Moving towards the Mississippi River by the Illinois River...
October 5 - 10, 2023
There was more to do in Chicago including seeing the Chicago Marathon as well as Michael Jordan's statue at the United Center but we left to proceed down the Calmet River towards Joliet to the CalSag. The CalSag stands for the Calumet-Saganashkee Channel which runs 16 miles to meet with the Chicago Sanitary & Ship Canal. Where the channel and canal meet is a statue marking the point.
We left The Beach House in Chicago to enjoy time with family and they will go 4 days behind us with their flotilla group. Traveling through the area which was heavy industrial businesses, we saw concrete and products to make it, petroleum products, scrap metal, agricultural grains, and actually saw benzene containers. Of course with the benzene there were BIG signs to stay away and how dangerous it was. I also noted these large mounds of dirt with green grass and tubes coming up out of the ground. Danny said the tubes were methane vents for the landfill. Maybe one day those areas will be like a Mount Trashmore in Virginia Beach.
We will be able to keep a steady pace moving down the river to Sunset Bay Marina. There was no one there except the woman in the office and we tied off at the fuel dock. They don't take transients due to space but we took a chance asking- many boats were removed and I think the marina knew they may be asked due to the hold up at the locks further south. It was kinda eerie but quiet and a number of birds to watch as the sun went down. About 8pm a boat came up on the other side of the pier in the pitch dark. Two guys(John and Jim) were moving a boat down from Michigan to Kentucky to the same area we were going. Of course arrive after the office closes and leave before it opens- one way to avoid marina fees! The next morning the wind had picked up some but given we were in the canal it did not have as much of an effect. Some who were entering the CalSag to join us had 4 foot waves on the Lake Michigan and said it was not good. We were happy to have missed it. I also got to experience the electric fish barrier. CBS Sunday mornings had a segment on this years ago. Danny saw this last year. The program is set up to keep the Asian carp out of the waterway.
Interestingly, the group that came through after us had 3 boats who lost all their electronics to include their steering mechanism so dead in the water. The boat captains maintain it was due to the electrical field going through the area, but, Danny said that would be so unlikely and we knew many who had no problem including us! Those boats had to stay overnight on the canal.
The Lockport Lock was our first opportunity to meet many in our flotilla. The group was 17 boats total. You can see by the posted sign, we are at the bottom of the food chain. 😊
The guy that was head of the flotilla, had given us an order by boat size of when to enter the lock. We all signed off on it a few hours before and right before we get a single file for the lock, one of the boats ask, are we going by the list of the product description of each boat's length (OMG!). Danny and I just looked at each other and shook our heads. The quick response from the leader was "the order is the list I sent out and everyone approved ". Of course, we had someone "who couldn't read correctly", and went in before their boat was listed to proceed. The woman in front of us, Bobbi let him know it and he proceeded to cuss her out and me as well(we were behind Bobbi). When he was finished with me, I suggested he learn to read. He could have caused serious damage to someone.
We had to wait 3 hours before we were able to proceed into the lock due to barge traffic. Once in the lock with 16 other boats, we had wind gusts of 40MPH(yes, not good) and both rain and hail. We always need a little excitement! Thank goodness the Joliet wall was only 3 miles away although we did have to have 3 bridges opened for our height. Finally tied up, the rain stopped and we helped others as well as having Idaho Red, a 37 foot Great Harbour, raft up to us for the night. Phil and Mary are from Idaho Falls, he is a retired orthopedic spine specialist and like most, just nice people. Danny and I had everyone over to the boat for hot dogs with the other loopers bringing additional good food and desserts. Unfortunately, in the process of setting up, I lost my step on the broken part of the concrete base of the wall and fell into the water between the wall with lovely algae on it and the boat. The depth of water was greater than my height so I went underwater. Thank goodness Danny heard the splash and some of the guys saw me going down to come help me up to the back of the boat. My first concern was my cellphone in my pocket. I grabbed Danny's outstretched hand and with the other hand grabbed my phone in my pant pocket. Other than embarrassment and a sore and bruised lower back and right arm I am good and no pictures were taken. Although I should have done a selfie for the blog! And yes the phone still works and the hot dogs were saved. What's really weird was earlier that day, I had thought I couldn't believe I had not fallen into the water. Now that it's happened, we can check that off the list.
Now the interesting part of working through these 3 locks that have been closed since June 1st is they are not fully operational because all the bollards that you hold the boat to while the water is draining out are not there. The first one Brandon Road on the DesPlaines River went pretty well. Next we entered the Illinois River for the next lock. This was the one that was really not ready to be used. We had a another delay because of down bound traffic which lasted 3 hours. The way our 16 boats managed is the largest 4 boats held to the bollard on the wall and 3 additional boats rafted to each one on the wall- Presto- 16 boats through the lock! Sometimes there were variations. One picture is us going in to make the fourth.
While there was plenty of industry, we also saw wildlife although not as much as Danny remembers from last year- white pelican, great blue herons, and eagles. It is later in the year so many of the birds may have already travelled south. I don't blame them. We are seeing the temperatures in the mornings in the high 30's.
Barge traffic was very busy and lots of barges sitting on the side of the river waiting to be moved. Given the low level of water it created some interesting maneuvering. The tugboat tells you whether to go around them on the "1 whistle" which is to the right or the "2 whistle" on the left when you are going the same directions and reverse that when the barge is coming to you. The whistle language is from many years ago before there were VHF radios. We have heard that each compartment carries the equivalent of 75 dump trucks of materials and most of these are 3-4 compartments across and 3 -4 columns. Word is once on the Mississippi, they become even bigger! The tug captains do look after you too as long as you respect them. Most have a slow southern draw when talking on the radio or talk so fast you can't quite make out what they are saying you have to ask them to repeat it. One day, a captain saw a boat veer out of the channel which is not good with the low water and he called on the radio and said, "I think you better get back over here before you break something." Danny and I just started laughing. You can see below what was a pier for boats to tie up and see where the water is now-not happening!
Even though we all got out and going before sunrise due to 3 locks for 16 boats started out with 1st lock 30 minutes delayed, the second was 90 mins delayed, and the 3rd lock 2 hours. Jeremy, the dockmaster at Heritage Harbor in Ottawa usually has a meeting of any boats to discuss movement down south with stops and anchorages at 5:30. Needless to say none of us made that and Jeremy was kind enough to provide the information to all of us and they kept the restaurant open for us as well.
Our other stops included Ivy Yacht Club, Peoria, Illinois after another 12 hour travel day. Unfortunately due to our time table, we were unable to go to the Caterpillar Plant to take a tour. This is also the town that is the birthplace of Richard Pryor. We met a nice couple from outside Niagara Falls on a Grand Banks that were next to us and having engine trouble doing the Loop. They will be delayed to see if they can get something done. Hopefully we will see them again down river.
This was Jumer's Riverboat Casino in Rock Island, Illinois opened in 2008 and went out of business. It is just deteriorating on the banks of the Illinois River.
While at the Illinois Valley Yacht and Canoe Club (IVY) and even though they are typically closed on Sunday, they welcomed us and provided us with food and had the bar open. I asked our flotilla leader the schedule for the following day and he said his job was really over the day before. Many of us were standing around the bar and no one said anything. With the locks, it certainly helps to have many boats and not one here and one there. I spoke up and said I would handle the next day and got everything organized. We had no mishaps getting through the locks and worked our way down the Illinois River. It was nice some of the men gave me nice compliments. Some of the slower boats stopped at Beardstown at Logsdon Tug Service.
It was very exposed to the river and we made the decision to move on to the next lock.
Our decision was travel 88 miles today and 2 locks and 80 miles tomorrow or 80 miles and 1 lock today and 88 miles and a lock tomorrow. I tried to call the lock for 2 hours on the phone and repeatedly on the radio. I called the Peoria Lock to see if they were aware of any issues. The response I got was that lock has terrible phone reception because it is in the middle of nowhere. I am thinking all these barges going back and forth, the lock staff can see us coming on their electronics, what's the deal? About 10 minutes before we had to make a final decision for the day, they answered the radio. When I contacted the next lock, they said they had no barge either way and if we could get there in 90 minutes, they would push us through the lock. The 8 boats traveling together moving forward agreed we would pick up the pace to make it and be anchored by darkness. During the 8 miles to get to the lock, we heard a thud and then another thud on the back of the boat. All I was thinking- what now?, we are in the middle of nowhere, the engine falling off the dinghy or hit a log. I went to the back of the boat and looked down. It was a fish that had jumped in the dinghy. The first thud must have been it jumping in and the second was when he was flopping. Danny went to identify it and remove it from the dinghy. It was a fresh water mullet.
The Other Woman and 7 other boats made it and anchored at the bottom of the LaGrange lock by the dam. While we had some wind, our anchor held well and it was quiet to eat hot dogs and watch baseball on TV.
When we awoke it was 38 degrees and very foggy. We turned on the radar and traveled south to Grafton, Illinois for a marina, good shower, and hopefully good food.
Our travel today will take us to mile marker 0.7 on the Illinois River, the town of Grafton(close to the Mississippi River). Two of the interesting things in Grafton are the town has a high population of bald eagles who winter here and the LARGE American flag that greets you as you enter the harbor into the marina.
After everyone arrived in Grafton, we celebrated conquering the Illinois River and those locks. When we leave tomorrow morning, we will enter the Mississippi River in less than a mile. Again, we have been warned that the Mississippi is low and we are going to see mounds of sand to look like the Sahara Desert which is hard for me to imagine but I will see shortly! Another view of The Other Woman at a lock on the Illinois River.
Next- The Mighty although Low Mississippi River
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