The limiting factors that determine the largest vessel and type of vessel are the depth of some of the canals and the height of the lowest fixed bridge that a boat must pass under. A safe maximum draft, which is how deep a boat sits in the water, is five feet, for saftey. Some of the canals have a minimum depth of 7 to 9 feet, under ideal conditions. The maximum height is under 19 feet above the water line, so as to get under safely a bridge in Chicago that is over one of the canals there. One of those canals that Chicago built to divert dumping sewage into the Great Lake. (history lesson) Heard rumours that a couple of college kids did it one year on jet skis. Bet they set a record time for quickest trip around the loop. Also, the trip during the northern part is strictly high summer, to take advantage of the short warm season there, when weather is calm. Also the larger the boat, the higher the overall cost of the trip. Big displacement boats require much more fuel to make the trip than a smaller boat that planes. For a trawler around ~45 feet, with adequately sized engines (plural) the estimated fuel cost for the trip with prices around $3/gallon is $6,000 for the trip. My boat, with a relatively moderate sized motor of 70 hp, will have an estimated fuel cost of less than $2,000. Also, the bigger boats cruise economically at about 15 mph, whilst at the same fuel consumption my boat will cruise at 30 mph. I'm doing my homework, to see if this is feasible anytime soon.

Sorry to be posting on this older thread but I've been testing out my greenhouse compost hot beds for the past few days and things are going pretty well. My greenhouse is 10'x12' with 6mil clear plastic. We're in Cda zone 6a (US zond 5a). Dirt floor. I wanted to make hotbeds in the greenhouse to help with overall temperature (to reduce the need for electric heat on really cold nights) but also to get an early crop of lettuce, and to provide bottom heat for seed germination (I'm running out of room indoors). Here are some pictures on my Flickr page: photo of hotbed. This shows the 18"x36" hotbed with the hoops. On the left I put trays and flats for overnight warmth. The right has the lettuce planted in the six inches of triple mix on top of the hot compost. At night the hotbed is covered with plastic to form a mini hoophouse. photo of compost portion of hotbed. I left one side of the hotbed uncovered, so I could use it as a source for bottom heat as well as the heat source for the mini hoophouse-within-the-greenhouse. compost in bin in greenhouse. I had some extra compostables, so I made this bin out of a big metal container. I filled it half full with the soil removed for the hotbed trench, wet it thoroughly (wet soil is better thermal mass than dry) and topped it with 8" of wet compost feedstock. The temperature is about 50c but it goes even higher with more moisture and regular stirring. This bin is useful as a base for trays of seeds or seedlings. Using a clear dome creates a greenhouse-within-a-greenhouse for added insulation. So far so good. Plants on the hotbed and bin have come through minus 7 C nights with no problem. The rest of the greenhouse frosts up but everything over the hotbeds is just fine. I worry that the lettuce seedlings will be too warm at the root level. But they're growing quickly, so who knows. The compost underneath will slowly cool (it is impossible to stir it) so eventually I won't need to worry about cooking the lettuce.

About the Robins...Apparently in the late 80's-early 90's, the landscaping company that was contracted to landscape the newly-built homes that would later become my neighborhood, used a very large type of ornamental bush that produces heavy yields of small red berries; I see this bush planted everywhere (except my house) on and around my street. In fact, I see it all over Jefferson County, Colorado. These bushes are evergreen and fruit is in bountiful supply in the winter, it seems. Therefore, I see Robins all throughout the winter here, certainly not in full force, but still, I've seen quite a few at a time feast on these berries in the cold in January and February...... Anyway, just my observations here in Colorado. Thanks, Don B. This post was edited by Don_in_Colorado on Mon, Mar 11, 13 at 4:00

In a way I have found the carelessness in placing hostas in landscaping has been useful for my education. I have learned from errors. Our City Hall building in my community has zero trees on the property. There is a narrow dirt strip on the south facing wall with a four evenly spaced hostas along the edge abutting the asphalt parking lot. The hosta are Frances Williams. Amazingly, they keep coming up every spring and by June 1st are nothing but cripy waste. We have two wonderful parks on an island between the Kankakee River and a millrace. There are many shadded areas under oaks and the water table is less than 2 feet in many places near the millrace which is at above dam level. It is ideal for growing hostas, and wouldn't you know it - not one hosta in sight. We have a new director for our park district and I am planning on speaking with her about beautification plans. If the PD will provide some labor I will volunteer management services. I visited a jobsite, a high school in the CPS on the far SE side of Chicago. Bordering both sides of the main entrance walk were hostas in full sun. They were Sagae and in late July a bit washed up looking but not crispy at all. Sagae is one of the most sun tolerant hostas I have. But in general I usually wonder where professional landscapers have learned their trade when it comes to the use of hostas. You sure can tell the doctors offices where automated underground watering systems are in use. The best commercial use I have seen regarding hostas are associated with skilled nursing facilities, and the Brookfield Zoo has a few fantastic hosta beds. Les