Friday, September 29 - Hoppies

Friday, September 29 - Hoppies

Danny called the lock at 6:45, then called the other boats, and we headed out into a light fog.

We had to mill around a little waiting for the lock to fill, but everything was quiet and calm.  The lock was so big (holds 15 barges) that once we were in, the lock master told our 7 pleasure craft that we could just float around rather than tie up.

Just below the dam, we saw two more huge TOW boats.

Five miles below Mel Price Dam, the Missouri River meets the Mississippi..  It just keeps getting bigger! 

The main channel for water is called the Chain of Rocks.  Boats take the smaller canal.  There is a sign at the divide to make sure boats don’t miss it, because it is confusing.

St. Louis by water is a big disappointment.  There is nothing, nothing, and more nothing.  Even the Arch is less impressive from the water..  The current is very strong, but it seems the city should be able to figure out something to make the waterfront more attractive.

This old bridge was the most scenic thing along the whole waterfront!

I took a lot of pictures in the afternoon, all of them of barges. The water is beginning to be swirly due to the current and traffic.

  There were a few weir dams and the resulting sand bars.

Just before 1:00, we came to Hoppies.  It’s not the big White House (it belongs to Anheuser) but the string of three barges that makes up the marina.  Fern’s husband’s family, the Hopkins, worked on the river as lamplighters for years, long before powered lights were installed.

There were maybe seven boats there, and we chilled waiting for Fern’s orientation which is famous all around the Loop. Deb, Gil and Alex went to the highly recommended Blue Owl for a late lunch, we had all heard the food was great and the desserts even better.  They approved, especially of the pies.

Here is Fern, and here is Fern’s sign.

She really is a treasure, seems to know every turn of the river.  And she is funny!  We thoroughly enjoyed our time with her and the other boaters.

And here is our boat tied up to the barge for the night.