FISH ATTACK!

Monday, Sept 22

Woke to a spectacular cloudless, windless day. 

Time to make some tracks.  Our average speed was 7.7 knots including a 2 knot current.  We heard from Looper Sundowner who was now at Grafton and got an update on the group we had been running with.  We take turns at the helm and the river has long stretches now where we can use auto-pilot.  Navigation is easy; we just have to watch out for Towboats and debris in the water.  We have found that the red and green buoys they use to mark the channel have been compromised a bit with the recent flooding.  Some have trees hooked to them; some are completely in the wrong place or what they call “off-station”.  Normally you are supposed to go between the red and the green buoys, not this time!

We use the GPS and continue straight down the sailing line it provides.  Had to go through the last lock on the Illinois at LaGrange.  It was open as well so no wait, no problem!  It is forecasted to stay open until Thursday.  We floated right by it.  Now we are clear all the way to the Mississippi!  

John’s brother Robbie made a great suggestion.  He thought we should show a map of our progress so here it is.  

Hoping to make Grafton by tomorrow, we ended up putting on 70+ miles, one of our biggest days.   We got to McGee Creek which was one of the last anchorages for quite a way.  Deployed John in Marley again as this anchorage looked a bit more interesting.  He surveyed the area and back out he comes when WHACK, he was hit in the back by a flying carp!  Wow – we couldn’t believe it.  He said it hit hard, it made a big mark on his shirt and his back.  When he was back on board, we nosed up into the creek and dropped anchor.  Then he got back in Marley and took a line to shore and tied our stern to a tree root.  We were tucked in sweetly in 12’ of water.  We were out of the flow of the current which was carrying a lot of debris and out of the prop wash of the towboats.  While we were sitting there we saw a big tree go by and we thankful we could get in far enough to avoid that kind of stuff. 

THE MOLLY REPORT - She is doing much better but still isn't taking to it all like a duck to water.  She has ventured out when at anchor and is exploring a little more every day.  

As far as wildlife is concerned, we are still seeing many of the same water birds.  We did see a fox on the levee and a beaver last night but couldn’t capture them on camera.  This was the nicest bird we saw today.  Wondering if the Mrs. Noonan's class knows what this one is.  

Hint, it is immature.