Thursday, 9/25.  Left Hammond, In. harbor and headed down the Cal-Sag waterway.  We traveled 62 miles through many locks and bridges.  Late afternoon we lost one engine and limped our way itno Harborside Marina in Wilmington, Il.  We had reservations at the gas dock, arrived in the dark, only to find someone took our spot!  Managed to tie up safely.

Friday, 9/26.  Thankfully, the mechanic at Harborside fixed our fuel problem.  We filled all gas tanks and headed out once again.  Traveled 55 miles thru 3 locks to Spring Valley Boat Club in Granville, Il.  We met the nicest people!  We had help tying up and two people offered their vehicles in case we needed supplies.  After a shower, we went up to the boat club for a drink or two and enjoyed  visiting with the members who were there. We would highly recommend this as a stop along the Illinois River.  Very gracious people.  We could have stayed a few more days!

Saturday, 9/27.  Traveled 98.4 miles to Big Timbers Marina in Havana, Il.   Bob, the owner, was very accommodating and would also recommend this stop.  Long day, again arriving after dark!  We docked in front of Toba...third time we have seen Tom & Barbara Wilson.  Hope we run into them again and have a chance to visit.

Sunday, 9/28.  Our longest day yet!  Traveled 120 miles to Grafton, Il where the Illinois River meets up with the Mississippi.   Only one lock at LaGrange, Il. but barge traffic was heavy.  Once we were in between two barges in the dark which was stressful!  With some excellent navigation by Diane and masterful piloting by Stan we managed to find Grafton Marina.  Not easy in the dark and in unfamiliar territory.  Plans are to chill out here for a couple days, wash the boat, do the laundry and get supplies.  Mundane, but we are looking for a little down time before heading out again.

After spending 3 weeks in Racine visiting with family and friends, a couple of  boat rides and celebrating Diane's  Mom's 91st  birthday, Stan and his good boating friend, Dave Macnamara left Racine at 6:15 am for Hammond, Ind.  They traveled 73 miles and arrived at Hammond Marina at 1:30 pm.  Diane drove Dave's car and they switched places after docking.  Total miles traveled is 321.5.

Among our guests were Troy Edwards and boys Andrew and Chris.  They had a great time fishing, caught two fish on a charter boat that Troy fried up for lunch...delicious!  They (the boys) even went swimming off the back of the boat (think it was a little chilly).

Special thanks to son-in-law Rick and his family for spending a boring day hooking up our TV antenna.  Much appreciated.  We still owe them a ride.

We enjoyed showing off our new home to all who visited and will start down the river system tomorrow entering at the Cal-Sag canal. 

We arrived in Racine at 2:00 pm today, Tuesday Sept 2.  We are at Pugh Marina in slip 293 and plan to stay put for 2-3 weeks and enjoy the boat. Total miles traveled is around 250.  Come see us and let us show you around our home.   

Left this morning at 10am from Kewaunee.  Visibility was about 1/2 mile and waves 1-2 feet, building to 2-4 feet with an occasional 5 footer.  Not a real bad ride, but not fun.  Thankfully as day progressed, the fog lifted a little and we hugged the shore to get a little better ride.  As the sun started to come out, we decided to tough it out and headed for Port Washington.  We arrived at 6:30 pm (long day) and after getting fuel, we pulled into our slip.  After some dinner and a shower, we are again feeling human.  Total miles traveled so far is 211.5.  Off to Racine tomorrow if the weather is good.  We plan to dock in Racine for 2-3 weeks to relax and visit family and friends.  Welcome aboard.