Barges Give Signs Of Spring

Before our region was pounded by a snowstorm this week, most of the ice had melted on the Mississippi in this area. The mild weather of early March has allowed the shipping season on the upper Mississippi to start three weeks ahead of last year’s pace. Lock and Dam 2 at Hastings welcomed its first barge of the season this morning. The 2014 shipping season lasted until late November, and was slowed down by low river levels during the summer.