Ben Hirsch easily logs hundreds of miles a week traveling up and down the Chicago River and Lake Michigan. As captain of Mercury Chicago's Skyline Cruiseline and Chicago's First Lady Cruises, Hirsch leads city visitors on a variety of maritime tours of Chicago and its picturesque sites.
Hirsch recently manned the captain's wheel for Mercury's newest jaunt, The Urban Adventure Cruise Package. The tour draws boat fans for a 90-minute trip on the river and lake, then gives them an opportunity to visit the 94-story high John Hancock Observatory.
"It's a lot of fun," Hirsch said.
"You get a little of everything when you tour the river and lakefront. And the cross-promotion of the boat ride and the Hancock tour gives people more things to do."
Holly Agra, co-owner with her husband Bob, of Mercury Cruiseline, said the Urban Adventure Cruise has been one of their most popular tours through the years. So they decided to add the Hancock component for a different perspective.
"We wanted to give people the chance to see Chicago from above and below," Agra said. "They can take the boat ride during the day and then enjoy the Hancock at night."
During a recent Friday afternoon Urban Adventure, Capt. Ben (as he's known on board) and deck hand/narrator Jason Garvett were the perfect hosts as Mercury's Skyline Queen sailed past Chicago's skyscrapers, landmarks and other fascinating buildings.
"One of the exciting things for me about the tours now is seeing all the new construction. That will alter the tours in the future and become a big part of them," Hirsch said, referring to buildings such as Trump Chicago Hotel and Tower and Calatrava Tower, both in the process of being built.
Hirsch, a resident of Chicago's Hegewisch neighborhood, started as a deck hand in 1997. He got his license to operate a boat from the U.S. Coastguard in 2000, officially making him a U.S. Merchant Marine officer.
For Hirsch, it's always nice to travel on tours with deck hands who have fascinating stories to tell. And on this adventure, Garvett told interesting tales about some of the buildings and places along the route, told jokes and even bantered with guests and Hirsch.
As Capt. Ben steered the boat into the locks, guests got a good look at Navy Pier, the massive buildings that make up the Loop as well as Lake Pointe Tower.
The captain said guests are always curious about the locks, which Garvett called "an elevator for boats."
According to Hirsch, it can, at times, be a challenge to travel through the locks, in which the opening to the Chicago River is closed and boats then sail onto the lake. (The wait can sometimes be a bit long as boat captains and deck hands secure their vehicles while the water rises or lowers).
On the tour's river portion, we heard statistics and stories about places such as Marina Towers, the Lyric Opera Building, Merchandise Mart and Chicago's Museum Campus. The boat also went under many of Chicago's famous bridges such as the Michigan Avenue and State Street bridges.
Hirsch, who also mans the wheel for Mercury's Canine Cruises; Chicago's First Lady Architecture Cruises, sanctioned by the Chicago Architecture Foundations; Fireworks Cruises; and Supernatural Cruises, said he likes the various themed journeys.
On a recent Canine Cruise, some of the dogs proved real characters, he said. "Yesterday we had a Great Dane on board who had a huge pink bow and painted toenails," he said, laughing. Her name: Sugar.
"When I first took the canine cruise, I thought there would be a dog fight. But the dogs are so well-behaved," he said.
Hirsch said he finds ghost hunter Richard Crowe's commentary on the Supernatural Tours particularly fascinating.
"He'll talk about unusual happenings in the city, maritime disasters and ghostly occurrences in certain buildings," he said.
The captain said he never gets bored with his job, because there's always something new to learn and new people to meet.
"You'd think after 11 years of doing this, I'd get tired of looking at the skyline. But for one thing, Chicago is constantly changing and it's beautiful," he said.
Plan to enjoy the city by sea. Check out the following Information on The Urban Adventure Cruise Package by Mercury and other cruises presented by various companies.
* Urban Adventure Package, by Mercury Chicago's Skyline Cruiseline, through Oct. 1. Schedule is 10 and 11:30 a.m; 1:30, 4, 5:30 and 7 p.m. Mondays through Sundays. Package prices, which include a visit to the John Hancock Observatory, are $30 for adults, $13 for children, free for children 3 years old and younger. FYI: mercuryskylinecruiseline.com for information on this cruise and other themed cruises.
* Canine Cruise, by Mercury Chicago's Skyline Cruiseline, through last Sunday in September. Schedule is 10 a.m. every Sunday. Cost is $22 for adults, $10 for children 3 and younger. $7 for each dog.
* Chicago Architecture Foundation River Cruise, by Chicago's First Lady, through the end of November. FYI: mercuryskylinecruiseline.com, for schedule. Cost is $28 per person Mondays to Fridays and $30 on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays.
* Seadog Extreme, by Seadog Cruises. Guests take a high-speed adventure on the water during the new "Extreme" version of the Seadog speedboat ride. Rock music blasts in the background as the boat tips, swerves, rocks and rolls in roller-coaster fashion along Lake Michigan. Schedule is 11:45 a.m. to 7:45 p.m. daily, through October. Cost is $25.95 for adults and $17.95 for children. FYI: seadogcruises.com or (888) 345-3880.
* Wendella Boat Cruises, through November. Cruises available include architecture, sightseeing, wine tasting and fireworks. FYI: wendellaboats.com.
* Spirit of Chicago, operates year-round. Cruises include twilight dinner cruises, happy hour, lunch and others. FYI: spiritofchicago.com.
* Odyssey Cruises, operates year-round. Cruises include dinner, lunch, fireworks and brunch. FYI: odysseycruises.com.
