Meridian Hit Chevron -

[skolbe]

This is a Meridian that hit a Chevron on a tough and challenging part of the Mississippi River:

http://fox2now.com/2014/05/14/boat-in-distress-on-the-mississippi-river/

The marina that does most of my work posted pictures of it as well:

https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=10154146505540521&id=265159685520

Hate seeing those types of accidents.

 

[Stray Cat]

In all my years on the river I've never heard it called a Chevron before. Glad no one was hurt, that must've made a sickening sound when they hit the wing dam.

 

[Gofirstclass]

Are the locations of those Chevrons marked on the charts?

If so, that's a stupid kind of accident that is easily avoidable.

 

[skolbe]

The charts are fairly up to date, my chart plotter shows all but the most recent. This is a spot on the river that is not really good for recreational traffic. They were coming from South Florida to St. Louis and were probably 10 to 15 miles from being home.

 

[Gofirstclass]

skolbe, do those Chevrons extend out into the marked channel? If so, are they marked with any type of nav aid showing their location? Also, why is that a spot on the river that is not really good for recreational traffic.

I feel like there's a huge part of this story that I'm missing. Can ya help out an old western river boater?

 

[Boat Guy]

“A recreational vessel got stuck on a chevron. A chevron is a compilation of rocks that are placed under the river strategically to influence the water flow. The river is higher than normal so most people would not know that it was there if they didn`t do their research prior to departure."

Wait, what? You placed rocks in the middle of the river and there are no markers? Wow....

 

[kaz911]

Any boater should have maps of the area they try to navigate! No excuse here.. But I do agree they should be lit up... But MAPS comes first. Lights fail...

The chevrons are on Navionics Maps - and they are even visible on Google Satellite maps.

 

[Woody]

In all my years on the river I've never heard it called a Chevron before. Glad no one was hurt, that must've made a sickening sound when they hit the wing dam.

The 'chevrons' have that shape roughly, v or u pointed up stream. They have the same basic purpose but they're not the same shape as the wingdams.

 

[Capt. Rusty Higgins]

Chevrons...or slang, wind dikes are there to keep the majority of the water flowing down the middle of the river, which helps keep that part of the river deeper.....been there, boated there and when I passed one, I too said, wtf is that. But I was also looking at my charts and knew what it was and were it was........Capt. R

 

[Gofirstclass]

Now that I look at them on Google Earth I see they're visible, well above the water level (except maybe at a very high water level) and I would expect they'd be marked on the charts.

IMO there's no reason why a person should boat in that area without having up to date charts on board. I've boated here on the Columbia for 37 years and NEVER, EVER leave the dock without turning on the GPS/plotter. A plotter display is a good reminder of where things are and what part of the river to be on and what part to avoid.

 

[kilroy]

On the upper Mississippi they're called wing dams. There are thousands along the entire river. They're displayed on GPS/plotters but they aren't marked in the channel, and they're usually not visible unless the water is really low. They were built back in the late 1800s to maintain a level of about 4.5 feet with minimal dredging. In the mid-30s the Army Corp of Engineers built a series of locks and dams to maintain a 9-foot depth in the main channel, but the wing dams were never removed.

 

[Paul_H]

Very glad no one was hurt. I happend upon this accident by car as I passed over the bridge mentioned. The water was moving very fast as it usually does in this area. Not a good area for recreational boaters unless you're 1000% aware and on top of your game.

 

[rondds]

Never heard of chevrons or dams. These U-shaped things? Trying to find them on Active Captain but cant get a chart of the area (?)

 

[Woody]

I have Army Corps of Engineers navigation charts for the upper Mississippi. They don't show the chevrons but my charts are old from 2001. They do indicate the main channel/sailing line...if you hit the chevrons you weren't following it.

 

[MonacoMike]

They are on my Navioinics charts...

MM