Just found out the cutterhead on the old 'Big Dipper' dredge in the Sacramento River can move over 5000 cubic yards of material a day. Read it in a 1970s industry journal at the library.

3 comments

3 Comments

That's a wild amount of dirt. Makes my attempt to dig a small garden pond last summer look pretty sad. I think I moved about five cubic yards and felt like I'd conquered the world.

hollyl452mo ago

Five cubic yards feeling like a world conquest... I get that. I once spent a whole weekend digging a hole for a little tree, maybe the size of a laundry basket. My back was sore for days and I was so proud. Then I see numbers like 5000 cubic yards a day and my big life achievement is put in its place.

lucasw822mo ago

Forget the big machines. Moving five yards by hand is way more real. That's actual work you can feel.