October 13, 2009 Keokuk, IA to Rockport IL

October 13, 2009

Keokuk, IA to Rockport IL

We awakened at 3:00 AM to wind and waves buffeting Grateful as we were tied to the breakwater. We were rockin’ and rollin’, but our lines and fenders held and all we could do was go back to bed. Amazingly, I had been asleep, but the bouncy ride and dreaming of “floating bollards” made for a restless rest of the night. The wind lessened by morning, but we were still looking at 2-3 foot waves knocking us up against the wall.

Mark had devised a plan to get us off the wall, but we had to move fast and I was going to stay on the boat this time. The line tied off the bow of the boat was looped around a cleat, and all the rest were undone. A fender was dropped on the port side front of Grateful. Mark used the fender and line as a pivot to get the stern off the wall and back away quickly. Whew! We made it! And then we had the Lock & Dam to think about.

Floating bollards are tie-ups in the wall of the lock & dam that rise and fall with the water level. The idea is that you go into the lock & dam and lasso the bollard. Once that is done then you tie off to your boat. Apparently, you can go to either side of the L&D as you prefer. We were already rigged on the port side from the night before so that was the plan. Mark drove us up to one of the bollards and I got a line around it, tied it off, and then we sat back and enjoyed the ride down. Jeez Oh Pete! (as my MI friends would say), I don’t know what all the fuss was about. Hopefully they will all be this easy.

Mark was also impressed with the friendliness of the lock masters as we locked through. There was a swingbridge immediately after the Keokuk lock, and we were not sure if they would need to open for us - they said their clearance was between 23-24 feet. We usually request 22 feet so we knew it would be close. Mark lowered our antennas, and the lock master offered a spotter to watch if we were not going to make it. Sure enough when the lock opened a spotter was on the bridge looking out for us. We made it with about a foot to spare.

This was another 83 mile day and four L&Ds, and luck held without meeting tows in the locks. I drove most of the way and kept Grateful between the red and green buoys – Mark had to come up and get us through the locks. Otherwise, he set himself to the task of setting up a spreadsheet to keep track of all sorts of things, including expenses. That was illuminating. We had reservations at the Two Rivers Marina for the night and contacted them as we neared their location. That was when they asked for our draft saying that there was one spot in the incoming channel that was only 4.5 feet deep. Mark ascertained that it was only Mississippi mud on the bottom and we slowly dredged through. Mark thought we probably hit bottom three times. Needless to say we were glad to land again.

We were probably in need of a break to regroup and had been planning on possibly taking an extra day here. Then we found out that the next Lock & Dam in Clarksville was down for repairs. Too bad, so sad – we have to stay put for a day or two….