First, the day before we arrived where we are at now located we logged over 1049 miles. For those of you who follow the Iditarod, that is the distance of the race. Now, I am not even coming close to comparing what we have done so far to the mushers who brave the Iditarod Trail, but we do know what it means to travel over 1100 miles at 6-12 mph. We have lots of goodies that they don't. No dogs to tend, hot showers every once in a while, good food, happy hour with new friends, Internet and once in a while TV. Wow, I guess that also means that we have electricity every now and then. All of the creature comforts that a musher does not have. 1100 miles is a long way.
Second. I have had a couple of questions from some of the non sailors who are reading this blog as to how we live. Well, the boat has a V berth in the bow. Jude and I climb in from the aft end or the head of the bed every night. We head in on all fours and then turn around. Kind of like a dog turning circles before they lie down. I will be glad when I can get out of bed from the side rather than the head! When one has to get up in the middle of the night to get a snack, or to pee, it means going through contortions. Aft of the bed is the head (toilet) on the port side and a closet on the starboard side. After that comes two bench seating on both sides of the boat. A table folds down for our dinner table. Moving aft is the galley on the starboard side. We have a propane stove, microwave/convection oven, and a refrigerator. The fridge is not what you have in your kitchen. It is a cold plate that is down in a hole that was at one time a built in ice chest. It is always a challenge to find what you are looking for in there. From there we move upstairs and outside to the cockpit area. There is room for 6 people to sit there comfortably as long as it is not raining. We have a BBQ grill on the back rail that makes a great steak dinner. We have a 10 foot inflatable dingy that we can use to get to shore when we anchor. We either tow this behind the boat or carry it on the fore deck. Showers--when we were in the North Channel we would jump in the lake. After getting in the river system this was not an option. The water in the Illinois River and the Mississippi was disgusting. Now that we are in the Tennessee we can swim again if we want. We either use the marina shower or we set up solar showers and get cleaned off in the cockpit while moving. Nobody is close enough to gawk at a couple of old farts. This was a concern before we left, showering not gawking, but has become a non issue.
The distance we travel really depends on the circumstances at hand. While clearing the flooded Illinois and the high current Mississippi, we would set a 6:30 alarm (still dark) and be moving by 7:00 AM (sunrise). On one of these days we did 80 miles. One hell of a long way for a boat that does 6.5 mph. Those were the days when the current gave is a boost up to 10 mph. For the next few days we will not be moving at that pace. No alarm, start moving when we want, anchor by 3 in the afternoon. Yes, we anchor the boat someplace where we are out of the current and out of the way (hopefully) of the tows (tug and barge combinations). We will usually spend 3-5 nights on the hook (at anchor) before we find a marina to take care of business. (Fuel, water, pumpout.) We have a holding tank for all of our black water but the grey water goes directly overboard. We will get a pumpout first thing in the morning and be on our way.
We are traveling with a group of boats who are doing what is called "The Loop". The Loop is a circle that starts where ever one starts, but goes through the Great Lakes, down the river system to Mobile, over to Florida and then up the east coast and back to the Great Lakes. Obviously one can start this trip from anywhere along the path. When we got hung up in Ottawa, IL, we had one boat that only needed to get to St Louis to finish their Loop.
As to social life, we have a happy hour most every night with the folks who are doing the loop. As we move along we run across the same people. Even with the different financial background we all have something in common: the experiences along the way. It is a very easy fraternity to join, all you have to do is, as Nike says, just do it.
Left, the Vee berth.Right, from the Vee berth aft. Behind Jude's head is the propane stove, the coffee pot is on the counter, behind the coffee pot is the hole that leads into the cooler. The steps lead outside to the c
ockpit area.This is taken from the companionway (stairs) looking down in to our "living" area. The v-berth, hanging locker, Jude's couch, stove and counter on the right and Rob's computer and couch is on the left side. The table is behind the burgundy cushions to the left of center in this picture.
If you want to play Where's Waldo, can you find the cat box?
Rob
1 comment:
wait wait wait... if there is a cat box, does it look anything like a regular cat box that I would have? What poor cat do you have that you brought along and subject it to soooo much water-- that's so inhumane? next so if you had to go tot eh wash room and almost lost your load... would you consider empty water/wine/plasstic bottles that you would throw away? LOL. have you gone in to check if you suffer from cabin fever? have Judy gone in to be checked for cabin fever? I think you are nuts and should be checked for cabin fever cause from the looks of it... it's a tight atmosphere in that little tug boat of yours. Julius
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