We’ve been traveling for the last three days with another boat. They followed us through the fog yesterday and shared some photos they took.

    

Before the fog got too bad we could see a tow coming toward us – and then it really began to close in. When she took the photo of us in front of them they could still see us. Soon after we were completely hidden.

So we got up early again this morning, pulled up the anchor, and were on our way just before 7 – yes, 7 a.m. – what happened to sleeping late in retirement???

The Mississippi was still filled with debris but there was very little traffic. The current gave us a good push and by 10 we were at the confluence of the Ohio River and the Mississippi. Here it got very interesting. There were several tows seeming to go in all different directions, the current was swift, and there was debris everywhere. We managed to get through all of it and on to the Ohio River. There was considerable traffic for several miles and then suddenly there was none.

We were supposed to go through two locks before Paducah, but we didn’t go through either one of them. They’re constructing a new lock at the first one and because the river is high right now, we went on through – no evidence of a lock!

The photo on the left is obviously new construction, but we weren’t sure if that was an old part of the dam or new.

Because of high water levels, the wickets on the second dam had been lowered and we went right over the dam. That felt very strange knowing that there was a dam underneath us.

Two interesting bridge photos – the one on the left has a tow going under a bridge with semis going over it on the bridge – two ways to transport goods! The one on the right looks like there’s a wall right in front of the bridge – very disconcerting, until you realize it’s just a really cool reflection.

     

When barges are anchored in the river, they collect a lot of debris, which then breaks away when the barges are moved. All of this then travels down the river, making it feel like you’re in a video game trying to avoid all the things being fired at you.

We arrived at the Paducah Transient Boat Dock about 3:15. This dock opened last year and is owned and run by the city. It’s about 300 feet long, with side tie ups, has electric and water, but no bathrooms or showers – good thing we have that on our boat! One side of the dock was already filled, but there was room for us on the other side. As we got closer we saw several people coming to grab lines for us. By the time we got close enough to throw lines to them, there 10 people ready to grab them! Many of them are fellow Loopers, always willing to lend a hand to another looper.

After tidying up the boat and ourselves, we met up with the couple we’ve been traveling with and walked about 4 blocks to downtown old Paducah for dinner. We, along with everyone else looking for a place to eat, discovered there was only one place open on Monday. Fortunately it was large enough to handle a lot of people and the food was quite good.

By the time we had finished dinner the sun had set and we walked back to our boats in the dark. When it gets dark, it’s time to go to sleep.