The river system

The river system is just another phase of this adventure that has it's good and bad features.  No longer do we have to wake up to the electronic voice of NOAA in order to decide whether we can move along the journey.  We still listen for weather forecasts, but we can travel in the rain on the rivers without the worry of 5-7 ft waves!  Instead, now we have to watch for floating debris, submerged wing dams, and large towboats. 

We have traversed the Illinois River down to where it meets the Mississippi.  These rivers flow through the heartland of this country.  One day, as we were meandering down the Illinois, we wondered what was beyond the levee walls, since we couldn't see over them.  We found out one morning as Maggie went for her daily duty;  corn fields!  What a surprise!

The marinas and anchorages are few and far between and cell phone service is sketchy. We anchored Tuesday night just beyond a railroad bridge on the banks of the Illinois.  We had to deploy 2 anchors just incase a tow should happen to come by during the night.  We had been through 2 locks during the day and we had covered a record 60 statute miles.  We were tired and we got Maggie on the dinghy and started towards a boat ramp.  Mike asked me if he should go all the way to the boat ramp or just up to the edge of the river bank and I told him it didn't matter to me.  So, he opted for the closest bank.  Mistake!!!  When I stepped into the water at the edge, the mud was soft and my foot came out without my swimshoe.  I recovered it and took the other off and took off down the bank with Maggie barefooted.  She did a #1  so I handed her over to Mike and they took off into a little park for #2.  I waited on the bank and when they got finished, we started back to the dinghy on the bank.  I stepped into a quagmire of river mud all the way up to my knees.  I couldn't move.  Mike had to pull me out while holding on to the dog.  It was not a good time.  I found my breaking point.  I started crying and thinking about where the nearest airport might be.  Mike was so sweet and hugged me and said everything was okay and please don't call a taxi!!!!

This journey is not for the faint of heart.  There is no way one person can do this alone.  I got my act together and decided to try to hang on for a little bit longer.  We will both be happy to see home again, for a few days anyway.