Great Loop Day 037 Part 1. Oct 4, 2016, Hammond to Joliet, Illinois. Chicago Part 1
Hammond through Chicago to Joliet, Illinois. Chicago Part 1 of 2
“If my ship sails from sight, it doesn’t mean my journey ends, it simply means the river bends.” – Enoch Powell
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Day 37. Tuesday, Oct 4, 2016. Amazing day. 56.5 miles. Hammond Marina through Chicago to Joliet Illinois. Rolling Lake, city canyons, industrial waterfront, wilderness, tugboats and barges, 2 locks, and bridges galore! I said goodbye to Brandon at the marina this morning as I headed out to ride the rolling waves of Lake Michigan for the final time. Reached for my handheld VHF Radio thinking I might need it today only to find the unit was left on and the rechargeable battery died. Got the charging stand out and plugged in the small inverter. The charging lights are all on.
Sailors going downriver have two choices to travel. You can take a slightly shorter route called the Cal-Sag-Channel that enters south of Chicago or take the Chicago River and see the sights. My heart was set on seeing the sights.
The Chicago skyline came into view through the morning haze as I can make out the Navy Pier. It's easy to see the Ferris wheel. Finding the lock channel was a bit daunting until you were right on top of it. The Navionics navigation app worked great.
Chicago Harbor Lighthouse at the mouth of the Chicago River.
Chicago’s Navy Pier
Just to the left of that yellow-painted bulkhead is the entrance to the lock. Just above you can see the lights are green.
The Lock going into the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal has a green and red light at the entrance. Green you go, red you don't dare enter. The light is red. I see another cruiser waiting near the entrance. I slow down to idle speed near them and ask if they are going thru. Yes, they answer. I motor around them slowly buying time. I hear someone on their boat yell, "It's green." I follow close behind. This will be my first time going thru a lock. Life jacket on, check, fenders out both sides of the boat, check, boat hook in the cockpit, check, knife in pocket, check. Sword and a loaded pistol tucked in my waist belt to ward off those boarding river pirates, check. Oh, It’s 2016, I don’t need those! Gloves, oh-oh, they are down below in the cabin, and I don't have time to get them. The mechanized lock gates slowly open as the water level in the lock is the same as the lake level. I have been told it's about a 2ft drop into the river.
Civil engineers years ago reversed the flow of the river and build a canal leading to the Illinois River. It's officially known as the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal. As the name implies the sanitation outflow doesn't enter Lake Michigan where Chicagoans get their drinking water. Instead, it speeds southward to the Mississippi and onto New Orleans.
For a short 6 min video on the Chicago River: reversal of the river And a cool video of traveling under all the bridges.
I slow the boat to idle and maneuver close to the starboard wall where I see a lock worker in position above me, then shift the outboard to neutral as we glide closer to the right side of the concrete wall. I notice the lock master on the wall above me on the right and tell him this is my first time going through a lock. He told me to just hang on to the lines and let them slip through my fingers as the boat goes down, and most importantly don’t tie it off on the boat. He has a boat hook in hand and reaches out to a line hanging down the lock wall. Grabs one and swings it over to me. He goes forward grabs another and passes that one to me. I now have one line in each hand and thank goodness they are dry, no need for gloves. Standing in the cockpit on the starboard side near the center of the boat, I can now pull on either line to keep the boat steady against the wall. The double lock gates swing to close ever so gradually behind me. Upon their closure water is released through large underwater pipes out to the lower part of the river. I watch the water level slowly drop and feel the lines slip thru my fingers. The stern starts to back away from the wall and I pull on the line at the stern. But the bow comes in at a sharper angle and the mast which now sticks out a foot in front of the bow taps the wall. I push away from the wall with my left foot and she straightens out. The lock master stands above me and I ask how far will the water drop. He says it varies on different days. Today it drops about 5 ft. Still hanging on the lines the water stops dropping and the front lock gates begin to open. We wait for a signal horn then I release the lines. Going back to the stern to put the running outboard out of neutral and in forward. Slowly the Sea Marie starts moving forward and I'm in the river.
Leaving the lock.
There's a lot to see onshore and a lot to be on the lookout for in front of me. River traffic is humming. Many sightseeing vessels and water taxis load and unload passengers. They are well-spaced out and easily maneuvered around. And the bridges! One after another, all have their names on large signs easy to mark your locations. Buildings reaching for the sky. Old ones and newer ones are a mix of classical and modern architecture. One particular building stands out over all the others. There is no mistaking this large stainless steel and reflective glass building with distinctive rounded corners. It's the Trump International Hotel and Tower Chicago and no building has a sign as big as Trump. The sign itself became controversial and has been downsized from its original size. According to Wikipedia...
Work crews began hanging the sign in May 2014. When Chicago Tribune architecture critic Kamin warned Trump that his review of the sign would be unfavorable, Trump responded "As time passes, it'll be like the Hollywood Sign", but architect Adrian Smith distanced himself from the sign saying "Just for the record, I had nothing to do with this sign!". The controversy surrounding the sign drew attention in the national and international press as it neared completion. The Associated Press ran a story about Mayor Emanuel's disapproval in mid-June. According to the Mayor's spokeswoman Kelley Quinn, "Mayor Emanuel believes this is an architecturally tasteful building scarred by an architecturally tasteless sign". Kamin has noted that part of the problem is the architectural traditions of the city: "If this sign was in Atlantic City or Las Vegas, nobody would care—but it is in Chicago and is a part of Chicago, full of great buildings from the 1920s to the 1960s and onward". Trump and Reilly both pointed out how unbecoming the prior Chicago Sun-Times building signage was via Twitter. As a result of the fiasco, Mayor Emanuel initiated a study on how to alter the rules to avert similar signage controversies in the future.
Trump sign.
Chicago Sun-Times building.
The fine people of Chicago appear to take their lunches early and the tourists snap my picture as I snap theirs strolling the promenade and crossing the bridges on this beautiful warm October day. A water taxi travels upriver as a tour boat goes past me downriver. I hear a water tour leader talking about the historic features of the buildings and the river's history to the passengers who are as thrilled as I am to be going down this historic river. I'm low enough as are all the tour boats to be able to glide under all these bridges without opening yet the bridges all have the capacity to open for larger vessels. No need to.
Chicago “L” train. Cars and pedestrians get over on the lower bridge.
So glad I don’t have to wait for all these bridges to open! I just silently slip under them.
I make my way southward and the scene starts to change. More industrial complexes. Sand and gravel hills. Several chemical plants each with their distinctive odors fill the air. Recycling plant, a mountain of what looks to me to be crushed glass. An asphalt company with its smell of tar and oil.
There's one bridge ahead that looks awfully low. A railroad swing bridge. I slow down looking for the highest point to go under. The bimini was folded back and out of the way. I need the full view to absorb the magnificence of this river. My reinforced conduit tubing crossbucks were holding my mast at 10 ft, add to that the height of the stern they are resting on I figure I have about 13 ft clearance. This railroad bridge looks really low. I check the guidebook, it's the Atchison Topeka and Santa Fe Railway Bridge and its clearance is 19.6 feet. Did the higher lake level and recent rains raise the river level? I slow to idle speed. If those cross bucks hit the bridge it can do significant damage to my boat. I ease up under it looking to avoid anything that hangs that may catch my crossbucks. It clears! with a foot and a half to spare. That was close.
There is the lowest bridge I need to get under. How lucky I was to catch a BNSF freight train going over.
This railroad swing bridge is the biggest obstacle in the entire Great Loop. All boats that complete the Loop must be able to get under this bridge. Every sailboat with a mast must have it lowered. Some sailors opt to have their masts taken down at the local marinas and have them shipped to Mobile and have one of their local marinas step the mast for them to continue. I'm fortunate my mast is not so tall that I can carry it onboard and how nice it is to have to go under these bridges without having to call them and wait to have them open for me as I had on the Detroit River. In the next post I'll continue to chronicle the rest of the journey... so to all Fair winds and gentle seas.
Saying goodbye to the skyline of Chicago.
My route from Hammond Marina to Joliet, Il.
Comments from 2016:
Dan Whitmore Thanks for the bedtime story:-) Glad you are safe. Safe travels once again tomorrow!
Colleen Shrank Noel - This reminds me of my trip with your dad from Chicago to Kentucky Lake. That was a grand adventure. Cap't Ron.
Paula Phillips Valentino Jim says hello. your photos are beautiful. wishing you a safe and wonderful Journey. it was nice meeting you. Paula and Jim.