Ship's Log

May 27, 2007...SABULA, IOWA

After a winter back in Minnesota we rented a car and drove to Rock Island, ILL last Tuesday to our home-away-from-home, Otherwise. It was GOOD to be back and was even better to be on the water.

September 22, 2006...CHASKA, MINNESOTA

We arrived home September 10, having driven a rental car from Rock Island. It was good to be home, and especially good to know we had missed MOST of the road construction in front of our house this summer. The house looked great both inside and out, thanks to our wonderful neighbors and a few friends who kept it mowed, weeded, snow free & general upkeep. We can't thank them enough!

We have found out that we need a new transmission and that won't be available to be put into the boat until the end of October, so Monday we are driving down to Rock Island to pick up our "stuff" from inside the boat to bring it home. Then we'll store the boat in Rock Island after it is fixed & pick it up next spring & bring it home. A delayed finish, but as things turn out, it is good we are home. We've been super busy with Linnea's mom making a two day trip to the hospital & then a couple week stay in rehab from a fall. We're seeing our children, grandkids & friends and some relatives are coming this weekend. Already back in the swing of things.

We need a bit of time for reflections on the trip, but overall we are thrilled to have been able to do this adventure. If anyone is wondering if they should do it...we say get educated, learn your boat & then just go. You'll have the time of your life!

September 9, 2006...ROCK ISLAND, ILLINOIS

We are only 5 - 6 days from home by boat, but wouldn't you know it, we are having some more mechanical problems, so the boat is on the hard getting worked on. It will take one to two weeks so we have rented a car and are driving home tomorrow. Not the way we wanted to arrive, but it will have to do. We plan on taking the car back as soon as the boat is finished and then driving her home. So tomorrow we're on the road again...but by car. It will be great to be home and see everyone, but our thoughts will be with the boat until she is fixed and we have her back in Red Wing. Then we can REALLY relax and enjoy the winter.

We have been very fortunate and not only found a good shop to work on the boat, but also met some very generous folks who have a boat like ours and they invited us out on it this evening. We anchored out off a local park where the we enjoyed the Riverfront Pops, featuring the Quad Cities Symphony Orchestra plus a tribute to the Beatles with a sound-alike group. Both were very good and the sound system carried on to the river very well. The next to the last piece was the 1812 Overture complete with canons firing over the river, and the last piece was Stars & Stripes accompaning fireworks. Jim & I can't believe how many festivals and city celebrations we've enjoyed on this trip. Somehow we've been cities and towns when fireworks were the finalle of the hoop-te-do...what ever it was. The last has been just as beautiful as the first in Jacksonville. Who knew these celebrations would be one of the highlights of the trip

As we were coming up the Mississippi, we were reminded on how beautiful this river is. It competes favorably with any other river we have been on during this trip.

There's no place like home.

September 1, 2006...GRAFTON, ILLINOIS

At 12:10 pm we crossed our wake on the Mississippi and completed the Great Loop!!!! That doesn't mean we're home, but we finished the actual loop!

Three other boats joined us as we rounded the red buoy on the Mississippi and then we all went into Grafton Marina where we proceeded to polish off four bottles of champagne before 2pm. What fun and what a wonderful adventure this had been.

What else can we say except WHEEEEEEE!!!!!

August 30, 2006...HAVANA, ILL

OK, I know...back up your work all the time...but I haven't for a while and dropped the computer a week ago & not it says it doesn't read the operating system. So I'm going to wait until we get home to have it fixed. Meanwhile, I'm in the library here, on a limited time, so you will get a quick overview and no pictures...but once we get home I promise to add to this.

We left South Haven and went to New Buffalo where we stayed overnight before crossing to Chicago.

We stayed at DuSable Marina, right downtown Chicago by Millenium Park, Navy Pier, the Art Institute & much more.

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For three days we did all we could (of course never enough) but we loved the Institute, enjoyed a double decker tour of the city, spent quite a bit of time in Millenium Park and wandered the streets.
Millenium Park is wonderful withan amphitheater, great sculptures and gardens.
The Bean:

Frand Geary designed amphitheater:


Jim at the BP bridge in Millenium Park

Fountain at Millenium park with pictures of Chicogians projected onto the sides of the fountains. Note the water "coming out of the mouth":

Tiffany Glass Dome at the Chicago Cultural Center:

Sometimes the girls needed to explore more than the guys, but they were patient and "let" us do our thing.

As we have found in many of the cities and towns we have visited, flowers have become intrigal to the architecture and beauty of the city.

The big news here here is that Marshall Fields is becoming Macy's. In Minneapolis we already went through that agony when we became MF from Daytons. Chicago was a great place to be, but it was time to move south. We went through downtown Chicago...under 45 bridges in a 1/2 hours. Many were very low & Jim again had to change his pants when we were done...the lowest bridge was 17 feet & we are 16' 9". Lots of fun.


What we are most surprised is how beautiful the Illinois river is. We had been told it just was a place to go through, but we've enjoyed it.
We've stayed in Joliet on the city wall and at Henry's Marina where we discovered an asian carp that had jumped into our dinghy & couldn't get out:

We had a great dinner with 8 other loopers at the Illinois Valley Yacht and Canoe Club:

We enjoyed a beautiful evening at the Tall Timbers Marina where they had hundreds of beautiful potted plants:

and we expect to anchor out tomorrow night before we go to Grafton Marina on Friday.

The locks have given us waits of 20 minutes to 4 hours and we've seen Mississippi type barges. We're traveling with three other boats so we're enjoying ourselves...Betty B, Wings and Inevitable 2. We do know how to have a good time.

We expect to be at Two Rivers Marina by Saturday & then continue up the Mississippi. Estimated time of arrival is about the middle of SEPTEMBER...we'll see.

Thanks for your patience...I won't be able to change the map until we get home, but imagine us 2/3 down the Illinois river toward the Mississippi.

Y'all take care, and leave the light on. I'll update you when we can