The trip to Milwaukee was short and smooth. We spent 3 days in Milwaukee sightseeing and even driving around a couple of towns and homes from my childhood. A lot has changed since I was in those places, but it was a very nice day and I am even sitting here with a smile on my face remembering the day. Thanks Michael, Susan and Kevin for that trip down memory lane.
Downtown Milwaukee is really a very nice place to visit. There are a lot of restaurants, breweries, old historic buildings and a walk along the Milwaukee River. We went to the Harley-Davidson Museum. The museum is two floors of exhibits, memorabilia, restaurants and shops over a 20 acre campus. We also, at the recommendation of Kevin and Susan’s daughter-in-law who is from around there, went to the restaurant, The Cafe Hollander, where the Bloody Mary is claimed to have been invented; they were ok.
We said a sad goodbye to Kevin and Susan in Milwaukee and headed further down Lake Michigan to Waukegan, Illinois for a couple of days. There we met up with fellow Loopers who are all working the way to get into position for the Chicago lock opening on October 1st.
We had to head out of Waukegan early as we had a short weather window, so we thought, to get down to Hammond, Indiana, where we are currently waiting before we move back north about an hour to Chicago to await our flotilla departure on October 7th.
We knew getting out of Waukegan was gonna be a challenge due to winds and waves, but it was supposed to have settled down as we progressed further south. Well, that was the plan…nope, didn’t happen that way. Pulling away from the dock was a challenge as we had winds pushing us sideways back into the dock, so there was a lot of jockeying, pushing and pulling to get us out. I am thankful there was no one in the slip next to us or in front of us so there was plenty of room to swing, sway and bounce. Once we got out, it was a 6 hour journey in rough 3-4 foot rocky and very splashy waves hitting us broadside. Michael did most of the driving and both of us were soaking wet from the waves over the bow and all the way up into the upper helm. It was so wet that we couldn’t put the front window down as we would not be able to see through it. AND, once we got near Chicago there were literally HUNDREDS of sailboats!! Nuts as they are, they like that kind of weather.
Wet and bone tired, we made it to Hammond Marina in Hammond, Indiana. We are here for a week before we go to Chicago. If you have never been to Hammond Indiana, you aren’t missing anything. There is really nothing here to do, especially to keep one entertained for a week. The one saving grace is that there are a lot of other Loopers here so there are docktails and random gatherings to join in on. Oh, wait! There is the Horseshoe Casino right in the marina…yeah, no, that’s a bust too. They still allow smoking in the casinos here, so being in there for any period of time is tough. We went to a Chinese restaurant there last night for our 37th wedding anniversary dinner as the steakhouse is only open on weekends. Yeah, about that; the Midwest is by no means a culinary mecca. Most of the food we have experienced is significantly lacking in flavor, weather good or bad flavor, it’s just not there. Although the brats I had in Wisconsin were exceptional.
TRAVEL UPDATE
First off – the Amtrack railroad bridge that has to lift for passage down the Chicago River into the Illinois River, is stuck in the down position, which is 11.4 feet in height. No matter what we swing down or remove (mast, antennas, bimini) there is just no way we can get under that so…we now have to abandon that plan and take the Calumet River, the other way into the Illinois River. We have to come back through Hammond to get to the Calumet River…jeez!
Secondly, we just got word that the locks will not be opening on time and all the boats have been pushed back 5 days, which means that we are now going through the locks on the 12th instead of the 7th. Oh boy! Everyone is scrambling to have to figure out NOW WHAT! We were supposed to head to Chicago on the 1st. Now, after discussions and working with the Hammond Marina, we are here until the 11th, heading out on the 12th. All the other arrangements Michael has already made down the river now have to be changed as well.
We are still going to Chicago as that is where Bruce and Diane will be joining us and where we have scheduled activities, which includes an architectural boat tour of the things we will miss by not being able to go down the river in our boat, and a couple of restaurants by famous chefs I follow on TV. We will then be returning to Hammond Marina for, looks like, another week.
But, here is the fun! We will be paying for 2 marinas at the same time, Chicago and Hammond. We originally planned to depart from Chicago, but due to delay and the cost of the Chicago marina, we will be coming back to Hammond after a few days in Chicago, but due to the number of boats on waiting lists for dockage, we have to pay for the Hammond dock those days we will be in Chicago or we will lose the slip and not have anywhere to hang for the extra 5 days and anchoring is not an option around here. It’s always something and the fun just keeps a comin.
Thanks for following along on this journey, and yeah, I have noticed, from the comfort of your Lazy Boys. Look back in a while to see how/if we have progressed. With crossed fingers, Love to all, Gina and Mike