June 24, Sunday

We left St. Charles at 6:45 am. It is cloudy and cool, and we even had to crack out sweatshirts and rain gear. It rained off and on, but not very heavy. Because of rainfall further up the river, there is debris floating all over (logs, etc. -- lovingly called "deadheads"). We are both on the bridge reading navigational charts because the Garwin GPS isn't helping anymore, and watching for logs. If we should hit a big log, we would be in trouble. So far, all is ok. Many of the houses are on stilts, which looks so funny to us.

We went through three locks today, and we didn't really have to wait very long. We were both worried about locking with just two people, but it worked out fine. I put out the fenders and held the bow rope, and Kip grabbed the rope from the bridge. NO PROBLEM!

Our destination is Hannibel, Illinois, but the marina is full. So, Plan B. We are going 20 miles further to Quincy, Illinois. A few days ago Kip and Rick were talking about picking up a buoy from shore, but didn't get a chance. So, for Rick, we are posting a picture of 10 buoys on the shore, just ripe for picking.

The Art Keller marina is pretty simple, but nice. It is in a channel off of the Mississippi, and is not very close to anything. Most of the boats are 20-30' and are stored out of the water on some type of floats in their slip. Very different that what we are used to. One thing to note is that the bathrooms were like the ones you see at a state campground... open at the bottom and lots of bugs. Not nice at all. If you are picky about bathrooms, probably not the marina for you.

Our first day solo, and I am fondly recalling our honeymoon when we drove an entire day in Colorado looking at the world and did not eat!!!! I mentioned this to Kip, and he said "We ate, we had chips!" So, I am demanding Kip take me to the Pier Restaurant down the channel. This restaurant is built over the water, so it looks really fun. Finally, Kip gets to drive around in the dinghy!. He's been waiting for this moment the entire trip! As we are driving around, people are looking at us like we are from Mars! They don't have many dinghys here, I guess. Then, on the way back from the restaurant, Kip took me on a romantic cruise through the marina to look at the boats. The dinghy was deflating and the engine stopped, and Kip ended up rowing us back to the boat. Oh well....

We asked about the jumping fish, and Mike from the marina said they were Asian Carp, and nobody wants them around.

We drove 120 miles today in 9 hours. Gas at the Art Keller Marina is $3.04 a gallon; the slip is $40 per night; Dinner was $50.00; Trip of a lifetime, priceless.