Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - It's rare that childhood dreams become reality. But for Dave Miller, he's living out the hopes he had as a small child watching freighters on the Great Lakes and in the Welland Canal.
"Ever since I was about five I wanted to be a laker captain, and here I am," said Miller on a recent Friday afternoon in the pilot house of American Mariner as it was docked at General Mills to unload grain that would ultimately be part of the Cheerios in your morning cereal bowl.
Miller is a mild-mannered man and leads a crew of 17 aboard the ship that hauls cargo across the Great Lakes between Duluth and Buffalo. He's been a captain for 17 years on various ships and worked his way up the ranks from 3rd mate, to 2nd, then captain.
There's no hiding the fact that Miller is all Buffalo as the flags for the Buffalo Bills and Sabres fly high above the bow of the ship as it enters port. He bleeds the red, white and blue of the Bills and blue and gold of the Sabres. It's no mistake his quarters, a short flight of stairs from the pilot house, are decorated in the Bills colors. He feels right at home that way.
The pride shows through as Miller navigates the Mariner into and out of Buffalo, often finding himself situated at the ships controls located along the side of the pilot house with the window open.
"I can yell 'Go Bills' to people out the window going in and out of Buffalo. I get 'Go Bills' yelled back."
During the Mariner's most recent stop in Buffalo, the ship entered port quietly in the dark of the night on a Thursday after allowing another ship to leave the Buffalo Ship Canal. But when the ship left port on a Saturday afternoon, there was no hiding its departure as the deafening horn blasted, recreational boats flanked the ship and Miller was in position in the window to interact with onlookers and fuel the occasional Bills shout-out.
"Everybody loves to hear the whistle, it's so loud and I'll yell over to them, yelling on the megaphone, 'Go Bills'!"
Miller and the Mariner come to Buffalo about once a month, with the rest of his stops and travels being far west on Lake Erie and into Lakes Huron, Superior and Michigan.
The shipping season in the Great Lakes is longer than most might imagine, says Miller. "We usually start in mid-March and sail into January." Miller recalls sailing as late as late January at times.
Most might wonder if shipping cargo via freighter is still an effective mode of transportation and Miller quickly notes it's not only effective, but productive and cost-efficient. "It's very economically and environmentally efficient," he says. "We're moving, the amount of grain we're hauling on this, would probably take a couple thousand train cars to get here."
The American Mariner is a giant in the Great Lakes, measuring 730 feet long and 78 feet wide. The ship travels around 14 mph on the open waters of the lakes and can carry over 30-thousand tons of cargo. The cargo is stored in seven holds and accessed through 24 hatches. "Underneath is a conveyor belt that runs the whole length of the ship," notes Miller, who adds is used to unload the cargo from the holds. A 250-foot unloading boom slowly raises into place once the ship is in port, allowing the cargo to be discharged into silos or awaiting unloading areas.
American Mariner is powered by two giant diesel engines in the stern, adding up to seven thousand horsepower and there are bow and stern thrusters at each end of the ship to allow for more agile maneuvering in port.
The Great Lakes are known for kicking-up quickly as winds gust and storms develop, challenging Miller and the crew in safely navigating from port to port.
"The wind affects us. We get pushed by the wind," said Miller as he recalled one voyage into Buffalo he called-off before reaching the harbor as the winds whipped and waves grew. "We turned off the approach buoy out there," said Miller. He recalls doing a time-lapse video that approach that went viral after posting.
"Most times everything goes smoothly, but you have those few that get awfully exciting," said Miller of maneuvering the giant laker into port each time. Miller can reach for the bow and stern thruster controls as he docks the ship and in a rare pinch could utilize the anchors to hold the ship in position. "Sometimes the ship doesn't do exactly what you're expecting it to do and you have to improvise and think of your next move real quick."
As the American Mariner comes to and from port in Buffalo, it's not uncommon to see pleasure boats and kayaks flank her hull and serve as an unofficial welcome committee. Miller loves the enthusiasm but also warns it's a challenge for him to see spots off the bow, stern and immediately alongside the ship. ""Give us room, we got a lot of blind spots."
Miller and the American Mariner are a long way from Buffalo as of this writing, in the middle of Lake Michigan churning northward. The ship will no doubt be back in Buffalo with a load of cargo for General Mills as the shipping season continues.
The Buffalo Bills will be amidst their regular season when next the ship docks in 716 and you'll know she's here when you see those flags flying over the bow that signal where Miller's loyalties lie ,no matter what port American Mariner temporarily makes home.
