After stowing all of our belongings from our stay at the hotel. Max and I get busy trying to figure out a way to lower the Antenna mast on the Queen Ann without taking it all the way down... like we did the last time.
"We have got to be able to clear a 17-foot fixed bridge at Chicago" If we take it all the way off...we can clear 16 ft easily." I say, " But I hate to do that and loose communications. Our only other alternative is that will have to take the Calumet River, then circle back around to pick up the Illinois river... in order to get to the Mississippi at Grafton Illinois."
"We could take the antenna down and put it back up each time...because we have to be able to pass under the 17 ft bridge and we have to pass under "That Bridge" and get it back up and in operations before we get to the Fish Barriers" I explain.
"Which bridge are you talking about? Max asks, puzzled.
"That bridge" I say.
"Which fucking bridge is that?" he says, thinking that I am being a smartass...
There is a bridge on the Chicago river channel, that everyone calls "THAT BRIDGE" because it only has a 19foot clearance....and if the water happens to be a bit high, you don't even have that much room...so a lot of people have scraped the top of their boats or broken off their antennas on the bottom of the bridge...so if you say..."THAT BRIDGE" everyone that does the "loop" knows exactly, which bridge you are talking about!"
"Okay...so that explains the bridge...what are Fish Barriers?"
"Well, there is a very invasive fish, called an Asian Carp that is threatening the Great Lakes. If they manage to get into the lakes...they will totally destroy the commercial fishing industry on the lakes. These fish can grow to 4 ft long and can weigh up to 150 pounds and are voracious eaters....and can eat up all the food sources from the other fish species! They even jump up out of the water...when boats go by....people have been injured from being hit by the damn things.
"Bob and I ran into some of them on the Missouri on the way down... they weren't as big as these, but still a real pain in the ass, to have to deal with....literally!"
"Anyway...the Coast Guard have these fish barriers set up... that are electrically charged...to stun the fish...so that they cannot swim against the current of the river...keeping them out of the great lakes. If that fails....then that will most likely be the end of "the great loop!"
They will have no choice but to shut all access to the lakes down....and the great loop will then become the great u turn!
Sucks....but that is just how serious this "threat" from this species of fish is!
"I've got an idea" says Max
Down below deck he went....returning in a few moments with Ann's "stripper pole" and a handful of zip ties.
"So... you planning to install the stripper pole on the foredeck of the boat...and strip to scare the fucking fish away?"
"No" he says "Okay, here let's take these bolts out completely...and loosen these two until they are halfway out....so that the mast tower will tip over...then we zip tie this pole across these railings....so that when we tip the mast back, like this... lean it onto the pole...then zip tie the mast to the pole so that it can't go anywhere and Voila! We still have our antenna so we can use the radio...and will still be able to clear any of the bridges we need to clear at Chicago! Or on the Illinois river"
"Brilliant!" I exclaim " Now we can take the boats right through downtown Chicago and save ourselves traveling several miles out of our way!
When we go below deck on the Tia Maria, I tell the girls " Just saw Max have a stroke of genius!"
"He's got a nice cock...but I certainly wouldn't call it genius" Bob teased.
"He fixed the antenna mast on the Queen Ann so that we can raise it up, or tip it back...whenever we need to, so that we can clear low bridges with it! Once we get it back home...I plan to put hinges on it...so that it can become a permanent feature on the boat!"
"So that means we are ready to head for Chicago?" Ann asks
"Yep" I say, "Next stop will be the Navy pier so that you beautiful ladies can have a bit of "retail therapy!"
"Are you sure that you still want to stop there?" Ann says, "I mean we have just spent the last few days...living in luxury. Do you really want to waste yet another day of travel...just so that Bob and I can do a bit of shopping?"
"This is not your average shopping center...this place has amusement park rides, shopping venues, food venues...we could spend an entire day in there and not see it all."
"If the other two want to go...I will go, but I am by Chicago the way Max is by New York. Just thinking about going there, makes me feel uneasy! Guess I have seen way to many "gangster movies" over the years, just not sure that I could shop and enjoy myself...without constantly looking over my shoulder for the ghost of Al Capone coming to get me!
I present the idea to Bob and Max...
"Like before, I just don't like to be around crowds in big cities" Max replies " Might be a fun place to visit, but not something that I can't say that I would go out of my way to see"
"Well, Bob...what do you think?" I ask.
" I would kind of like to go there...at least for a little while. Don't have to spend the whole day...just stop and look around...maybe ride a couple of rides and when we are ready...we head on out!"
"Okay, we are about two hours away from Chicago....there is a transient Marina...right there at the pier. So even if we do get there by late afternoon...that would still give us enough time to take in a little bit of the pier...get something to eat...spend the night there...and head out again first thing in the morning."
"Is the marina safe?" Ann asks.
