Tag Archive: barge

Columbia River Gorge Barge – Oregon

Columbia River Gorge Barge - Oregon

The Columbia River is an important transportation route in the Pacific Northwest of the United States, and barges are one of the primary modes of transportation on the river. Barges on the Columbia River carry a variety of goods, including agricultural products, timber, petroleum, and other bulk commodities.

The Columbia River barge system is part of the larger inland waterways transportation system of the United States, which includes more than 25,000 miles of navigable waterways and over 240 locks and dams. The barges used on the Columbia River are typically flat-bottomed and can be up to 300 feet long and 54 feet wide.

The Columbia-Snake River System, which includes the Columbia River and its major tributary, the Snake River, has four main lock and dam structures that help to maintain navigability for barges and other vessels. These locks allow barges to move up and down the river, as well as through the various reservoirs created by the dams.

Coal Barge at Sunset – Ohio River – Louisville, Kentucky

Coal Barge at Sunset - Ohio River - Louisville, Kentucky

A coal barge navigates the Fourteenth Street Bridge Drawbridge, and McAlpine Lock and Dam at the Falls of the Ohio on the Ohio River at sunset, between Louisville, Kentucky and Clarksville, Indiana. 

Gravel Barge – Ohio River – Louisville, Kentucky

Gravel Barge - Ohio River - Louisville, Kentucky

A gravel barge is seen in late evening traveling up the Ohio River along the waterfront of downtown Louisville, Kentucky.  Across the way are Clarksville and Jeffersonville, Indiana. Barges carrying gravel, stone aggregate, coal, and other commodities are a common sight along the river at nearly all times of the day and night. In many places such as Louisville, and Cincinnati they have to navigate not only multiple bridges where interstate highways cross, but also dam locks. In fact just before this picture was taken the barge shown passed through the McAlpine Lock and Dam system at the Falls of the Ohio.