Havana to Beardstown, IL - Tying Up to a Barge



Wednesday, August 14 2019
Day 5 on the Loop – Havana, IL to Beardstown (32 Miles)

No great rush to get out of Tall Timbers Marina (Havana) today as we only had 32 miles to go to Beardstown, and no locks to negotiate.  We had a nice chat with Bob, who is featured in Tanya Binford’s book about doing the Great Loop Solo.

Bob at Tall Timbers


Bob gave us some hints about the journey south and, after navigating out through the protected entrance to Tall Timbers, we continued our journey down the Illinois River.   The day was pretty quiet.  We passed one tow (we’ve learned not to call them “tugs”) that was headed northbound, and he told us to take him on “The One” which means to take him on our port side.

We were travelling with the current and doing about 6 knots and only burning about 2 gallons/hour.  The Garmin chart display said that at that rate we had a range of over 1,000 miles! It was a mellow journey down. Once I join the Ohio River (where I will be travelling against the current) the fuel burn rate will go up.


My overworked crew!


We arrived at our destination, which is Logson Tug Service in Beardstown, IL.  We tied off to one barge, only to be asked to move to another.  Good practice maneuvering in a current.  We then clambered over six barges to get ashore to pay the $29 ($1/foot) at the office and then went into town for some food shopping.

Moored alongside a barge at Logsdon Tug Service - Beardstown, IL.


It was fun to watch as the tows moved the barges around us.  Thankfully, they are very skilled!



The closest I want to come to a moving barge!  They were maneuvering a barge into position

John cooked a great dinner on the grill and we tried to settle in for the evening, but then had electrical problems, possibly to do with the electric-powered water heater.  Sigh..... Something else to be addressed in Alton!

John cooking a sausage and zucchini dinner



Comments

  1. UnknownAugust 15, 2019 at 12:35 AM

    Congrats on starting this amazing journey! I'm a friend of your crew member - John - and he was excited to have this adventure with you. You will be traveling "my" part of the country as I grew up in St. Louis and have family in Quincy, IL. The Mississippi is a mighty river - my mom's dad swam across the river from St. Louis to East St. Louis in the 30's. Think of that as you go by the Gateway Arch! I wish you the best journey ever and know I will be reading along as you go!
    Jane Adams

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. GordonAugust 15, 2019 at 9:30 PM

      Hi Jane,

      Thanks for the kind words. It has been a great journey so far! The swim across the Mississippi must have been incredible. We have made it almost to the Mississippi. More in an upcoming post!

      Delete

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