As noted in an earlier post, the USCG has three ice breakers on Lake Superior to help commercial shipping get going for the belated start of the season. On this past Thursday morning, they left the Duluth harbor to lead convoys of ships across the lake. Two of the icebreakers could not make it and were forced back to the Duluth harbor damaged by ice. Meanwhile, a 1000 foot super laker was also damaged and forced back by heavy ice. Reports today are that the ice on the open lake is four to five feet thick and some ice ridges are eight feet thick. That will stop a ship of any size. We have lived here for 25 years and it has never been this bad. David Sorenson Duluth, MN