We left Du Sable Harbor at 7AM with 2 other Loopers to brave the short distance of Lake Michigan to Chicago Harbor Lock. The water was very choppy and once in the lock we discovered the lines were very short...you could not wrap them to your cleat and that forced you to hold on to the short line while the Michigan Lake was bouncing us all around. It was not a fun experience.
This lock was constructed to prevent rising water on Lake Michigan from raising the level of the river. The name Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal means just what the name implies. The canal connects Chicago with the inland rivers permitting ship traffic to go south via this system, and to take all sanitary waste south. Put another way. Chicago's waste does not pollute Lake Michigan, it flows south contributing to pollution on the Illinois and Mississippi Rivers ending up in the Gulf of Mexico,
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| Du Sable Harbor |
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| Leaving choppy Lake Michigan. |
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| Heading toward the Chicago Harbor Lock. |
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Entering the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal. We had to take the radar down in order to get under some of the low bridges on the Chicago River. The lowest bridge we had to clear was 17 feet.
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| We left early enough to avoid the ferry and water taxi traffic on the river. |
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Farewell Chicago!
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| Encountering our first of many barges on the river. |
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| Entering the electric fish barrier which is designed to keep the Asian Carp from entering the Chicago River. |
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| Blue Sand??? |
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| With the barges tied to the shore edge we had to wait for the tug to finish in order for us to pass. |
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