September 28, 2009

Joliet. Spent five days there, but before we get into that, let me tell you about the Asian Carp. You might want to grab a cup of coffee.... Perhaps you've read or heard of this invasive species that, like so many accidently or intentionally imported critters, has become a problem in American waterways. This guy is a voracious carp (think ginormous goldfish) that grows to 75—100 lbs. How? By, you guessed it, eating everything in sight and upsetting the ecology of the waters. Starting near the Gulf of Mexico, the Carp have migtated up the Mississippi and into the Illinois River, heading for the Great Lakes. Besides the ecology issue, it seems the fish gets agitated by the sound or vibration of motors in the water, and leaps out. People have had stitches, and even been killed by being whacked by a leaping fish. In 2002, the US Army Corps of Engineers became concerned that the Great Lakes would be devastated if the Carp got into Lake Michigan. Their solution was to build an electric barrier across the Chicago Sanitary Canal (remember how the canal was created to reverse the flow of um, 'Sanitary' water, if you get the drift, away from the Lake.). The theory: the fish will swim up to the electric current and say, “Hey, what is this? No thank you very much” and turn around and go away. Well, apparently it worked for awhile, but over time, the fish weren't so concerned with the electric charge and this year the COE decided to get their attention with a stronger electric barrier. Problem is, the current was so strong that the Coast Guard became concerned that someone besides the fish would get zapped. NO good. There's evidently enough electricity in that 0.7 mile cage to do serious bodily harm. The solution? Testing. But while they were doing the testing, the decision was made to close the Canal to all non-steel hull traffic. Tugs and barges are steel. 99% of pleasure craft (PC's we're called) are fiberglass or wood. So, as of the end of August, no PC's could get out of Chicago. Well, one could reverse the route, return through the Great Lakes and go back down the East Coast, but that is really not what we Loopers (and there are a whole lot of us) had in mind. New solution. Non-steel boats could be towed through the barrier by steel tugs using a non-steel towing cable. The charge? $600. You can't make this stuff up, can you? Needless to say, there was an outcry from the boating public, and as of Sept. 12, after many towing fees had been paid, the canal was opened to PC's—with caveats. Wear a life jacket, sit in a chair, if something falls into the water (including your spouse, child or pet) do NOT retrieve it, simply wait for it to be carried through the barrier by the current, etc. etc. And, oh yes, you DO understand that you cross the barrier at your own risk, don't you? On the 21st the Coast Guard sent a message to PC's to hurry and get through, as the barrier may be closed again. On the 22nd, along came YOUNG AMERICA, and since we'd gotten our usual 'early' start, it was after 5pm when we were hailed by the Coast Guard guys who were staked out at either end of the barrier. They told us the barrier was closed until further notice, but we could be towed through if we chose ($600???) We said no thanks, and by the way do you know when it will re-open? Yes, said they, at 7 am. WELL, then, we'll just tie up on the wall and wait. Hmmm. A few minutes after we'd tied up on the wall, a miracle happened and, as no commercial traffic was in the area, we were given the ok to pass through. Fred shut off everything that could be shut off—except the engines—we donned our life vests, sat down, and proceeded through without incident. Time will tell what happens with these critters. STILL BUSY was anchored in the Mississippi and awoke in the morning to find that a foot long carp had jumped into the dinghy. They are certainly a problem. The solution remains to be seen. We have put it behind us. The barrier is in Romeoville, IL. Just beyond that is Lockport, where Fred lived as a kid, graduated from high school, and learned to fly—the Lockport airfield is still there! There is, in fact, a lock at Lockport—although to his amazement, Fred never visited it when he lived there. As we approached, we met our first really big tow. 3 barges across and three barges long—they were tied up waiting for the lock to empty and bring up the other part—3 across and 2 long, with the tug. We found a place, once again, to tie up on the lock wall, and got out our chairs and binoculars to watch. By the time the whole load was reassembled, it was dark. I would NOT want to be that tug driver, but off he went. We went to sleep. In the morning, we slipped into the lock between barge loads, and travelled the 3 miles to the City of Joliet free wall. We spent 5 days there! My brother lives in Geneseo and two of his children, Tracy and Sandi, live in Rockton and Plainfield—all within 2 hours of our lock wall, so we rented a car and did some visiting. We really lucked out as neice Sandi's grandson was being christened, and we got to attend and celebrate with Amy, Jason and baby Logan. Another of Sandi's daughters, Sarah, brought her husband Bob and son Parker for a visit on the boat. Additionally, we spent a day with Cynthia and Michael from the Chicago yacht club—they motored down and we had a fun time aboard YA and at Harrah's Casino across the way! Also spent time chatting with fellow cruisers aboard MISS RUBY and SOMEWHERE. This morning we returned the car to Enterprise, and headed off into the river, facing some pretty hefty winds. (Tornados moved through the area last nite, but bypassed us). The ride was a tad rocky, but there is always a bright side. It was way too windy for barge traffic, so we had the river pretty much to ourselves. Opted to stop early here in Spring Brook Marina, and were glad we did, as the winds blew us around quite a bit as we docked and it took a full hour to get securely secured. Weather forcast is for a calmer day tomorrow, so we'll continue on as we head for the Mississippi, Ohio, Tennessee, and Tombigbee Rivers that will bring us to the Gulf of Mexico. How lucky are we? What a fabulous trip this is! WOW! (see map for current location) Good night for now and we'll 'talk' again! Be well... Linda and Fred