River and lake cruise

My final full day in Chicago was free of baseball games, so I decided to go on one of the river and lake tours.

I thought it was going to be difficult to get a ticket, given that it was Labor Day, but actually it was easy to get a tour ticket.  I think that's because the company run so many tours, that they have enough capacity to keep everybody happy.

First Lady tours have 5 separate docks for all their vessels.  It was only $45, for a 90 minute tour, which I thought was good value.  The tour was slightly longer as we had to wait for the locks to get out from the lower-level river to the higher Lake Michigan.

Once out on the lake, the tours don't go out beyond the breakwaters that protect the harbour from the waves.  Although it's not tidal, the wind can whip up strong waves, and the water on the other side of the wall looked quite choppy compared the inside.

The tour guide gave us a commentary on the things to see on the shoreline and the history of things, the usual sort of things, but he was very good.

At some points, he stopped talking so we could just look at the views.  It would have been better if the gap hadn't been filled with music, but there we go.

You can see from the photos that it was yet another lovely day and the warmest of my days in Chicago.

I had wondered about whether or not I should take a coat with me as we were going out of the lake, but I'm glad that I didn't in the end, as it was not at all cold.

I did forget to bring my hoodie with me on this holiday, which is annoying because that would have been perfect for keeping the sun off, although would have been more useful when I get to San Francisco to take to the games to put on in the evenings when it gets chilly.  I may have to buy one when I get there.

After the boat tour returned, I went for dinner at a French restaurant, La Grande Boucherie, not far from my hotel, which was a lovely Art Nouveau style place to eat.  Although they have outdoor seating on the pavement, I was inside, which was almost the same anyway, as they have huge windows that they can open/remove, so you have people passing by quite close.