The Canadian Coast Guard icebreaker Louis St. Laurent, the largest icebreaker in the fleet, is on its way to Cape Breton from Quebec to help a passenger ferry get into Sydney's ice-packed harbour.

Rosanna Magliaro, a Chatham, Ont., resident travelling on the Caribou, took this picture of the ice as the ferry waits for an icebreaker to help it get into Sydney harbour.
(Rosanna Magliaro)

The St. Laurent, classed a heavy Arctic icebreaker, is now expected to reach the the M.V. Caribou on Thursday morning, Mike Bonin, of the Canadian Coast Guard, said Wednesday afternoon.

Originally, it was hoped the St. Laurent would arrive on the scene by 7 p.m. Wednesday.

The Caribou, with more than 170 passengers on board, has been unable to dock in North Sydney since it arrived around noon Tuesday because the harbour's entrance is blocked by a thick sheet of ice.

The ferry is waiting just beyond the ice jam in Sydney harbour.

"What's occurring in Sydney harbour is that we have a significant amount of ice and it's packed very tight, combined with sustained high winds. The direction of the winds is really pushing the ice and compacting it, making it very difficult for any movement at all," Tara Laing, a spokeswoman for Marine Atlantic said.

The Canadian Coast Guard icebreaker Louis St. Laurent is expected to arrive around 7 p.m. AT on Wednesday to help a passenger ferry get into Sydney harbour.
(Canadian Coast Guard)

"Because of the sustained high winds and the direction, the ice that would have been, for instance, 30 miles (48 kilometres), is now compacted into 10 miles (16 kilometres)," she said.

"So you've got all these small pieces of ice that is much, much thicker now. And they're all small sections. So until the wind changes direction, in particular, moving through that ice is very difficult, if not near impossible."

Rosanna Magliaro, a passenger onboard the Caribou, said Wednesday via an e-mail message, that people are getting a bit frustrated after 35 hours onboard, and are anxious to get home.

Passengers were loaded on the Caribou at 6 p.m. Monday, and left the dock at 7 a.m. Tuesday.

Magliaro, of Chatham, Ont., said most people are coping, keeping busy watching movies, going on the internet or talking on their cell phones.

"Some people are feeling OK, while others are pretty seasick and running out of Gravol to keep their stomachs from churning and the crew can only suggest crackers and to stay away from fluids," she wrote.

Magliaro said the waves were "pretty huge" Tuesday night, and she could feel her stomach drop each time the vessel hit a wave as she tried to sleep in her bunk. The water is much calmer now, she said.

"I am travelling with a touring theatre company (the Backyardigans). There are 12 of us here. One girl is celebrating her 29th birthday today, so we will try to make it a good one for her," Magliaro wrote.

Meanwhile, another passenger ferry, the Leif Ericson, was finally able to dock Wednesday morning and discharge its 60 passengers.

The ferry arrived in North Sydney on Monday but wasn't able to dock at a wharf equipped to unload vehicles.

It had been tied up at what's known as a "layup dock" on Marine Atlantic property.

Thirty passengers were at the North Sydney terminal waiting to board the Leif Ericson to travel to Port aux Basques, N.L., including Robert Collins.

"Well, this trip was supposed to be my first trip on a ferry [and] would last six hours," he said. "So far, it's been like 2½ days."