The Fish are Jumpin' ...

Wednesday, September 3 & 4, 2014

...and our spirits are high! We continued on our way southwest along the Illinois River leaving Joliet, departing early and cruising through more industrial area. We had one lock for the day, the Marseilles Lock.  We tied up to the last bollard and another boat, Navigator, rafted up with us since there weren’t very many bollards. Apparently the huge barges don’t need very many places to tie up.




At the bottom of a deep lock we were tied to the bollard on the wall and another
Looper boat, Navigator, rafted up to us
 

We passed lots of tows and barges and the air quality was less than desirable and, shall we say, very smelly. We longed for the fresh and crisp air in the Canadian waters. After several hours we reached our destination of Ottawa, IL which had a short town wall where there was one space left for us between Snail Male and Joint Adventure. Fortunately they had some shorter docks where our traveling companions on TA TA were able to tie up.

Looper boats waiting for a lock in a very industrial area
 

You may have heard that the Asian carp is an invasive species that has been taking over in the Illinois River. We went through the electric fish barrier up on the Chicago Sanitary Canal and after we were through it I asked John if this was when the carp start jumping on the boat. We really didn’t see them until we got to Ottawa where they have a concentration of them and we saw lots jumping. One even jumped over TA TA’s bow when they were tied in their slip.

Fish and Game carp catcher
 

The Fish and Wildlife people have a special boat that we watched the next morning. It has nets that can be lowered and then they put an electrical charge in the water. This causes the fish to jump out of the water and some of them land in the nets. They are researching the best way to catch the fish and ways to use them. Fortunately China is turning out to be a big market - wonderful - send them back to where they came from.

Nets are lowered and they are ready to catch fish
 

When they set off the DC charge the fish started jumping!
 

Captain's Log: September 3, 2014

Departed: Joliet, Il town wall
Engine hrs.: 9
Actual hrs.: 10
Arrived: Ottawa town docks 5:00
Early departure and hope to get to Ottawa - 3 locks to go through. 30 min to 1 hr. delay at all locks. Starboard engine overheating at first lock, port eng. slightly hot, but water is getting warm! Will check strainers, etc - all else is well.
Wx: sunny day, humid

Friday, September 5, 2014

Since it is after Labor Day it seems like we are almost the only pleasure boats on the waterway besides the tows and barges and definitely the only ones going through the locks.

We waited over an hour for this large barge to lock up and it stopped just
outside the lock and left a very small opening for us to get in
 




We were the first one out of the lock, with 5 Looper boats behind us
Joint Adventure and If right behind us 
 

Soil has been washed away from all the tree's roots along the shore
 

 At Henry Harbor we joined Meander and If. TA TA had traveled with us. We took a walk around the little town and late in the afternoon and later in the day Julie and Stu  from Meander brought out a watermelon to share. It cooled us off on a warm day.

Captain’s Log: September 5, 2014

Departed: Ottawa, IL 6.6 a.m.
Engine hours: 9 hr. – 37.53 nautical miles
Actual hours: 7 hr.  
Arrived: Henry Harbor, IL town wall 2:45
Departed with TA TA and Meander, headed for Starved Rock Lock, 4 other looper boats also joined us. Delay for 1 ½ hr at lock then smooth cruise down to Henry, .5 mph current pushing us.
Wx: hot and humid, cold front went through in late afternoon, very little rain.

Thursday and Friday, September 6 & 7, 2014

These two days were spent in Peoria, Il. At first we arrived at the Illinois Valley Yacht Club, or the IVY Club, which was very nice, with several other Loop boats there. It was 5 miles out of the city with no access to any walking or shopping so the second day we moved just a few miles down the way to the Peoria city docks which put us in the center of the waterfront area. They supplied power and they were free!

We saw lots of white pelicans along the way - hundreds migrating south
 

The white pelicans are migrating south from their summer breeding ground in Canada. We saw them flying in large flocks circling up and up. Roger explained that they follow the thermals up until they find a strong wind current and then they catch it and are on their way south. Other birds we saw were a few bald eagles, egrets and blue herons.

John takes care of a carp that jumped into the rocks and got stuck by our boat
 



Early morning at the IVY Club
 

Captain’s Log: September 6, 2014

Departed: Henry Harbor 8:00 a.m.
Engine hours: 3.8
Actual hours: 4 hrs.  5 min
Nautical miles covered: 28.58
Arrived: Illinois Valley Yacht Club (IVY Club), Peoria, IL 12:05 p.m.
Wx: cool, morning clouds,/sunny. Temp 60-70 degrees – no locks

 Sunday, September 7, 2014

John greeting Mary on TA TA as they approach the Peoria city docks
 

This day cruise paddle boat was moored nearby and played loud calliope music
 

Mary and I went to the Peoria museum where they had a
Ripley's Believe it or Not exhibit - this camel is made entirely of
small plastic toys  
 

Docktails with Roger and John plus new friends from two other looper boats,
Summerland and Terri Ann that came in for the night
 

Moon rising over Peoria bridge - note the very high pilings holding the docks -
the river sometimes floods over 20 feet and these are floating docks
 

Captain’s Log: September 7, 2014

Departed: IVY Club 8:25
Engine hours: .9 hrs.
Actual hours: 45 min.
Nautical miles covered: 5.42
Arrived: Peoria Town Dock 9:40
Wx: Short cruise to Peoria Town Dock, no wind, clear skies – NICE.