PEORIA LAKE October 3, 2008

Peoria was our game plan today - 45 miles down river. Cynthia Faye and Catrina enjoyed a very easy, sunny day on the River! Captain Tom was seen on the foredeck running the boat. Please note his right hand.

The water level was still up about 4 feet. There were fewer logs to dodge and only occasional barges. We saw many homes on the west coast of Upper Peoria Lake and Peoria Lake. The Lake is formed by the backwater from the Peoria Lock just below that town.

There were more markers in the River and some were very unique. Please note the log draped around the marker.

Along the way Joy@Sea joined us but was soon showing us her stern. They had spent the night in Henry just below Hennepin. Barbara, the boat, came from Chillicothe and greeted us at the Peoria Waterfront. Communication between boats either by radio or cell phone is a good way to find out about your next stop. Barb and Ken let the rest of us know that the Peoria Dock was now available during the night and was free but donations would be accepted.

We arrived in the early afternoon and tied up on the high side of the dock with Madison and Marlene on Joy@Sea and Linda and Jack on Cynthia Faye. A quick hike around the area gave us the information that Octoberfest was being celebrated above our heads (30 feet away) by food stands and a band from 5 to 11 p.m. This should be fun.

Tom and Debbie discovered that Walmart was on the other side of the Illinois River. We took our dingy across, tied to a tree and hiked up the bank - and there was Walmart! A picture (below) from across the River showed our three boats under Octoberfest.

Barbara (above) was moored downriver on the other side of The Spirit of Peoria, a paddle boat.

When we returned to the West side of the River, the drummer was warming up. It was an easy decision to move down the river and join Barb and Ken. Shortly afterwards, Linda and Jack appeared. We definitely made a good choice!

Patience October 2, 2008

We said goodbye to Heritage Harbor, a nice marina with a stalled land development community three miles above Ottawa, and headed 35 miles to Hennepin, a small town with grain elevators and barges/pushers. Only one Lock today (thank goodness) nine miles down at Starved Rock. We started off early before our tandam partner Linda and Jack in Cynthia Faye. When we got within a few miles of the Lock, we slowed down to idle to wait for Cynthia Faye. We followed the barge/pusher Tony Pepper into the holding area.


Perhaps you can imagine that a boat this long would not fit into a Lock and needed to be divided!








Three and one half hours later we left the lock. Now that is a record and not the kind we wanted to make. First a very large barge came up. It had been separted to get it into the lock. We watched them drag half out and then pushed the second half out and hooked them together. That took over an hour and a half. As it headed northward, the waiting barge entered the lock. We hoped that there would be room for us. No way. We watched it go down. Then another barge come up. In the mean time another south bound barge had arrived. I don't know who was looking out for us but at that point (3 hours), we were told to enter the lock. We think the barge captain gave his okay for us to go before him. We left through a very small hole at the bottom end of the lock and a waiting northbound barge. We were so happy to get that Lock behind us!









The next 25 miles Catrina chugged along at 8 to 9 miles an hour thanks to a good current. An hour and a half out we passed the first barge that had left the Lock 3 hours before us!







Today there was an increased amount of water in the river. Trees stood along the banks in water. Fields along the river were covered with water. We were concerned that the free docks at Hennepin might have been washed away. As we motored, we watched carefully for floating logs and limbs. This is supposed to prepare Debbie for the Mississippi!





Finally, at four we reached Hennepin and found the floating docks intact. Workers were grading the shore adjacent to the docks. It was our suspicion that the water level had finally descended to the point that grading was possible. Today Debbie learned how to moor in a strong current and how to motor with autopilot on a curvy river.




Hennepin is a one block town. It has a Laundry, Hardware Store, Restaurant/Bar. Three blocks inland is the Courthouse with a Children's play area in the front yard and a Post Office across the street. We had one of our best dinners in the Restaurant with Soup, Salad, Main Course (three meats, pototoes, vegetables and spagetti) and Pudding and Fruit dessert all for $10 each. Jack was looking for home cooking and he sure found it!




The one drawback to this free dockage were the barges that came in for a few hours to leave garbage and restock. Their wake would rock our boat and sometimes pullng our disc off the satellite enough to cancel what the Vice Presidental Candidates were saying!











This Pusher's company Florida Marine Transport. We passed it earlier in the day and then it stopped by during the night to restock!


























































Above is the Florida Marine Transport that we passed earlier in the day. The Pusher came into Hennepin to Restock right next to us!

LOCKS October 1, 2008

The five boats pictured yesterday decided to travel together the 46 miles to Heritage Harbor near Ottowa IL. We got up early to leave at 7:15 a.m. so our tallest boat Rose's Pick could pass under the raised RR bridge before 7:30. The rest of us did not need the bridge raised. The first lock was two miles down river - Brandon Road. The group had to wait about an hour before we could use the Lock.


Locks-1, Pleasure Boats-0.







Locks are very helpful in changing altitude levels but they do take some preparation. First bumpers must be attached to the boat sides to provide a buffer between boat and cement lock wall.













All boats gather above the Lock. When all the barges are through the lock, it is our time to file in one at a time. The lockmaster tells each boat where to go on the "Wall" and whether it should use a rope or a bollard.










A Bollard is a tube that moves down as the water is drained from a Lock. A rope is wrapped around the Bollard and back to the original cleat. An "S" type wrap is used which can quickly be moved if the boat gets hung up on the wall.

One of the benefits of a catamaran is that the flat deck surfaces supply great seats while working locks. A Bollard is handled by one person. Another time we will show you ropes that need two people to handle. The skipper has to move from the wheel quickly to the rope and then back again when we leave. With a Bollard the Skipper can stay at the wheel or help with the bumpers.

When the lock master blows a whistle, the boats file out one at a time in the order specified.

The second Lock was Dresden Island Lock, 14 miles below the first lock and four miles below the entrance and name change to the Illinois River from Des Plaines River. Guess what, we waiting about an hour on Dresden. It was not as deep a lock as the first one so we moved through it more quickly.

Locks-2, Pleasure Boats-0

Tom, my favorite capitan, enjoyed the October sun as he waited. He is great steering with his feet !

It appeared to be hunting season on the river!

The last lock of the day was 28 miles below the second lock and 2 miles before Heritage Harbor, our home for tonight.

Most would think that after two Locks, we would have everything running smoothly. Wrong. Prior to each lock, Bob would call ahead to let them know a group of 5 pleasure boats would be arriving in so many minutes. When he called Marseilles Lock, he was told they would work us in with the barges but expect to wait. We waited over two hours! Remember the current does not stop and the wind continues to blow. We moved back and forth above the lock for a very long time.

When we finally got the go ahead, it was after a very large barge very slowly cleared the lock giving us just enough room to slide behind it into the lock. The lock master encouraged our first boat to enter the lock. Who wants to go that close behind a very large barge!

Pictured is the barge about halfway out of the lock.

So after about four hours of waiting up river from locks, we finally reached Heritage Harbor and were happily welcomed by the staff.

Locks-3, Pleasure Boats-0 Locks are in a world of their own. Locks Rule!

Some people may wonder what happens to pushers when they are no longer used?

They become RESTAURANTS !!!

On the Wall September 30, 2008

Joliet has made us feel very welcome. There is a cement wall lining the Des Plaines River with tie ups and electrical hook ups provided FREE to all transient boats. Water is available. The Chamber of Commerce is located at the head of the wall just below the bridge. What more could you want when you are "On the Wall"? Across the River are the Government Buldings, Police Station, Bus Station and Casino. Stores are not as close but the city has provided buses to most places we wish to travel.

We started the day with five boats On the Wall. After dinner three more boats arrived. We had another 5 p.m. "meeting" to coordinate our departure tomorrow morning. There is a bridge within a few hundred feet that needs raising and a lock in two miles. The group decided to leave at 7 a.m. so that we are not stopped by the bridge that cannot be raised between 7:30 and 8:30.

Bob and Peggy from Denver are in the lead boat "Baby Grand," you guessed it - a Grand Banks.

They will call the bridge and lock.

Next in line are Madison and Marlene from Fort Myers FL in Joy @ Sea, a Grand Banks.

Jack and Linda from Holland MI were with us at Benton Harbor MI. They are traveling in a 34 foot Marine Trader called Cynthia Faye.

In front of us are Rose and Gary from Portland OR in Rose's Pick, a 44 foot Carver Boat.

Last but not least (but definitely lowest) our very own Catrina!

It is very easy to get to know one another as everyone is interested in making friends with similar lifestyles. It does not seem to matter that we are in a sailboat or using gasoline rather then diesel. We are all "loopers" today located On the Wall together!

Rain, Rain Go Away September 29, 2008

Catrina said goodbye to Mark this drippy morning. He has been so helpful and a great teacher that we hated to see him head for the train station for the next leg of his trip. Please note his creativity and cheerful disposition.

Before we leave Joliet we must retrieve Tom's mail from the Postal Service. This may sound like a simple chore but it isn't. After a number of phone calls this morning Tom found out he had to follow the rules of the PO no matter what. First, he had to go to a different PO to pick up his mail than the one he had selected close the Des Plaines River because the PO would only hold general delivery mail at the main branch. Second, only he could pick up his mail. Debbie could not retrieve his mail and let him stay off his painful knee. You guessed it. He is riding a bus in the direction of this PO and then hiking in the rain!

Yesterday was our initial experience with Barges.

This roomy live aboard tug is only pushing two barges up the river. Captains like to be addressed as "pushers." If you refer to them as tug boat captains, they won't answer.

From the Left Above there is a barge at the river side, one in the middle passing (look carefully and you can just see it) and on the right one coming up the river. Under the Red Flag on our mast is the hole open to us. We waited behind!

Now the hole is beginning to open up and we can pass along but only with permission of the barg captains. Tug boats push barges, not pull, and there can be anywhere from one to fifteen barges (1200 feet long). Communication with the barg captain is over VHF channel 13. Verbal communication is best but sometimes whistle signals are used, i.e.: "one whistle" or "on the one" means to pass on the left side; "two whistles" or "on the two" means to pass on the right side. Don't forget that! ALWAYS confirm with the pusher this passing agreement.

As we looked down the river it was completely block by a tug pushing barges filled with coal. Tom put the boat in reverse and waited. The tug pushed the barges to the side and then joined them. Then we got the okay to pass.

Same group from the rear or downriver. This is a relatively small Tug and he was pushing three barges.

To bring you up to date. Tom did not get his mail. They gave it to someone else who returned it. Then it was sent back to Carol the day before we arrived! Hopefully the disc will arrive tomorrow and he can get it before it is returned.

At 5 p.m. we had a Captain's Meeting on the walk by our boats. First mates also came some supplying nuts and dip. Tonight we have five boats: Ken and Barb on Barbara, Linda and Jack on Cynthia Faye, Peggy and Bob on Baby Grand, Rose and Gary on Rose's Pick and us.

Good News - All locks are now open. The barges will go first followed by all the boats that have been waiting some up to two weeks. We are happy to be at the end of this group and out of the crowd!

On the River September 28, 2008

It was a clouding day when we motored out of DuSable Marina and headed for the Chicago Lock at the head of our Rivers Trip South. Mark helped Debbie learn how to grab a rope on the side of the lock and hold on tight while holding the boat off the wall. We learned not to do anything until instructed by the lock keeper. As soon as we passed through this first lock, we traveled 39 miles to Joliet with a bridge in sight in front of us or behind. We never realized from land just how many bridges there are!








Tom liked to sit up on the roof while driving and steer with his feet--a Great View!








Our first bridge was Lake Shore Drive. In the Chicago area there is a street name on every bridge.



Our guide book tells us the exact clearance of each. Just to be sure we knew the height of our demasted boat and the bridge clearance, Tom and Mark got out a measuring tape and began figuring. They measured how high the boat sat above the water and added the highest part of the horizonal mast (10 1/2 feet). Then they stood on top of the boat and measured up to a couple of passing bridges and compared our Waterway Guide Book's statistics. Some men never grow up - thank goodness - the book was right!




Tour boats lined parts of the Chicago River waiting for tourists.


The silver colored building (above) on the right is being build by Don Trumpy. There is another building near the Navy Pier that it is rumored Oprah Winfrey owns two whole floors! Further inland is another building where the architect slanted each glass panel so that the buildings around it formed designs on that building. Next time you are in Chicago take a river boat tour!


















This is what it looks like from the underside of a low bridge! Someone should count all the stories in Chicago.


A few flowers along a balcony or walkway added color to this deep in waterway. Sometimes boats in front of condo buildings told us about the residents.








To soon we left the high rise buildings behind and enter the Sanitary and Ship Canal. This is a canal that was man built from the Chicago River to the Des Plaines River and runs through petroleum storage, building materials (sand and gravel) and even sewage and landfill areas. Let's just say it was industrial.





One bridge we could not pass under was the 10.5 foot Amtrak Bridge about 10 miles into our day. Mark called the bridge on the VHF radio a couple times with no results. He said sometimes they hear us but don't answer. We never heard from the bridge keeper the whole 45 miles Tom back-motored Catrina as we waited for the bridge to go up! However, we did see a number of trains pass over the bridge so maybe our wait was justified.




Barges and Locks were another learning experience and we were so happy to Mark guide us. We will cover those subjects another day.

We also had to stop about 10 minutes for clearance from the Corp of Engineers who were we think using an electric barrier to stop Asian Carp from entering Lake Michigan.



Just before we reach Joliet we passed through the Lockport Lock and entered the Des Plaines River.

After passing under three bridges in Joliet we reached the Tie-Up Wall just below the Bicentennial Park. We discovered four boats already tied up and when we pulled in they appeared and grabbed our anchor lines. After introductions we accepted a dinner invitation to join everyone at Harrah's smorgasboard--Ellen and Woody, Marge and Larry, Barb and Ken and of course the three of us - Tom, Mark and Debbie. Linda and Jack (we met in St. Joseph) were also here but they were out on the town already.