Looking NW at Peoria's McCluggage bridge
The Commodore of the Peoria Boat Club is Michael--nice guy and a retired Air Force Chief Master Sargeant. He bought Deputy Dawg, his 44', twin gas engine, cabin cruiser in Michigan. He told us, with a grimace, that it cost $7,000 in fuel to deliver her to Peoria.
Seems Reasonable to Me...
I asked Michael what brought him to Peoria (he's from Utah and there are no Air Force bases nearby). "Real estate," he said. He now owns rental units and caters to young professionals. He's about to buy a building with 48 apartments. The prospect, he said, is both exciting and daunting.
Looking North in Upper Peoria Lake
The 12 mile long by 2 mile wide Upper Peoria Lake is reminiscent of the Mississippi's Lake Pepin. There are even some hills, like Pepin's bluffs, breaking up what would otherwise be a flat landscape.
Nellie Catches Her First Asian Carp, it's About a Size 12-Narrow
I was beginning to think the Asian carp weren't as big a problem as some claimed. That is until a small paddle wheeler went by us today. The carp were going nuts behind him; jumping everywhere and high into the air. As the picture above shows they're not small fish--or very smart, apparently. Bicki, remembering the night watch in the middle of the Pacific when she was smacked in the face by a flying fish, has vowed to stay in the wheelhouse until we're through these troubled waters.
Peoria to Ottawa
We'd hoped to get farther today but a delay at the Starved Rock Lock and Dam kiboshed those dreams. Our backup plan was Ottawa's free dock; and here we are. Ottawa fun facts: (1) William T. Boyce, an Ottawa native, founded the Boys Scouts in 1910; (2) the first Lincoln-Douglas debate took place here on 21 August 1858; and, (3) it's 76.8 river miles from Peoria to Ottawa.
We're at river mile 240. Chicago is now 90 miles and five locks away. By any measure that's two boat days for Nellie. The trip total thus far is 806 miles. Safely in Ottawa, IL. DBH
