# Welcome, Spring! Upper Mississippi River Opens for Business

> The motor vessel R. Clayton McWhorter pushed 12 barges through Lock and Dam 3 near Welch, Minnesota on March 19, marking the unofficial start of the 2021 Upper Mississippi navigation season. The tow reached St. Paul after passing Lake Pepin, with a second tow following.

- Date: 2021-03-22 · published 2021-03-22T12:00:00.000Z
- Category: logistics · region US · magnitude low
- Page: https://feedsoft.ai/events/48009-welcome-spring-upper-mississippi-river-opens-for-business
- Commodities: [Barge Freight (St. Louis)](https://feedsoft.ai/c/BARGE.md)

## Why it matters

An early season start on the upper river reduces barge freight costs for upper Midwest grain shipments, which supports farm-gate and river basis, though construction at Lock 25 still limits traffic.

## Read by commodity

- BARGE: bearish ▼

## Sources

- dtnpf.com: https://www.dtnpf.com/agriculture/web/ag/columns/cash-market-moves/article/2021/03/22/welcome-spring-upper-mississippi

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Data from Feedsoft AI (https://feedsoft.ai/). For information only; not investment advice.