Transit upriver from Gulf Coast to Lake Michigan

I have been asked more than once if I would say something about the up-rivers delivery of a Grand Banks 36 powered by a single Ford-Lehman 120. I had not thought to add anything about it here, but since I was asked, I will provide a brief summery. Anybody interested in the looong version can read it at www.cruisinthrough.blogspot.com.

A friend sold his immaculate GB36 to a Canadian. The story about how that happened is interesting in itself and involves a hurricane, photos of his boat work posted on the internet, and the Canadian's lucky search. Before the actual sale, the seller and I briefly discussed how much fun he and his wife were going to have delivering the boat to Canada leaving from my pier and running up the east coast. The buyer had pressing family concerns which obviated his being away from home during the period of time envisioned for the delivery. In the end, my friend the seller thought better of the idea of self-delivery for a number of reasons. What would you do about delivery if you had the buyer's money in hand, or would you rather do a self-delivery before money changed hands?

So, anyway, I piped up that with nothing to do all Spring and early Summer, Mary and I would be willing to run the boat up there. After the parties agreed to the sale, I went to the boat to meet the buyer and discussed the delivery. For a number of reasons, he wanted the boat run up the Western Rivers instead of via the US East Coast. Hmm, says I to myself, I have been up the Tenn-Tom a couple of times, but that 220-mile run up the Mississippi from Cairo to Grafton presents a challenge for an 8.3-MPH-in-still-water boat. A bit of research and help from T&T listees with that experience convinced me that it could be accomplished, given the right river conditions, and I eventually agreed to undertake the 1400-mile, mostly upstream, delivery from my brother's pier in Orange Beach (boat moved and sold there to avoid heavy Florida taxation on the Canadian buyer) to Michigan City, 36 miles east of Chicago on Lake Michigan.

We were about set to depart in early April when sudden record-breaking rains up north swelled the rivers making them impassable. So the boat sat for weeks. I might add at this point that the US Corps of Engineers multiple websites on the rivers are quite helpful in ferreting out what is happening on the rivers, but you need to spend days getting through them all and placing them in a favorites list in order to have them handy when needed. However, NOWHERE is there an estimate of what the current speed in MPH might be.

The new owner and I corresponded frequently over the course of the delivery and we never out of synch on planning or financial needs. He wired additional monies to my checking account as cost mounted, and I sent him regular Excel spreadsheets detailing every penny.

We finally got underway on the 29th of May and made Demopolis in a few days through soggy weather hanging over the Gulf Coast. After several days facing two MPH head currents, we spent several days in Demopolis while worse weather passed by. The first night at anchor after Demopolis, a generator exhaust system casualty and a coincidental battery charging problem left us no choice but to get ourselves to Columbus Marina where the manager more or less took control of the generator issue in a very professional way, while I handled the battery charging issue. Nine days later, we were underway again with a new battery charging system and a repaired generator exhaust and new generator starter solenoid (found burned up during the exhaust work) to the tune of around 1500 bucks in parts and labor. Later on during the trip another charging improvement was made when I got an updated external voltage regulator installed.

Up to Aqua Harbor Marina at the head of the Tombigbee Waterway and then blazing down the Tennessee with a two MPH tail current to cross over the Land Between the Lakes via the short Barkley Canal to end up at Green Turtle Bay Resort at Grand Rivers, KY where we left the boat for a month because the Mississippi was again up too high for us.

Returning to the boat in early August, I installed an AIS transponder, AIS display capable VHF radio, two new VHF radio antennas (SWR meter said old ones were toast), the newly overhauled Balmar 100-Amp alternator, and its updated external regulator. Then on 9 August we were off again choosing the Barkley Lock and the Cumberland River to get to the Ohio instead of the barge-clogged Kentucky Dam and down the Ohio River to within a few miles of the Mississippi. The agreement with the owner was that if we could not make at least 4 MPH against the current of the Mighty Mississippi that we would give up and return the boat to GTB with him deciding what to do at a later date. Luckily that is exactly the speed we were able to make against the swirling and wildly upwelling river, and for the next five days we often used full rudder in either direction to counter the swirling waters. Autopilot was mostly useless.

We spent three days in Grafton before heading up the 320-mile run on Illinois/Des Plaines River at a blazing 7 MPH on a mostly uneventful run which included a pass through the noisy canyon of downtown Chicago with the mast down and a resultant air draft of 15'5" to the bimini top - I could touch the low steel of several 16'6" bridges.

Next morning, we were underway from DuSable Marina early for the 36-mile run across Lake Michigan arriving in Michigan City, IN at 1130 on 23 August, moved off the boat (we filled a Grand Caravan van with all the stuff (including my own SuperMax anchor and many pounds of tools), and turned the boat over in a two-hour systems briefing to the owners.

Total days underway - 23.

I've been up the Illinois and out on to the lakes a couple of times and always enjoyed both. I've only went against the Mississippi current from Grafton to the QC areas and it does make for a long day.

More info on your trip up river.

Liked reading your overview of moving the boat up the Mississippi. We are planning to move a boat with about the same speed limitations from Green a Turtle Bay to Chicago.

I am assuming you were using the St. Louis gage as a point of reference water volume/current speed. What were the gage readings?

From Cairo to Grafton, where did you stop? I am assuming you anchored out several days

How was the barge traffic? Were the captains helpful and responsive? Did you have ais?

We are thinking late winter will be the time we will go, as soon as ice is not a problem in local marinas. Any advice or helpful hints would be appreciated

Thanks

Great original post! Rich, are you the same guy who used to pilot aircraft carriers? If so, the buyer had little to worry about.

I apologize for missing you question before, but if you will follow the hyperlink to my blog on this first post I wrote, all of your questions about where we stopped and any advice or observations I have are there. I will say that our AIS failed just as we got on the the Mississippi at Cairo, but barge traffic was not heavy, and we did not miss it at all. It was repaired at Grafton and was helpful getting through the Illinois River. We had no need to talk to tow boats at with the exception of a place near the Chicago fish barrier where they held us up due to some testing of the thing. A local tow boat was very helpful there.

I may be the guy you are thinking about regarding aircraft carriers, but it was only twice in a sixteen year career of piloting many US Navy ships, mostly destroyers and frigates of one lass or another. It really doesn't matter whether it is a rowboat or a carrier, nothing is better than controlling a vessel on the water!!!

I purchased my Mainship 34T near Joliet IL and moved it to Knoxville Tn in June 2015. A week of thunderstorms in the midwest had raised levels in the Illinois and Mississippi rather substantially - at or near flood stage. I don't recall actual levels, but current in the Illinois ran about 9mph, and 13mph in the Mississippi. Navigation buoys were simply gone and I depended heavily on the charts. I faced a current of about 5 mph moving up the Ohio to the Cumberland. Those towboat drivers pushing upstream were unhappy, and were quite discourteous to me, even when I contacted them as soon as I saw them asking how I could best stay out of their way.

Rich, that sounds like an interesting trip, but one not on my bucket list. It looks like another high water year for the Mississippi again this year.
We do hope to be over in your area in the boat mid April or so depending on weather etc. I'll give you a call well in advance.
Steve

Rich:
Thanks for your posts and write ups. We successfully moved our boat up the Mississippi from Lake Barkley KY to Chicago, following your path, about 2 weeks ago. Your write ups really helped set our expectations. It took us a total of 9.5 days underway (Five down the Ohio and up the Mississippi to Alton. and 4.5 more up the Mississippi/Illinois/Des Plaines/Ship Canal/Chicago River to Lake Michigan.) We faced rising river conditions the entire way, arriving in Alton as the St. Louis Gage topped 17 feet. The Illinois was ok for the first two days, then rain brought it above flood stage and going was very slow (Sometimes less than 3 knts above Starved Rock) Two breakdowns added a couple of elapsed days (Alternator and Shaft Stuffing Box) both were able to be addressed.

Coming Into downtown Chicago on the River and out of the lock on the Chicago River into Lake Michigan, early Sunday morning was a great feeling of success.

Paul - Oma, KK Manatee