ALTON, ILLINOIS TO GRAND RIVERS, KENTUCKY
SEPTEMBER 14 TO SEPTEMBER 28
BEFORE WE GET STARTED ON THIS WEBSITE UPDATE I'D LIKE TO ADD A FEW COMMENTS ABOUT OUR TRIP DOWN THE ILLINOIS RIVER.
Our travels on the Calumet-Sag Waterway and the Illinois River were very different from prior travels. We were struck by the level of commercial activity and the condition of the water. We were also struck by the lack of resources for pleasure-craft boaters. What I neglected to say, however, was how fascinating we found this part of the trip. Neither one of us has been exposed to this sector of the ‘transportation' business, and it was very interesting to see how the barges work and move. To see the movement of the coal, gravel and sand as well as other products, was a new learning experience for us. Our appreciation for this industry grew as we watched the tow captains move huge barge loads through tight bends in the river, under bridges and through locks.
In this website update we have more river and barge experiences—keep reading.
You'll also see that in this section, we took advantage of some opportunities to visit several cities by car due to the proximate location of our marinas to these cities. When writing this section, I had to keep reminding myself that I'm on a BOAT trip. But… Jean and I want to see as much of this part of the United States as possible. So…read on.
Thursday, September 14 th
At port in Alton, Illinois
Today was a day to explore Alton. It's a lovely town and, as usual, quite historic. Alton was first plotted in January 1818 by Colonel Rufus Easton and then later organized as a city in 1837 when the population reached 4,000 people. Its history can be traced to 1673 when Father Jacques Marquette recorded his famous trip down the Mississippi and mentioned seeing a town where Alton now stands. In 1783, Jean Baptiste Cardinal selected Alton for his settlement, where he remained until being taken prisoner by Native Americans. Also, Lewis and Clark built their first camp and spent the winter of 1803-1804 just south of Alton before making their historic expedition into the Great Northwest.
We made a quick stop at the Chamber of Commerce and then walked around the town a bit. In a nearby park we saw these statues of Lincoln and Douglas. This is the site of their final and most important senatorial debate in 1858. The debate took place on a temporary platform built in front of City Hall.
The town is very quaint with very steep streets. We found the library, post office and many other shops.
We were back on the boat by late afternoon on a beautiful day. We invited the Bonas IV gang—Bob, Nan and their friend John over for munchies and drinks. It was fun!!!! Since we noshed so much…we skipped dinner.
Friday, September, 15 th
At port in Alton, Illinois
Springfield, Illinois by Car
Today was a fun day. We rented a car for the next few days and decided to start our exploring with a trip to Springfield, Illinois—home of Abraham Lincoln. Springfield is only about 90 minutes from Alton so we were anxious to see as much as we could. We were on the road shortly after 8am and our first stop was for a BIG breakfast at a local diner. By 10:30am we were at the Lincoln Museum—which was a recently completed museum and quite impressive.
We were greeted by the Lincoln family—shown here. This grouping was a bit eerie but what was even more eerie was that most folks visiting the Museum were having their pictures taken WITH the family!!!!
There were many sections to the Museum including an exhibit about Lincoln's youth, a section about his early days in politics and another section about his days in the White House. Within each section, the displays were very authentic and very interesting. This picture was taken at the entrance to the section about Lincoln's youth.
The Museum has quite a few exhibits concerning slavery which are very emotional. You can participate in a slave auction—an event in Lincoln's life that shaped his quest to abolish slavery. There's quite a bit of information about Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation including one of the original copies. There's also a replica of the seating box at Ford Theater and John Wilkes Booth…very eerie.
From the Museum we went over to the Lincoln Library which is really used for research purposes. The Library contains more than 12 million items including the world's largest collection of Lincoln-related documents, artifacts and books.
We then visited the old capitol building. It was in this building's House of Representatives chamber that Lincoln's body was laid in state for several days.
From the old capitol building we headed to Lincoln's house—carefully preserved in a three block neighborhood in Springfield that contains other historic houses. This area is administered by the National Park Service, and we joined a Ranger-led house tour which was very informative. There were many authentic antique pieces and the wallpaper and rugs were reproductions from the period. This is the only home that Lincoln ever owned. He and his family lived here from 1844 until they left for Washington in 1861.
By the way….as we were walking from one part of Springfield to another, Jean and I went by another famous house designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. We recognized the design immediately and took some pictures—it was too late in the afternoon for a tour.
Throughout all of Springfield we saw many different statues of Lincoln. It was great.
We walked by the state Capitol building which was really impressive with a magnificent silver dome—not the usual gold dome. It was beautiful. Construction on this building began in 1868 and was completed 20 years later at a cost of $4.5 million. The first legislative session held in the new Capitol was held in 1877 but the structure wasn't completed for another decade. Designed in the shape of a Latin cross and capped by a 361-foot-high dome, the building stands 74 feet taller than the U.S. Capitol.
Our last historic stop in Springfield was to see Lincoln's tomb. The tomb is situated in the Oak Ridge Cemetery just a short drive from downtown Springfield. It was amazing—surrounded by four civil war bronze sculptures. It is said that Lincoln and his wife Mary would often visit Oak Ridge Cemetery while they lived in Springfield. They were both impressed by the setting and Mary insisted that Lincoln be buried there.
The tomb, designed by sculptor Larkin Mead, stands on a slight rise and provides a dramatic vision. The tomb contains the remains of the entire family with the exception of Robert (Lincoln's son) who is buried in Arlington National Cemetery.
It was now pretty late in the day so off we went to dinner. We found a wonderful Italian restaurant in Springfield and ordered two of their specials. I ordered grilled swordfish in an Italian sauce and Jean ordered chicken marsala!!!!! We passed on dessert—thank goodness.
Saturday, September 16 th
At port in Alton, Illinois
St. Louis, Missouri by Car
Today was a fun day—all around. The skies were blue and it was a warm 80 degrees. We knew that we were going to spend the entire day in St. Louis—sightseeing and seeing a baseball game. We were joined by Betty and Huddie Baxter and we left the marina by 8:30am. Our first stop was Busch Stadium, the home of the St. Louis Cardinals. We wanted to get tickets for today's game. When I got in line I was given a ticket that enabled me to buy two tickets to the game at $5.50 each. The ‘deal' was that these ‘First Pitch' tickets couldn't be picked up until 10 minutes before the start of the game and also they could be tickets for any section of the park—including Standing Room Only. We figured it was worth a try. Through the regular sources there were only SRO tickets available, and the scalpers wanted a lot of money for decent seats. We decided to take our chances on these ‘First Pitch' tickets rather than pay scalper prices. After all, this isn't the Red Sox we're talking about. We did like this statue of Stan Musial which stands at the entrance of the ballpark.
With our baseball coupon in hand, prior to the game we decided to go to the Gateway Arch—St. Louis' most famous landmark. This was a blast. To go up to the top, you ride in a five-person, all-white ‘module' that's tiny. The ride only takes 4 minutes so…..
Once at the top the views are gorgeous. The windows are only small slits which you can see in one of the pictures.
We saw the baseball park, the courthouse and other buildings. We also got some nice pictures of the Mississippi River.
The area at the top is pretty narrow—much more so than you would expect. While this makes for a cramped space, it also means that you get great views from every spot.
We also signed up to see two movies which relate to the Arch. One movie tells the story of the actual construction of the Arch. The second movie tells the story of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, which began in the St. Louis area in 1804. Both movies were excellent. We also went to the Museum which is on the premises.
By now it was time for me and Jean to go to the ballgame. Huddie and Betty had decided NOT to go to the game—they planned to stay downtown and do some more ‘touristy' things. Well….we got to the game and got our tickets—they were Standing Room Only in a very sold-out game. This is the first year for the Cardinals' new stadium and the Cardinals are leading their division. They were playing the San Francisco Giants—a la Barry Bonds. We immediately found a place to stand and watched the first three innings standing up in the left field area.
At the end of the third inning, I ‘found' some seats for us in a premier section. It was great. The real ticket holders never showed up so Jean and I had a blast. The Cardinals scored four runs in the first inning and never looked back. The final score was 5 to 1. St Louis is Anheiser Busch country and, as you might expect, the only beer sold at the stadium was Bud or some derivative thereof. The game was fun—our third National League game while en route. Like Wrigley Field in Chicago, this stadium is also downtown which makes it very convenient.
After the game we walked through town and stopped in a beautiful park. The setting was wonderful. We were right across the street from the Old Courthouse building. This building was the scene of the Dred Scott trial for freedom in 1850.
After the game we decided to stay in town for a light dinner. We made our way to LaCledes Landing, a newly renovated section of 19 th century warehouses, brick-lined streets, horse-drawn carriages, and interesting architecture. We found a great outdoor restaurant with an eclectic menu. Jean chose a buffalo meatloaf entrée and I had a Caesar salad with sirloin strips—Yum, Yum. We drove back to the marina and were back on Ocean Flyer by 10:00pm. We had a great day!!!!!
Sunday, September 17 th
At port in Alton, Illinois
St. Louis, Missouri by Car
Today was a great day!!!!! The weather was gray and overcast with rain forecast for the afternoon. But…we decided to spend another day in the St. Louis area—this time in towns on its outskirts.
On our way out of Alton, we stopped at the Melvin Price Lock and Dam. This will be our first lock on the Mississippi. It's only two miles from the marina and is the newest lock and it's huge. There are two locking chambers—one for the barges and one for pleasure boats. At its widest it's 1160 feet—the size of four football fields. The length of the lock is 3982 feet—almost ¾ of a mile. In its construction, the builders used 21 million pounds of reinforced steel—enough for 10 Gateway Arches!!!!! Each year more than 75 million tons of goods, valued in excess of $23 billion, move through this lock.
We started with a stop at the Cahokia Mounds. These mounds date back to AD 700 and were, at one time, part of a major Indian city. As the largest prehistoric Indian site north of Mexico, Cahokia Mounds covered about 4,000 acres and included at least 120 mounds. The State of Illinois now protects 2200 acres of the central portion of the site and 70 of the remaining 80 mounds. The site was named a U.S. National Historic Landmark in 1965, and in 1982 the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization designated Cahokia Mounds a World Heritage Site for its significance in the prehistory of North America.
We made a stop at the Interpretive Center to get an overview of the history of the mounds. The doors to the Center are very impressive—cast bronze. They weigh over 800 pounds and were designed to depict the combination of birds and nature.
This Center had a wealth of information and a very interesting exhibit to display the origins of the mounds. After 1050 AD, Cahokia became a regional center surrounded by farmsteads, villages and satellite towns with several mounds. It peaked from AD 1050 to 1200, sprawling over six square miles with a population of 10,000 to 20,000 people, the largest community north of Mexico. There were several large murals on the walls of the Interpretive Center which were just spectacular.
The mounds have different shapes and were designed for different purposes. The large, flat-topped mounds were reserved for the highest order—the king—of the people. Their purpose was to stand above the others in recognition of the king's prominence over everyone. The mounds were made of earth dug from ‘borrow pits' with stone and wood tools, and transported in baskets on people's backs. It is estimated that over 50 million cubic feet of earth were moved for mound construction alone.
Around AD 1200, the population began to decline and former ceremonial areas became residential, but Cahokia continued as the largest ceremonial center. By the late 1300's Cahokia was essentially abandoned. Where the Cahokians went or what tribes they became remain unanswered questions.
From the mounds, we headed to the Missouri Botanical Gardens—to see a special Chihuly exhibit—‘Glass in the Garden'. It was unbelievable. Not only were the Chihuly pieces incredible, but the gardens themselves were stunning.
The Missouri Botanical Gardens opened to the public in 1859 and was known as “Shaw's Garden”. It is the oldest continuously operating botanical garden in the nation. Founder Henry Shaw came to St. Louis from Sheffield, England in 1819 and established a successful hardware importing business to equip the many settlers heading west. He opened his gardens as a place to study and display plants. Today, the Garden is both a National Historic Landmark and a world-renowned scientific and educational institution with botanical researchers in 35 nations around the globe.
Dale Chihuly is a world-famous glass sculptor. His very distinctive works are in many museums and galleries. He created a series of sculptures specifically for this exhibit which runs through the end of October. The pieces have been placed throughout the grounds but are seen primarily in the Garden's Climatron—the world's first geodesic dome greenhouse filled with scents, sounds, and plants of a tropical lowland rain forest.
I have no idea how to show you the pictures that we took. The pictures will NEVER do justice to the pieces but they'll give you an idea of their beauty and the incredible skill and ability of Chihuly. Our first sighting of some of the pieces was in the three ‘pool' areas near the main garden. Glass orbs were sitting in the pool—all in bright colors—and looking beautiful. Oh MY. They are called the Walla Walla Onions to resemble their namesakes, the world famous sweet onions of eastern Washington State.
These next pictures were all taken in the Climatron. As you see, the glass pieces have all been placed alongside the plants and flowers to fit in perfectly. In these next pictures, you'll see ferns made of glass which were truly incredible. Chihuly called these fern-like pieces his mirrored hornets. There were also some blue and green reeds scattered among the plants—these he actually called his ferns.
Jean and I had to look closely so as to not miss anything. The glass flowers and reeds were just beautiful.
Some of the pieces were simple while others were over-the-top in their design and placement. Look at these next pictures—they depict a huge bamboo plant with dramatic glass shoots. Chihuly called this his End-of-Day Palm.
There were many chandeliers inside the garden and most of the chandeliers have lights in the glass for a total effect.
Jean and I kept turning around 360 degrees because there were so many pieces. You needed to look closely—there were glass flowers, reeds, ornamental pieces and other very creative displays. The green trumpets were truly magnificent.
We were also very impressed with the gardens themselves. This sculptured boxwood garden was perfectly manicured and beautifully situated—far from the main entrance. It would be perfect for a wedding setting.
In the 73 acres there were many different gardens including this Victorian garden. This garden contains not only beautiful plantings set in a maze design but also the founder's mausoleum.
In one of the gardens, at a far end of the property, we ‘found' this Chihuly boat just filled with glass spires. In person, this piece was truly beautiful.
By the way, while walking around we met a couple celebrating their one-year anniversary. They had gotten married at the gardens under a huge tent. Lucky them.
There were also many traditional, non-botanical displays of Chihuly's work. These bowls are a perfect example.
After the gardens we headed to a small historic town, St. Charles, on the Missouri side of the Mississippi River. This town was very charming and very quaint. But….by now it was pouring rain...so we didn't even get out of the car. In its historic district, this town had small shops, many restaurants and quite a few antique homes. It sits right on the River and has beautiful views from every perspective.
We ended the day with some errands (of course) and were back at the boat by 6pm. Where does the day go????? We had a blast and saw some more of this area and learned some more about the natives, the towns and even saw a Chihuly exhibit!!!!! Life is good.
We passed on having a formal dinner and just had vegetables with dip and cheese and crackers. Dessert was a small bowl of low-fat frozen yogurt. We've been so busy while at this marina that we're not really cooking dinner—we're too tired by the time we get back to the boat.
Monday, September 18 th
At port in Alton, Illinois
Today was one of those ‘chore' days. Jean spent the morning in the engine room changing the engine oil and other ‘things'. I finished up the website update so that we could get another segment in the mail. We also paid bills, washed the fenders and boat decking and did some laundry. In the afternoon, we went to the post office and to the library—as usual. I tried to find a place to get my hair cut but…no luck.
For dinner we had a Lean Cuisine meal. We were both tired and knew that we would be leaving at the crack of dawn on Tuesday.
Tuesday, September 19 th
Alton, Illinois to Kimmswick, Missouri
Today we would get back underway after our five-day stop in Alton. We were off the dock early—at 6:55 with a cool temperature of only 56 degrees. I was able to get a nice picture of this morning's sunrise against the backdrop of the bridge—the Clark Bridge. This bridge is named for explorer William Clark, who along with Meriwether Lewis, began their two year, 4,000 mile expedition just a few miles from the site of the bridge.
Today would mark our first real time on the Mississippi River. We entered the River about 2 miles further back, but immediately stopped at the Alton Marina. We will be on the Mississippi for 218 miles—on a section called the Upper Mississippi. This part of the river is marked by swift currents (going with us), two locks, few daymarks and few navigational aids, plenty of barges but few marinas and/or anchorages. We've been told what to expect so here goes….
Our first lock was only 2 miles away so we were there in no time. I called ahead and the Lockmaster said—come on down—which we did. So…Jean and I would be going through the Mel Price Lock, our first lock on the Mississippi River. Of course, these locks are different from every other lock system we know—so what's new???? We were surprised by the fact that there are separate chambers for the barges and the pleasure craft. This is a great set-up.
There was a barge approaching the lock immediately in front of us and it went into a separate chamber while we were directed into a different one.
We also were confused because we couldn't see the ‘gate' that would close behind us. Well….this lock had a wall, which was submerged and which rose from the water once we had driven over it. It was pretty amazing. I took some pictures.
This lock also had a floating bollard around which I threw my line. Then the bollard moves hydraulically as the water rises or falls—pretty easy lock system. No waiting for the barges to go through and an easy system for our lines—I like this!!!!
Today's journey was actually pretty easy. We were only going about 45 miles and we had only two locks to go through—Mel Price and Chain of Rocks. The skies were blue and we were on our way. The Mississippi River is all about barges but it's a very wide waterway and the barges are easier to pass. The highlight of the day was passing St. Louis—on the water. We got to see the Gateway Arch from the water—a new perspective.
It was also nice to see the St. Louis skyline from the water.
Once past St. Louis, we again passed by many industrial operations—especially plants with chutes to load barges at nearby docks. I continue to be amazed at this part of the transportation industry.
We were at Hoppie's—a famous marina for Loopers—by 11:30am and completely settled. Mrs. Hopkins—Fern—knows everything about these waters and she sat with us for about an hour and reviewed possible anchorages, trouble spots and other points of interest on the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers. She was a big help!!!!!
We made our way into town which was a big mistake!!!! This town is very cute and quaint but has an amazing bakery. Jean and I bought several outrageous desserts. Jean bought a piece of caramel covered apple pie that was the size of two regular sized pieces. I bought an identically sized piece of cookie dough cheesecake. In case that wasn't enough we bought a few cookies!!!!!
We were back at the boat by 3pm and met some other Loopers who had arrived. We took this picture of Hoppie's—it is listed as a marina but it is really several barges tied together and moored to shore.
Later in the day, Jean and I got on board to start dinner (we had no lunch)!!!!! We had a great meal of roast pork, a vegetable medley of tomatoes, onions, zucchini and summer squash, some rice pilaf and garlic bread. We topped off the meal by each of us having one section of our pies with coffee. What a meal!!!!!
Wednesday, September 20 th
Kimmswick, Missouri to Cape Girardeau, Missouri
We were ready to be off the dock at 6:15am but…..it was very, very foggy!!!! So…we waited for almost two hours with several other Loopers who also had stayed overnight at Hoppie's!!!! We had hoped to run 150 miles today—near the junction of the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers where we would anchor overnight. But the late start shortened our day and we replanned to make it a 100-mile day instead.
By 8:10 the fog had cleared and we were underway. Today was scheduled to be a very long day….down the Mississippi and then onto the Ohio River. The problem is in finding somewhere to stay. In this part of the trip there are no marinas and good anchorages are few and far between.
But…with the skies clearing to very blue, we made our way down the river. This part of the journey took us through a very pretty part of the River. We still went by many barges on the way but…the scenery was very lovely and very peaceful. We still saw plenty of industrial operations along the waterway but…these operations were balanced by the beautiful scenery.
We're both still amazed at how much mining work takes place on both sides of the Mississippi. There are quarries everywhere and trucks are constantly loading the barges that go up and down the River. It's interesting to see this part of the transportation industry in operation.
As I've said before—these barges are usually filled to the top and one tow pushes anywhere from 6 to 36 barges—it's incredible. The barges are steel hoppers each with a length of 195 feet, 35 feet wide and 12 feet high. The tows (we call them tugs in our neck of the woods) have huge diesel engines and are capable of pushing a load of 50,000 tons. We listen in on the conversations between the tow captains but have yet to figure out the lingo. Jean's mastered the art of calling the captains about how to pass them but…we still can't understand their language. Here's a tow and barge—filled with huge stones.
Today we went by several gravel plants—all in operation. The trucks are moving, the chutes are working and there's dust everywhere.
Of course, wherever there are plants, there are barges. Here's one coming at us.
This section of the River also provided us with some lovely scenery. There were several sections where the edges of the water had large sand deposits which gave the appearance of a small beach. This is quite different from what we've been seeing along the River.
We continued with beautiful scenery for quite some time. The River actually got very narrow at some points which made the background seem even more beautiful. We were surrounded by trees and landscape—a nice change from plants, trucks and barges.
Along this route, we also saw some small cliffs which provided a very nice view. This River has been pretty flat so these cliffs were a welcome sight.
The day continued with more scenery and an occasional barge. The barges along this water have not been a problem and the tow captains have been very helpful. Passing them has become a commonplace activity for us and all of the other Loopers.
We stopped for fuel at 3pm at a specialized fuel stop—by appointment only. We saw another Looper going into the fuel dock and waited for them to get their fuel. We knew that it would take us quite a while to fuel so we got to the dock by 3:30pm. Well...after fueling, we decided to stay at the fuel dock overnight.
Dinner was leftovers from last night—roast pork, mixed vegetables and rice. For dessert we had leftovers from our bakery items from yesterday. I finished my cookie dough cheesecake and Jean finished her caramel covered apple pie!!!!!
Thursday, September 21 st
St. Girardeau, Missouri to Cumberland Island Towhead, Smithland, Kentucky
Today was going to be a long day. We were off the fuel dock at 6:30—at the first light of morning. The temperature was mild—back to the mid-sixties and the skies were already very clear. As we left, I took a few pictures of the sunrise. The red/purple color was gorgeous.
We needed to go more than 110 miles and pass through two large locks on the Ohio. Our last 50 miles on the Mississippi would provide a favorable 3 to 4 knot current, but we would be going upstream on the Ohio against a similar speed current.
We made very good progress all morning with the help of the Mississippi River current. We were happy to see more lovely scenery especially since we knew we were coming to the end of our time on the Mississippi River.
We also knew that we couldn't leave this River without seeing a few more tows and barges.
Ocean Flyer really moved along and we had gone fifty miles within three hours. This brought us to the end of our journey on the Mississippi River and the beginning of our journey on the Ohio River. I took some pictures of the junction of the two rivers.
In hindsight, Jean and I both liked the Mississippi River. We had heard that this part of the journey might be our least favorite but…..the river was actually pretty interesting and had a nice blend of industrial features as well as natural, beautiful aspects. The locks were really not a problem—much easier than the Illinois locks. And the barges were not a problem either. The biggest problem for pleasure boaters is the lack of marinas and/or anchorages. Jean got to know the lingo pretty well and she and the tow captains got along quite well. In total we were on the Mississippi River for only 218 miles. It was nice.
As we made our way up the Ohio River, we couldn't help but notice its size—it's big.
The Ohio, along with the Missouri, is one of the biggest tributaries of the Mississippi River. Four years before the Marquette and Joliet Expedition, the Frenchman LaSalle was the first to discover the upper reaches of the Ohio River in 1669. As we came around the junction, we were heading up the Ohio River. General Ulysses S. Grant once commandeered a fort in this area and his southward march was launched from Cairo, Illinois. Cairo is the city that sits at the confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers.
The Ohio River is 981 miles long, but we were to traverse only about 60 miles of it. It begins in Pittsburgh and flows generally southwest to Cairo, Illinois. The Ohio River is wide but not as deep as the Mississippi. Our short journey on the Ohio will be upstream.
Immediately under the Cairo Fixed Highway Bridge, our paths crossed with a tow and barge carrying huge stones—for lining driveways and sidewalks. This is our first bridge on the Ohio River and it's pretty high.
The first ten miles of the Ohio River were pretty amazing. Both shorelines were lined with barges and barges also sat in the MIDDLE of the channel and anyplace else they felt like it. This area is called a ‘fleeting' center and it is where groups of barges are rearranged, loaded and unloaded. There were barges everywhere and it was hard to tell which ones were moving and which ones were anchored. After about ten miles, the River got wider and more picturesque. There was also a marked decrease in the number of barges. At about mile 18 on the Ohio River, we came to a construction site for a new lock to replace the next two. This site was fascinating due to the number of cranes and other work vehicles. This construction has already been underway for years and is not expected to be completed for seven more years!!!! Constructing these locks is a major engineering feat!!!!!!
Within 20 miles we were at our first lock on the Ohio and we had great luck—the wickets were down. In English, that means that the water level was so high on the River that we could drive the boat right over the dam and did NOT have to go through the lock. This was great news and would save us quite a bit of time. We were thrilled. We did not have the same luck at the second lock. I had called ahead and spoke with the lockmaster who told me to ‘come along'. Jean and I raced forward at full throttle and got to the second lock at 2pm. Well…we had to wait for a while—an hour and a half. We went through with three other boats after having a problem with one of them. The lockmaster called us in and indicated that Jean should come in first. But…a very small boat got in front of us and actually blocked our ability to enter the lock. The lockmaster then motioned to Jean to come forward so that he could get our line. Well… the little boat kept getting in the way—this guy was nuts. We finally got to the lockmaster and got our line and Ocean Flyer secured.
Once through the lock, we kept on going but knew that we would be unable to make it to Green Turtle Bay Marina before dark. We went by Paducah, Kentucky which had a huge “welcome” sign. We went further up the River and found a secure anchorage and dropped an anchor for the night. Our anchorage was in a small narrow inlet behind an island and is known as Cumberland Island Towhead. It's immediately after this anchorage that we would take a turn off the Ohio and enter the Cumberland River. It was about 5pm and already getting dark. The skies were overcast and rains were expected. There was one other boat in the anchorage with us. We had an easy dinner of chicken Caesar salad and some dessert of low fat yogurt.
The sunset was beautiful.
Around 4am we were awakened by the sound of very loud thunder and the sight of incredible lightening. The rains were very heavy and it definitely felt like the boat was moving. It was horrible. We both got dressed and headed up to the flybridge to see if the boat was still secure. The lightening lit up the entire sky and the rains were pouring down. Fortunately, it was clear that the boat was NOT moving and that we were secure. We could see that people were awake and up on the other boat also—nobody was sleeping through this storm. We stayed awake for over an hour and then the storm passed by. We went back to bed…..another part of the adventure.
Friday, September 22, 2006
Cumberland Island Towhead, Smithland, Kentucky to Grand Rivers, Kentucky
This morning was gray and overcast but no rain—thank goodness. We're now on the Cumberland River—another new waterway for us. The Cumberland River flows almost 690 miles through Tennessee. For our journey, we'll only be on the River for about 33 miles where we will then enter the Barkley Canal which connects the Cumberland to the Tennessee River.
We got started on the Cumberland River by 8:30am and were hoping for an easy journey to the marina. We only had thirty miles but go and one lock—immediately before the marina. The River was fine and we moved along well. The Cumberland River is pretty and picturesque. There are trees are both sides of the water and the sands are a rich red color— reminiscent of Sedona, Arizona. We made it to our next lock in no time and only had to wait 15 minutes.
The Barkley Lock is a relatively new lock, built in 1963, has a 57 foot lift and is 800 feet long. Surprisingly, it only takes about 15 minutes for the lock to complete the lift.
We could see the clouds in the distance and we both commented that we hoped we could make it to the marina before the rains came. Well…while we were in the lock, the skies opened and the rains came. We couldn't see a thing. The lock doors opened and out we went—but we could not see one foot in front of us. We knew that we were now in Barkley Lake but we could see nothing. The marina was only one mile away so we called them and they guided us in—with careful instructions every 10 feet. We got to their fuel dock, got tied up and waited for the rain to stop. We were thrilled to finally be at the marina.
Later in the day, we were in our slip, safe and sound. We went to Enterprise to pick up a rental car so that we could go to Nashville on Saturday. Huddie and Betty Baxter were coming with us for two days in Nashville. Nashville is only 125 miles from here so we decided to go for a visit. Neither Jean nor I had ever been to Nashville so we thought it would be fun to see the Grand Ole Opry and other Nashville sites.
When we got back to the marina we met up with many of the Loopers that are at this marina. It was good to see everyone again.
Dinner was wonderful—spaghetti with Jean's homemade sauce and, of course, garlic bread.
Saturday, September 24 th
In port in Grand Rivers, Kentucky
Nashville, Tennessee by Car
Up and out early—in the car by 8am. We got an early start—headed for Opryland and all of its trimmings. The two hour trip went by quickly and we found our way to Music City Boulevard and a quick stop at a visitors' center. We picked out some things to do including the Saturday Night show at the Grand Ole Opry!!!!!
Nashville was founded on Christmas Day 1779 when Englishman James Robertson, under the authority of the governor of North Carolina, established a settlement on the west bank of the Cumberland River and called it Fort Nashborough, in honor of Francis Nash, a Revolutionary War general. Establishing self-government was an immediate priority, and in 1780 the Cumberland Compact, which established the first civil government in Middle Tennessee, was signed by 256 pioneers. In the following 64 years, the state capital was moved from Knoxville to Nashville, back to Knoxville and then to Murfreesboro before an act of legislation permanently established Nashville as the capital in 1843.
Our first stop was the Gaylord Hotel and Resort in Opryland. This hotel is unbelievable. We had been told to be sure to see this but none of us actually understood why we had to see a hotel. Well….it was amazing—the hotel is huge and there's a major section of it that's enclosed with a huge greenhouse-like glass dome. It's a 37,000 foot outdoor pavilion. This hotel has 2,881 rooms—with a separate check-in section for celebrities!!!! There's also a section with a river boat snaking through it. There are also flowers and greenery everywhere—all of which are pretty exotic.
We went through many of the specialty shops and even had our picture taken with two very friendly horses.
The hotel covers many, many acres and has several distinct sections. While crossing from one to the other we came across Miss Di-Vine—who you need to see to believe. I took a picture but….This is a woman, dressed completely in vines, with her face colored green, standing on stilts. She's a permanent feature at the hotel and pretty amazing to watch.
The hotel was amazing—complete with waterfalls!!!!!
From here, we headed to the Opryland Museum which was very interesting. This museum is fairly new and has many excellent exhibits. Here we saw guitars, clothes, and many other reminders of Country music. We even saw Minnie Pearl!!!!!
Soon it was time for the Grand Ole Opry show which was very entertaining. What began as a simple radio broadcast in 1925 is today a live-entertainment phenomenon, dedicated to honoring country music's rich history and dynamic present with a mix of country legends and the contemporary chart-toppers who have followed in their footsteps. The format of the show is a series of short performances—one or two songs—by a large number of performers. It's very toe-tapping and the audience is very involved in singing along. There are also frequent advertisements as the show moves along.
The entire evening was fun. We all went out to the Rain Forest restaurant for dinner—although it was pretty late—9:30pm. I had appetizers only—chicken tenders and Jean had a chicken quesadilla.
Sunday, September 25 th
At port in Grand Rivers, Kentucky
Nashville, Tennessee by Car
We got and early start today—our first stop would be the Hermitage—the home of President Jackson. Today, Andrew Jackson is best remembered as the seventh president of the United States, but in his years before the White House, he was known as the hero of New Orleans, the brightest star to emerge from the War of 1812. “General” was the title he liked best, and General Jackson was what he remained during his eight years in Washington.
The Hermitage is only 10 miles from downtown Nashville and is quite extensive. The property ranged in size from 425 acres at its purchase in 1804 to 1,000 acres at Jackson's death in 1845. We were able to visit the grounds, the gardens, the mansion, the museum and several of the other buildings on the property. This was a great stop.
There were several historic buildings on the property including one of the slave quarters. We were told that there are still slave descendents living in Nashville who have been able to provide information regarding their ancestors' work at the hermitage.
We also got to see the tomb of President Jackson and several of his family members. It was quite impressive.
In some of the fields at the Hermitage, Jean noticed these ‘Oreo' cows. They're black on the ends with a huge belt of white around their middle. They're actually Scottish, from the Galloway region in Scotland—they're called the ‘belted galloways'. They're an heirloom breed of beef cattle originating in a mountainous region of Galloway in Southwest Scotland. They're very pretty—take a close look.
From here, we headed downtown to see the Country Music Museum and Hall of Fame. This was another great stop. The architecture of the building was designed to highlight several aspects of country music—the windows on the front of the building were designed to resemble black piano keys—the giant sweeping arch of the right side of the building portrays a 1950's Cadillac fin—and—from overhead, the building resembles the shape of a bass clef.
The exhibits were incredible and many of them involved special recordings by famous performers. The exhibits contained performers' clothes, musical instruments and other memorabilia!!!!
There was an exhibit of Elvis—complete with a wall mural and a gold piano that Priscilla gave him to celebrate their first wedding anniversary.
We even saw a car, a Ponteville, that had been customized with a series of gun accessories. There was a gun for the hood ornament, guns on the tails and guns on the inside door handles—take a look.
There were many, many exhibits displaying clothes and guitars—here's a sample.
They had one entire room set up as a display for certain ‘gold records'. This exhibit was spectacular. In this room, you could go up to the record, which was labeled, and when you opened the door, the music would start to play. This was fantastic.
There was also a special exhibit about Ray Charles. I took a picture of his tuxedos. This exhibit was wonderful—it was full of Ray Charles music.
From here we walked around some of the downtown area and ‘found' the original Grand Ole Opry auditorium, the Ryman Auditorium. It's a pretty impressive brick building sitting in the heart of downtown Nashville.
We walked around the music district where every restaurant and bar has live entertainment. Nashville is easy to get around and was quite inviting. We went by the BellSouth building which was quite interesting—I thought it looked like a jukebox—what do you think?????
We got back in the car and headed back to the marina. We decided to skip dinner—we'd all get something on our boats once we got back to the marina. Jean and I had chicken sandwiches at about 9:30pm.
Monday, September 25 th
At port in Grand Rivers, Kentucky
This morning was a morning to sleep in—no alarm. We decided to spend the day in the Paducah area—doing some local sightseeing. We talked to some Loopers in the morning and then headed into Paducah in the afternoon. Our first stop was the Quilt Museum which was just wonderful. Paducah is the quilting capital of the U.S. and for good reason. Each April, Paducah hosts a major international quilting exhibition which draws thousands of quilters.
The Museum is very impressive and houses an incredible selection of fine quilts. Each quilt on display has won an award of some kind and each quilt is a piece of art. The techniques on display are very advanced and the workmanship and skill level is extraordinary. Even the traditional quilts are done in a very elaborate and refined manner.
With each room that we entered the quilts were just magnificent. It's hard to believe that these quilts are just fabric—they're beautiful. We were not permitted to take any photos so I have no pictures of the quilts themselves—too bad!!!!!
We even saw a quilt made of wood!!!! I can only say that it was amazing and Jean and I both thought that it was fabric.
From the museum we walked around Paducah's waterfront which is really lovely. They currently have no marina downtown but we were told that there is one being developed for use in the near future. This is a town that would really benefit from having a marina. Due to the potential of flooding from the Ohio River, the waterfront has a huge concrete wall which runs along the entire riverfront. This wall is painted with murals similar to the murals in Midland, Canada. I took a picture of just one—but there were many murals.
From here we went on to do more errands—Home Depot, Office Max and others. We were back on the boat by 5:30 just in time to change and go out to dinner. Tonight we had dinner with the Walkers, our Canadian friends originally from New Zealand. The Walkers helped us to map out our route through Canada's North Channel and their help was invaluable. They've just recently started the Loop—starting out from Canada this past August. We ate at a famous Grand Rivers restaurant—Patti's—which is home to the two-inch pork chop. Jean ordered the pork chop and I had a strip steak. We had steamed veggies with our meal as well as a great salad. We were back on Ocean Flyer by 9pm and ready for a good night's sleep.
Tuesday, September 26 th
At port in Grand Rivers, Kentucky
Memphis, Tennessee by Car
Today was another ‘tourist' day. Since we're so close to Memphis—180 miles—we decided to drive to Memphis with a stop at Graceland—Yes—I said Graceland. Betty and Huddie Baxter went with us—and off we went at 8:30am. On the way to the car, we saw that La Garza Verde , a Looper boat from the Canada flotilla, was at the marina. John and Sue, its owners, had gone home to New Jersey for a few weeks, and had now caught up to us. It was great to see them. This marina has been a good stop for us.
We had a long ride to Memphis but the road went through many small towns and it was good to see these parts of Kentucky and Tennessee. This is really middle America. Memphis' roots were established by the Chickasaw Indians who settled on the high bluffs overlooking the Mississippi. The first European to visit the area was Spanish explorer Hernando De Soto, who crossed the Mississippi in 1541. Louis Joliet and Jacques Marquette followed, and in 1682 Robert de La Salle claimed the region for France. After passing through British hands, the territory was ceded to the United States and in 1819 Andrew Jackson helped found and name the settlement. Thinking the Mississippi resembles the Nile, the founders called their new town Memphis, “place of good abode” after the city in Egypt.
We made it to Graceland, our first stop, by noon and went right to the ticket office for the platinum ticket. With this ticket, we got to see Elvis's mansion, his airplanes, his cars, his tomb and two other small Elvis-centered museums. There are also gift stores that go along with each of these ‘stops'—quite the set-up.
The parking lot was pretty empty so we knew that we'd have an easy time of seeing everything—and we did. The first stop—the mansion—was interesting. It's 15,000 square feet—which is surely large. We were allowed to see the first floor and lower level but were NOT allowed to see any of the upstairs rooms. I expected the worst—having seen pictures of Elvis's home before. Well…I was pleasantly surprised. His taste was horrible but not as horrible as I had expected. I took some pictures…after all—there aren't many living rooms with stained glass windows depicting matching peacocks.
There was an animal room—which should tell you something by its name. This room was particularly weird. Luckily, the photos I took came out horribly—you won't get to see them.
The TV room was okay except that it was done in very, very, very bright yellows with equally intense navy blue—what was he thinking?????
In the pool room, complete with a pool table, there were 350 yards of fabric used to line the walls and to cover the ceiling. Hello—where was Priscilla?????? By the way…when I went to get my ticket I asked if I could get in for free because my name is Priscilla—the clerk immediately asked me for my $30. There's no humor in Graceland.
We spent some time on the grounds which were actually quite lovely. Graceland sits on 14 acres and is quite beautiful.
We saw the cars, of which there were many. We saw his 1955 pink Cadillac, two Stutz Blackhawks and a 1975 Dino Ferrari. This section also contained several motorcycles which Elvis owned.
We saw the planes of which there were two. The Lisa Marie , a customized jet plane and Hound Dog II , a Lockheed JetStar. I took a picture of Jean standing by the Lisa Marie.
We took some pictures of the “other Priscilla” and got one of me and the King also. I think we look good together—really.
There was a main section which houses his trophies (the Trophy Building) and also showed several videos and displayed many of his performance outfits. By the way…there were very few pictures and/or clothes relating to the ‘fat Elvis'. I liked this strategy—I don't want people, when I'm gone, looking at my fat clothes!!!!! Elvis looked thin and young in every video and display—thank you.
There were videos everywhere and Elvis spoke to us frequently throughout the tour. There's a fine line between fascinating and spooky. The tomb was over the line—very spooky. People were crying—that was even more spooky.
We left Graceland a few hours later knowing more about Elvis than we should but are now able to say—“I've been to Graceland”.
We went to check in at the hotel and then got back in the car for dinner and a jazz concert. We went to a Memphis landmark restaurant—The Half Shell—and everyone had a great meal. I had the best grilled catfish ever—and Jean had a voodoo catfish which had a special Memphis sauce. Her meal was also delicious. Following dinner we went to a jazz concert at the Concert Hall at the University of Memphis. The concert was excellent. We had a blast. Another great day. Tomorrow will be another day and we'll try for a little bit more culture and history.
Wednesday, September 27 th
At port in Grand Rivers, Kentucky
Memphis, Tennessee by Car
We were all up and out early—on to downtown Memphis to see Mud River Island and the Mississippi River Museum. But…before that, we headed to the famous Peabody Hotel and to the ducks!!!!! Ever since the early 1900's ducks have been making a daily appearance at the hotel. At 11am five mallard ducks came off an elevator and walked into a fountain in the hotel's main lobby. Then, at 5pm, they exit the fountain and get back on the elevator. It's a famous ritual witnessed by many, many people. Today would be our turn to see the ducks. When we got to the hotel, there was already a huge crowd and it was only 10:45am. Well...here are the pictures…
From here we walked through town complete with its trolleys.
We made our way over to Mud Island by way of a monorail. This Island is home to the Mississippi River Museum and also has an amazing Riverwalk. The Riverwalk is a 5-block scale model of the Lower Mississippi which shows 20 city maps, tributaries, bridges and watershed panels. About 1.5 million gallons of water circulate through this model every 12 hours. I took some pictures but I don't know if you'll be able to see and understand the ‘value' of this display—but it was awesome.
The island is a perfect spot from which to take some pictures of downtown Memphis. Here goes….
Jean took a picture of me, Betty and Huddy at the Riverwalk.
From Mud Island we went into town for lunch. We decided to go to Beale Street—famous in Memphis for its jazz and blues clubs. We ate at B.B. King's restaurant and club—it was fun. Since this was going to be both lunch and dinner we ate well. Jean got a burger and I got chicken wings!!! We had good food—no dessert. We also had a chance to walk around Beale Street—which is a lot of fun.
From here, it was back to the car for the long ride home. It's a 3½ hour drive to the Marina—that's a lot of driving. We're back at about 9pm. It's good to be back on Ocean Flyer.
Thursday, September 28 th
At port in Grand Rivers, Kentucky
Today's going to be a catch-up day. Jean needs to do things on the boat like change the fuel filters, etc., and I need to complete another website update. As usual, there's laundry, food shopping and other errands to be done. We also need to return the rental car. Yuck!!!!
Tonight we went to see Bob and Nan on Bonas IV for munchies. Bob and Nan just returned from a week in New Jersey and we were glad to get caught up with them. We filled up on salsa and crackers so we had no dinner. Life is good. |
