Day on the Cruise: 151
From: Alton Marina, Alton, IL
To: Hoppies Marina, Kimmswick, MO
Statute Miles: 44.3 SM
Time: 5.33 Hrs
Cumulative Miles: 3,725.2 SM
On Board: Susan, Chuck, Maggie, Trooper, Peanut
We are at the famous Hoppies Marina in Kimmswick, MO tonight. We are about 25 miles South of St Louis.
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| On the Mississippi South of St. Louis |
Today was a very interesting day on the River. We are finally "Rollin' on the River"....Yee Haw!!
"Left a good job in the city,
Workin' for The Man ev'ry night and day,
And I never lost one minute of sleepin',
Worryin' 'bout the way things might have been.
Big wheel keep on turnin',
Proud Mary keep on burnin',
Rollin', rollin', rollin' on the river."
We left Alton Marina at 7:00, but first we tried to get a pump out. No dock hands until 8:00. Scratch the pump out! Hope we can make it for 5 days.
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| Blue Moon at Alton Early Saturday Morning |
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| Leaving Alton, Looking North |
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| Alton Marina to the North Under the Bridge |
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| Casino Boats along the River in Alton |
Once we were all together in the Mississippi, it was less than two miles to Mel Price Lock and Dam. They put us into the main chamber without waiting and lowered us down. On to the next Lock fifteen miles down river.
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| Entree' in the Mel Price Lock |
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| Always Five O'Clock in the Mel Price Lock |
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| Reunion in the Mel Price Lock |
Things started happening fast after clearing Mel Price. The Missouri River entered the Mississippi on our right side. We got a big push from the current coming out of the Missouri. Right on the left side of the Mississippi, a big tow was coming out of a canal leading to the Chain of Rocks Lock or Lock 27. The Mississippi curves right here and there are a number of rapids and rocks, so there is an 8 mile canal leading to the Lock.
We entered the canal from the River, after almost missing the turn because of the big tow coming out. (Thanks Al on "Almost 5 O'Clock", for the heads up!) The current was very turbulent and we were spinning back and forth, then calm water in the canal. We actually went through whirlpools here.
The canal is very narrow. We passed an upbound tow and before we passed, we stopped and let him clear a work barge under a bridge being built. After we passed the barge, here comes another tow upbound. This time, a downbound tow is stopped in the canal. No room for the upbound to pass the downbound and us in there also, so we stop and wait for the upbound to clear.
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| Bridge Under Construction on Chain of Rocks Canal. Very Narrow Waterway! |
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| Bridge across Chain of Rocks Canal |
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| Upbound Tow Passing a Stopped Downbound Tow. NO Room for US!! |
Ok, finally clear the traffic and enter the second lock. They drop us down and we leave the lock. Right after exiting the lock, we have to pass a huge tow coming up the canal from the river. We go around a bend, and bang! There is downtown St Louis. A nice skyline with a gizzillion bridges across the river and barges and tows everywhere. The targets on my AIS were more numerous than New York Harbor.
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| St Louis Skyline. Note the Rough Water as We Come Back Into the Mississippi From Chain of Rocks Canal |
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| The "Arch" |
We also left the canal and re-entered the Mississippi River. The current was like white water with standing waves. I have no idea how this happens but it twisted and turned our boat like a top. Shortly we were through the turbulence and coasting down the river with a 2.5-3.5 mph bump due to the current.
Seeing the Arch on the waterfront was spectacular. So much industrial in St Louis! Barges everywhere. Even big gangs of barges anchored in the middle of the river!
"Cleaned a lot of plates in Memphis,
Pumped a lot of 'pane down in New Orleans,
But I never saw the good side of the city,
'Til I hitched a ride on a river boat queen.
Big wheel keep on turnin',
Proud Mary keep on burnin',
Rollin', rollin', rollin' on the river.
Rollin', rollin', rollin' on the river."
Cruising through St Louis, you see the "good side of the city". The Arch. The levees. The bridges. The waterfront. The tows and barges. But no marinas, and no place to stop and see the other side of the city.
We made it through the city and continued down the Mississippi. Our destination was Hoppies Marina that is the last marina until we reach Green Turtle Bay in Kentucky. Needless to say, it is an important stop for topping off fuel and water.
Hoppies is famous for its owner, Fern Hoppie. She is the "Queen of the River". She knows everything about the river and gives a mandatory briefing on river conditions each afternoon at 4:30. She has owned the marina with her husband for over 40 years.
Keeping a sharp look out for Hoppies, we continued down stream. Soon we saw three old barges on the right descending bank and some boats tied up. This is Hoppies. Always Five O'Clock went in and got fuel, then we docked and topped off. The current was extreme. We had to go past Hoppies then turn back up into the current and tie up. When I was waiting to go in for fuel, I was idling going into the current, and it was actually pushing me downstream with the gear shift engaged. Very strong.
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| Here it is: Hoppies Marina!! Impressive! |
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| Hoppies Marina |
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| Hoppies |
We got fuel, tied up for the night on the barge,and made plans for lunch. We also met Fern who fueled us up and helped us tie for the night. She is quite the river lady.
"If you come down to the river,
Bet you gonna find some people who live.
You don't have to worry 'cause you have no money,
People on the river are happy to give.
Big wheel keep on turnin',
Proud Mary keep on burnin',
Rollin', rollin', rollin' on the river.
Rollin', rollin', rollin' on the river.
Rollin', rollin', rollin' on the river.
Rollin', rollin', rollin' on the river."
Enough rollin' on the river for this nice Saturday. We were huun-gray!
Kimmswick is a small town. We walked into town from the barges and found the famous Blue Owl Restaurant. This restaurant was recommended by other loopers. It is famous for its pie. Of course Fern encouraged us to go try it out.
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| Walking up the ramp from the "Barges at Hoppies" |
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| Blue Moon at Hoppies, Saturday Afternoon |
We were not prepared for what we saw. It seemed like all of St Louis had come down to the Blue Owl. There were people everywhere. We had made a reservation and they seated the 8 of us from the four boats. Our lunch was excellent and the pies were all they were advertised to be. What a great meal, complete with Bloody Mary's.
At 4:30, we convened under a shed on the barges for Fern to hold court. She did not disappoint. She gave us a run down on the river conditions; the lock situation on the Ohio River; how to deal with eddy's and strong currents in two or three dangerous bends in the river; how to deal with tows; where to stay (anchor) and where not to anchor; the Tennessee and Tombigbee Waterway, and on and on. We were there for almost two hours and then, "poof", she was gone. Got into her golf cart and rode off the barge back to her house.
Well, we were certainly confused. Our plans need to be altered because a few places that we might have anchored are no longer in play due to silting and low water level. It is very hard to visualize the places she described when you have never been down the river into these areas.
We had a big meeting on Always Five O'Clock before we went to bed and decided to go 82 miles tomorrow to an anchorage behind a wing dam. These wing dams are very prevalent on the Mississippi. They are in essence jetties constructed of large rip rap or surge stone. They protrude out from the river banks perpendicular to the river channel. They divert water toward the center of the river to make it flow faster. The silt in the slower moving water stays near the wing dams and drops out to stay out of the channel. There are thousands of these wing dams and they are all above water now because the river is low. If you can find a way in behind a wing dam and it is not too shallow, it makes a protected place to anchor along the river over night.
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| Wing Dam on the Mississippi |
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| Wing Dam on the River Showing Current Going Downstream |
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| Wing Dams on the Mississippi |
Our anchorage tomorrow will be where another boat ahead of us is anchored tonight, so we have current information on the place. We are concerned about the water depths because the river can drop overnight. If we are anchored in too shallow water, and the river drops, we could be stuck behind the wing dam. Not good!
Monday we will complete the Mississippi and go about 15 miles up the Ohio to an anchorage that Fern recommended below Lock and Dam 53. The next four nights will be a challenge because we won't have a marina. Ugh!
Thanks for Reading!
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