Port Washington, WI to Joliet, IL

This blog will cover August 20 - 23.

Our route as we get closer to crossing our wake.

Tuesday, August 20.  One half of the boat really wasn't keen on heading out from Port Washington.  BUT, the other half of the boat thought the waves, wind were acceptable to cruise to our destination Racine, WI which was 70nm away.  We stopped in Milwaukee which was 20nm  before Racine as the 1.6' waves climbed to a mix of 1' - 4' and a mixture of direction--this photo was taken right as we left.  It was too rough to keep taking photos.  

This is Karla and Paul when they finished their loop in Racine on Current Plan.  They finished about a week earlier, we were hoping to take our photo and send to them but Racine was not in the cards.  This is better to have their smiling faces marking their accomplishment of doing the loop.

Wednesday. August 21. Waves were 1-2’ at first and as the day progressed they laid down making the cruise to Chicago, IL a pleasure.

Milwaukee while we were still in the harbor.

This is a loud. fast, tour boat.  So much activity as we got closer to Chicago.

This is the Chicago Navy Pier.  In mid-1918, the pier was also used as a jail for draft dodgers. In 1927, the pier was renamed Navy Pier to honor the naval veterans who served in World War I. In 1941, during World War II, the pier became a training center for the United States Navy; about 10,000 people worked, trained and lived there.

Chicago's skyline is impressive from the water.  This was taken just past the Navy Pier, our marina is just inside the breakwall.

We walked along the river after getting settled in the marina.  We stopped to have a beer and watch the people enjoy this sunny day.

Ok we knew the DNC Convention was going on and would be for one more day.  There were two fellows in suits and I noticed this fellow was wearing a DNC lanyard, both had ear pieces, and were looking everywhere.  This guy asked the waitress if it was ok for him to sit.  We have no idea if they were at a post for security reasons... but I call this photo 'secret agent man'.  : )  

Thursday, August 22. We walked up town to the Wildberry Cafe for breakfast. Super yummy. Then to Mariano’s a grocery store very close to the cafe and not far from the boat. This is the best grocery store I think on the loop!! The produce, meat, bakery, premade entrees, and much much more! Prices were reasonable too. I just wished our refrigerator was a bit bigger.

We are getting closer to Peoria where we cross our wake.  Darth wanted to purchase a pressure washer so he could clean the bottom of the boat before taking it down the road.  Several states require boats on trailers to be inspected for any invasive species.  He found one 3 miles away and decided he would pick it up via bicycle.  Of course he did.  Job well done. : )

After Darth returned, we rode the bikes up to the Chicago Millinnium Park.  I wanted to see 'the bean'.  It is actually called--Cloud Gate and is British artist Anish Kapoor's first public outdoor work installed in the United States.

The 110-ton elliptical sculpture is forged of a seamless series of highly polished stainless steel plates, which reflect Chicago’s famous skyline and the clouds above. A 12-foot-high arch provides a "gate" to the concave chamber beneath the sculpture, inviting visitors to touch its mirror-like surface and see their image reflected back from a variety of perspectives.

Inspired by liquid mercury, the sculpture is among the largest of its kind in the world, measuring 66-feet long by 33-feet high.

Here is our reflection in the Cloud Gate.

The next two photos are samples of the following:

The fountain consists of two 50-foot glass block towers at each end of a shallow reflecting pool. The towers project video images from a broad social spectrum of Chicago citizens, a reference to the traditional use of gargoyles in fountains, where faces of mythological beings were sculpted with open mouths to allow water, a symbol of life, to flow out.
Plensa adapted this practice by having faces of Chicago citizens projected on LED screens and having water flow through an outlet in the screen to give the illusion of water spouting from their mouths. The collection of faces, Plensa's tribute to Chicagoans, was taken from a cross-section of 1,000 residents.
The fountain’s water features operate during the year between mid-spring and mid-fall, while the images remain on view year-round.

 So many folks were enjoying this feature. We stayed to watch 6 different faces. It must be amazing for the 1,000 residents to see their face so big. And when you see the water come out of their mouth for the first time its a little creepy and fun at the same time.

We rode the bike path along the water to the museum campus.  This is the observatory but was closed by the time we got there.  

View from the museum campus.

Night time view from our marina.

Friday, August 23.  We got up early to get into the Chicago lock and cruise through the city before the tour boats were up and running.  The lockmaster was delightful and told us we were the first and only boat so far.

This is right after the lock gates opened.  Truly an awesome experience!

This is where we sat when we took the photo of the two of us along the river.  Chicago's Vietnam Memorial is located at the bottom of the stairs in the photo.

The Chicago River's bridges have a range of clearances, from 17-31'.  The 17' seemed too low until we actually got close--our boat is approximately 13'.

So, the worst job in my mind would be a high-rise window washer.  Yikes!

The river turned and we could see we were heading out of downtown Chicago.

Looking back.

Another one looking back.

Gosh this was amazing!

This is the Amtrak Bridge.  Today--it was broken.  We are 13' with mask and bimini--well we were not about to turn around so Darth to the rescue.  He is in process of taking things down.

Here we go.....

Duck Darth!!  I was standing on the bottom stair coming down from the command bridge to take the photo.  The bridge did get fixed we heard later in the day.

And just like that--back to river with some wildlife that are not human.

We enjoyed the transition from downtown, then industry, and also the calm waters that are in the rivers.

The signs are warning that we entered the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal (CSSC) electric barriers that create an electric field in the water to prevent fish from moving between the Mississippi River and Great Lakes basins.

Then before we knew it we were back into more industry--we were heading to the Joliet lock.  

We arrived at the lock and had about a two hour wait with Ring Leader a 54' Nordic Tug in front of us.  About an hour after we arrived, another 5 boats came to lock with us.  Unlike the Erie and Trent Severn Canals, the locks on the rivers are huge.  Barges move cargo up and down the Illinois, Ohio, Mississippi, and Tennessee rivers all with priority over pleasure craft.  

All 7 of us made it through and traveled to Joliet's free wall--with power!  It was a pleasant night.

Next blog will be coming soon.  Thank you all for coming along with us as we navigate closer to the end of our loop.