Day Three - Monday October 29th, 2007

Barnacle II Mate's Log - Cruise Day 3 – Monday, October 29th, 2007
Leaving anchorage at Russellville Marina on Lake Dardanelle

I awoke at 6:15 this morning for the last time. Kenn and I are always anxious on our boat when we anchor out the first night. Last night was no different on Barn & Vic’s boat. We were awake at odd times during the night to look out the portholes on either side of our berth, just making sure that we weren’t dragging anchor. The wind came up about 2:30 AM, enough of a breeze to change the harmonics of the water slapping the hull. It shifted our position and blew us back over our stern anchor. It didn’t foul it completely, but it made it difficult to pull up and clean.

Fog out on Dardanelle this morning, especially where the tail waters of Nuclear 1 flow in. It was a good thing that we anchored about 3 miles east of it. Barney talked to the lockmaster at lock #10 about 3 miles away, and he said that fog is thick on the river. We got to the lock and tied off at 8:55 and we had been lowered 54’ by 9:10. The lockmaster told us that there were a couple of tow boats headed upriver but they were halted by fog. By the time we passed through the town of Dardanelle, it appeared that the fog had mostly lifted.

I had gotten chilled while Kenn and I were lifting and washing off the anchor and chain, so I went below to shower and warm up. While in the shower, I felt the wake of tow boats, so I knew they were moving upriver again. As I came out of the head, Kenn yelled “Eagles!” So I grabbed my long lens and snapped off shots of 3 eagles feeding and fighting on the river bank. One was immature, and the other two were fully feathered, so I suspect it was a nesting pair and their young. That was at river mile 194 about 10 miles below the Dardanelle lock.

We made it through lock #9 by noon (at river mile 177) and lock #8 by 2:00 (river mile 156). Number 8 is Toad Suck Ferry lock near Conway. We should be in Little Rock Yacht Club around 3:30.

Beautiful scenery and beautiful homes scattered along the bluffs above the river, with some derelicts stuck in here and there. The weather is sunny but cool, little wind. We have had to stay in double layers of clothing today, except for He-man Kenn, who insists he won’t wear long pants until Thanksgiving. We’re about 2 weeks away from seeing the brilliant fall colors that we were hoping to see on this trip. A small price to pay to give the farmers the kind of rain they needed for their crops this year.

At about 3:15, at river mile 140, we saw a small boat in the distance to the far right of the channel. On closer inspection with the binoculars, I discovered that it was a canoe about 17 ft. long with a flat stern. The guy on board (who we have since named the River Gypsy) was paddling from the stern, using a long kayak paddle. He had a homemade platform mounted in the center of the canoe, and it had outrigger floats extended on either side of it for stability. On the platform he had 4 large Rubbermaid containers lashed side by side. The front of the canoe was stuffed full of camping gear, bags and what looked to be a mountain bike. Talk about Huck Finn-ing it – but he’s on the wrong river. He was paddling downstream, so he could be heading to the Mississippi. That is cruising in it’s simplest form.

We’ve been buzzed all afternoon by C-130’s out flying maneuvers. The sun has been shining brightly all day, and it is really warm when you’re standing in the light and out of the wind. Approaching Little Rock Yacht Club, Kenn noticed the 3 pyramids (mountains, one of which we think is Pinnacle). But we had never noticed the formation from land before. They line up in a row, just like the Great Pyramids in Egypt.

We made it to LRYC at 4:30. Refueled (334 gallons diesel), pumped out the holding tank and refilled the water tank. We’ll be ready to head out at full light tomorrow morning. So far, we have traveled approximately 218 miles since Saturday afternoon.

As a side note, the River Gypsy rowed into the State Park next door to the marina this evening. We thought about tracking him down to see just what his story is. Maybe we’ll have time in the morning before we leave. At the marina, Shawn has been very helpful in refueling and taking care of our every need. He even allowed us to use his truck to drive to dinner. We went to Capers for a fine and relaxed meal, the first one we’ve had off the boat since last Friday evening.