Day 105 & 106 October 3 - 4, 2022

Day 105 Monday, October 3, 2022

Little Diversion Canal MM49 to Mounds City Bar Anchorage MM 973 OHIO River

We were able to eavesdrop using our VHS radios so we were ready to leave when the boats ahead of us pulled anchors. Gratefully, we were on our way at 7:15.  We were headed for another anchorage, this time on the OHIO River.  Can't believe that we are hitting another river milestone.   Our travel will continue along the Mississippi River through a lot of industrial areas and many tows. Sunrise on Little Diversion Canal

We checked for oncoming tow traffic before our exit out of Little Diversion Canal.  The current is very strong; boats need to "gun" it out of the canal to make the turn.  We traveled for 6.5 hours until reaching our anchorage.  We were now on the Ohio River -- the beginning of the the Lower Mississippi.   

Current on the Ohio 

 The landscape is rockier

Mounds City Bar anchorage is located next to an area where barges are loaded so we were a bit nervous.  We didn't want to get kicked out later.  The current was very strong so there was no question that our anchor was holding.  Considering how shallow the river has been we were happy with 9 feet under us. We were concerned whether we were far enough out of the channel; several tows passed without incident. Our night was peaceful.

Day 106 Tuesday, October 4, 2022

Mounds City Bar to Paducah, Kentucky

We pulled anchor and set off at 7:00am, a chilly 48 degrees.  The cold makes it difficult to drive.   We don't have a defroster at the fly bridge helm so we need to do what we can to prevent the condensation from collecting on the Strataglas windshield (like a stiff plexiglass).  Our solution (since wiping the windows isn't very successful) is to leave the window open the night before (so no moisture collects) and we freeze until the sun does its thing.  We can usually close the window after about 30 - 45 minutes.  In the meantime, BRRRR.....

All day yesterday we had been concerned about the limited anchorages available and if we would arrive at one to find that it was already full.  There are a lot of Loopers this year -- many boaters had to postpone because of Covid and Lock closures.  At this time of year everyone is headed off Lake Michigan and to the inland rivers.  Northern marinas are starting to close for the season, just like at home.  The boats that had been in Little Diversion Canal could end up being our "competition" for an anchorage.   We watched as they passed us at anchor yesterday and wondered where we might meet today.

 Dredging

About 8:30 our wondering was over.  We approached the Olmsted Lock and found them anchored there.  The lock was open and ready for us; why weren't those other boats coming too?  Well, they waited until we were already tied in the lock to decide to come too. Out of the lock at 9:10  we averaged 7.2 knots and saw 31 feet water depth.  Lots of dredging going on too.

 Out of the Olmsted Lock

We arrived at the Paducah Town Dock around 12:45 with La Vida, Call Me Curly, The Grand Wazoo and Arion.  Because of the shallow water the approach to the dock is a bit tricky.  The dock is one long dock with a fuel dock inside at its base. 

      Crowded Paducah Town Dock 

We were the lucky one that got to tie to the inside of the dock.  Instructions were to stick close to the very tip of the dock when going in but we would find plenty of water once we were on the other side.  Encouraging... only 2 feet under us at the tip; we stirred up a lot of silt.  Before long there were 16 looper boats tied to the dock or rafted to another boat.

View of the dock from land.  Stairs are pretty steep because of the low water level.

Explored the town a little then docktails of course -- catching up with people we hadn't s seen in a while.  Dinner at Broussard's Cajun Cuisine with The Grand Wazoo, Phil-N-Wild and Arion was fun.

 

 

Exciting day tomorrow -- The National Quilt Museum!!