NOT A GOOD DAY

September 10, 2011  Dateline: Ottawa, IL USA

Rich started the day with a really good idea to speed up the fueling of MY WAY and me as well as get my holding tank pumped out.  I would get fuel in the morning at the marina I was at and MY WAY would get fuel later in the day at the next marina.  Good ideas are only good if the execution of those ideas is good.  Well Rich’s execution of his idea was really, really poor and he ended up putting my props on the rocks.  Luck would have it that the marina I was at had a Travel Lift strong enough to lift me.  The manager called in some staff and they got me up and put my spare props on. So, in less than an hour I was ready to go again.  Boy did Rich beat the living daylights out of those props, every blade has a ding.  The props will be sent to Chicago for repair and then Rich will tell them where I will be so they can be sent to meet me.  We’ve been told the river level is down 12-18”. Lucky for me right?  I need every inch of water I can get, and down is not good.

When I was lifted out of the water and hanging in the Travel Lift, the forward cables seemed to slip and my bow dropped nearly a foot.  I thought that everyone was going to have a heart attack and I was going to have a crushed bow.  I did not drop far and the Travel Lift held, but it was a scary moment for me.

While I was pulled out of the water a tow pushing 8 barges got ahead of me in the queue for the next lock.  When Carol called the lock master as to timing for me to clear the lock, she was told it would be 2 ½ hours before I could go in.  Rich and Carol noticed a restaurant on the shore with a dock. They decided to go to the restaurant and wait out the 2 ½ hours.  Soon after I arrived a 30 foot boat arrived and between the two of us we took up the entire dock.  About 30 minutes later there was the sound of thunder, rolling thunder.  The waitress told me that 150 motorcycles would roll into the parking lot.  They were really noisy but very polite and quiet.  Many of they came over to look at me, one guy even paced me off to see how big I was.  As I pulled away many of them yelled that Rich and Carol should take them with us and wished up good bye.  I am happy they did take any one else.

While at the restaurant another tow went by, an hour after he passed I left, Carol called the lock master again and she was told we would have to wait another hour and 15 minutes.  Luckily the wind was not blowing so I could just sit in the water and not be blown around.  Once I got into the lock I had to wait another half hour for two other Loopers, the same two boats that I had to wait for in a different lock yesterday.  In total it took four hours to clear this lock.  I went 12 miles and it took me 7 hours to do it.   

The day ended by me going into a marina with the warning that I needed to coast into the opening because the river was down and the entrance was silted.  I could tell Rich was not happy.

Tomorrow I will travel 75 miles and pass through one lock to get to Illinois Valley Yacht Club in Peoria, IL.