First day without the car so it was good to really stretch our legs – and that we did !
We had a quick breakfast at the bakery next door then walked down to the river to do a river and lake cruise. Adrienne had picked out Mercury Cruises as it was one of the few which combined the river and the lake. The weather was not looking promising with the forecast for rain throughout the day. But we at least started off dry.
The river is at a lower level than the lake so there is a trip through a lock to start. The level only changes about 6 feet and instead of actually pumping water into the lock, they open the gate a fraction and let the water in until the levels match – and then move into the lake. The lock area is alongside Navy Pier and there are a few sections of breakwater to ease the swell on the lake closer in.
Leaving the lock into the lake 
Out on the lake looking back 
It’s a big city ! 
There was some event in the city today and the Blue Angels hornet plane demonstration team was performing. Only problem was with the low cloud, half the time they came around all you could hear was the tremendous noise of the planes but see nothing ! We finally did get a glimpse as we came back to the lock – they were actually re-fuelling at this stage !
The Blue Angels re-fuelling
Here is a link to a little video – leaving the lock and heading out to the lake – Navy Pier is in view as we pan back for a city view and the lock we have just come through.
With the rain around, we managed to get a bit wet on our boat tour but most of the time it was only light and we managed to stay on the top deck. Luckily when the heavy rain came we were waiting in the lock to go back into the river so we escaped downstairs.
After our boat cruise our next stop was the Art Institute of Chicago. On a wet day it was full of people ! We wandered around taking in a few of the most popular galleries – including of course the original American Gothic !
At the Art Institute
We then made the trek out to Navy Pier. It is a popular place – until Millennium Park the most popular in Chicago – with many activities – ferris wheel, children’s museum, numerous shops, restaurants etc – and we stopped here to have a late lunch at Riva’s Crab Shack.
Arriving at Navy Pier 
The Miller Lite Beer Garden 
Walking around the Pier 
Finally reached the end – it’s a long way !
Here is another little video – finally caught the Blue Angels below the clouds – don’t blink or you’ll miss them !
Adrienne’s legs were giving out at this stage which saved me a trip up to the 360 Chicago observation deck at the top of the John Hancock building (phew ! – I just had to put up with a visit to Macy’s later in the evening 😅) so we made our way back to our hotel. When we got back we were intrigued with some filming going on in the street below. What it was will remain one of life’s little mysteries !
The next big thing ??
After resting our weary legs for a bit, we made our way to the Riverwalk again for a light dinner at O’Brien’s and to people watch for a while and then headed back to the hotel (via Macy’s of course !)
Tomorrow, it’s back on the road …
Today’s Tour Trivia – The Chicago River is one of the few in the world that flows backwards. A system of 3 canals was built from 1892 to 1922 to reverse the flow – and empty the sewage into the Mississippi River instead of Lake Michigan !