There are some stunning cliffs where the Illinois River merges with the Mississippi River.

Our first stop was a marina under the bridge in Alton, Illinois.

We found a fun group of Loopers at the marina, some familiar and some new to us. We had docktails and talked about traveling the next leg of our journey together. Tom and Julie joined us for dinner and music at Fast Eddie’s.

Unfortunately, boat repairs that were going to take one day ended up taking a week, so we waved good-bye each day as other boats left, and we stayed and explored Alton some more – by day…

…and by night!

We went to a cocktail party on another boat – Henry’s 85 foot Hatteras – that had a baby grand piano, hot tub, pool table and three kitchens on board!

We rented a car , drove to Grafton and then rode the chair lift for a fun visit to the Aerie winery. Great view!

Then we drove into St. Louis to see the Van Gogh Experience. It was magical!

Finally, our boat was ready to travel, so we got up before dawn to lock through the Mel Price Lock. The sun rose as we locked through. Next, we followed Jeremy’s directions to reach the Chain of Rocks Lock: “For the love of God, go LEFT!”

Because if you go right, you end up stuck on the Chain of Rocks – like these unfortunate boaters. https://www.stltoday.com/news/local/metro/a-rocky-trip-sailboat-owner-misses-exit-now-stuck-on-chain-of-rocks-in-mississippi/article_9b7e723c-ae3e-5038-a8f8-a6d5b6319d78.htmlhttps://www.stltoday.com/news/local/metro/a-rocky-trip-sailboat-owner-misses-exit-now-stuck-on-chain-of-rocks-in-mississippi/article_9b7e723c-ae3e-5038-a8f8-a6d5b6319d78.html

The skies got cloudy, but the Gateway Arch in St. Louis was still very impressive as we cruised past. It started raining as we continued along the river, hopping past Hoppies, passing many barges and dodging debris in the river.

We finally reached Kaskasia Lock and Dam where the sun and several friendly Loopers greeted us and we tied up for the night. We shared docktails and dock-tales and then Kenton tried out his new drone to snap a few photos.

The next day was our longest travel day yet on this voyage (11.5 hours, 165 miles). We followed the winding path of the Mississippi, again dodging barges and debris, until we reached the Ohio River. We made a left onto the Ohio and worked our way up to the Olmsted Lock. Our original plan was to anchor here for the night, but severe storm warnings had us reevaluate “The Plan.” We were able to lock through with enough time to make a run for the dock at Paducah, Kentucky – a safer place for the night.

We raced the setting sun, and arrived just after dark to Paducah, where Loopers greeted us on the dock and made sure we were secure for the night. Have I mentioned how wonderful Loopers are? The next day was windy and cold, so we explored Paducah and bought ourselves warm jackets.

And we visited the National Quilt Museum. It was awesome!