Alton, IL to Hoppies Marine, Kimmswick, MO

After an interesting ride down the first 20 miles of the Mississippi River, we arrived at our next stop on this great journey. We passed under the Clark Bridge in Alton, Illinois, and made an immediate U-turn as we made our way into Alton Marina on Friday, 7 Sept after a long day on the Illinois and Mississippi rivers. Most of the day was overcast with occasional rain which made for a comfortable day to cruise. However, as we approached the point where the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers join, we ran into a thunderstorm. It was raining so hard we could barely see the front of the boat (thank goodness for radar and a good chartplotter). Fortunately, the storm did not last long. However, the sun came out after the storm and it was very warm for the next several hours. The humidity was very high and something that we have not been exposed to in many, many months. We are spoiled by Canada and Michigan weather.

We got fuel at Alton and then made our way to a T-dock at the marina. We later explored the town and made our way to a recommended restaurant, Fast Eddies Bon Air. The walk to this restaurant was almost a mile. We were beginning to think we had gone the wrong way. Well, we finally saw the sign directing us to Fast Eddie’s so we continued on and were looking forward to getting food and drink. The place was packed, loud music was playing that made talking to one another almost impossible, and the menu was very limited. Smoking must have been encouraged, since nearly everywhere we looked we saw cigarette and cigar smokers doing their thing. We were told that our drink orders would be taken at the table and we would have to order our food from the bar. We were there about ten minutes and no one ever came over to take drink orders, so we left. We later heard from several folks that the atmosphere at Fast Eddie’s is not great (and we agree), but that they have the best hamburgers. Oh, well. We talked to a guy Saturday evening who told us that it was dangerous to be walking in that part of town. He apologized to us that no one had given us that information before venturing in to town and told us to be careful when walking around Alton. We ended up eating at a fast food restaurant on Thursday before making our way back to the boat.

On Friday evening, we, as well as Jerry, Mike’s brother, and Mike and Cathy met Pat’s long-time friend Debby (Pat and Debby have known each other since first grade) at Gian-Tony’s for dinner. It was good to see Debby again and to enjoy a delicious meal at this popular Italian restaurant located on “The Hill” in St. Louis.

On Saturday, Debby and I spent the day shopping at the ABC Trading Company, which is a great store for all sorts of jewelry, handbags, hats, scarves, sunglasses, etc., etc., etc., located in Chesterfield. This is a great store where one can spend hours looking at everything this store has to offer. We had lunch at Crown Candy Kitchen that was established in 1913 and still going strong. The Crown Candy Kitchen is famous for its malts, milkshakes, ice cream, homemade candies, and delicious sandwiches. The food was delicious and the atmosphere was something of time gone by. Also, if anyone can drink five malts in a half-hour, they will not have to pay for them. We did not take them up on this offer nor did we witness anyone who did, and I am not sure that I would want to. A fun and interesting little place.

Mike and Jerry stayed behind to do boat chores today, so Debby bought Mike a container of Ted Drewe’s famous ice cream to enjoy at his leisure. This ice cream is sooooo good. If ever in St. Louis, you must try it. They did, and they loved it.

On Saturday afternoon, the strangest looking contraption made its way into Alton Marina for fuel. This thing had about 20 people on it, dressed in all sorts of attire. They, as well as the thing they were traveling on, looked as if they came right out of the hills of who knows where--unbelievable. We found out that this is a group of gypsy actors/musicians, and they have their own internet site. If you are interested in reading about this unusual group, go to the Internet and type in: The Miss Rockaway Armada. The Coast Guard have made marine radio announcements to be on the look out for an unsafe water vehicle on the river. This homemade vessel is truly dangerous. If the currents on the rivers don't break it apart, it will be a miracle!

We left Alton on early Sunday morning (9 Sept), waving goodbye to Mike and Cathy, who will be there for another week, visiting friends and family. We have traveled with them for two and a half months, and it will not be the same traveling without them.

As we left Alton Marina, we immediately came to our first lock, Mel Price. Our next lock was Chain of Rocks, where we had to wait an hour before being locked through. We locked through with a tow/barge with the permission of the tow captain. This tow with its barges was not very large. We also passed the Gateway Arch in St. Louis and numerous large tows/barges, as we made our way to Hoppie’s Marina in Kimmswick. Upon arrival at Hoppie’s, we were greeted at the dock by the legendary Fern, the owner, who helped us get tied up. We have heard so much about her over the years, and we were finally glad that we got to meet her. Hoppie’s has been in business since 1935, first managed by Hoppie’s father and many years later was taken over by Hoppie and Fern. This marina has been in business for 72 years. Hoppie worked on the river as a lamplighter for years, long before powered lights were installed, and he may be the last living Mississippi River lamplighter. They seem to have a great thing going for boaters on this part of the Mississippi River.

We walked to the Blue Owl Restaurant in Kimmswick for lunch. This is a great place to eat and they have wonderful desserts. This restaurant is famous for its breakfasts and lunches (they are not open for dinner), and now we know why. We got our briefing this afternoon from Fern on the remainder of the river system, which will be helpful as we continue on to to the Ohio and Tennessee rivers. We will leave Hoppies on Monday, 10 Sept. Stay tuned…