Let it Snow

Over the past 4 months Tom has taken numerous north trips to work on the keel. It's been a lot of cutting, sawing, digging, pastering and sanding all while laying on the rocky ground. Not an easy task, but once again she's water tight along the keel.

We took advantage of what we think will be our last warm day this year to cover her up. After getting the price for getting her shrinked wrapped we opted for a BIG blue tarp. We just couldn't see spending so much money on something that was going to potentially get ruined over the winter and then taken off and thrown away in the spring. Wouldn't you know the minute we tried to unfurl this huge 40' x 60' tarp the breezes kicked up, if this had been a sail on a sail boat we'd be happy campers. It was not an easy task to 'evenly' cover Refugio, but we managed. For now the keel will get one more cosmetic coat of epoxy and under the protective cover of the tarp Tom will begin to remove, repair and replace damaged-rotted cap rail. All the water lines have been drained and various hoses disconnected in anticipation of freezing times ahead.

On the Hard

A few days ago we made arrangements with Washington Marine to haul Refugio out of the water and keep her 'on-the-hard' for a few months in their yard. There are many other boats there and most are in the midst of being repaired and/or painted. This completes our summers plan to have her close to home (1 hr. drive) so we can finally fully repair the keel and completely sand and repaint her hull in the spring. There are just a few things we plan to get done over the next few months, one of them being 'winterizing' her, draining tanks, etc and then once we're done she'll be tucked in for the winter. We plan to splash her back in the water after the thaw next year and the spring high waters have receded. We have not decided yet but we may be keeping her in the Cincinnati area for a while or maybe we'll just take her back down to the Land between the lakes area. For now, she's close to home, easy to get to and safe from hurricanes.

Journey's End (& Craigs Creek Bay)

We passed through the last of our 28 locks for this trip with only one minor incident on Friday. We were told to wait along the guide wall on the Kentucky side until the tow pushing 15 was safely in the outside lock, which we did for about ½ hour. As the tow wiggled his barges into the lock we noticed the water receding in our lock (there are two again). Once the tow was safely in his lock we had to wait for two smaller fishing boats to exit ours. I noticed at this particular lock there is an observation deck and it’s loaded with tourists watching the boats lock through. As this is our last lock and we’re feeling confident in our abilities as we saunter in, approach the wall and I’m just about ready to expertly lasso the bollard and guess what – there’s no bollard. Ha Ha on us, it’s an empty chamber. Oops, so Tom has to reposition away from the wall and begin our approach again. When we get to the next bollard along the wall the pin I am to lasso is almost a foot above my head – this is different. I missed the first time, but got it on the second try. And here we thought we had the procedures in these locks down pretty good. Goes to show ya never be too confident and to always be prepared for the unexpected.

Immediately following that lock through the captain of the tow in the other lock radioed us and say’s “go ahead captain” since he exited just ahead of us, but we were looking for our anchorage for the night 1 mile down river and declined. I feel it’s important to mention this since most times we found the tows to be indifferent to us, so thank you “Winchester” for your courtesy.

Our anchorage for the night was behind a small uninhabited island in Craig’s Creek Bay. That was the only thing uninhabited in this bay since there was a marina and a number of homes that lined the banks. Across the river was the Balterra Casino, a very popular casino in these parts. Again, we found ourselves being rocked around by tubers and otherwise fast speedy little boats most of the evening. As dusk approached so did a little Bayliner which dropped their anchor just off our bow. Off in the distance someone was using up the rest of their July 4th fireworks but I still didn’t see them.

Our passage up river that brings us into Cincinnati was just a continuation of our already pleasant trip. The landscape is breathtaking at times and it’s hard to believe this region is as populated as it is. Also the unfortunate aspect of this region is the number of power plants, seems around every corner there are stacks spewing their white vapors into the air.

Cincinnati was a HOOT to boat through. Both local pro stadiums are on the banks of the Ohio and the Reds had just started a ballgame. There were a number of small boats lingering around the area, we assume waiting for that one long ball. I felt very jubilant standing the bow for the last couple of miles as we passed under 7 bridges looking left and right and snapping pictures.

Amanda & Stella joined us at the Marina to help celebrate the completion of our trip which lasted 35 days and took us over 1800 miles on the water.

So close & yet so far

We awoke around 3am to a massive storm exhibiting major lightening and thunder. We both came up top to be sure everything was secure and notice two small fishing boats just coming back in – strange time to be out fishing. We stayed awake for about an hour and watched as the storm blow through. We half expected to be boarded by the military sometime during the night being so close to Fort Knox and us looking so unusual (we know they were watching) but it never happened. Our suspicions were warranted when we saw 3 men in their camouflage fatigues leave in a little motor boat, and 3 different ones return – shift change somewhere…. (am I paranoid?) Do you suppose they give public tours at Fort Knox? (road trip!)

We drove through another little storm, but it never produced much rain. I never realized how much industrial and/or commercial activities takes place on the Ohio around Louisville. We did pass one casino, perhaps another road trip? I've also noticed lots of folks just walking along the banks - no boat in sight so we can only summarize they are "treasure hunters" looking for whatever the latest storm washed ashore.

We waited 1-1/2 hours for a tow to lock through first, pushing 15, and then it was our turn to lock through the older of the two locks at McAlpine Lock & Dam. We rose about 30 feet and out the other side to a great view of downtown Louisville. Nice looking city from the water. It’s strange to be this close to home (1 hour drive by car) and yet so far. There is much traffic on the Ohio at this point, not only barge traffic but lots of personal water craft – all sizes going in all different directions. One larger dinner cruiser and of course the Belle of Louisville which Brian and I had taken a few years ago. Tom and I had reconsidered looking for a haul out yard here, but nothing materialized so we’ll continue on to Cincinnati.

Tonight we’ve docked at the Juniper Beach Docks, behind the fuel dock. The winds have really picked up and even though we are behind the fuel dock we’ll be rocking and rolling most of the night. It’s right on the river so we’ll also get the wakes from any and all boats that go by. There is a young, friendly, good looking gentleman that works here, Clay – he’s quite proficient at assisting any sized boat that pulls up for fuel. His girlfriend, Alex was kind enough to stop off at the store and pick up lots of batteries for my camera. Such a sweet girl! Thank you Alex.

Nature Made

(July 13-16)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY KENNY!

I’ve discovered a much different river traveling up the Ohio. Gone are all the manmade retentions and the narrow canals, in their place are uprooted and forgotten trees, huge fallen boulders and overgrown muddy river banks that go on for miles. The waters are calmer, deeper and truly greener than I’ve observed before on this trip, and cooler. There are fewer places to stop for the night; marinas or anchorages. One such example would be the Mt. Vernon courtesy dock. After driving for over 10 hours any port begins to look good and we seriously needed a few provisions. Let me tell you, this ‘dock’ was 3 mini-floating docks hooked together with a hand rail running down the middle. It’s really meant for small fishing craft. It was anchored to the shore, so that was good, but for us to tie off and stay here was a treat. Not just for us, but the townsfolk that came to watch, and they did. They watched us dock, tie off (one helped) ride off on our bikes and return, then BBQ on the aft deck. At one point one of the townsfolk dumped his bike and took a running leap off the end of the dock for a swim. An older gentleman pulled up in his truck and unloaded a very anxious and excited dog, Sandy. He threw the ball in the water and in went Sandy; they did this a number of times. We looked forward to sundown when they’d all go home, and most did. Around 10pm the night fisherman appeared; set up chairs right off our bow and fished for several hours. Now keep in mind we are right on the river, so every time a barge went by we got rocked from their wake and the dock moaned and groaned like it was going to fall apart. It was like we were in their front yard and we were just part of the river comings & goings.

The daily river traffic has slowed, only occasionally do we come across a tow pushing barges (all seem to be 15 now), most smaller tug traffic seems to be relocating either full or empty barges from one side of the river to the other. We pass more commercial areas for river transportation and even a dry dock specific for tugs. The river continues to be wide so we’ve had no trouble passing whatever comes our way.

There has to be oodles of heritage wrapped up in this river so each older, smaller town we pass have their own story to tell. More than once we’ve seen towns tell their story via a mural along the flood wall that history itself would tell you was built to protect the town. Unique old buildings and churches peak over these walls or through the trees.

We drove through another torrential rain storm and very thankful for our plastic windows in the pilot house. There are still a few drain holes at the floor level that will need to be plugged once we begin renovations. It will be so nice to have windows with windshield wipers too. I was forced to take my pictures from the less wet aft deck.

We have noted a few places we’d like to see when we make our return trip back to the lake next summer and some that would require a road trip in the motor home. One really cool looking place is a small town called Cave-in-Rock. That’s truly what they have to offer a huge cave in the mountainside at water level. We did not see any place to tie off, but we did pass a ferry right there at the city, so that could be a fun road trip one day.

We did ride past Evansville, IN - it's a BIG city with lots going on around their river front. So take a look at the pictures labeled French Islands if you're curious.

We’ve anchored out for a few nights now, each one offering its own form of entertainment. As I mentioned before there are fewer places to tuck in for the night along the Ohio so it takes planning on our part. Our first spot after our splendid night at Mt. Vernon courtesy docks was the French Islands 55 miles up river. Between the two islands was wonderful, quiet, nice and deep - too deep. After a couple of failed attempts to get our stern anchor to hold we moved up and across the river – not such a pretty spot and much more shallow. Tom actually tossed the anchor on the shore and there it sat in 1 foot of water – but it held, and held nicely all night. It was easy to gather the next morning too. Our next night, after traveling 62 miles, we sounded our way (continually checking the depth) into the Big Poison Creek (great name) found we had a good 2-3 feet under us so we turned around and backed our big selves in just enough to be off the river. We could hear the deep thrumming of the tows as they slowly drove up river and eventually felt their wake as it washed upon the shoreline. Each night I’ve seen many fireflies and this anchorage was especially noisy with critters all night. Today we’ve traveled 57 miles to anchor in Salt River just outside of Fort Knox, KY. Before this stop we were motoring up river when a large (and armed I might add) helicopter flew overhead. I suppose they were checking us out. We anticipated being approached when we anchored, but this stop is a very pleasant surprise. It’s actually inhabited with humans. It’s not fair to say we are anchored, even though the stern anchor is sitting in a few feet of water again, but the bow has been tied off to a tree. This is something we’ve wanted to do the entire trip! Just down the river there are a number of tows working on a RR bridge, across the river is a boat launch and a small campground. We had a young man ride up to the boat on his jet ski – yelling “Hello?” he wanted to know if it was okay for his nephew to practice on the jet ski here rather than in the big river – didn’t want to bother us. This was a first. Of-course we thought just practice driving, but it was more like crazy-man wheelies. It didn’t last very long and they both appeared to be having such a good time.

Today was the first day on the Ohio River we did not have to go through a lock. With each one we’ve an average a lift of 20 feet. Now with more than 50 locks to our credit we’ve each become quite competent at our tasks. Tom maneuvers the boat right along the wall with no scraping and I lasso the bollard on the first try, then we sit back and enjoy the ride.

Ohio River

Today we began the final phase of our journey; we are on the Ohio River. Our lock through at Kentucky Dam went great this morning. No body waiting on either side, and we locked down 55 feet. (I don’t get it; we’re traveling north, but lock down?!?) While in the lock the lockmaster gets a call on the radio saying, “I’ve just released the troops and we’ll have 12 coming through”. It would seem we made it through just in time before the long wait. This lock had a great echo "hellooooooooo". The last 20 mile stretch of the Tennessee River was pretty uneventful, lots of industry. It’s very understandable why Paducah is not ‘pleasure craft friendly’, so many tugs and barges on both sides of the river. It’s a large location for tug dry docks.

Once we hung a right onto the Ohio River we hit a small current and slowed down to 5.8 knots. We passed by where the Cumberland River joins up with the Ohio and slowed down even more, for a bit.

We’ve passed a couple of large barges and seen only a few fishing and motor boats today. The weather was not conducive to great water sports. We did come across a dredger, just before the lock. We traversed the first of 6 locks on the Ohio today, the Smithland Lock. This lock has two channels like the Pickwick. We locked through with a couple of small fishing boats and a gazillion mayflies. We hear they only live a few days, don’t bite and don’t eat – but they do swarm and attach to anything that’s not moving (YUCK). In this lock we rose 22 feet.

We pulled into and tied up at the Golconda Marina just as a storm pounded the river. They wanted to put us into a covered slip, but we were too tall. It’s nice to be docked when there’s a storm brewing; lots of lightening, thunder and rain. The air is fresh and cooler now that it’s passed. Maybe we’ll see the sun tomorrow.

Stormy Weather

Today is the first time this entire trip we've hit really bad weather. Unlike our last trip from Florida we are totally prepared for it. So let the rains come down. Our new pilot house windows did the trick and kept us relatively dry. We did hit some nasty lightening and thunder, but it's nothing like being on the gulf. We did not have to contend with high seas or strong winds. Due to this weather our trip up the Kentucky Lake was not as picturesque as I had hoped, therefore there are not too many photos for ya’ll to look at. I know it’s beautiful and hopefully we’ll get another chance to explore it. There were a number of (crazy) fishermen out wearing their foul weather gear and a few houseboats hankered down in coves. We even passed our largest pushing tow yet, a 3 x 5 (15 barges!) The size alone is staggering, I can’t figure out how they maneuver them around in skinny water. We were told that at the Kentucky Lock the tows have to dismantle to lock through in pieces – apparently this is not a long lock and cannot accommodate too many. This is something to consider for tomorrows lock through, we may have to look more closely at the Barkley Lock. After a short 40 miles we’ve docked at the Kentucky Dam Marina and it’s GREAT to be back in Kentucky. (It’s only a 3 hour drive from home by car) Upon our arrival we had a great assist from Josh to get tied off and help with getting fuel. There are SO many houseboats here, a few larger speedy fishing boats and lots of seados! It’s the weekend so there are lots of folks playing on their docked boats.

We still prefer the quiet solitude of being anchored out.