Lake Barkley - Green Turtle Bay - Turtle video

People feed the turtles saltine crackers.  The turtles & the crappies compete with each other for the crackers.

Green Turtle Bay - Turtles

Lots of friendly turtles at Green Turtle Bay Marina

Saturday we moved south of the canal in Lake Barkley and are anchored out in Nickell Bay.  It is quiet calm.

Wicket & I played in the water on the inflatable raft.

And for the record... Wicket fell into the lake for the second time, yesterday.  Bob hosed her down on the dock.  She likes to rub up against things when she's wet, so she must have been rubbing up against the dock and didn't realize she was on the edge.  Kerrrrplunk!  Bob turned around to see her dog paddling for her life.

Lake Barkley - Green Turtle Bay Marina

We plan to stay at this marina Wed. night thru Friday night and then on to anchoring out somewhere in Lake Barkley or Kentucky Lake.  The two lakes are connected with a canal.

This is a map of Kentucky Lake on the left and Lake Barkley is on the right.  The large red oval indicates the canal connecting the two lakes.  The smaller oval connected to the large oval indicates approximately where Green Turtle Bay Marina is located.  The marina is with 1/2 mile of Grand Rivers, KY (population 332).  The town is small but they have a lot going for them.

http://www.grandrivers.org/

After Bob changed the oil on the engine, changed the transmission oil, and replaced a fuel filter, we took a courtesy car, compliments of the marina, to Paducka, KY about 25 miles west on Thursday.  We shopped for provisions at WalMart and treated ourselves to mexican food for lunch.  Back to the marina for swimming in the pool.

Friday morning we washed the boat inside & out.

Washing off the Mississippi Mud.

We were greatly rewarded with a cool ride to Paducka for shopping at the fresh veggie market & lunch at Panera Bread (YUMMMM) with Stu & JoAnn.  Great conversation with a couple of fun retired fellow sailors.

I meant to mention back at Cairo, IL that the mile numbering system on the Mississippi River begins at Cairo (the upper Mississippi). So from we made it from mile marker 767 at Pepin, WI to marker 0 at Cairo, IL.  Amazing that we have gone that many miles already.

Kentucky Lake - Arrival

Jubilation!

We arrived about 1:30 Wed. afternoon.  Since it was so early in the day, we proceeded to go through the canal connecting Kentucky Lake to Lake Barkley.  We wanted to dock at the deluxe marina in Lake Barkley called "Green Turtle Bay".  So we got to the marina about 3:30 and settled in at transient slip #4.
We were very lucky to find that the special at the Yacht Club restaurant was meatloaf, green beans and mash potatoes and gravy.  WOW! It was fantastic.

Met some very friendly & helpful fellow boaters today... Richard, Charles Sr. and Charles Jr.  They all had lots of great advice & warnings.

Kentucky Lake Dam - Locked in the Lock

I tried to film as much as I could but I needed to hang on to the line which was on a "floating" bollard while the chamber filled with water.  There was a lot of turbulance and it took all my strength at times to keep the front of the boat secured while Bob held the line at the aft.  We ascended 54'. It was scary.  I was glad the lockmaster didn't open the wrong gate after the chamber was filled otherwise we would have instantly ended up wayyyyy back at the Ohio River. (20 miles)

We didn't come out of the lock unscathed.  The sunshade scraped along the rough concrete chamber wall several times as did the cover on the grill and both wore holes in them. Bummer.  We have been told that we have higher locks to go through on the Tenn-Tom so we will do things differently.  Lesson Learned!

Tennessee River - Kentucky Lake Dam is in sight

The first part of this video shows so guys cutting up a barge.  And you think you have a crappy job?  It is 100 degrees out here & they are in the scorching sun running those cutting torches.

Then the last part is Kentucky Dam in the distance.

Tennessee River - Barge & Tow Repair Shop

This is like the truck stop for tows and barges. Very interesting.

Tennessee River - Cuba Island Wed. a.m

5:30 Wed. July 27 on the Tennessee River.  The humidity tends to rise drastically in the early morning hours.

Ohio River - New dam & Paducka video

The new dam was barely getting started so we motored right on by.  The Tennessee intersects with the Ohio on the east side of Paducka, so we turned SE and headed down the Tennessee.  Just 2 miles down we anchored behind Cuba Island for the night Tuesday July 26th.

Ohio Video - Asian Carp

We have seen where they jump higher than this, but we must not have been scary enough to get them to jump out farther.  It was still fun to see them breaking the surface.  Notice the cleaner water.

The Ohio River

We are heading upstream on the Ohio.  We only have 45 miles to go before catching the Tennessee. We will be heading upstream on the Tennessee, also.  Let's just hope that the current is not at strong as the Ohio. 

We overnighted at this spot on the Ohio River.  It was about 20 miles up from the Mississippi River.

Our average speed was 3mph so it took us 10 hours.

This dam is being built on the Ohio River only about 10 miles up from the Mississippi.  No lock, yet, so we motored past at a snails pace. On up the river Tuesday, we crossed two spots where locks & dams had been situated but they have both recently been torn down.  They theory is that this one new dam above will replace the two old ones.  The last old dam was still being torn down and the turbulance there was strong.  Our average speed of 3mph was decreased to .9mph so we had to go full throttle which only pushed us up to 1.1mph for that one mile stretch. Not good. Tuesday we travelled 26 miles to the mouth of the Tennessee River and it took us about 10 hours.

Sunrise on the Tennessee River.  We are now officially in Kentucky.

The Tennessee River is much more calm with average speed against the current at 3.5.  The water is so clear that we can stand in it up to our waist & see our feet.  We are amazed! We have about 23 miles today but we started out an hour earlier this morning by getting up at 5:30.  We are also going faster but all may be lost when we get to the lock and dam at Kentucky Lake.  We shall see.  Beautiful sunny day. Temps in the low 90's.  Temps wouldn't be so bad, but it is so humid it feels like 103 degrees.

St. Louis - Friday July 22

Sorry, I forgot to post the video as we went past St. Louis.  So here it is.

Not a nice way to visit St. Louis.  Lots of industry, barges,etc. going on. 

St. Louis Arch

Cape Girardeau, MO - Flood

Well for the most part we could not tell there was a flood down here.  Of course, we have no idea what it usually looks like, but nothing extremely different than we have seen so far, except this "wash out" as the tow captains called it. It is south of Cape Girardeau.

We anchored off an island where the Mississippi River begins to head north & northwest.  It is a horseshoe bend just before Cairo, IL. This deer was roaming on shore.  The sky clouded up and the winds blew. When we set anchor we were facing up river but once the wind blew up, we spun around to face down river.  There were severe storm warnings all around us, the skies were very dark, but not a drop fell on us. An hour after things settled down, I viewed the weather radar loop and saw that over that 20 county area, we were smack dab in the middle of the storms, but as the loop progressed, their was a 5 mile radius above us that did not record a single rain cloud over the course of the severe weather.

Deer roaming on shore.

Today we headed out of Dog Tooth Bend and are anxious to depart from the Mississippi and head upstream on the Ohio River at Cairo, IL.  As I write this we have been on the Ohio for about 15 miles and our average speed going against the current is 3.4 miles an hour.  Glad we don't have far to go on this river.  We will catch the Tennessee River and head into Kentucky Lake.

Cape Girardeau, MO

Saturday we anchored out south of Wittenberg, MO or Grand Tower, IL and a bride & groom (married 2 weeks ago) came by in their pontoon boat with several friends. The groom was a worker on a tow.  He said the tows go about 10 to 14 feet below the water's surface and their are approximately 12 crewmen on a tow. Interesting stuff.

Sunday July 24 we motored south past Cape Girardeau, MO.  Weather was hot and humid as has been the case for the past 8 days.  It was Sunday morning about 10:30 when we passed downtown Cape Girardeau but there were no boaters, fishermen, tourists, cars moving, NOTHING. It was like a ghost town.

We recorded two records from the trip both today... speed 9.6 south of Cape Girardeau and the depth 82 feet.  WOW!

This video shows the flood wall in Cape Girardeau and the dry dock for barges along the shoreline.  Then there were the barges full of wood chips. Tons of wood chips.

We came around a narrow bend and two barges passed by one right after the other.  Their wake made for a very fun ride.

Warning: (especially Patty on Lazy E) the following may cause seasickness.

Fast Eddie's with Deb & Tim in Alton, IL

Susie at the helm.  We steer the tiller with our feet. 

America's Got Talent comes to mind?

To Alton...

It was only 16 miles from St. Charles to Alton, IL so we arrived in Alton Marina Wed. July 20 at 11:30.  After anchoring out in the 100+ temps we (Susan) needed some mental health therapy.  The luxury marina in Alton, IL fit the bill.  We sat for hours in the pool and we did laundry in the air conditioned laundry room.  We sat & happily watched the clothes go round & round in the dryer.  Who would have thought that would be sooooo much fun?

We walked over to the air conditioned Argosy Casino for supper and a very fancy yummy supper it was. When we returned to the marina, we jumped in the pool again.  We were very happy that it stayed open until midnight.

While doing laundry Thurs. a.m. & working on the blog, I got an email from a gal who lives in St. Louis, who reads our blog.  She said that she & her husband were interested in meeting us and would take us to supper at famous "Fast Eddies" and give us a ride to the grocery store.  So we were excited to meet Deb and Tim Akey.  They are planning a sailing adventure for their retirement next spring. http://www.theretirementproject.blogspot.com/ Terrific people with a plan.  We wish them luck & hope to meet up with them maybe as soon as next year. 

Deb's & Tim's Tarten 42 "Kintala". Until retirement they sail on Lake Carlyle in Illinios.

The Alton Marina was super.  The facilities, amenities, and all the people.  We talked with some really nice people who have boats there all summer.  Patty, the ex- airline pilot and the couple from "Lazy E", Rick on the huge catamaran and others. 

We left Alton Marina Friday a.m after filling 4 jugs with diesel. We were warned that the current would pick up once the Missouri River dumps into the Mississippi.  And so it did.  Running out of battery for the laptop, so I'll continue tomorrow. Maybe.

After Hannibal...

Before going on to our next destination, I will post these photos that Bob took while in Hannibal. A cool car.

A cool license plate.

Anchored out behind an island 47 miles south of Hannibal.  One sandy beach close by and the one below was also just 20 feet or so in front of out boat.

 Next we went another 42 miles down river to the huge sandy bar.  Glad we were not here over the weekend as this is a big party spot for the locals.  It is an island just off the shore from St. Charles, MO.  Before it got late we talked with DJ Ray & Judy, who gave us some very good information about the area and what we could expect as we went on down to Alton the next day.

The locals in the houseboat left about 8:30 p.m. and we had the entire sandbar to ourselves.  Sweet!  Well, not really... I almost went crazy because of the heat, humidity and scratching my bug bites.  (they are much better now, however)

 Bob demonstrating how we stay cool while motoring down river in 105 degree temps.

Then we had to wait 1 and 1/2 hours before going through this lock so Wicket & I went to shore in the dinghy.  I think Bob's blood pressure soared.  But we made it safely back to the sailboat without any problems.  Well, except for a little mud.  The mud down here is like quick sand only it is mud.  ICK!

Hannibal, MO - Rockcliffe Mansion

Last stop on the Hannibal tour was the Rockcliffe Mansion. 

 http://www.rockcliffemansion.com/history.shtml

The imported pink marble fireplace in the music room.

Greg entering the dining room.

It was very interesting to hear how the mansion fell into disrepair as neighborhood kids vandalized the place. Of course, they all thought it was haunted and dared one another to go inside.

Hannibal, MO - Unsinkable Molly Brown

The birthplace of the Unsinkable Molly Brown is located right in Hannibal, too.  At 14 yrs. old she was working at the tobacco company in the factory for 50 cents a day.  How her world changed as she grew up.

http://www.visitmollybrown.com/mb_historyofhouse.html

Upper level was the dining room/living room and bedroom.  The two oldest kids slept in the dining room/living room.

Parents bedroom where the parents slept & the two youngest children.

The lower level housed the cow and chickens and the far end of the lower level was the kitchen.

I found this most interesting since I have been to her house in Denver.  Quit the contrast in dwellings. The house in Denver was bought after she & husband had struck it rich in gold.

Hannibal, MO Mark Twain House & Neighborhood

We toured Mark Twain's boyhood home.  The house is located just around the corner from downtown Hannibal and the museum, so we just walked a short distance down the street.

Hannibal, MO - Mark Twain Museum

Left Quincy, IL early on Thursday July 14th and headed for Hannibal, MO.  It was only about 16 miles and the only lock was just a mile south of Quincy, so it was a smooth ride.  We tied up to the municipal dock at Hannibal, MO and since they have been dealing with flooding or the threat of flooding all summer, they are not manning the harbor.  Therefore, we stayed there free. The downtown shops & Mark Twain Museam & home are within 1/2 mile.  Bob's son, Rob and his significant other, Greg stopped in Moravia, IA and picked up Bob's mom.  They met us Saturday for sightseeing and we even untied Heron and motored around for a 3 hour tour.  No only about an hour, but the theme to Gilligan's Island jumped in my head.

Our first destination on the Hannibal sighseeing adventure was Tom Sawyer Creek just a couple of miles south of downtown Hannibal.  They have bumper boats, mini golf, a restaurant overlooking the river and more.  We had lunch, looked around a bit and then headed back to downtown Hannibal.  First a quick stop at Lover's Leap.  http://www.greatriverroad.com/hannibal/loversleap.htm

Rob posing in the stagecoach at the Mark Twain Museum. He even put on the old period coat to look the part.

Mark Twain Museum

Greg & Rob help Tom Sawyer whitewash the fence.

Hannibal, St. Charles & now Alton, IL

Spent last Thursday thru Sunday in Hannibal.  Bob's son, Rob, his significant other, Greg & Mom came down from Iowa to spend the weekend sightseeing.

We left Hannibal on Monday about 7:30a.m.  We went about 45 miles to no where. Anchored out.

Another day took us to St. Charles, MO and anchored out behind an island again.  Very quiet but hot & humid. 100+ degrees.  CRAZY.

Landed the short trip to Alton, IL on Wed. noon and paid up to stay 2 nights at the Alton Marina.  It's like a luxury resort... swimming pool, laundry, air conditioning. Fantastic private shower rooms. 

Ok, but the thing is... didn't have internet until today.  No phone connection until today.  Too hot to post video & photos tonight but I will take the time & do it while doing laundry tomorrow in the air conditioned laundry room.  Good night.

Sabrina & Tom , Alton.IL 2nite or 2morrw bad internet &cell connection

In 1900, George Metz had this Arabic/Moroccon style home built for him on the bluff in Quincy, IL overlooking the Mississippi.

http://www.villakathrine.org/

We overnighted in Quincy Wed. July 13th, and stayed around Thurs. morning for sightseeing.  We walked about 3/4 mile to Villa Kathrine and then 1/2 mile to the John Wood Mansion.

We walked past the Dr. Richard Eells home.  They are open for tours only on Sat. from 1 - 4.

http://www.greatriverroad.com/quincy/eells.htm

Then there are the bug bites.  "After Bite" helps. The bites between the toes and on the arch are the worst.

Des Moines River dumps into the Mississippi

Goodbye Iowa, Hello Missouri

We found it very interesting how much turbulence was created by the Des Moines River entering the Mississippi.

Lock #19 - Long wait & Long drop - 29' down

Tuesday July 12th we went through lock #19 as we headed for Quincy, IL. Nice day and the 35 miles was extended 2 extra hours because of our huge wait at lock #19.

Nauvoo, IL

In 1839, the Mormans established a settlement at Nauvoo, IL. By 1844, Nauvoo became one of the 10 argest cities in the U.S. and nearly as big as Chicago at that time. Other settlers in Illinois became angry with the Mormans because of their prosperity and independence from the government.
http://www.cofchrist.org/history/nauvoo.asp

Posted today thanks to the strong internet connection at Java Jive in downtown Hannibal.  And did we hit the "Jackpot"? Fresh huge cinnamon rolls made fresh every Friday a.m. 

                                       

Many of the descendents have returned and live in the homes of their ancestors and volunteer giving tours, working in the visitor center, work in the General Store, etc. at the site.

Double decker swing bridge - Ft. Madison

Fort Madison is the site of the first U.S. Army fort west of the Mississippi. The Sata Fe Railroad Bridge is the world's longest double-deck swinging bridge. Trains went by at a minimum of every 10 minutes.  Sometimes one going one direction and another going the other direction and it went on all through the night.  Our docking fee was $0.  Good thing, too, because it would have been hard to get money out of me for that nights sleep or lack of.  Population of Ft. Madison is 12,000 with nearly 100 Victorian homes.

Part 1 of our passage through the Swing Bridge at Ft. Madison, IA

Part 2 of Swing Bridge at Ft. Madison, IA

And just for the record... Wicket has now fallen accidentally into the river once.  She smelled something, possibly a mink, around the dock at Ft. Madison and was so intent on catching up to it, that she lost track of where she was going and fell off the dock.  I was very happy that we just happen to have her attached to her leash.  Most of the time we just let her walk around loose on the dock since we are the only ones around after dark. So #1 and counting.

 

6 pound catfish

                         First Bob caught a big catfish, but then I caught this 6 pounder. Stink bait did the trick.

Caught him at 10:30p.m. Tuesday July 12th with stink bait about 3 miles north of Keokuk, Iowa in the Mississippi River but on the IL side.  Good thing I have an IL fishing license.



Georgia Walnut Pie - Homemade

Made two for the family get together Sunday.  Soooo easy & tasted just like the one we had at Harbor View Cafe at Pepin, WI.

Ingredients


3/4 cup packed light brown sugar 1/2 cup all-purpose flour 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon 2 eggs, lightly beaten 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips 1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts 1 (9 inch) pie shell, baked. (not a deep dish pie shell)
Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

In a bowl, stir together brown sugar, flour, baking powder, and 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon. Add eggs, stir until blended. Stir in chocolate chips and walnuts. Pour into baked pie crust.

Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 25 to 30 minutes until lightly browned and set. Serve slightly warm or at room temperature with ice cream.

Back on the river

Drove back to Burlington Monday a.m., picked up groceries and then returned the rental car.  On the way to the car rental we detoured to "Snake Alley" near downtown Burlington. (population 30,000) Snake Alley is a winding street built to connect bluff-top homes with the downtown area along the river.

Back in Ankeny, IA

We rented a car Wed. a.m. July 6th, left the boat in Burlington, and headed for Moravia, IA (near Lake Rathbun) where we visited Mom Schaut and spent the night with her.

Our rental car... Maserati.  Just kidding, we had a Chevy Cobolt, but it was black like this one.

How wonderful to take a shower with warm water and not having to worry about people coming in while I'm naked.  Loved it.

                   Had to pull off on a gravel road just north of Moravia to make way for this house coming down the highway.

Thursday we headed for Ankeny to visit Mom Martin.  We stayed at her place through Sunday evening.  While there, we had supper Thursday evening with Bob's son, Rob & friend, Greg, and I went to the Des Moines Farmer's Market with sisters Paula and Lesley and niece, Ali on Sat. morning. Fun.  Then Bob & I went to my 40th class reunion.  Oh my, what fun and a very good turnout.  Lots of classmates attended as well as many former teachers.

This is a picture of classmates who started kindergarten together and graduated together.  Of course, many more joined us along the way, but these were the "originals". Can you pick me out? I guess the suntan gives it away.

 



Free workshops at the Blues Festival.  This is Harper facilitating this workshop.  He is originally from Australia but now lives in Michigan.  He has a blues band.  He plays the harmonica and the didgeridoo.

Didgeridoo

 

Before all the fireworks Sunday evening in Davenport.  We stood on the levee near the marina and could see fireworks going off in about 13 different locations.

The Blues Festival location the day after.

Le Claire Park in Davenport.

Our biggest worry was getting through the lock  in Davenport and the swing bridge.  The two are within yards of each other.  Turned out to be a piece of cake & there is no way the lockmaster would expect you to exit the lock if a train was going over the bridge.  We went out of the lock, the bridge was already open and we motored our way to Muscatine, IA 28 miles down the river.

Wicket & I at the tiller.

Can you believe it?  This huge crowd came out to welcome us to Muscutine, IA (Population about 22,000).  Okay, they really came for the fireworks.  We caught the parage 2 blocks up the street at 5:00p.m. and then the fireworks off our deck at dark.  Great fireworks, too.

We, also, met Alex Linnell and his dad in Muscatine.  We have now seen people making the long trek down the Mississippi River on kayaks, canoes, paddle bicycles, and Alex is going down on his paddle board.

http://www.alexlinnell.com/

His Dad is following along in their pontoon boat.  Seems the lockmasters will not let him remain on his paddle board while going through the lock so he hops on the pontoon for a ride through the lock. They spent the night down the dock from us.

We left Muscatine, IA at 7:30 and motored south to Burlington.  The weather was beautiful with sunny

  warm temps and little wind.  We motored about 6 mph and arrived in Burlington (about 50 miles) at 5:00 p.m. We went through Lock # 17 at New Boston, IL and Lock #18 just north of Burlington.  We had to wait about an hour for a barge to move through lock #18.  But all in all it was a very good ride. Above is the highway bridge from Burlington, IA to IL.  And Alex came paddling up at about 7:30p.m. and is staying in at down on the next dock. He will gain miles on us these next few days as Bob, Wicket and I are renting a car & driving to Moravia to visit Bob's Mom and then on to Ankeny to visit Susan's family & attend a class reunion. 

MVBF- Mississippi Valley Blues Festival

Our new clingy friends... Shad flies.They flew in Friday night as we were sleeping. It was very humid and temps were in the high 80's that night even at 11:30p.m. so Bob had decided to sleep on the deck with Wicket. Good thing he used a dark brown towel as a blanket because none landed on him.  They seem to light on light colors. He didn't know they were even there until he woke up.

Close up pic of a shad fly. The land, lay eggs and die all within 24 hours.

The Bix Beiderbecke Band Shell in Le Claire Park, Davenport.  The blues festival has begun.

One of our favorites was Paul Rishell and Annie Raines.  Bob attended a free workshop with these two.

Enjoying & relaxing at the blues festival.

Fireworks following the baseball game directly behind the bandshell Friday night & Saturday night.