Chicago and other stops along the Illinois River

We enjoyed our stay in Chicago. Pat enjoyed being in a big city again and both of us would have liked to have stayed in Chicago a while longer, but we needed to be on our way if we were to be in Alton, IL, by next weekend. We had a "crew change" here in Chicago, with Mike's brother Tom and sister-in-law Sue getting off the boat, and Mike's other brother Jerry coming aboard for the trip back to Tennessee. We had a great time with Tom and Sue, and hope they enjoyed their time aboard IRISH AYES and the trip down Lake Michigan. We are looking forward to spending the next couple of weeks with Jerry.

One of the highlights of our stay in Chicago was Saturday evening spent with Woody and Ellen
(DOUBLE SS) who hosted all “Loopers” who were staying in Chicago over the Labor Day Weekend. They live in a beautiful high-rise condominium with breathtaking views of Chicago and the waterway. We truly enjoyed their hospitality and appreciate them having all of us in their lovely home.

We took advantage of good weather and left Chicago Yacht Club on 2 September. The height of our boat did not allow us to go through downtown Chicago, so we had to take the Calumet Sag Canal. This canal is a large tow boat and barge staging and parking area. Barges were tied to the shore, leaving just enough room for oncoming barges to pass, which made for interesting moments when we met them in the channel. Many of then were moving barges around in this small area, so it was another day of high adventure in a small area.

We went through two locks on Sunday (2 Sept). At the first lock we were allowed to tie IRISH AYES to the bollard inside the lock, which makes locking through much easier. At the next lock, we were thrown bow and starboard lines, which is a bit more difficult. Traversing these locks is much easier than those we experienced on the Erie or Trent Severn Waterways. We also went under numerous bridges today, most of which we did not have to have opened, thankfully.

We, along with XPLORER, stopped in Joiliet, IL, at the Free Dock just below the Jefferson Bridge. Le GRACE, CAT HOUSE, FIRST AND TEN, and GREAT ESTATE were also at this dock for the night. All but GREAT ESTATE left on 3 September for points south on the Illinios River. Our plan to leave at 7:00 a.m. was delayed due to barge traffic. We finally left the free dock around 10:00 a.m. at the instruction of the lockmaster, but ended up waiting another hour and a half once we got to the lock. We arrived at our next lock at 1:00 p.m. and ended up waiting for two hours before being locked through. In addition, all of us were locked through with a tow boat with eight barges. This was exciting! The guys on the barge came out and tied our lines to the barges and we began our descent in the lock. We’ve been locked through with tows/barges before, but we had never been tied to the barge before.

After a long day, we decided to anchor at Barry Island for the night, which turned out to be a quiet, peaceful anchorage. From Barry Island, we made our way to Chillicothe Free Dock on 4 Sept. We started out in a lot of fog, which made for a tense morning with tows/barges coming and going. Thank goodness for radar, a good chartplotter, and a competent captain. After getting settled at the Chillicothe Free Dock, we had to climb over the rail at the dock to get to the parking lot, because the end of the dock was still under water from the recent flooding they are experiencing in this area. In the parking lot is Banana’s Pub/Grille, so we went in for a drink and were greeted by dozens of folks who were sitting at the bar watching our show as we climbed over the rail. They greeted us with laughter and apologized for the high water level, as we entered the bar/grille. We talked to several of the locals for a while, then we walked to town for dinner at Bailey’s Irish Pub.

On Wednesday, 5 Sept, we left Chillicothe Free Dock and headed to Eastport Marina to top off fuel, get a pump out, and get water. They ran out of diesel while fueling XPLORER, so we were not able to get fuel here. Thankfully, we can make it to Alton before we will need fuel.

We saw the LST 325 tied to shore while leaving Eastport Marina. This ship was headed up river to Henry, IL, but had to turn around because it could not get under bridges due to the high water levels caused by the flooding last week. We later watched the ship pass under the Beardstown Railroad Bridge and the Beardstown dock on its way to Alton.

We spent the night On 5 Sept, in Beardstown tied to a spud barge (for free) located at the Beardstown Riverlook. We explored the small town and had dinner at a Mexican Restaurant. According to a local businessman, the Corps of Engineers has granted approval for a marina to be built adjacent to where the barge is currently located. Who knows how long this will take, but a marina will be a great addition for this part of the river.

We left Beardstown at daylight on 6 Sept and made our way to Alton, IL where we will be until Sunday, 9 Sept. Several Loopers were here when we arrived: WINNIE W, JEANNE MARIE, SKINWALKER, PUFFIN.

While in Alton, Pat will visit with a long-time friend from her hometown who now lives in St. Louis. Stay tuned…