Seneca, IL and Holding - Day 342-344

August 21-23, 2016
Day 342-344

Sunday morning was delightful after several days of rain and storms so we prepared to leave.  Three of the boats on the wall in Joliet were underway about the time we got up at 7:00 am.  We left about 8:30 am along with the other boat on the wall.  Just a couple of miles below the wall in Joliet was   our first lock of the day.  We locked through with the other boat Lydia E and for the first time we were in the lock with a commercial tow pushing 5 barges.

We left the lock and headed downstream for the next lock which was about 15 miles away.  When we were within about 5 miles of the lock I called them to see what time we would be able to lock through.  I was told that they were filling the lock in about 20 minutes for downbound pleasure boaters, so if I was there by them we could lock through at the same time.  When we reached the lock about 10 minutes later we found the three boats who had left the Joliet wall early waiting on this lock.  We all locked through together.

After leaving that lock we began to notice that the water level in the river was high and the banks were flooded.  In addition, the water was full of logs and branches due to the high water.  We also started hearing a Coast Guard broadcast on the VHF radio strongly advising pleasure boaters to not transit the Marseilles, IL lock and dam area due to the high water and strong current flow above the dam.  Of course, this was the next lock in our journey downstream so we decided to go to a marina before the lock and dam and wait for the dangerous conditions to subside.  We found out later that this dam had been the site of a commercial tow accident just three years earlier when the tow was unable to maneuver against the high current at the dam during flood conditions and was swept into the dam.

That night we had dinner at the restaurant and were very pleasantly surprised.  Sharon took a chance the Maryland Crabcakes which turned out to be quite good and they were indeed Maryland style crabcakes!  This is very unusual outside of Maryland as many places think they can "improve" on the crabcakes, but we all know there is no improvement possible on a true Maryland crabcake.  I had a ribeye steak sandwich with sauteed onions and mushrooms which was also quite good and contained a sizeable piece of ribeye.  We also found a very good beer, I have to say one of the best and most balanced IPAs I have every tasted.

The next day the Coast Guard was still broadcasting the warning about transiting the area so we elected to stay put.  We borrowed the marina's courtesy car and went into the small town of Seneca, IL.  Sharon went to the laundromat while I bought some boat supplies at the hardware and a few provisions at the grocery.

Back at the boat Sharon prepared and froze several meals so we could have them quickly later.  I caught up on some boat projects, changing the generator impeller, replacing the pressure switches on the fuel transfer pump and tightening some connectors.

For the third day, the Coast Guard was still broadcasting the warning even though the water had gone down a foot.  I called the lock and the Lockmaster advised me that most of the commercial tows were waiting and that the conditions above the dam were dangerous so he also recommended against coming through.  We took his advice and stayed another day.