RIVER SYSTEM: DAYS 97-98: Peoria to South of Havana/Snicarte Island - South of Florence/Buckhorn Island

We completed this portion of the trip in two days. It’s long; the only things changing are your thoughts and spotty podcasts.


Peoria to Peoria Lock: 7.7 mph; 10 miles; 1:18 hours
Peoria Lock to Snicarte Island: 8.9 mph; 51.1 miles; 5:53 hours
Snicarte Island to LaGrange LOCK: 8.5 mph; 26.6 miles; 3:07 hours
LaGrange LOCK to Buckhorn Island: 8.6 mph; 33.6 miles; 3:55 hours






Peoria to Snicarte Island

LOCK: Peoria Lock 10’

Have all your stuff ready. The Lock Master will give you free-hanging ropes to use for locking on. When the horn blows, just drop the line to leave the lock.


Carp really jump 10' out of the water - It was crazy! The engine motor scares them and they jump. It was funny watching the Looper ahead of us. It looked like a fountain of carp with one landing in his boat!


Snicarte Island: South of Havana in Bath, IL: ANCHORAGE

Snicarte Island is the Southern portion of Grand Island, called Bath Chute. There is only room for one or two boats with 4’, or less, drafts. We pulled in far enough for another boat to anchor ahead of us. I swear I think it's, maybe, 80 feet wide - needless to say: snubber and stern anchor are in place.


The wind is blowing hard but Jim isn’t phased. I trust him to make sound captain decisions. He is such a deep thinker. Me? Well, I think about a LOT of stuff ALL the time for a LONGER part of the day; so, we’re even.


Because we are in the middle of Nowhere, Illinois, we were able to see every single star and the Milky Way. I’ve never seen the Milky Way - it took my breath. Jim says I’ve seen the Milky Way.


My standard reply to Jim when he says I've done/been/seen something before and I can't remember: "that had to have been before my concussion"

Snicarte Island to Buckhorn Island

LOCK: LaGrange 10’

Well, this is a new one. No bollards/No lines. So huh? I grabbed a 25’ line, tied one end to the mid-cleat, looped the fixed mooring, and held onto the other end - then prayed it would work. Spoiler Alert! It worked! When we were finished with the lock, I pulled my line back onto the boat like a pro and we were good to go!


Buckhorn Island: South of Florence and North of Pearl, IL; ANCHORAGE

Great anchorage with a solid holding. The wind is coming from the south and later shifting from the west; we are in a nice protected spot. It’s really peaceful here and I saw the Milky Way again - so cool.


SIDE NOTES:

  • We decided to move further south than the group we left with this morning. They anchored off Quiver Island, a beautiful little spot. For us, this part of the Illinois River is a long trip and our goal is Alton. We bypassed the Langston Tug Company dock but I’m told it's $40 for the night and if you compliment their shirt design - they’ll give you one! How fun is that?! I also so the ladder that gets you from the tug to the town - long and steep!

  • Have I mentioned that the Jim Beck School of Learning Moments (JBSLM) drives me nuts? I swear these mini-lessons come out of nowhere! I am NOT comfortable adjusting both engines to run at the same rpm in tight channels that can go from 4’ to 23’ in a split second. YES, I can do it - I just don’t like to! I especially don’t like to do it when I think a boat is coming at us no matter that he was like a mile away but that’s not the point. I get so nervous and panic - trying to control the panic - not there yet.


Comments

  1. UnknownOctober 4, 2021 at 10:55 AM

    The loopers toast is nice. Wish you all the best. Stay safe. The O"s

    ReplyDelete

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