.........Rollin' On Da River"
Well, we made it.
On Sept 17th, we
finally bid Lake Michigan adieu and began our riverine journey to the Gulf of
Mexico. Our route took us into the Calumet River just north of Hammond,
IN, accompanied by Loopers Pura Vida, Chapter 4, Tara Mahgo, La
Vida, and CRAB Shack. None of us have any experience with
this waterway and there was some apprehension, but we know there is
strength and safety in numbers. (And it was humorous to watch us all subtly try
NOT to be first in line as we approached the river's mouth.)
But WAIT!
There's MORE!
On Friday, Sept 16th (Wade's 66th birthday) we received news from
our son Daniel and his delightful wife Alexandria that .......
WE'RE GONNA BE GRANDPARENTS (AT LAST) IN APRIL 2023!!!
YIPPEE!!!!
Meanwhile, back
on the Loop........
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| Entering the Calumet River |
Our cruising plan for Rivers Day 1 on the rivers covered 42 miles over portions of the Calumet River, the Calumet-Saganashkee (Cal-Sag) Channel , the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal, the Des Plaines River and the Illinois River (collectively, the Illinois Waterway). Our destination was Joliet, IL, where (in addition to famous prison accommodations) they offer free dockage to transiting boats on the river wall of their central city park.
To make this trip, we
had to negotiate two Corps of Engineers locks, the Thomas O'Brien Lock
and the Lockport Lock. The former is a minor 4-foot drop that serves to keep
waters from the Calumet out of Lake Michigan. We didn't even have to tie up to
the lock wall. All the boats just floated free, engines idling, while the
water level dropped, and the downstream gates opened.
Lots of
necessary things being made/mixed/processed/packaged here that one is better
off not thinking about. But almost no barge traffic, bridges either tall
or cooperative, and good weather. Flotilla speed was about 9 kts in dredged
depths of 9-15 feet.
As we entered the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal (click the
link to see its colorful history) we added Loopers Slick
Idea, Yellowstone, and our Door County friends Tom and Jane on Picnic
Boat to the group. We also encountered our first barge and towboat
traffic.
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| Towboat with barge |
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| Towboat |
Towboats are mis-named, as they tow nothing. Instead the push barges filled with hundreds of tons of bulk materials or liquids from port to port, factory to factory on the rivers. Singularly or in groups as big and 2 wide and 5 long (on the Illinois Waterway) Each barge is 35' x 195'. So, a 2 x 5 barge set is 70' x 975', plus the length of the towboat pushing. Needless to say, they FILL the available channel, take a long time to turn or stop, and have the right-of-way. Sheesh.
On Rivers Day 2, we
reformed our 7-boat Looper flotilla at Joliet (at 6:30 am) and made our way
down to Ottawa, IL On this 46-mile voyage, we passed thru three
more locks, Brandon Road, Dresden, and Marseilles. Including time waiting
for towboats to lock thru and the time it takes to get 8-10 boats of varying
skill level organized and secure in the lock chamber, each lock passage took up
to 2 hours, So it proved to be an exhausting 9+ hour day. But
Heritage Harbor marina welcomed us with open arms and the best organized fleet
docking exercise we have ever seen. Seven boats in sequence to their assigned
slips in less than 15 minutes Wow!
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Loopers rafted five across at the Dresden Lock |
We spent Rivers Day 3 in
port at Heritage, allowing Fur-Admiral Maggie to stretch her legs and us to
catch up on boat maintenance and laundry. We also attended a 2.5-hour river
navigation briefing by Heritage Marina manager Jeremy that offered an
experienced captain's insights on current river conditions, water-levels,
and available ports and anchorages. He does these 5-7 nights a week, free of
charge, and without notes. And it is a lifesaving, information-overload
experience. Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!
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| Irish Lass at Heritage Harbor |
River Day 4 found us in a 4-boat flotilla (Chapter 4, Picnic Boat, Iirsh Lass, and Time Go By Lighty)bound for Henry, IL, with one lock (Starved Rock) to transit. Despite an hour’s delay waiting for a tow to lock thru, we made port at Henry Harbor by 3:00 PM. The marina proved to be small and (politely) rustic. Moorage for our larger boats was along side a former lock wall made of limestone blocks laid in 1847.
Instead of cleats we tied to steel hoops embedded in the rock, deploying
every fender we have aboard to prevent Irish Lass from being scuffed. The
couple who recently bought the marina proved to be delightful, very helpful and
full of plans for improvements. It has to be tough when you run the risk
of having the entire place destroyed every spring by flooding. We wish
them all the very best.
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| Zoom in on the bridge piling. Now imagine those water levels! 🤯 |
We celebrated River Day 5 with NO LOCKS! Just a 30-mile run down to Peoria, IL So the remaining members of our flotilla each took their own path. We slept in a bit and were able to let the Lass's big diesels run a bit in a straighter, wider stretch of river, cruising at 10-12 knots (instead of 6-8). Early afternoon finds us at this writing at the Illinois Valley Yacht and Canoe Club near Peoria.
Commadore Kathleen has now become a Master Looper Looper.
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| Looper Loop (with knife is to cut us loose in an emergency) |
As we enter a lock, she
is tasked with securing us to a bollard on the lock wall that rises and falls
with the water level. She uses our Looper Loop to lasso the bollard and then
attaches the Loop to our #3 cleat for the duration of the lock cycle. The first
time (Lockport) was a bit nerve-wracking. But by our second lock she had it
down. You GO girl!
While she performs this
critical task, Wade alternates between manning the bow thruster to help keep
the Lass in position and assisting any boats rafting alongside.
Fur-Admiral Maggie is charged with greeting all lock attendants and rafting boaters with a smile and a wagging tail. Its a team effort.😁
