Adventures on Slàinte Mhath

Day 100: October 26:   It was a drizzly morning but the temps were still comfortable enough to not require sweatshirts! We called the MelPrice Lock lockmaster early in the morning, hoping to get UW about 6:30 am. This lock is the first lock on the Upper Mississippi River. It has two chambers and floating bollards. He told us it was a good time to come so we left the dock and headed out from Alton Marina. Turning around I saw the bridge near just outside the marina bidding farewell. Despite the lockmaster telling us to head toward the lock, we ended up idling in the river for about an hour. It turned out a northbound tug was in the lock; once a tug was in a lock it can take quite awhile before the lock is ready for other vessels. Before long we could see 5 other boats leave the marina; all 7 vessels continued to float around waiting for the green light. On a positive note we watched the sky become more glorious by the moment as the sun announced its daily presence. Eventually the tu...

Day 99: October 25:   Island #525 turned out to be a perfect anchorage; just off the channel in good depths. We heard a few barges go by during the night and aside from the soft patter of rain, we heard nothing else! Sleep came easy.  It's a bit overcast this morning; the deck is wet with last night's rain; I'm hoping the sun comes out to take care of that. Our plan is to head to Alton, Marina about 15 miles away. We submitted a reservation request last night and are waiting to receive a confirmation. Just after 8:00 am John called to check on our request; we were told there was room for both boats and could head over at any time, so without hesitation we pulled up the anchor and left Island #525, heading for Alton, Marina.  It was a quick 2 hour journey. We passed the huge American flag at Grafton Harbor; this indicates the end of the Illinois River. For the next 200 miles we will be moving south via the Upper Mississippi River.  The scenery along the way was incred...

Day 97: October 23: I was probably the first one awake at about 6:00. It was chilly at 40 degrees but there was no rain in sight; always a plus. We had planned on contacting the Peoria Lock lockmaster just after 6:00 to determine a good time for us to lock through. Luckily the lockmaster indicated no tugs were in sight so we could approach the lock at any time. Using NEBO we located a number of vessels behind us. Most of them were from our flotilla #13; we assumed they would be making their way toward the lock in the morning also. Wanting to lock through without a large number of boats, Zendeavor, Summer Fling and we pulled out at 7:30 and headed for the lock.  Upon arrival, we saw the green light and were able to enter the chamber immediately. With only 3 boats locking, the process took no time and we were off and running within about 10 minutes.  The trip was pretty uneventful. We did not pass many other boats and only a few barges. The scenery did not change much; as someo...