Midwest Road Trip
Part 4
Sunday was going to be another day in Chicago. I got up relatively early, went down to the hotel restaurant and got some breakfast, and brought it back up to the room to eat. Then, with Elyse in tow, we went out in the HR-V to Clark Street Beach. The idea was to take the drone out over Lake Michigan and get some photos. I was originally going to go down to Touhy Beach in Chicago proper, but then I realized that in the grand scheme of things, the two locations were quite similar, i.e. there would be very little difference as far as what I was planning to photograph was concerned, and Clark Street Beach was a whole lot closer. Therefore, Clark Street it was.
Finishing up, we went back to the hotel and put the HR-V away. This would be a transit day, and as such, the HR-V was staying in. The drone also stayed in for the rest of the day, as I would not need it for what we had planned. Sis and Chris had other commitments during the day, so we would catch up with them later on. So Elyse, Kyle, and I were going about largely on our own.
We started out by walking over to the Davis Metra station. This was the commuter rail station, separate from the CTA station, though the two are right next to each other. We were taking Metra into Chicago, mainly because the Union Pacific North Line was faster than taking CTA the equivalent distance, and with fewer stops.
Davis Street station.
A crew works on a maintenance vehicle while our train approaches in the distance.
Our train arrives, with a cab car in the lead and the locomotive at the rear.
Inside the train.
When we got to Ogilvie at the end of the line, the first thing that we did was go back and see what locomotive that we had for our trip. Since train arrived with a cab car in the lead, we never had the opportunity to see which unit was providing the power when it first rolled up. We were curious mainly to see if it was 210, a unit which has a major enthusiast in the railfan community. Once we verified that it was not 210, we went into the station.
Walking back to the station after verifying the identity of the locomotive.
“STAIRS” sign on the platform at Ogilvie. This is a very Chicago-specific sign.
Elyse poses for a quick photo on the side of the train that we arrived on.
Welcome to Ogilvie Transportation Center.
This large three-sided clock mounted in the roof piqued my interest.
At Ogilvie, we were meeting up with a gentleman named Alex, who is an elevator enthusiast. This was a meeting that just sort of worked out. He is from North Carolina, and just happened to be in Chicago, similar to how we’re from the DC area, and we just happened to be in Chicago. So, upon discovering this the night before, we made plans to get together.
Leaving Ogilvie, we headed to the Sears Tower (I know, I know, it’s now the Willis Tower), with the intention of going up to the observatory. That seemed reasonable, because no one else had been to the Sears Tower observatory, and I hadn’t been up in more than fifteen years. Unfortunately, the observatory was not yet open for the day, so we stopped into a Starbucks to get a quick drink, checked out the large lobby area with various food vendors, and then headed out to do other things, intending to return.
Elyse’s cake pop at the Starbucks inside the Sears Tower, with a bite out of it.
Elyse hugs a giant cluster of balloons. A number of these were out and about here for decorations as part of a race that ended here earlier in the day.
From here, we headed over to Washington/Wells station, and rode the Orange Line out to Roosevelt.
“Neato” graffiti.
Marker graffiti on a window near the intersection of South Wells Street and West Monroe Street.
A four-car Pink Line train to 54/Cermak arrives at Washington/Wells.
The same Pink Line train departs Washington/Wells station.
Brown and Orange Line trains service Washington/Wells station.
The view from Roosevelt station.
A six-car Green Line train to Cottage Grove arrives at Roosevelt station.
The same Green Line train departs Roosevelt station.
I had assumed that we were going to transfer to the Red Line from here and go towards the Magnificent Mile, but surprisingly, we did not. Instead, we got back on the Orange Line going back towards the loop, and got off at Quincy. We then headed back over to the Sears Tower, with the intent of following through with our plans to see the observatory up there.
The Sears Tower, viewed from the intersection of West Jackson Boulevard and South Franklin Street.
When we got back to the Sears Tower, we went down to where the observatory entrance was located, and discovered that even if we purchased tickets right then, we would have to wait more than an hour to go up. None of us were feeling that, since we had already waited around this area for the facility to even open, so we abandoned the idea of going to the Sears Tower’s observatory entirely. Something for a future visit, I suppose.
We ended up going back to the train and took the Red Line from Jackson to Chicago, heading to the Mag Mile.
Graffiti on the side of the Standard Club building. My question is, how did they even manage to access that area in order to tag it?
CTA bus 4154, a New Flyer D60LF, running the 151 at the intersection of West Jackson Boulevard and South Dearborn Street.
Wayfinding signage on the platform at Jackson station.
Signal A59 within the platform limits at Jackson station. I always love seeing how other agencies do their signaling, because they’re always so different from the three-aspect system (red-over-red, lunar, flashing lunar) that my system uses.
The platform at Jackson station. This station is a transfer point between the Red and Blue Lines, thus the stairs. I still haven’t ridden the Blue Line on CTA, and I didn’t get to on this trip.
I also got some photos of Kyle and Elyse. Kyle looks pleasant enough, while Elyse is giving me a look.
Old COVID-era signage still up at Jackson. Sadly, I suspect these temporary signs will persist for years.
Our train arrives at Jackson station.
Our train departs from Chicago station.
“Safe School Zone” sign near the intersection of North Wabash Avenue and East Chicago Avenue.
We then made our way to the John Hancock Center.
Arriving at the Hancock Center, we went down to the observatory entrance, and bought our tickets. Unlike at the Sears Tower, we could go up right away, and there wasn’t even a line for the elevator. The Hancock Center was a bit pricier than the last time I went in 2011, but such is to be expected. I got a general admission ticket, while Elyse got a ticket that included an adult beverage.
On the way up, Elyse filmed the elevator.
Arriving at the observation deck, I was surprised to see how much it had changed in twelve years. When I was last there in 2011, it was more or less just an observatory, with a section that was partly open to the elements, and a small coffee shop selling Lavazza products. It had been renovated since then, with the small coffee shop’s having been replaced by a full bar with lots of seating where people were encouraged to linger while buying overpriced drinks, and the open-air section had been replaced by a “Tilt” attraction where people paid money to get in a new moving part of the facade where they stand in it and hold on, and then the whole assembly tilts forward, leaning the riders out so that they can look downward. I took one look at that thing, and I was like, no way. I remember how I wouldn’t stand on the glass at the CN Tower back in 1999. I sure as hell wasn’t going to get into some contraption that would lean me out over the sidewalk.
One thing that surprised me during our visit was to learn that the building was no longer formally named the John Hancock Center, having been known by its street address, 875 North Michigan Avenue, since 2018 after the naming rights ran out, and the John Hancock Life Insurance Company, the building’s namesake, requested that the name be removed. However, I suspect that it will still be known as the John Hancock Center for many years to come, much like how many people, myself included, still refer to the Willis Tower as the Sears Tower.
A couple uses a selfie stick in front of one of the windows.
Wheelock Exceder fire alarm at the observation deck. I don’t remember what the fire alarms were on my past visits, but they definitely weren’t Exceders.
The bar at the Hancock Center observatory, decorated for Day of the Dead.
We parted company with Alex while we were at the Hancock Center, with his leaving the Hancock Center before we were done in the observatory. Hopefully we can see him again some time, as Richmond is about halfway between our respective locations. Finishing up at the observatory, we went back down to the lobby.
“STAIRS” and “EXIT” signage in the Hancock Center lobby.
Elevator indicator, consisting of four bars, lit up to indicate that our elevator had arrived.
Finishing at the Hancock Center, we walked over to the Starbucks Reserve Roastery.
This was one of Elyse’s destinations, and it was pretty fun, though I felt like I wasn’t hip enough to be there (but that’s a fairly common occurrence for me). We had gone to the Starbucks Roastery when we went to New York back in April, but the Chicago location was their flagship location, being much larger than the New York location. While we were there, we got something to eat, and checked out some of the sights, both inside and out. We got something fairly quick and easy as far as food went, because we were going to have dinner with Sis and Chris later on, but we hadn’t eaten in quite some time, and needed something to tide us over.
The curved escalator. I had never seen something like this before.
Up on the roof deck, the most notable thing to see was the Allerton Hotel’s sign.
Finishing up at Starbucks, we took the 147 bus up Lake Shore Drive to Howard, and then we took the Purple Line back to Davis.
This sign outside of Davis station amused both Elyse and me. The way that the little pieces of bread are drawn, it looks like French Toast Crunch cereal rather than slices of bread.
Arriving at the hotel, we met up with Sis and Chris, and we ordered pizza from Giordano’s for dinner on their website, and then Sis and Chris went out and picked it up. Chris, Kyle, and I shared a proper Chicago-style deep dish pizza, while Sis and Elyse got thin crust. I had two slices, and it was awesome.
Dinner like this was one major perk to having the presidential suite. Our room became the social hub of the trip, since we had this massive space to eat and entertain with a table that seated eight. We made good use out of it, but rest assured that this sort of upgrade absolutely will not happen next time. Lightning doesn’t strike twice, as they say.
Following dinner, it was time for everyone to go to bed. We were going on another road trip early on Monday morning, and we needed to be rested for it.