A Little Loopy

THE EASY Hoppies to Little Diversion Canal: 11.0 mph; 110 miles; 9:56 hours The river current is with you at a swift pace, 2 miles to the gallon; was lovin’ the Mighty Mississippi. For some reason, we passed a perfect place to anchor behind a wing dam off the river. Little Diversion is a tight fit but big enough for 5 larger vessels and a half-knot current. THE NOT SO EASY 1:15AM to 5:06AM: Pitch Black - New Moon - Raining after a 10 hour day Little Diversion to Sliding Out of Canal: 1.3 mph; 285 yards; :07 hours Mouth of Canal to Some Ridiculous Anchorage: 4.0 mph; 3.3 miles; :50 hours Are You KIDDING Anchorage to Just Above Dogtooth Island: 8.5 mph; 20 miles; 2:20 hours Little Diversion Canal Should be Named: Little Disaster Canal No one should anchor here EVER.  This is my memory of the night; seriously much more dramatic than Jim’s recollection of events. On our way to Little Diversion, we saw a perfect anchorage and passed it up. Big Mistake. We hardly ever anchor with more th...

Alton to Mel Price Lock: 4.7 mph; 1.8 miles; 0:23 hours Mel Price Lock to St Louis Gateway Arch: 8.2 mph; 13.0 miles; 1:35 hours St Louis gateway Arch to Chain of Rocks Lock #27: 8.6 mph; 5.0 miles; 0:34 hours Chain of Rocks Lock #27 to Hoppies 8.9 mph; 21.8 miles; 2:27 hours Total Time: 6h 15m Luck is with us again! The lead boat called the Lock Master at 6:30AM and locked us though after a 10 minute wait. I think the trick is to make the call early.  Mel Price Lock: DOWN 23’ Floating bollard; you tie one end of the rope to your boat mid-cleat, then ‘lasso’ the bollard with the open end, and use a boat hook to help you hold your boat in place. This Lock Master allowed six Loopers to lock through with the dredging crane - very cool. FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS GOOD IN THE WORLD - GO LEFT! IT'S A GIANT ARROW! How that sailboat missed the signage is beyond my thinking! Emergency crews were called in and the people were saved but the boat was unsalvageable. Chain of Rocks Lock #27: DO...

Buckhorn Island to Alton: 8.8 mph; 61.3 miles; 6:56 hours Alton Marina The cost is ridiculously cheap this time of year; something like $120 for the week and we left a day or so earlier than planned (stay three nights - get three nights; equal balance for four and five night stays): electric/water, shower/bath, coin-operated laundry, pool, AGLCA discount, and docktails. Docktails are loosely organized each night around 5PM at the pool to discuss the upcoming travel days to Hoppies and Paducah. Seasoned Loopers share their experience - good to listen. QUICK NOTE ABOUT DOCKTAILS: Don’t stress over this. If you have something to share - share. If not, share your company. It's more about camaraderie than anything else. I took popcorn once - it was a hit. EXPLORING DOWNTOWN ALTON The town of Alton is within walking distance and under redevelopment - I think it will work. The Old Bakery Beer Company has a fantastic selection of food and drink (not just beer). When we were there, wall...

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 pull...

Ottawa to Henry: 8.5 mph; 38 miles; 5:30 hours Henry to Peoria: 8.8 mph; 25.2 miles; 2:53 hours Ottawa/Buffalo Rocks to South of Henry/Lower Henry Island LOCK: Starved Rock Lock 19’ Floating bollards; Easy lock, an additional stern line is available if needed. Option: Henry Wall The FREE-ish Wall is structurally a crumbling hot mess. Once upon a time, it was part of a lock built in the 1900’s; I think the cost was $40 with some forma of electric/no water. Don’t let the condition of the wall taint your ideas of the marina behind it. To be fair, the marina was just bought by a young couple with big plans for reconstruction. Their enthusiasm has me wanting to see what they do next. Optional: Lower Henry Island ANCHORAGE We read on Waterways.com and Navigational Notes that this was a safe anchorage. We gave the south point of the island a wide berth, then take the channel into safe harbor. We are here during low water levels; so, NOT kidding about the wide berth. When you think you hav...