Catching up!

Turns out we are at the mercy of the Internet connection! We have made a steady movement forward though not without a few issues! Yesterday we had a day of delays. The rain and fog delayed our journey, then when we came to the locks and dams everything that could go wrong did. We would call the lock master and find out if we rushed if we could beat the barge and find out that we could, so we would "rush" and then wait for 2 hours. Which meant nothing other then wasting gas as we all know isn't cheap....nor am I! After a few harsh words at the air we got through! Three locks later we were in our "home" for the night in a slip for the night with no one there and no power. Generator on, it was our chili night on the boat with a good cigar for the boys and a good bottle of wine for the girls. Good movie, good food, good wine, good cigars.....priceless! So far, so good!! So far no one has been sent to the dinghy! The barges have been apparent and a challenge but also part of the river journey. This life style has been unique, challenging, boring, and exciting. The locks and dams a nice break in the day but also hard work and exciting. Today we picked up "hitch hikers" that rode through the lock with us and were from St. Paul, going from St. Paul to New Orleans, in a canoe, eating an expired strawberry pie that was given to them for free, and obviously a real treat on their journey! They hope to get to New Orleans by mid Nov. Makes our journey seem simple in comparison. Tonight we are staying in Fairport Landing and we were lucky enough to find "Bill" and get a drive to Walmart...far more time then HE was thinking and by the time Judy and I came out he seemed "angry"....what's that about???? We had dinner and found a couple of local girls to play video games with and have jello shots. After dinner we finished our laundry at the washer behind the "the blue" door and drying in the dryer outside the building...yes outside! The boys took their shower behind the "red" door and Judy and I decided the boat in the morning would be "priceless"!! If we have internet connection tomorrow we will post again but thank you for following us on this journey. It has been incredible! And tomorrow is a new month with unbelievable possibilities!! We will post pictures from today's journey but putting this all together is still a challenge.

In The Beginning....Bon Voyage

3 days of fun!

Wow Wednesday already! And our motto for today.....RAIN RAIN GO AWAY!! Another cloudy,rainy day leaving LaCrosse and today we are hoping for Guttenburg Iowa. Our routine seems to be leaving around 8:30 or 9 depending on the weather conditions and the fog. We try to end the day around 4:30 or 5 and we of course, have a Captains happy hour! On our boat the deck hands are allowed an occasional cocktail of choice but the Captain does not have that opportunity. The rules are strictly enforced by all! Yesterday we managed 5 locks & dams. Today we will be going thru 3. So far we have been able to go thru in about 15-20 minutes. No waiting and usually we have been able to free float because we have been the only boat. We expect to encounter a few barges today which will change time and complexity of going thru. Again we are surprised and thrilled with the fall colors appearing on the river. This is a 6pm update and we did indeed experience a 2 hour wait for a lock and dam with a huge barge coming thru. Yesterday we didn't mention the fact that we almost went under a bridge that was to low for our boat. After calling the bridge master we were told we would fit and as we drove up we realized we were to high and had to back off til they opened the bridge. A little tense for a minute but a unique experience. We have included a picture, now that we have figured that out. Tonight we are experiencing the real river life in Iowa of all places. We also have included a picture of where we are staying on the river. If this is cheap I get to go shopping in Florida! Another great day!

Picture Day One

Day one and beyond......

The first day of our journey was full of bags from clothing, to food, to misc. supplies needed for a month of river life. A little overwhelming at first but once we found a home for everything we all felt better. Turns out I did a good job of measuring every inch of space and every inch was used. Once things were put away our home away from home felt much more comfortable. We started out with some clouds but soon it turned into clouds with rain. We tried our first attempt at a lock and dam, with gloves, fenders, and our poke stick in hand and got out without a scratch, a big accomplishment for a group of novices. We followed the river to Lake City and decided to tie up for the night. After a celebratory end of the day toast, we decided to walk to the local bar, The Old Bank Bar. There we managed to connect with a few of the locals for burgers, cocktails, conversation, and juke box music. What a great cast of characters! Memories were made and our first day ended with a sense of satisfaction and anticipation of the day ahead! Early to bed and early to rise, Tuesday morning was a sailors delight, with the red glow of the morning sun reflecting across the river, we were excited to start the next trek of our adventure! We have many pictures to post and today will be our day to figure that out. We are all thrilled and surprised and the beauty of the fall colors already appearing. The reds, oranges, and golds are appearing everywhere among the green background. Minnesota river views are amazing and we are already seeing the change of scenary as we meander down the river. The beauty is already beyond our expectations. Thanks for following us and don't forget to leave comments and suggestions!

In the beginning....

Welcome!  This is our first attempt at blogging so please be patient.  We have had many requests to blog and allow friends and family to follow our journey down the river to our destination of Florida.  Our journey will begin on Sept. 26,2011 and with any luck we will arrive there together, speaking and no injuries, with memories we will carry with us far into the future!  But most of all with smiles and a friendship renewed by teamwork and pride!   Our goal will be to arrive by the weekend of Oct. 21st to celebrate a birthday with a very dear friend.  Our shipmates will be Jim and Judy and between the three of us, we can hopefully make the Captain proud and not make us walk the plank or be restricted to the dinghy.  This week will be a week of preparation,  with every inch of space being used to fit 4 people in a small space for 30 days.  We have a stack of books and maps that will hopefully help us with the challenges of river travel.  This is an adventure we have only dreamt and talked about and are surprised that it is actually going to happen.  Wish us well, keep us in your thoughts, and we will keep you informed with words and pictures as soon as we can figure that out!  More to follow......