Day 7

Stayed the day in East Dubuque. Luckily the severe weather last night passed right by. We only experienced some rain and moderate winds, which lasted throughout the day. Tabbie needed to go to Urgent Care, so we decided to bike up the steepest hill in IOWA. (I think it is the only hill Iowa has) It must have been an incline of 90 degrees. We ended up walking the whole thing. (Wimps!) Went to Finley Hospital at the suggestion of the bartender. The people there were awesome. Tabbie was in and out in an hour. Grant went to KMART to pick up some supplies while Tabbie went to the pharmacy down the street. Almost sent Grant to the emergency room when Tabbie decides to take a sharp turn on her bike in front of Grant without notifying him. Grant slams on his breaks and t-boned her. (She’s a bad driver, so naturally she would be a bad biker – God knows why Grant lets her drive the boat!) Only one more day of insurance, so any major accidents need to happen now!

We spent the rest of the evening on the boat. We found Candace another houseboat for sale (see pic) although it might be a bit out of her price range ($500K). I think we are going to try and find a houseboat for Candace at every marina we stop in at… (FYI: Candace is Tabbie’s best friend…) There was great phone reception so we worked diligently on our website and a few other housekeeping issues. Grant, the master fly-killer perfected his swat and proceeded to leave dead fly’s all over the boat. Watch out Florida insects-Grant will be able to swat you down in mid-air!

It was quiet in the harbor tonight. The winds died down around midnight. Tomorrow will be an early start.



Boat for Candace

Day 6

Got moving at 8:30 this morning – earliest yet! About 5 miles south we ran into some dense fog, our first encounter… We had about 150 feet of visibility, and could barely make out the buoys… Navigated through cautiously, and fortunately the thick fog was only for about a mile, and visibility improved so we could see both banks. The sun finally came out about 15 miles north of Dubuque so we were able to drive up top again. Traveled all day and made it to Dubuque, IA. We are staying at on the east bank in East Dubuque, which is in the state of Illinois. We pulled up for gas, and the kid that came to help was about as helpful as a flea! Tabitha And I learned how to pump out our own holding tank as the kid said he never did that before (only words out of his mouth) and didn’t even know how to turn the pump on! (he just shrugged when I asked him how to turn it on) Somehow we did it without making a mess, and proceeded to slip up for the night. Heavy storms are approaching for tonight, so we got a covered slip. Tornado warnings are in effect until 24:00 hrs, but nothing as of yet………

Details for the Day:

Distance: 68.5 miles
Departure: 8:30 hrs
Arrival: 16:30 hrs
Fuel: 101.6 gallons (@2.30/gallon!!)
Bridges: 4
Trains: 6
Barges: 4
Locks: 2 (#10 & #11, no delay)

Grant stuck Tabbie out in the rain!

Day 5

On the river all day, and again dreary all day… Just south of La Crosse we encountered our first dredging operation. Didn’t know how to approach it, but the dredger talked us through it on the radio. He took up the entire river, so we had to pass him inside the buoys, fortunately there were no wing dams along that stretch… We were trying to get to Prairie Du Chien today, but winds were stronger than anticipated and our time was slowed. We were also slowed at Lock #8 as they were performing maintenance to the lock. About 30 minutes, but no problem, it was just noon, so we anchored and fired up the generator to have a little hot lunch… We beached the boat just south of Lock #9, about 10 miles north of Prairie Du Chien. Tabitha made a delicious spaghetti dinner, and we toasted champagne (thanks Jer!) to our 1 month anniversary… Yes, one month since we met – it already feels like one year! Things are better than expected.

Details for the Day:

Distance: 49 Miles
Departure: 9:30 hrs
Arrival: 16:30 hrs
Fuel: N/A
Bridges: 2
Trains: 12
Barges: 4
Locks: 2 (#8 – 30 min delay; #9)


Dredger!

Day 4

Another dreary day… Both Tabitha and I are sick with a cold. We stayed in La Crosse today to see Katrina (Tabitha’s friend from High School) and Dan and Kelly (Grant’s cousins). Had a nice lunch with Katrina and went back to her new house for a tour – nice job on the fix up! We have been having difficulty getting our Internet to work on the boat so Grant downloaded some software to hopefully solve the problem… Dan and Kelly picked us up at the boat around 6:30 and we went to dinner at John’s Bar… Original… We get in and questioned our safety, but after we found the restaurant (which consisted of a basement room with concrete floors, three tables, a dart board, and pool table) we were even more frightened!! We toughed it out, had a couple pitchers of beer, and a surprisingly very good meal… Leave it to Dan, the night is not over after a couple pitchers – the next bar had all you can drink for $3.50!! Got to love the smaller towns! The best part is the name of the bar was “The Library” where many college students go on weekends… If any of you are parents out there with kids at UW-La Crosse, be warned, when they say they are going to “The Library” on Friday night, it will likely involve martini menus rather than textbooks, and only domestic beer flows out of the “bubbler”…. Got back to the boat around 10:30, and notice a houseboat for sale in a slip down the dock from us. Candace mentioned she was looking for one, we got her the number (608-468-3825). Settled down for the night. We are going to try and get to Prairie Du Chien tomorrow…

Houseboat for Sale (Candace)

Day 3

Left today at 9:30 hrs, another rainy and cloudy today. We pulled out just right in front of a barge. Good thing, because when we arrived at a lock, we were passed through with no delay. They allowed us to “float” through. (Meaning that we didn’t have to grab the ropes attached to walls) Well, captain Wood thinking he was all that was showing off, and lo and behold, the wind gusts and swings the bow around, and the next thing we know we are heading straight for the lock wall!! So, what does our fearless warrior do?? He does a complete 360-degree circle (or as Candace would say a “cookie”)! I tried to hide so the lockmaster couldn’t identify me! How embarrassing! I think that we are going to request the ropes for awhile… Arrived at the Municipal Marina in LaCrosse. Made dinner on the boat and stayed the night.

Details for the Day:
Depart: 9:30 am
Arrive: 4:30 pm
Distance: 48 miles
Fuel: 75 gal for Day 3-4
Barges: 2
Trains: 3
Bridges: 2
Locks: 4 (5, 5a, 6, 7)
Float through 5 & 5a (donut) No delays


Rain and Fog


Barge!

Day 2

Left Red Wing at 10 am. Beautiful day. We didn’t get much sleep because the boat was tied up on the side we slept on and the bumpers for the boat squeaked against the boat all night. Tabbie was sick so she decided to take a nap on a perfectly nice day. All the way through Lake Pepin. We stopped for lunch at Slipperys. A bar that claims to be the bar in Grumpy Old Men. Grant bought a visor at the store.
We decided to stay the night at a beach at Mile Marker 744. Near Buffalo City on the MN side. Grant came in a little hot and took out a beached log. No damage done, the log was rotten. Lucky again! We made a campfire, watched what was left of the sunset and then retired for the evening. Calm waters, great sleep.

Details for the Day:
Depart: 10:00 am
Arrival: 5:00 pm
Distance: 47 miles
Fuel: N/A
Bridges: 2
Trains: 3
Barges: 2
Locks:1 (#4-no delay)


Slippery's

Lock Day 3 (Lock #3)

Sunset by the Campfire

Day 1

32 people! Thanks to all who came to our send off… Today was quite an adventure for our first day on the river. As everyone was saying last good-by’s, Grant and his dad were untying the boat, and sure enough our first mishap occurred. As Grant leaned over to untie the dock line the new digital camera slipped out of his sweatshirt and right into the river! Oops, nice move slick! We fired up the engines and prepared to leave. The docks were so weighted with our friends and family they were almost sinking! 63 eyes watching us intently as we pulled out, talk about pressure! We radioed the Stillwater Bridge to make sure they were on for a 12:00 lift I requested on Friday. First radio communication, I’m sure we will have quite a few along the way… We made it thorough and watched it lower behind us… No turning back now!

Ok Dad, here is where I get poke a little fun. My dad (John Wood) likes to play photographer every now and again… After we traversed under the bridge I received a call from dear old Dad (5 minutes into the trip) and he wanted us to look and wave, as they were on the embankment along downtown Stillwater just south of the bridge. Ok, no problem… 15 minutes later another call… “We’re up on the bluff on the MN side – can you see us we are waiving!”… No dad, I can’t see you… Ok, finally find them way up on the edge of the bluff line…. More pictures! That’s it right?? Wrong! 15 minutes later, yet another call… “We are on the south end of the Hwy 94 bridge – come close to the shore so we can get your picture! Ok, this is the point where I think about taking out the 12 gauge and showing him a little surprise of my own!! Just kidding dad, I love ya!

Adventure #3: Afton…. This adventure needs a little preface… 1) It is a written rule that you do not anchor in the channel of any major riverway, and 2) The St. Croix River does not have the red and green marking bouys that the Mississippi has (We take the St. Croix river to Prescott, WI where we meet the Mississippi)… Because of this, it is sometimes difficult to find the channel. Ok, back to Afton, MN…. There is a natural sandbar that extends from the WI side of the river about 100 feet into the river… At the end of the sandbar sits 10 fishing boats looking for trophy walleye… As we approach I think it prudent to allow for a safe distance around the fishermen and head to the outside of the river. Low and behold, there is a submerged sandbar on the MN side of the river as well! Sure enough, we barrel right into it! 15 miles into a 2,200 mile trip and we are already stuck on a sandbar! With a little luck and some fancy maneuvering we were on our way in 15 minutes… No apparent damage, fortunately!

Halfway down the St. Croix we decided to switch marinas. We had reservations for the Treasure Island marina, but after reviewing the charts realized that it was in the middle of nowhere, and we were more interested in taking a walk through downtown Red Wing, and needed to find a Target for a new camera anyway. Red wing was a 44 mile trip, and we had to push the second half of the way to make it to the marina by 6:00. We arrived at 5:30 and found out that they closed 30 minutes later for the rest of the season! Lucked out and it gave us a chance to top off the fuel and water… We spoke with a few people that had done “the trip” or parts of it in the past, and they had some great stories to share… Got directions to Target and took the bikes down since it was a “2” mile trip… Three miles later we stopped at the local Inn and asked where Target was. Figures, the lady at the marina told us to go the wrong way out of town! Back to town, and through town to get to Target. After we finally got there we bought the new camera and a few bike lights for night traveling… We headed back to the boat to drop off the bikes and walk back into town for dinner. Found a charming bistro called Oar D’oeuvre (Get it?)… The pork was excellent, I highly recommend….

Today’s travels included the first of many lock and dams along the way. We radioed ahead and told them it was our first, and they were very kind and gave us a quick run through over the radio. We didn’t encounter any problems, and made an easy pass.

Details for the Day:
Distance: 44 Miles
Departure: 11:50 hrs
Arrival: 17:30 hrs
Fuel: 47.4 gallons (@2.72/gallon!!)
Bridges: 6
Trains: 5
Bardges: 1
Locks: 1 (#3, no delay)