OOPS!

Not a good day at the office for the crew of the M/V Stephen L Colby which hit bottom and sank near LeClaire, Iowa yesterday.

The towboat Aaron Barrett from Ingram Barge Lines stands by to offer assistance to the stricken Colby.

Fortunately the crew is safe and unharmed. The Colby was built in 1966.

Should We Stay? or Should We Go?

That's the question that presented itself when we learned of Pam's Mom's knee replacement surgery which had just been rescheduled for November 27th. Originally the operation was to take place on the 11th of November which if all went well would have allowed us to head back to Tourist sometime around Thanksgiving. But plans don't always work out like you think they should. They work out like they're supposed to.
The weather is getting colder up here in NW Illinois and has even given us our first snowfall of the year. The patio furniture is stored and the mower put away. Leaves are off the trees and it's time to make sure the snowblower is working. Yuck! Pam & I are even turning a pasty white color from being underexposed to sunlight! Surely we should prepare to get out of Dodge ASAP after the surgery. Only one hurdle. Pam is going to be what they term the "caretaker" for her Mom once she is home following the surgery. Not a complaint. It's how it should be. Who better than family to take care of you? What that means though is that our return is in Limbo, dependent upon how well and how quickly her Mom recovers.

Certainly I could head back to Tourist by myself, and believe me that is a consideration. There are plenty of things that need to be tended to on the boat and I could use a little color in my cheeks!. Only problem with that scenario is that it wouldn't be the same without my "Princess" along side of me. Also the limited time I would have before I had to come back home for Christmas and the travel expenses incurred pleads to the tightwad side of me to just remain at home. So there it is. I've just made the decision. I'm staying home with my girl. While Pam's being the caretaker I'll be stripping wallpaper, painting, and other small jobs around the house getting it in shape for a possible sale sometime down the road. If all goes well with her Mom we'll return to Tourist after the Christmas Holiday's ready to enjoy the warmer weather and our Southern friends.
Meanwhile I'll leave you with some pictures from our summer at home.

Vada (Pam's Mom), Barb(sister), & Pam

Biker Chick.

Changing a flat.

3rd of July.

Four generations.

Golf? Really?

Ellie digging out the pumpkin.

Sunset on the river.

Warrior Dash survival.

Pulling the Grandkids.

A Cincinnati visit.

Only guides needed for the Upper Mississippi.

Sign posted on the toilets at Lock & Dam 11 during the Govt. shutdown. The Lock however remained open. Go figure!

New siding being installed on the house.

Trip to the apple orchards.

American Queen visits Dubuque.

Said goodbye to Nubbs. R.I.P. She was a sweetheart.

Pam & Ellie playing "Ring around the Rosie".

Women's luncheon.

Franklin as the Golfer for Halloween.

First Snow!

End of Season

It's getting to be that time of year here in the Midwest. The temps are dropping and boats are coming out of the water like popcorn. Recently I had the opportunity to share in this annual sad event with two of our friends.
The first took place on a cool Friday morning. With the thermometer reading 33 degrees we pulled out of Mid-Town Marina at 9 a.m. on M/V Vagabond and pointed the bow South. Our destination, Island City Harbor in Sabula, Iowa and their indoor storage facility some 50 miles away. Fortunately the sun was out and it didn't take long for the temps to climb into the comfortable range.

Passing a couple of barges near Chestnut Mt.

The small speck entering the Bellevue Lock is a solo canoeist who was travelling from Winona, Mn. to New Orleans. Good Luck!

Stretching Vagabonds legs below Bellevue.

Last fuel stop for the year.

Tucked into the slip waiting for haul out and storage after taking care of a few remaining winterization chores.

After one last round of cocktails on the boat we had dinner at Bombfire Grill, one of the more eclectic restaurants we've been in for some time.

The menus are inside old album covers.

LuAnn and our waitress discussing aerobic moves.

Pam talking to hometown friends who we had last run into last winter in Irish Kevin's bar in Key West.

Bombfire turned out to be a pleasant surprise. Primarily a pizza joint run by an old hippie and serving what I call "designer pizza" in an old house the ambiance was cluttered and somewhat tight but the pizza and service were fantastic.

A few days later I went on a short  jaunt with Mike on M/V Eirean from the dock to the travelift at the Dubuque Yacht Basin. The air was thick to say the least with fog. Fortunately we didn't have a great distance to travel. Out of one harbor. Into the channel and back into another harbor where the dockhands were waiting for us.  It wasn't long and Eirean was coming out of the water.

 The Dubuque-Wisconsin Bridge in the fog.

Waiting for the lift operator.

Up, up, and away.

When we kept Tourist here year round the last box to be checked off on my winterization list was "Mourn for six months"! That time has come for the boaters here in the Midwest.

Mike and I had a season ending beer in Catfish Charlie's once the boat was turned over to the marina staff.

Fortunately for Pam & I we will soon be heading back to Tourist and starting our boating season.