a wrote:

Paddle wheels got screwed. It's just another demonstration that the
spinning thing belongs on the back of the hull.


Except when it belongs in the front.

"At full load the Mackinaw displaced 5,252.4 tons and drew 19' 2.25" of
water. Her innovative features included a 12 foot diameter bow propeller
which draws water from beneath the ice ahead, both weakening the ice and
sending water along the sides of the hull and reducing ice friction. The
Mackinaw also has a heeling system which can shift nearly 112,000 gallons of
ballast water from side to side in 90 seconds, allowing a rocking motion
which assists the Mackinaw in freeing itself from ice."

http://www.mightymac.org/cgcmackinaw.htm