Linda and I felt good about our first night on the hook; the sun was shining and we were headed for a marina and the end of the Illinois River. The anchor came up fairly easily and since we had set up our saltwater wash down pump (Aside: For you non boaters this pump takes water from the river or lake and pressurizes it so that you can attach a hose to a faucet in the back.) the afternoon before, we were able to wash off the mud quickly and head down stream.
It was a good leisurely trip especially as we continued to travel at trawler speeds. We are finding that we are actually enjoying the pace. It is much more relaxing; I can get up and walk around (even go to the bathroom) and let Otto do its thing. Linda has even started making lunches; what a treat.
As we neared the end of the Illinois River where it flows into the Mississippi, there were a number of small islands or shoals and the current picked up to the point where we were going a couple of miles per hour faster than earlier.
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| Miss River merging with Illinois River |
We all got settled in, grabbed our coolers and headed for the pool. This happy hour actually started at a time that I am more used to: Westport time (ie. 4 PM). This is a very civilized marina. When the coolers ran dry, we only had to enter the ships store next door and grab a six pack or two; all very handy. Of course nobody was going to be fed on board so 12 of us (we picked up a couple more looper couples) went over to the Hawg Pit BBQ Barn. A little rustic with a concrete floor and barn wood decor, but clean, very friendly and superb food with cheap beer. The ribs were excellent. A great ending to a fine day. We seem to be eating about 8 PM each night and when we get back on board we can’t keep our eyes open. We are going to bed before 10 every night. Those of you who know us well enough know that 10 PM is about 3-4 hours earlier than normal.
We decided to spend a second day in this neat town. The town has 3 wineries, all with patios overlooking the river, a number of restaurants and taverns and a hot looking barber. While the girls took a courtesy vehicle to Walmart in the next town, some of the guys went to the barber shop and were impressed with the barber, especially before she put on her smock. Me, I brought my personal stylist with me on this trip and she is also very hot….. when she wants to be.
After cleaning the boat and putting away a ton of supplies, we started our happy hour at the pool again. No one was up to preparing dinner so we decided to go to the Mississippi Two Step Restaurant after stopping first at the Ruebels Hotel for a drink. We had to stop at the hotel because the bar was imported from Bavaria back in the 1800’s. It was rather impressive, especially the carvings on the front, but the interesting part of the story on this bar is that when the hotel caught on fire, the locals ran in and carried the burning bar (parts are scorched) to safety. The story goes that the locals erected a tent over the bar to protect it from the elements and that the owner was serving beer within a couple of hours of the fire occurring. Anyway, after a beer we continued to the highly recommended, fancier restaurant. The tables in the garden were filled with patrons and many of the rooms inside were full as well. It is an old converted house with a stone foundation and lots of wood. Our party of 10 was ushered into the dungeon. Stone walls, low archways, curved staircase, large wood beams,…you get the picture. I did not think that our reputation proceeded us but that is where they put us; the guys at one end and the girls at the other. The food was very good and we had a great time with lots of laughs. The staff was even commenting on the noise that we were generating. We were the last party to leave the establishment.
So ends another day on the loop.
Our first look at the Mississippi River across the mouth of the Illinois River.
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