Captain's Blog

                   TRAVEL DAY 130 - Cape Girardeau to Olmstead October 24, 2023 7.4 Hours/ 66.2 Miles     We push on with our core group. The River Rats have grown closer as our boats close on the completion of the Mississippi River. Out of our quiet anchorage in the Little Diversion Canal at just before 8 am. Once again we swing out into the swift river current.   River Rat morning     Passing a massive dredging operation, one of many on this river, I got to review some of the things I learned when obtaining my captain's license, day shapes. Day shapes are mast head signals used to visually indicate the status of a vessel. There are three basic shapes, a ball, diamond, cylinder and cone. These black shapes are used individually and together. The dredge had a ball over a diamond over a ball, indicating it was "restricted in ability to maneuver"     Day Shapes Dredge     At Cairo we turned...

  TRAVEL DAY 126 - Hardin to Alton October 16, 2023 4.13 Hours/ 36.5 Miles     The weather turned, although the mornings remain cool, the afternoon warmed to the upper 60's. Our plan today was to go to Grafton but with Runaway's transmission problem and a family issue for Sidetrip, the River Rats decided to go just a little further down river to Alton. We moved in the same formation with Runaway in the middle so we could monitor their progress. We pulled away from the dock and into the Illinois River current at a few minutes before 9 am.   Pau Hana     Our crew was happy for an easy travel day and looking forward to 4 days in a marina, downtime, laundry, provisions and unlimited hot water! At noon we turned on to the Mississippi River at Grafton, with Illinois on our port and Missouri to our starboard. This marks another milestone on our epic journey. The trees are just starting to turn color and we're hopeful for beautiful fall foliage down the rivers. ...