Never Judge a River by it's Colour

Just as I figured, it seems I was a bit too quick to judge. From my last post you’d think I hated the river. Well....now I can say...it’s growing on me.

Is the river challenging? Yes. Is it dirty? Yes......but is it also stunning in all it’s awesomeness? YES!

This river is home to a tremendous array wildlife and is loaded with fish. I look at the colour of the water and wonder how anything can live in there but fish do. BIG fish! You should see what they pull out of here. And in some spots they jump out of the water all around like salmon going upstream. It’s crazy. I say they are jumping out to get a glimpse of the outside world or maybe to get some oxygen. Like I said before, the water has the look and clarity of chocolate milk.

Last night we stayed in a great anchorage. It was a fantastic little keyhole just off the river that was apparently an abandoned quarry. It was nice and protected, mind you it was very hot. We could watch the barges go by with no worries. We even watched a Riverboat go by, which was a nice treat even if it was just a tourist attraction. It made us feel like we were down south but of course we are not even close even if we are seeing pelicans.

High temperatures are forecasted to remain for the next week or so. We’ve been fortunate that way. It’s helping us acclimatise ourselves for when we do get south. In the meantime, with this heat and a little imagination, I look into the banks of the swollen river and can almost imagine alligators lurking in the shadows.

In between the towns along the Illinois River are miles and miles of wilderness. At least from what we can see. There may be towns just out of sight but, from our vantage point, it appears very remote.. As well, there is a lot of debris in the water to watch for and a strong current to be aware of giving it a wild ambience.

Thankfully we are travelling with the current so we can cruise at an easy 7 - 8 knots! When we finally get to the other end and start sailing again it’s going to seem so slow. I will admit, I won’t care about that as I have a whole new appreciation for sailing these days.

Right now we are tucked away behind an island with Adamant 1 and Sea Mist for the night. In two more days we will be in Grafton where we will meet the mighty Mississippi..... but more about that....next time