Day #10: Bar Island, Beardstown, IL

Looking up the Illinois at Mile Marker 2

We're up at dawn to make Nellie ready.  The last thing before casting lines off is to start the engine.  She didn't; start that is.  She turned over fine but refused to come to life.  During yesterday's apparently over vigorous cleaning I knocked the wire off the fuel cutoff solenoid.  No wire, no start. 

Serendipity--While Cleaning my Breakfast Bowl in the River I Look Forward and See This Pretty Sight. 

As though suffering from separation anxiety the Illinois parallels the Mississippi for the first 30 miles before slowly diverging to the northeast.  The Illinois has a completely different feel than the Mississippi.  While the Mississippi's channel markers dance frenetically,  the Illinois' markers seem to be napping.  Population density is hugely different too.  The Illinois seems almost devoid of life.

Army Corps' Pathfinder Out Maintaining Channel Markers

Out with the Old...

It's 101°F and the sun is beating down.  Nellie has no underway air-conditioning so we continually wet the decks to get evaporative cooling.  It really does help. 

A Rare Event for the Trip thus Far, Setting the Hook for the Night. 

Grafton, IL to Beardstown, IL

It was a long run today, 14 hours underway.  We averaged a very respectable 6.2 mph.  Not only does the Illinois run slower than the Mississippi, it offers many more anchorages.  We're taking advantage of that.  The hook is down on the east side of Bar Island (mile marker 86), in 10' of water.  Today's total was 85 miles and the trip total is now 651 miles.  The anchor alarm is set.  We plan to sleep well.  DBH

Day #9: Grafton (Again)

Grafton Color

I had a boss that believed in only working half days.   You could either work the first 12 or the second 12, he didn't care which.  That's how this down day was for us.  Twelve hours for Nellie projects and then the rest for us. 

Grafton Main Street

Our neighbor's boat nearly caught on fire today.  That in itself should raise eyebrows.  But, the really interesting bit is how the fire started.   Chuck, the boat's owner, was on the back deck reading when he smelled smoke.  He did a cursory check but found nothing askew.  Moments later the smell was stronger.  At this point he remembers suspecting Nellie but, seeing nothing wrong with her, he searched his boat again.   In the sink on the flybridge he found a box of Kleenex fully engulfed in flames.  A second later the offending box found itself afloat in the Illinois River.  "I just bought the damn boat," Chuck explained when asked of his heroic action.  A post mortem of the box revealed a round burn mark on the cardboard.  It was from this point that the tissues had started smouldering.  It then dawned on Chuck what had happened.  While underway last week he'd put the Kleenex box and a flashlight into the sink to keep them from rolling around.  So, what started the fire?  Here's a hint: it was a really clear and sunny day today...  The fire was started by the flashlight's concave mirror which concentrated the sun's rays, like a magnifying glass, on the Kleenex box. 

Nellie's still in one piece and at the dock in Grafton, IL.  No miles today and so holding at 566 for the trip.  DBH

Day #8: Grafton, IL

We Passed Wagenblast for the Third Time in Five Days

Yesterday we came upon a mallard and her two ducklings.  All of a sudden the duck feigned a broken wing and quickly swam towards the left descending bank.  In rapid succession she got airborne and an eagle swooped down and started chasing her.  Last we saw, the ducklings were paddling furiously towards Missouri while their mother was trying to loose the eagle in the woods of Illinois.

A Wing Dam by any Other Name Would Still be as Dangerous

This morning, and within five minutes of each other, a deer and beaver swam from left to right across our bow (i.e. from Illinois to Missouri).  There must be an animal convention in Missouri today.

Waiting On the Wall of Shame Outside Lock 25, Our Last Mississippi Lock

Nellie's hard left turn onto the Illinois marks a major milestone: the end of her 1,500 mile Mississippi adventure.  It's also the end of running downstream and averaging 10 mph.  I'm afraid that while going up the Illinois we'll be thrilled to make 6 mph. 

Looking North at the Confluence of the Illinois (right) into the Mississippi (left).

Mile marker 218 on the Upper Mississippi is where the Illinois begins, i.e. Illinois mile marker 0.  This is also the location of Grafton, IL and its epyonomous marina in which Nellie is currently moored.   On Wednesday we'll start towards Chicago, some 333 river miles away.

A total of 67 miles today and 566 miles for the journey.  DBH

Day #7: Louisiana, MO

Tucked In In Keokuk

Before telling today's stories I needed to finish up one from last night.  Keokuk Yacht Club's guest dock is very exposed.  Several members told us that heavy thunderstorms were expected and recommended moving to their fuel dock.  Better protected it is,  but it's also down a narrow, shallow canal lined with houseboats on one side and covered slips on the other.  Seeing as we'd already been aground three times, and really didn't want to add to the day's total, I dropped the dinghy and sounded the canal.  What I found was a soft silt bottom with at least 4-1/2' of water over it.   Perfect, Nellie draws 3-1/2'.  The canal is tight for a boat Nellie's size, but it sure felt good to be tucked away when the thunderstorm came through.

Army Corps Channel Marker Depot

Two days ago we spotted Army Corps tugs laying down yet more wing dams.  Today we pass an Army Corps depot chock-a-block with channel markers.  I'm confused.  What kind of organization lays out traps and then does their best to warn their prey of the traps' existence?

Sir Robert, Our Mate in Lock 18, at Rest Along the Right Descending Bank Above Lock 19

What happens when an innovator retires?  In the case of Lock and Dam 19, the tug traffic backs up.  The retiree's computer program reduced the chamber's fill time from 45 minutes to 20.  The problem is that the software crashed and no one can get it working.

Mayflies Everywhere

It was an 83 mile trip through four locks today.  Nellie's safely moored in the Two Rivers Marina in Illinois (mile marker 282).  Louisiana, MO, the closest town, is just across the River.  Sixty miles south is the confluence of the Illinois River and the end of what has been a most enjoyable downstream run.  Total for the trip is now 499 miles.  DBH

Day #6: Keokuk, IA

Charging Cables: Modern Life's Detritus

Living aboard an old tug makes me realize how quickly technology is advancing.  For example, Nellie's wheelhouse has a telephone wall jack.  How long until a kid asks, "What's that thing for?"  Mounted two feet above the jack is a chronograph--an expensive and accurate clock, that in conjunction with a sextant, can help determine our position.  Uh huh, like that's ever going to happen when we have nine GPS' aboard. 

Burlington RR Bridge

Our plan was to spend tonight in Fort Madison, IA.  Quimby's recommended approaching the marina perpendicular to the bank so as to avoid the shoaling.  We did, and promptly went aground three times.  That's three more groundings than in our previous 1,100 miles on the Mississippi. 

It was a long 12 hours underway.  The locks and a bridge really slowed us down.  Still, we made 91 miles and that ups the total to 415.  Tonight we're on the Keokuk Yacht Club's fuel dock, Mississippi mile marker 367.  DBH

Day #5: Muscatine, IA

Clinton RR Swing Bridge, Circa 1908

Today's first obstacle is the Clinton RR swing bridge.  This is a really busy bridge so getting through can take some time.  It's only a mile downriver from our the Clinton Marina so we make the VHF call while still at the dock.    "At least 15 minutes," the tender tells us.

Flowers in Muscatine

Boat maintenance chores fill any slack time,  so I grab two, big pipe wrenches and head for the lazarette.  The new rudder packing is leaking.  Tightening the gland should take care of the problem. 

A Friend from Yesterday, the Jennie K.

The numbers are against us today.  We arrive at Lock 14 to see the Jennie K.  She's already through 14, two miles ahead of us and chugging for Lock 15.  We do eventually catch her, but not fast enough.  Lock 15 clears the Jennie K. in ahead of us.  Just as we prepare for the two hour wait Jennie K's skipper tells us to go on ahead.  He adds with a smile, "I wish I was on a rec boat."  We thank him vociferously.

Lock 15's Camera Catches Nellie Emerging (Photo courtesy of Joe Glinski, Our Villa 37VT56)

Our View Inside Lock 15 With the Exit Gates Almost completely Open but the Bridge Fully Closed

Muscatine's Clark-Blackwell Mansion Sits Atop a High Hill Giving it a Magnificent View of the Mississippi

The scenery along the River is noticeably changing.  The vertical rocky bluffs, which have been our constant companions since Minneapolis, are giving way to undulating and mostly flatter lands. 

Clinton, IA to Muscatine, IA

It took 7-1/2 hours to get past three locks, three bridges, and cover the 64 miles between Clinton and Muscatine.  Our trip's total is now 324 miles.  Nellie is safely moored at the Muscatine Municipal Marina, mile marker 455.  DBH

Day #4: Clinton, IA

Nellie's All Alone in Dubuque's Ice Harbor

When I called the Marina yesterday for a reservation, I was told that they'd be glad to take one, but it really wasn't necessary.  Upon arrival we saw why.  Except for two rescue boats we had the 50+ slips to ourselves. 

Ice Harbor is One of the Rare Marinas that's Inside the City's Flood Gates

Chasing Jennie K

Tug calculus starts early on the 'ol Mississip. The southbound Jennie K. had caught us while still tied to the dock in Dubuque.  We heard the turbines long before we saw her.  She was pushing 12 (barges) and making 7 (mph).  Lock 12 was 20 miles away.  The question was, could we get underway and beat her through? 

This All Wood Railroad Bridge is an Anachronism.  Holding Out for Infrastructure Subsidies is One Thing, but Since the 1800's... ;-)

Nellie's Bread Crumb Trail Died Just North of Cassville, WI, Yesterday

While we didn't know it at the time, yesterday's lightening strike disabled Nellie's APRS tracking beacon.  Like the AIS and wind instrument, it came back to life after cycling its power. 

Overtaking Jennie K

The math said we'd catch her at 0700 and be 3 miles ahead by Lock 12.  The reality was a 0704 pass.  Close enough.  Bottom line, we got through Lock 12 without incurring a two hour delay.  If only we'd been so fortunate at Lock 13.

Where Wing Dams Come From

Leave it to the Army to try and trip up us sailors.  Here's proof of their malevolence, two Corps tugs building yet another wing dam. 

Inside Lock 13, Two Rec Boats and Belle

  We arrive at Lock 13 to learn that we're number four in line.  Let's see, two hours for the tug at bat, one more for the tug on-deck, and a quarter hour for the in-the-hole boat. That's a lot of waiting.  We drop the hook, have lunch and otherwise make ourselves comfortable.  About 30 minutes later Celebration Belle, the in-the-hole boat, politely explains to the lock master that she's carrying over 150 passengers and is entitled to priority locking.  The lock master concede?s and then asks us if we like to lock through with Belle.  Uh, yea! 

Dubuque, IA to Clinton, IA

We were in by 1400 and even made 63 miles to the good.  As the map above shows, Nellie is now close in latitude to Chicago (our near term destination).  By road Chicago is only 132 miles away; by water it's 740.  No one ever said boats are the fastest mode of transport.  There are now 260 miles under Nellie's keel.  She's safely tired to the dock at Clinton Marina, mile marker 518.  DBH