
The chief mate is responsible for the ship’s cargo and deck crew and answers to the captain for the safety and security of the ship, including the crew’s welfare and training in areas such as safety, firefighting and search and rescue. Achieving the position of master, or captain, is also on Hartwick’s agenda.
Ultimately, he would like to put his experience and training to use on a fire boat with Toronto’s Fire Services. “It’s closer to home, and you do more ship handling.” He mentioned that he would like to pilot the department’s ice breaker, which operates in the Toronto Harbour.
But for now he is enjoying the Chi-Cheemaun, which has had several upgrades over the past years including a replacement of twin engines with four smaller engines, a modernized paint job and an interior make-over.
As part of the 50th anniversary, a Sail through Time Exhibit is displayed in the ship for the rest of the year. Towns on both sides celebrated with street dances, parades, and fireworks, and Tobermory held its annual four-day Chi-Cheemaun Festival, which started with a slo-pitch game between coast guard and firefighters.
The ship has made 2,400 voyages, and accommodated 10 million passengers and three million vehicles.
Approximately 35 crew live aboard the ship at all times. Hartwick said the ship crosses in all weather, even after a storm like the one during this visit. The large, hydraulic stabilizers counteract rough wave action often found in Lake Huron. The way the vehicles are loaded into the ship can also lead to a rolling sensation if they are loaded heavier on one side.
The Chi-Cheemaun winters in Owen Sound, but that doesn’t mean Hartwick’s job is over for the season at that point. “We do a little bit of shift-keeping, so I'll have to come here for maybe five or six days and I just stay on the boat by myself,” keeping watch and monitoring a variety of equipment and machinery.
Passengers on the Chi-Cheemaun don’t have to worry about rogue waves, Hartwick said. “However the Fundy Rose sailed all year long, and sometimes we would get massive, massive wave water coming over the bridge, and we would be sloshing and shaking around and pounding on the waves.”
At worst, aboard the 50-year old MS Chi-Cheemaun, “you get the feeling like when you're on a roller coaster,” said Hartwick.