Lake Michigan to Chicago and Beyond
August 24, 2025
Later afternoon we took Heidi out for a walk heading along the channel. As we stepped off the dock, Heidi spied a mink; she just stopped and stared at. Was surprised that she didn’t go after it. The walk along the channel was brisk; the winds had picked up significantly and the clouds were low and dark, but skating right along. The incoming waves went from two-footers to four-foot rollers. We watched a small sailboat fighting its way out the channel. Two of the people on board were sitting on the side. Watching the boat dipped after cresting a roller, they moved to the cockpit. None of the people on board were wearing life jackets. Maybe they are given the boat a test run; still, we would not have been comfortable not wearing life jackets. Actually, if we can help it, we would not be traveling in these conditions. Not 10 minutes later, we saw the sailboat coming back into the channel.
While prepping dinner, Lauren noticed that we were out of propane. We were still using our first tank from when we started our journey back in North Carolina. It’s a 20 lb tank. We were surprised it lasted this long as Lauren does a lot of cooking. Thankfully, we had a second tank. When we pick up our rental car this coming week, we will get the tank refilled or replaced.
August 25, 2025
Last night, Grace came over and she taught us a card game called Five Crowns. Bob was happy to stay aboard their boat; he’s just not a card game player. We caught on pretty quick and played a second game; it was an enjoyable evening.
During the night we had a substantial downpour and the winds never abated; glad we kept the Seakeeper going. This morning, the winds had died down, the rains had stopped and we walked into town and had breakfast. Brian turned off the Seakeeper thinking the worst of the waves and winds were over or dying down. Afterwards, we walked a bit of the downtown. Back on board, Lauren had a message from Grace; she was walking to Walgreens and the grocery store – would Lauren like to accompany her. So off they went. About 1:30, Bob and Grace joined us to visit the Maritime Museum. We then walked a few streets downtown and then stopped for at a Mexican restaurant. Lauren was feeling chilled and a bit lethargic, so she ordered an Irish Coffee. The waitress said they only made Mexican Coffee. Lauren asked her if they had Jameson – “yes” and Baileys – “no, but we have Kahlua”. So, Lauren said that was fine if they made the coffee with the Baileys and Kahlua. The coffee was delivered, hot with whipped cream on top along with a shot of Jameson and a shot of Kahlua on the side; hmmmmm. It was not easy pouring the shots into the mug of coffee; the Kaula was too sweet, so just a little of that was dribbled in. By the time we left the restaurant, the skies had darkened, threatening another downpour and it had gotten rather windy. Most people were walking around in pants, sweatshirts or jackets. Walking the dock to our boat, Lauren notice one of our large fenders had broken loose and was floating nearby, thankfully it was bobbing between the docked boats and the marina’s retaining wall (made up of rather large rocks). Brian was able to climb down on the rocks and used our boat hook to snag the fender; the line was chewed right through. We have extra lines on board, so Brian replaced the line and tied the buoy back on. Lauren took Heidi out for a walk and they walked the length of the channel going out; she wanted to see what the water was doing. The waves coming into the channel had lessened, but were still three-foot rollers and at the mouth of the bay, it was a churning mess. It would have been miserable just trying to get out of the channel and a rather uncomfortable ride for anyone wanting to travel today. Back on board, Lauren discovered Brian had turned the Seakeeper back on as the boat was rocking quite a bit; no sense in being uncomfortable and miserable.
August 26, 2025
Lauren made blueberry pancakes. We decided to pick up our rental vehicle early so that we were not traveling on the Holiday weekend. We checked in with marina to make sure our boat was still in their records for rest of week and we were okay in the slip they assigned us; all was good.
Brian caught up on bills, made arrangements for an Uber ride to pick up the rental vehicle, re-made the bed with clean bedding and packed his clothing. After picking up the rental, he also replaced our propane tank. Lauren got two loads of laundry done, scrubbed down the galley and head, stripped the bed, packed her clothing and bathroom necessities, Heidi’s paraphernalia, replaced all towels and cloths in both the bathroom and kitchen, scrounged for all the empty jam and other preserved jars that were waiting a return to home base and finished the Jodi Picoult book so that she could hand it off to Grace on State of Grace. State of Grace is leaving the marina tomorrow morning around 7; we should be leaving about the same time. Hopefully, we will meet up with them again on our Loop journey.
Tomorrow morning will be a last-minute packing of perishables and we will be on our way home.
Brian reading: Running Blind by Lee Child
Lauren: The Book of Two Ways by Jodi Picoult
September 6, 2025
We drove home, but before the start of the Labor Day weekend to avoid anticipated holiday traffic; 14 and ½ hours – ugh! There is always too much to do in the little bit of time that we spend at home-base. We got to be with family and friends, tons of weeding of our perennial beds, pruning rose bushes, forsythia, mowing the lower field, taking care of four dogs while our daughter and son-in-law took a much needed few days away. Lauren baked cookies to bring back to the boat, grocery shopping (non-perishables), laundry (always), errands, medical appointments, Brian spent a day with his mother taking her for fried fish and ice cream, scrubbing the seedling pots (a few hundred) and trays that were used for this past Spring’s starter plants, Brian made a crutch for the mast, taught friends how to play Five Crowns (thanks to Grace), etc.
We left home Friday late morning and drove 7 hours to Erie, PA and got a room. Lauren had a horrible migraine and sciatica, so she, unfortunately, couldn’t help with the driving. After checking into our hotel, it was off for a quick bite to eat, back to the hotel for a nice hot shower, and then crashed. Left this morning about 7:00 and arrived at the marina at 2:00. Traffic wasn’t heavy and Lauren was able to help with the driving. When Lauren wasn’t driving, Heidi spent the entire time sleeping in her lap. When we got back to the boat, the first thing we noticed was that the cover to one of the fenders was shredded as a result of the rough weather they had while we were gone. Brian’s first order of business was to open all of the sea cocks and start the Seakeeper as the boat was really rocking. He then unloaded the car and Lauren stowed it all away except for Brian’s miscellaneous boat paraphernalia. Brian met Chris on the dock; Chris had been in a sailing race today and had all kinds of questions regarding our travel on the Loop (he saw our Loop flag). Because Chris had imminent plans, Brian invited him to the boat tomorrow to discuss the trip. First thing in the morning we will shop for perishables and return the rental vehicle. Brian will replace the non-working mast light and catch up on expense log. He will also change out the fuel filters; could be another reason why our engine was losing rpms. Monday we are scheduled to move on from South Haven Marina. Paul and Jill on Pelican have made it back to their boat after a being away for a couple of weeks. They are now in Grand Haven and would like to join us again when we start moving on. The first good day of travel would be Monday, so we could extend our day here for one more day and wait for them to get here; then we could all leave Tuesday. Most likely we will not go from here across Lake Michigan to Chicago (58 miles). We will likely travel along the coast and making at least two stops before hopping over to Chicago; will discuss with Paul and Jill. We have slip reservations in Chicago at the Navy Pier Thursday and will be there for a few days giving us time to see the sites. Just saw the news that there are 300 ICE agents already in Chicago and Trump is threatening to send the armed forces in so that the city knows what he means by “The Department of War”. WTHey! We are so disgusted with this current administration!!!!
Anywho, we are looking forward to moving on.
Brian reading: Faithless by Karin Slaughter
Lauren: The Fifth Witness by Michael Connelly
September 8, 2025
Yesterday morning we drove to the American Legion for breakfast. They serve breakfast to the public every Sunday. There were quite a few people partaking and it was a good breakfast with many choices. Next, we drove to the local supermarket, Meijer and provisioned with fresh produce. After dropping Lauren off to the boat to take care of the groceries, Brian returned the rental vehicle. Mid-afternoon we took a long walk along the channel and then all through the town. Paul on Pelican relayed to us that they discovered an oil leak and were trying to figure that out, so they will not be coming to Grand Haven today as planned. We stayed on today, thinking we would meet up with them. Tomorrow we will move on and eventually meet up with Paul and Jill at the Navy Pier in Chicago.
This morning, while out walking Heidi, Lauren saw Iron Marriage pull in. It’s been a while since we’ve seen Rick and Jennifer. Rick’s mother was traveling with them for a bit. They are also heading to the Navy Pier, so we may see them there.
September 9, 2025
Tried to leave South Haven, but while the engine was warming up and Brian was tending fenders, the engine quit. Brian figured right away that there was an air problem in the fuel filters. So, he fixed that issue. Left the dock at 5:50 am (not a fan of leaving or arriving in the dark). About 10 minutes out of the channel, the engine died again. Brian worked on the fuel filters; engine started up – we let it idle for a bit before starting out. Not 10 minutes later, the same issue. Thankfully we were not in the channel and there were no fishing boats out and about. This time, Brian smeared oil on the O-ring of the fuel filter before putting it back together. Worked!!! The forecast was for 1 foot or less on the waves and 10 knots of wind. The waves were 2-3 feet; it was sloppy and uncomfortable. Heidi had to be dosed and Lauren was queasy for most of the trip. The waves didn’t die down til we were about 2.5 hours out from Chicago. We arrived at the Navy Pier Dock at 3pm. After docking, the first thing Lauren does before shutting the engine down is to check the engine hours. The reading was exactly the same as it was when we left South Haven – oops! Brian discovered that a wire connected to the alternator had come loose. A simple fix if he has a wire butt connector. In the meantime, he was able to temporarily connect the wires and now the engine hours are being recorded and the alternator is charging the batteries; we discovered also that the batteries were down to 30% capacity after 10 hours of traveling. Now that we are plugged in at the dock, the batteries are being charged. Pelican is having fuel pump issues and it has delayed their joining us coming to Chicago. We came in earlier than planned, so hope they will be able to catch up with us before heading down the Illinois River to the Mississippi. Since we didn’t eat much because of the constant rocking, we walked to Giordano’s for Chicago’s deep-dish pizza. The place was crowded and really noisy; they pizza was delicious!
Tomorrow morning at 7:30, we have a technician coming to the boat to do the annual maintenance on our Seakeeper.
September 13, 2025
Well, we’ve been remiss in keeping up with the diary. Craig, the technician for the Seakeeper came out and did a thorough maintenance checkup. He was here for a couple of hours. He was very engaging and explained all that he was doing. We discovered we have another two years on the maintenance program – yeah! Craig said to try and use the Seakeeper more than we have been, because it’s still under warranty and if anything breaks before the end date, well, we would be taken care of. The last several days numerous Looper boats have arrived at the Navy Pier. We enjoyed meeting up with boaters we had previously met along the way and those we hadn’t met yet. We all had stories to tell. The last several days have gone by in a blur. We’ve been doing a lot of walking about the city; took a bus ride to the Art Museum and walked several parks. It’s enjoyable to people watch.
Yesterday, Paul and Jill on Pelican finally made it here. Lauren cooked them dinner of baked mac ‘n cheese with ham, asparagus and a salad of tomatoes and cucumbers with an oil and balsamic dressing. It was all delicious and Paul and Jill really appreciated it, especially after a long day on the water. Jill is on crutches because of a torn meniscus and will most likely be until they end their Loop trip. Today we all took the architectural boat tour. It took us through the heart of the city and the tour guide explained the history of the beginnings of Chicago and the stories behind alot of the skyscrapers. Our tour was originally scheduled for 9 am, but a terrific thunderstorm ripped through for several hours this morning. We were able to change our tickets to this afternoon. This is a city we would gladly travel back to and spend more time. Back on board, we put our bimini down to begin our journey tomorrow on the south branch of the Chicago River through the downtown and onto the Illinois River. Tomorrow will be a long day on the water. We will have to traverse two locks. We hope to get as far as Joliet, Illinois. There is a free wall to tie up to, though State of Grace messaged us that it’s a rough wall. One night will be plenty; just enough to rest up to travel. Pelican will be traveling along with us. Brian helped Paul get his mast down; the lowest bridge we will have to travel under is 17 feet high; so, we’ll have inches to spare. Lauren will drive the boat from the fly deck going through the city – should be a spectacular ride!
September 14, 2025
Cast off at 7:00 from the Navy Pier and headed to our first lock which was literally right around the corner. Pelican is traveling with us and we were the only two boats in the lock. Once through, we had a meandered through downtown Chicago and operated the boat from the fly bridge. It was nice not having any tour boats or other pleasure craft on the water. What views of city – spectacular!! At the next lock, we had to wait two hours. While waiting, five other pleasure craft jumped in front of us; we were worried there wouldn’t be enough room for us at the dock wall in Joliet. It was a beautiful hot sunny day, but absolutely no breeze. We were able to snag wall space in Joliet for the night. So glad to be done – the heat is draining. After everything squared away, showers, etc. we met the other boats that came through the last lock. Most of the boaters were Loopers.
September 15, 2025
The previous evening, we had an impromptu meeting regarding our travels for the next day. Brian was appointed the spokesperson for when we all had to navigate the locks we would encounter. We all agreed that one person speaking to the lock master versus everyone bugging him with the same questions would be more efficient. At least that was the plan. We also agreed to keep the speed down, as two sailboats could not go high speeds (not that we travel fast anyways). Of course, it didn’t quite work out as planned – no surprise there. The first two locks went according to plan. Along the way we saw a lot of bird life; white pelicans, egrets, herons, cormorants and many kingfishers. There wasn’t much for barge traffic on the river, so we were all thankful for that. Before the third lock, there were a few boats that just wanted to go fast. The rest of us just puttered along trying to stay together. When we arrived at the third lock, there was an issue with a barge getting stuck in the chamber. They tried to haul him out with a steel cable, but that snapped. Took close to two hours to fix. Half of the barges were on the downside and the other half on the upside of the river; was just too large of a load to get thru the lock. We were able to tie off to a cement caisson. Pelican also snagged a caisson. We shut down, had lunch and read. We watched a raccoon near the water’s edge for a few minutes. The boats that had gone on ahead earlier in the day, were stuck hours before us waiting for the lock to open. Boats coming up behind us either motored up and down the river or anchored. The lock master let us all into the lock, before having the rest of the barges go through, holding us up even longer. He was happy that we were all so patient and that no one was complaining to him. In all it was a 4 hour time frame to get through the lock. We arrived at Heritage marina and docked at 6:30; a long, tiring day.
September 16, 2025
This morning after his run, Brian was able to scrub down the one side of the boat that he was unable to reach when we were docked at the Navy Pier. Lauren got some laundry done. We took a ride in the curtesy car that was available with Paul and Jill on Pelican to get fresh produce. When we got back to the marina, Bryce Wallace, the marina host talked to us and other Loopers about what to expect from here on down to and through the Mississippi River. We could only stay for the first hour, as we scheduled a hike with Kevin and Tina on Cross Rhodes. Bryce will be giving the talk again tomorrow, so we will sit in on again. At this point in our journey, finding dock space and/or even anchorages will be pretty scarce as there are not a lot of options and too many Loopers vying for the same end-of-day resting areas.
