The Captain's Logs are below.

Read the Crew's Views from John, KC, and Caroline as they reflect on their experiences in Asia.

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Chicago, Illinois

The sail to Chicago started out with no wind but turned into a very pleasant sail for a full 48 hours, the longest non-stop sail we have enjoyed so far this year. The wind never got stronger than 18 knots and mostly stayed around 8-10 knots, so the sea was always small. Our last evening underway was spent admiring the Chicago skyline under a clear sky with a dark rain cloud in the background stretching across the horizon behind the city. The lights of the city were in dramatic relief as the sky darkened further with approaching thunderstorms. My concern that these storms would bother us was laid to rest as they passed to our south and treated us to a spectacular lightening show with very bright bolts and inter-cloud strikes.

Windy

Arrival in Chicago at the appointed time of 12:30 p.m. was postponed slightly as we were having too much fun sailing around in circles with a couple of other sailboats that came out to greet us. Chicago's own Windy is a four-masted Lake Schooner, commissioned in 1996, that is used for short daysails from Navy Pier. Schooner Allegro is an old and well kept classic yacht designed by John Alden. The three of us entered the Chicago harbor area simultaneously and sailed about the end of Navy Pier shooting off cannons at every opportunity. We finally put an end to the fun and Pride II sailed right up to her dock space at the west wall. The crew did done an excellent job of handling sail but were nearly exhausted by the intense workout of tacking every 5 to 10 minutes.

Interestingly enough, our glamorous arrival in Chicago was not our "official" arrival. That occurred the next morning at a Welcome Ceremony attended by Lura Lynn Ryan, wife of the Governor of Illinois, and a representative from the Mayor's Office. We reenacted our arrival by pretending to sail in again as the press and the honored guests arrived at the Pier for a ceremony hosted by ATT Wireless in partnership with the managers of Navy Pier. This carefully choreographed press conference was mounted to to announce the Tall Ship 2000 event to occur on Navy Pier in September 2000, sponsored by ATT Wireless. Pride II was the dramatic backdrop for this announcement. A number of vessels were listed as coming. The most interesting to me is the Jeanne Johnston. She is a replica of an immigrant ship being built in Ireland right now. She is scheduled to sail with the Tall Ships coming to America next year. She is scheduled to stop in New York, Boston, and Quebec City before continuing on to Chicago. I am not aware of any immigrant ships getting to Chicago. But her arrival should stir up a lot of interest none the less.

Chicago was Pride II's big stop in the Lakes. Shewas there for six days and on most days we had at least two events scheduled. This gave me the opportunity to give each watch three days off in a row. The crew was excited. But then came a heat wave to beat any heat wave I have experienced aboard Pride II. To put this in perspective, Pride II has spent time in tropical waters. There it is not uncommon to find 95 degree temperature and high humidity. But I can't think of a time when the temperature got above 100, much less 105. High humidity and 105 degrees makes for a heat index of around 115.

The off watch could get to air-conditioning ashore. The on watch could not. By the second day of high temperature, the news media were full of health hazard warnings. Pride Inc. decided it was time to step in and provide hotel rooms for the crew, a gesture that was more than well received by the crew. Even so, daysails, dockside receptions, and open houses were pretty beastly events till the heat wave was pushed aside by a strong cold front. After passage of the cold front, those chores actually became pleasant again.
Also the crew could get some maintenance done. The companies that charted Pride II in Chicago included the Baltimore Convention and Visitors Association, allfirst Bank (formerly First National of Maryland), Tate Access Floors and partners (twice), ATT Wireless with Navy Pier (twice), Maryland Port Administration, and a private wedding.

Chicago is a fun town to be docked. There are so many choices for things to do when one has time off. It is like any big city, but Chicago's lakefront is special. Also the distance to get to the downtown is not more than a mile. The architecture is varied and spaced such that it is easy to enjoy. Museums are near by, too, just a short distance along the lakeshore. But what was unique this time were the many artistically modeled cows on display around the city. Yes, cows! Some 500 life size fiberglass cows, all decorated in unique get-ups by local artists, were everywhere one walked - even on the sides of buildings!

Go to Part 4: Racine and Milwaukee
Return to Part 1: Great Lakes, Wyandotte, and Lake Huron
Return to Part 2: Straights of Mackinaw