Illinois River – Eagle Alley

Monday, September 17, 2018

At long last, we are heading through downtown Chicago.  We have anticipated this as one of the highlights of our trip and are not disappointed!  We will pass under 63 bridges on the 43-mile route to our first stop in Joliet IL.  Most bridges are in downtown Chicago.  Our boat stands almost 26 feet to the top of the antennas and, with the antennas hinged down, 17’ 7” to the canvas top.  The lowest bridge along our route which does not open is 17’ 9” – way to close for comfort – and the clearance varies with the water level in the Chicago River, too.  So Robert has spent countless hours preparing the boat for this day.  He has removed our canvas top and laid the very heavy fiberglass arch over onto supports he built for this purpose.  Fortunately the arch has a hinge designed just for this situation.  Preparations are complicated by thick clusters of wiring that run through the arch to power instruments on top of the arch (radar, communications antennas, lights, etc.).  He needs to make sure the wires don’t break when the arch is laid over.  Somehow neither of us managed to take a picture of the boat prepped for Chicago!

We are leaving early with our friends on Esther Girl.  We depart the marina and circle to the other side of the breakwater to enter the Chicago Lock, then into the Chicago River.  The lock lowers us about 3 feet and forces the Chicago River to flow south, rather than into Lake Michigan.  Our first bridge lies ahead.

Entering Chicago River

We understand the river was once very industrial and not a nice place to be.  Today a Riverwalk has been added along the river’s edge with tree-lined walkways.  

Chicago River

Tour boats dock along the Riverwalk, waiting to take passengers on river tours.

Chicago River

Filled with pedestrians and bikes, numerous bars and restaurants beckon locals and tourists alike.

Chicago River

Newer buildings are designed to incorporate the Riverwalk.

Chicago River

Every downtown street crosses the river by bridge.

Chicago River

Amtrak trains use tracks that run beneath all the buildings on this stretch of river.

Chicago River

Esther Girl follows behind us.

Chicago River

And then we grind to a halt at this Amtrak bridge with a closed clearance of 10 feet!  It is now 9:30 but is still down, waiting for rush hour trains to clear.  We are told by the bridge tender that she will raise the bridge as soon as possible.  Other looper boats are stacked up waiting to pass and we fall in at the end of the queue.

Amtrak Bridge, Chicago River

Thirty minutes later the bridge is raised and we are on our way again.  We are now past downtown Chicago and enter a very industrial stretch.

Chicago River

Finally we approach “the” lowest bridge.  It was once operational but no longer opens.

CSX Chessie Railroad Bridge, Chicago River

NOT a comfortable view!

CSX Chessie Railroad Bridge, Chicago River

WE MADE IT!!!  

CSX Chessie Railroad Bridge, Chicago River

We are now in the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal, a man-made channel parallel to the Chicago River.  We are traveling with the group of looper boats that were delayed at the Amtrak bridge.

Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal

This section of the Canal was cut through layered limestone.

Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal

We pass a mineral loading facility – possibly salt?

Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal

By 3 pm we have passed through 1 lock, an easy 50-foot drop, and are tied up along a wall in Joliet IL.  We are now on the Des Plaines River.  The city of Joliet provides free electric hookups and a small park beside the wall.  We are now a group of 12 boats, all loopers.  Docktails ensue!

Joliet IL

Tuesday, September 18, 2018

All but 1 of the 12 boats are heading south again today.  We have 3 locks to traverse and we have coordinated locking all 11 of us through together in an effort to avoid delays waiting for commercial tows (with barges).  We have called the first lock and are told to arrive by 7, so we get a (too early) start.

Des Plaines River

Des Plaines River

By the time we get to the second lock, we have the drill down.  We tie off to the lock wall, then Esther Girl and another boat raft (tie off) to our boat.  Dog “Bee” waits patiently on Esther Girl.

Esther Girl in Dresden Island Lock

Two boats are tied off in front of us.

Dresden Island Lock

Another raft of 3 boats ties off behind us and we wait for the rest of the boats to arrive at the lock.

Dresden Island Lock

We are on our way again, enjoying the scenery.

Des Plaines River

We stop for the night at a small marina in Ottawa IL.  Our group of boats is beginning to split up with some going further and some, anchoring out.

Wednesday, September 19, 2018

We pass through occasional limestone cuts and are beginning to see Bald eagles keeping watch from the tallest trees along the river.

Illinois River

We see lots of undeveloped areas, interspersed with industrial loading facilities, as we transit through the river’s floodplain.

Illinois River

We tie up for the night at the remains of an old lock wall.  This is makeshift at best with rusty rings hammered into the rock as our only place to secure lines.   We are supposed to be able to plug into power but can’t get it to work so we run the generator all night.  Hot day so we need the AC.  Still, this is better than trying to anchor along this swift river with lots of floating debris and commercial traffic.

Old lock wall, Henry Harbor IL

Thursday, September 20, 2018

We get an early start, traveling alone for once.  We soon see large flocks of White Pelicans along the river’s edge.  These birds winter in Port Aransas, where we once lived, so it is nice to see where they spend summers.

White pelicans, Illinois River

By noon we pass Peoria IL.

Peoria IL

Just south of Peoria we stop at Kuchie’s on the Water, a restaurant with dock space for several boats right on the river.  Kuchie’s doesn’t look like much but, with few options to stop for the night on this stretch of the river, we are grateful to find this place.  We arrive in time for a late lunch and meet the owners of another looper boat.  We are thankful that no high winds are expected overnight, since the dock looks barely adequate to secure one boat, let alone two large heavy ones.

Kuchie's on the Water, Creve Coeur IL

Friday, September 21, 2018

We are barely a mile from our next lock so before we leave our dock, we call the lock to see if we will have to wait for commercial traffic before locking down.  We learn the lock is expecting several pleasure craft, likely other looper boats, so we time leaving to minimize our wait at the lock.  Sure enough, we lock up as a group of 8 and we are back with the “herd”.

Illinois River

We see more eagles today.  This one was sitting along the riverbank.

Bald eagle, Illinois River

By 5 pm, we are tied up to one of the most unique stops of our journey.  Logsdon Tug Service operates tug boats (“tows”) and they keep several barges tied off along the river’s edge to use as dock space for their tows.  They are nice enough to allow pleasure craft to tie to their barges for the night when there is space available.  This stretch of the river has no marinas and few safe anchorages, so most pleasure craft end up here.  

Logsdon Tug Service, Beardstown IL

So here we are, tied up to a tug boat with is tied to a barge.  To get to shore, we must walk across the deck of the tug, across the barge, and up the rusty metal stairs over a flood barrier.  Note the flood gauge at the base of the stairs.  It tops out at 31 feet!  The current reading is just under 10 feet.

Logsdon Tug Service, Beardstown IL

Just before dark, a final boat arrives and asks to raft to us since no space is available along the barges.  Once tied off, the boaters must climb over their rail and walk across our back deck to get to shore (via the tug and barge and metal stairs).  Wow!  This is crazy!

Logsdon Tug Service, Beardstown IL

We share a spectacular sunset with our new best friends.

Sunset, Logsdon Tug Service, Beardstown IL

Saturday, September 22, 2018

Our next lock is an hour from our overnight stop so we depart Logsdon as a group and lock through together.  We are a group of 9 and are getting to be old pros tying off and rafting as needed along the lock walls.

LaGrange Lock, Illinois River

LaGrange Lock, Illinois River

Eagles, eagles everywhere.  

Bald eagles, Illinois River

We pass occasional industrial facilities …

Illinois River

… but see mostly undisturbed scenery.  We assume the river’s floodplain makes most riverfront land undevelopable.

Illinois River

We wait about 20 minutes for a train to cross this bridge before the bridge tender will open it for us.  Seems like an eternity, circling and circling, waiting …

Illinois River Gateway Western Railroad Bridge

Finally the train crosses, the bridge is raised and we are on our way.  We enjoy the beautiful scenery but must be ever mindful of debris floating with the current.  Numerous logs and entire trees float by and must be dodged lest we tear up our props.

Illinois River

We stop for the night at another restaurant, Mel’s Riverdock.  It’s not much to look at but the food was great!  A few other boats have joined us here, but our big group has scattered to other stops.

Mel's Riverdock, Hardin IL

Late in the day, two lady kayakers paddle by.  They are traveling with camping gear and appear to be on a multi-day trip.  Very impressive!

Illinois River

A lovely sunset ends our day.

 

Sunset, Mel's Riverdock, Illinois River

Sunday, September 23, 2018

We have a short run today, just 21 miles, to Grafton IL and our last day on the Illinois River.  We continue to enjoy the scenery and are beginning to see rocky outcrops and higher terrain.

Illinois River

We see signs of civilization as we approach a more populated area.

Illinois River

As we turn into our marina, we catch a glimpse of the Mississippi River.  We are nearing the confluence of the Illinois and Mississippi.  Lots of current is swirling through this gap, making our entry to our marina difficult.

Cut to Mississippi River from Illinois River

At last we enter Grafton Harbor marina for a 2-night stay and much needed break.

Grafton Harbor IL