Casting Off

At 7:30 a.m. on a damp and gloomy September 10, we cast off our lines at the St. Paul Yacht Club and turned C.A.R.I.B. II south to begin our journey back to Florida and complete the Great Loop. Several of our wonderful dock neighbors were on hand to bid us "Bon Voyage." Although we are excited to be cruising again, the departure was mixed with some sadness at having to leave family and friends after a wonderful summer.

Miller Dock neighbors Ron Hilson, Barb Hilson,
Barb Hakke

Dock neighbor Truman Howell
on Trubador

Leaving the Robert Street Bridge and St. Paul behind

The gloomy weather did not last long. By the time we reached Hastings, MN--a bit over 2 hours into the trip--the sun started to make an appearance. The remainder of the day was glorious.

Back to first mate duties . . . 

Captain Lon on duty

We had an additional crew member for these first two days of the trip: we were joined by sister-in-law Brenda Clausen, wife of Pat's brother Eric. We are always happy to have company, and of course, we are always happy to put that company to work.

Brenda at the helm

Brenda handles the stern line
in the lock

Our destination for September 10 was the town of Lake City, MN. The town lies about halfway down Lake Pepin, which is the widest naturally occurring part of the Mississippi River. It's a cute little town and, as one might expect, has a focus on water activities. Fun fact: Lake City is the officially recognized "Birthplace of Waterskiing." In 1922 eighteen-year old Ralph Samuelson strapped on two boards with steam-bent ends and was towed by his brother on Lake Pepin--and a new sport was born.

Lake City, birthplace of waterskiing

Lake Pepin is a sailboat mecca

A beautiful sunset in Lake City

CARIB II at rest after a 66 mile, 2 lock cruising day

Our cruise today, September 11, was scenic, although a bit chilly. During the day we encountered a group of canoeists from Pat's alma mater, Augsburg College in Minneapolis. Sixteen students, two professors, and two guides are travelling the Mississippi River in four Voyageur style canoes. The participants in the "Augsburg College River Semester" started in St. Paul on September 1 and will be canoeing much of the length of the Mississippi River before returning to Minnesota in December. Go Auggies!

Intrepid Augsburg students paddling south

We are in Winona, MN for the evening. We stopped in Winona on our way north last year, so have not spent much time sightseeing this time. Pat's brother Eric drove down to have dinner with us and--horrors!--drove away afterwards with our much-valued crew member Brenda.

We are enjoying the additional speed that travelling downstream provides. When we cruised "up" the Mississippi last fall, we were lucky to maintain a cruising speed of 7 mph. Now that we are travelling with the current, we are able to maintain a cruising speed of nearly 10 mph. It may not sound like much, but it makes a huge difference in the number of hours it takes to travel a given distance. In two days we have traveled the same distance that took us three days last fall. We have heard that when we get south of St. Louis the current will provide us with an even bigger push. By tomorrow evening we are hoping to have reached Iowa.