Day 8

Left today at about 7:30am. Of course Tabbie was still sleeping, so Captain Grant readied for departure. We are headed to Le Claire today, birthplace of Wild Buffalo Bill Cody. There is a museum on the river that we are interested in seeing. Who knew Wild Bill came from these parts? And IOWA of all places? The weather is cooperating today so driving up on top is possible. We need to go 81 miles and with one hour less of daylight at night, we have to cruise. There was more water traffic today. We are starting to see more pleasure craft out and about, along with the usual smattering of fishing boats and barges. Lots of beautiful scenery along the way. We passed under several bridges today that were only several inches taller than the boat. We could touch the bottom of the bridge if we stood up….
Keeping up with all of the major coincidences and odd occurrences of perfect timing that have been occurring since before the day that we left, Grant’s friend Chris from Madison calls Grant. It so happens that he will be passing through the town that we are heading for. We end up meeting at just about the same time. Both Chris and his girlfriend Marie have been criss-crossing the country in his pick-up truck for the last 7 weeks. (Don’t know how you did it) He had compiled a short synopsis of their trip on DVD, so we watched that, as well as several other clips from their adventure. It was a very nice visit. Thanks for stopping to see us guys!
The rest of the night was beautiful. We docked at the municipal marina (free, but no amenities), and Grant made us beer can chicken for dinner. Interesting. I don’t know what people’s obsession in Wisconsin is with beer. But it was good. I am beginning to think that there is nothing in this world that Grant is not good at……


Details for the Day:

Distance: 81 miles
Departure: 7:30 hrs
Arrival: 17:30 hrs
Fuel: N/A
Bridges: 5
Trains: 2
Barges: 4
Locks: 2 (#12 & #13, ½hr delay on 13)


Windmill