wrote in message
oups.com...
Hello,

I'm interested in taking my family down the Mississippi River some
summer. So far I have almost NO boating experience, so I recognize
that I can't start with a big project; I'll have to learn the basics
before taking The Big Expedition.

Some people have advised me against going on the Mississippi
altogether. "Too dangerous."

Okay. What do I need to know?

Thank you for all serious replies.

Ted Shoemaker


Be sure to bring along some Mark Twain to read. Some of his river stories
might be fascinating, especially to the kids, if any.

The Mississippi River is not dangerous until you end up south of St.
Louis and deal with the huge tugs and their wakes, I am told. The best
way to go after Cairo is to cut over to the Tenn-Tombigbee waterway.

The very best part of the trip is from above the locks in Minneapolis
(one is a 48 footer!) down into Iowa, very scenic and doable by just
about any boat you might consider. Take a side trip up the St. Croix,
considered by some to be the best cruising in the Midwest. North of the
Twin Cities is nice, but you have to figure a way to get around the dams
at Coon Rapids, St. Cloud, Little Falls, Brainerd and more. There will
also be some shallows in those stretches in summer that you will not
find south of the Twin Cities.

Charts are downloadable from the US Corps of Engineers. Watch out for
wing dams. There are two kinds of Mississippi boaters, those who have
hit wing dams and those who will. I'm in the first category......

Email me with questions.

Capt. Jeff

Tamaroak wrote:
The Mississippi River is not dangerous until you end up south of St.
Louis and deal with the huge tugs and their wakes, I am told. The best
way to go after Cairo is to cut over to the Tenn-Tombigbee waterway.

The very best part of the trip is from above the locks in Minneapolis
(one is a 48 footer!) down into Iowa, very scenic and doable by just
about any boat you might consider. Take a side trip up the St. Croix,
considered by some to be the best cruising in the Midwest. North of the
Twin Cities is nice, but you have to figure a way to get around the dams
at Coon Rapids, St. Cloud, Little Falls, Brainerd and more. There will
also be some shallows in those stretches in summer that you will not
find south of the Twin Cities.

Charts are downloadable from the US Corps of Engineers. Watch out for
wing dams. There are two kinds of Mississippi boaters, those who have
hit wing dams and those who will. I'm in the first category......

Email me with questions.

Capt. Jeff
What is a wing dam?

A big wall of rock piled up at an angle to the main flow of the water to
channel the water and reduce the need for dredging. If you stay between
the channel markers you will miss them; if you don't ......

In spring the water is high enough so you float over them.

Capt. Jeff

Made the trip from Chicago to New Orleans many years ago in a 22 foot
sailboat and a 6 h.p. SeaGull engine. That includes the Illinois Ship
and Sanitary Canal and the Illinois River which enters the Mississippi
at Grafton, Il. As mentioned earlier, you have to watch the charts and
stay in the channel marked by buoys or run aground or hit these dams.
Stay well clear of the huge tug boats which throw up monstrous
wakes, especially when they are going upstream. The current is very
strong, especially on bends of the river, so we missed a few landings,
because we couldn't power against the current. There are big floating
logs and other debris, which can do a lot of damage. We had to rebuild
the lower transmission in Greenville, Mississippi and that was doing
well considering other boats with us who had gone through numerous
outboards. Don't expect a lot of marinas, but you must find a place to
get off the main flow of the river for overnight stays. You have to use
ingenuity, like tying up to barges, or seeking out sloughs (old beds of
the river). I thought the main Mississippi River was the most
interesting, especially from a historical viewpoint with towns like
Cairo, Memphis, and Vicksburg. To really enjoy this trip, you need
several months to see all the sights. Take with big fenders, or tires
to protect your boat when tied up next to the huge tugs inside the
monstrous locks. Not exactly a pleasure cruise and one I would not want
to repeat, but I'm glad I experienced it

" wrote:

Hello,

I'm interested in taking my family down the Mississippi River some
summer. So far I have almost NO boating experience, so I recognize
that I can't start with a big project; I'll have to learn the basics
before taking The Big Expedition.

Some people have advised me against going on the Mississippi
altogether. "Too dangerous."

Okay. What do I need to know?

Thank you for all serious replies.

Ted Shoemaker

"sherwindu" wrote in message
...
Made the trip from Chicago to New Orleans many years ago in a 22 foot
sailboat and a 6 h.p. SeaGull engine. That includes the Illinois Ship
and Sanitary Canal and the Illinois River which enters the Mississippi
at Grafton, Il. As mentioned earlier, you have to watch the charts and
stay in the channel marked by buoys or run aground or hit these dams.
Stay well clear of the huge tug boats which throw up monstrous
wakes, especially when they are going upstream. The current is very
strong, especially on bends of the river, so we missed a few landings,
because we couldn't power against the current. There are big floating
logs and other debris, which can do a lot of damage. We had to rebuild
the lower transmission in Greenville, Mississippi and that was doing
well considering other boats with us who had gone through numerous
outboards. Don't expect a lot of marinas, but you must find a place to
get off the main flow of the river for overnight stays. You have to use
ingenuity, like tying up to barges, or seeking out sloughs (old beds of
the river). I thought the main Mississippi River was the most
interesting, especially from a historical viewpoint with towns like
Cairo, Memphis, and Vicksburg. To really enjoy this trip, you need
several months to see all the sights. Take with big fenders, or tires
to protect your boat when tied up next to the huge tugs inside the
monstrous locks. Not exactly a pleasure cruise and one I would not want
to repeat, but I'm glad I experienced it

I'm assuming a 32 foot powerboat with twin engines would have an easier go
of it. Correct?

-Greg

Dene wrote:


I'm assuming a 32 foot powerboat with twin engines would have an easier go
of it. Correct?

-Greg

Yes, as far as having enough power to fight the current. However, you still
have
all the other problems I mentioned. The water is very silty, so you will be
sucking
a lot of mud and debris into your cooling system, so be sure you can handle
that.
The floating debris can also do a number on your props. Issues of anchoring
and
finding marinas also hold for you. There are facilities in Memphis, St.
Louis, and possibly
some marinas have opened up since my trip years ago. I'm not sure what is
going
on with New Orleans, since the hurricane. I stayed there on Lake Ponchetrain,
which
I heard got hit pretty bad. You may want to take with some spares, like a
prop,
cooling system filters, etc. Consult a mechanic before taking off.

Sherwin D.

"sherwindu" wrote in message
...

Dene wrote:


I'm assuming a 32 foot powerboat with twin engines would have an easier
go
of it. Correct?

-Greg

Yes, as far as having enough power to fight the current. However, you
still
have
all the other problems I mentioned. The water is very silty, so you will
be
sucking
a lot of mud and debris into your cooling system, so be sure you can
handle
that.

Or get radiator cooling. My boat has that now to guard against salt water.
We love the red dot heat feature.


The floating debris can also do a number on your props. Issues of
anchoring
and
finding marinas also hold for you. There are facilities in Memphis, St.
Louis, and possibly
some marinas have opened up since my trip years ago. I'm not sure what is
going
on with New Orleans, since the hurricane. I stayed there on Lake
Ponchetrain,
which
I heard got hit pretty bad. You may want to take with some spares, like a
prop,
cooling system filters, etc. Consult a mechanic before taking off.

Will do....10 winters from now.

-Greg

My family and I did it with a 34' House Boat and had a great
time. We also went up stream from the Ill. River. That is a
lot nicer trip.
"Dene" wrote in message
...

"sherwindu" wrote in message
...
Made the trip from Chicago to New Orleans many years ago
in a 22 foot
sailboat and a 6 h.p. SeaGull engine. That includes the
Illinois Ship
and Sanitary Canal and the Illinois River which enters the
Mississippi
at Grafton, Il. As mentioned earlier, you have to watch
the charts and
stay in the channel marked by buoys or run aground or hit
these dams.
Stay well clear of the huge tug boats which throw up
monstrous
wakes, especially when they are going upstream. The
current is very
strong, especially on bends of the river, so we missed a
few landings,
because we couldn't power against the current. There are
big floating
logs and other debris, which can do a lot of damage. We
had to rebuild
the lower transmission in Greenville, Mississippi and that
was doing
well considering other boats with us who had gone through
numerous
outboards. Don't expect a lot of marinas, but you must
find a place to
get off the main flow of the river for overnight stays.
You have to use
ingenuity, like tying up to barges, or seeking out sloughs
(old beds of
the river). I thought the main Mississippi River was the
most
interesting, especially from a historical viewpoint with
towns like
Cairo, Memphis, and Vicksburg. To really enjoy this trip,
you need
several months to see all the sights. Take with big
fenders, or tires
to protect your boat when tied up next to the huge tugs
inside the
monstrous locks. Not exactly a pleasure cruise and one I
would not want
to repeat, but I'm glad I experienced it

I'm assuming a 32 foot powerboat with twin engines would
have an easier go
of it. Correct?

-Greg

" wrote:

Hello,

I'm interested in taking my family down the Mississippi River some
summer. So far I have almost NO boating experience, so I recognize
that I can't start with a big project; I'll have to learn the basics
before taking The Big Expedition.

Some people have advised me against going on the Mississippi
altogether. "Too dangerous."

Okay. What do I need to know?

Skipper Bob has a book on the Great Circle route which includes the
Mississippi. I haven't looked at that book because we aren't really
interested in doing that, but his other books contain good
information. The books are fairly inexpensive and I would expect it
to deal with marinas, anchorages, fuel etc. Skipper Bob has/had a
trawler.

Thank you for all serious replies.

Ted Shoemaker

grandma Rosalie