Day 47 to Tall Timbers Marina in Havana, IL

      Unlike our previous experience at what is called a "tow head" (or abandoned river channel), we had no issues last night at the anchorage.  The current was just strong enough to keep us in one position, and we accumulated no debris on the anchor chain.  In fact, we were able to use the satellite TV, which is almost never a possibility at anchor due to the boat swinging in the wind and/or current.  This morning the Admiral took Lucky to shore for her morning constitutional, and then we stowed the kayak before departing at 6:15 am.  Today the sun was bright, which is shown in the sunrise photo at the right. We didn't see a cloud in the sky for most of the day.  What a pleasant change from a cold, rainy day yesterday to a near perfect day on the water today! 

      Our route today was 62.1 miles, and we are staying at the Tall Timbers Marina in Havana, IL.  Yesterday we averaged over 6 miles per hour due to the much slower current in the Illinois River, and we were often in the middle of the river instead of staying to the inside of the bends of the river. The photo at left shows the LaGrange Lock and Dam, which was our only lock for today. There is a USA Corps of Engineers barge and tow boat in the lock, which is nearly underwater. The wickets to the right of the moveable dam gates are down, and we were able to pass over the dam with 10.5 feet of water beneath the keel. We could actually see the dam on the depth finder. The depth was bouncing from 12 to 13.5 feet then it was steady at 10.5 feet for several seconds before getting deeper and uneven again.

      The scenery today was very good in spite of the higher water. The photo at right shows some of the extensive wild flowers along the river banks in this area. The touch of color was a nice addition to our day. The flood waters were once again a very muddy brown indicating the high sediment load that the river was carrying even though we are below a true flood stage. At a true flood stage the higher discharge would result in a higher velocity and more turbulence. At this point the river could carry more and larger partiicles of sediment.

      The photo at the left shows what amounts to a flooded back swamp behind a levee along the river. In this case the levee is probably man made during the dredging of the channel, but natural streams create their own levees. In flood the river overflows its banks, and the velocity of the water outside the main stream channel falls. When the velocity of the water falls, it can carry less sediment, and the coarser and largest volume of sediment is deposited first as the drop in velocity is greatest then. So, now you can have a greater appreciation for nature when you are "sittin on the levee waitin for the Robert E Lee"...

     We passed very few towns actually along the river, and when we did, they were busy shipping ports for grain. This is Beardstown, Illinois, which also had this very scenic lift bridge (photo at right). Once again we were lucky since the bridge is left in the open (or up) position, except when their is an approaching train. At normal water stage we could have passed under the bridge in the closed position, but with the higher water levels today we would have had to request an opening if the bridge had been down.

      As we approached our destination in Havana, Illinois, we passed these barges and a tow boat at a shipping terminal for grain and fertilizer. One barge was a tanker, but it was not red flagged as a hazardous cargo. I looked closely, and the sign on the barge indicated that it was carrying fertilizer liquids... I am not sure what that means, but it conjured up some weird images. For example, I remember driving one day years ago when I passed a tank truck carrying "chicken fluids". I am not sure what that meant either, and I am pretty sure that I do not want to know...

      We arrived at Tall Timbers at 4:00 pm. The timing was great because the owner has a full time job off site and could not be there before 3:00 pm. His wife works full time all Summer at the marina, but "Lucky Us" she does not start until next week...
     The marina is well protected and just off the Illinois River, and it is surrounded by (you guessed it) tall timbers. In the background is a nice city waterfront park with a RV campground. The downtown is further up hill just beyond the park. There is a wonderful, big Ace Hardware where unbelievably neither of us could find anything that we absolutely must have. Now that is rare. Before walking back to Lucky Us, we chose the Townhouse Restaurant and Lounge for dinner, and once inside we remembered that we had eaten lunch there on our previous trip. I had the broiled Whitefish special and it was absolutely wonderful as well as healthy with a (plain) baked potato and side salad.
     The owner of the marina has made a number of improvements since we were here on the last trip. The combination of a nice marina in a pretty setting, the good choice of restaurants and a great hardware store make this town a really memorable stop on our trips.