The four of us that now form the core of our flotilla (which Dan has nicknamed Herd o’ Cats) were up at day break to raise anchor at Quiver Island. It was a very cold morning, and there was frost on the deck and cabin sides. We attributed the high pitched whine and sluggish maneuvering of the anchor windlass to the temperature. Until we raised enough anchor chain to see that we’d speared a log with the point of the anchor and then wrapped it securely with our chain presumably so it would hold us in place. Ok then! While Matt on Katmat hovered nearby to offer assistance if needed, Dan and I poked and prodded the log and shook the anchor chain and managed to free it off, sending the log back to the bottom for someone else to snag. It actually didn’t take very long, but our hands were numb by the time we were done.
For the rest of the five hour cruise to our selected destination, Dan fielded offerings from Gavin on Sol Maria up ahead of us, pointing out every log he spotted floating or resting on the shore. “Good firewood to port, Dan!” “Do you need another log to anchor on, Dan?”
We arrived at the LaGrange Lock and Dam about mid-afternoon and traveled through our last lock on the Illinois River. We all settled in at anchor behind the dam and listened to its surf noises all night, rocking a little in its eddy.
Friday (Nov 3) we were all up at dawn to divide the distance between LaGrange and the Mississippi River into one long and one short day. This was the long day. It was also the warmest day we’ve had in a while - the temperature rose from a chilly 39 degrees to an almost balmy 63 degrees and the sun stayed out much of the day. Our flotilla had agreed to gather at the metal docks of Mel’s Riverfront Restaurant and go out to eat together that night. During this day we started coming across the larger tow fleets - instead of three barges long and two across, some of them were now three to five barges long and three barges across. We are in awe of their ability to pilot such monstrosities down or up river. So far their captains have been very cordial, advising us whether to wait for them to round a bend or to pass. We’ve heard the tows on the Mississippi will be even larger.
We gathered at Mel’s and were joined by s/v Fyka, who had been part of the original flotilla. All fourteen of us captains and crew enjoyed pre-dinner drinks on Sol Maria before descending on Mel’s for an excellent supper. Mel’s was friendly and welcoming and the food was simple but very good. They invited us back for breakfast at seven, and five of us took them up on that.
Today, Saturday (Nov 4) we had a short and pleasant run to Grafton, which is the end of the line for the Illinois River, as it flows into the Mississippi here. Fyka opted to push on, and Sol Maria only paused here at Grafton Harbor Marina for a few hours, but Hygge, Katmat and we will spend the weekend here. We joined up again with Paper Sails, who traveled the first day with our flotilla and with whom we have been ‘Loop-frogging’ ever since. This weekend is the first annual Country Music Festival in this one-street riverfront town, and the festivities are already in full swing. We can take care of housekeeping matters (trash dump, laundry, grocery shopping) while we are here as well as doing some line dancing and participating in contests for best cowboy hat or cowboy boots. We’ll see how well boat boots turn into cowboy boots. 
This morning's sunrise, Illinois River
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