The Great Loop On Karma: The Mississippi

A clear channel is needed for the barges and other vessels that make the Mississippi one of the great commercial waterways of the world. The task of maintaining a navigation channel is the responsibility of the the United States Army Corps of Engineers, which was established in 1802. Earlier projects began as early as 1829 to remove snags, close off secondary channels and excavate rocks and sandbars.

The towboats run day and night on the Mississippi and we definitely want to stay out of their way.

Steamboats entered trade in the 1820s, so the period 1830 – 1850 became the golden age of steamboats. As there were few roads or rails in the lands of the Louisiana Purchase, river traffic was an ideal solution. Cotton, timber and food came down the river, as did Appalachian coal. The port of New Orleans boomed as it was the trans-shipment point to deep sea ocean vessels. As a result, the image of the twin stacked, wedding cake Mississippi steamer entered into American mythology.

Unfortunately, now there are many cheap imitations of true paddle boats used today for tourists.

The first railroad bridge across the Mississippi was built in 1856. It spanned the river between the Rock Island Arsenal in Illinois and Davenport, Iowa. Steamboat captains of the day, fearful of competition from the railroads, considered the new bridge "a hazard to navigation". Two weeks after the bridge opened, the steamboat Effie Afton rammed part of the bridge, catching it on fire. Legal proceedings ensued, with Abraham Lincoln defending the railroad. The lawsuit went to the United States Supreme Court and was eventually ruled in favor of the railroad.

Mississippi bridges have notable engineering and landmark significance. No highway or railroad tunnels cross under the Mississippi River.

A series of 29 locks and dams on the upper Mississippi, most of which were built in the 1930s, is designed primarily to maintain a 9 foot deep channel for commercial barge traffic. The lakes formed are also used for recreational boating and fishing. The dams make the river deeper and wider but do not stop it. No flood control is intended. During periods of high flow, the gates, some of which are submersible, are completely opened and the dams simply cease to function. Below St. Louis, the Mississippi is relatively free-flowing, although it is constrained by numerous levees and directed by numerous wing dams.

A draught this year on the Mississippi, has the river level 8-10 feet lower than normal. Barges go aground and boats like us can't get into marinas.
Sedimentation and erosion patterns can quickly change the Mississippi, including development of a new river channel and delta, as well as a new pattern of floodplains, natural levees, and back swamps. Changes to salinity of coastal waters would affect marine life, fisheries, beaches, and coastal marshes. The abandoned river channel would eventually fill and re-vegetate, probably with a major influx of invasive non-native species. On the other hand, the low-lying outer parts of the present delta, lacking replenishment, would mostly soon erode away. On the other hand, if the country has a cold winter with plenty of snow, it will eventually get to the Mississippi.

Hoppies Marina, at Mile Marker 158.5 on the Mississippi River in Kimmswick, Missouri, is an important, strategic and essential stop for us and all boaters heading South, because it is the last marina and the last consistently available fuel stop on the Upper Mississippi River. It is another 250 miles and 3 locks to Green Turtle Bay Marina, in Grand Rivers, Kentucky.

The owners of Hoppies Marina, Charles "Hoppie" and Fern Hopkins. We refer to them as the "Guardians" of the River, because they have helped us and numerous other boaters make the trip safely down the rivers. Fern's sessions on the latest River information and conditions are well known and extremely valuable. Her knowledge of the River after 50 years of experience is remarkable and extensive. Hoppies has been in business for 77 years; it may even be the oldest marina still operating on the rivers. It was started by Hoppies' Father, who along with his son, was a lamplighter on the Mississippi River. Hoppie and Fern have operated the marina for 38 years, and they are both in their 70's.

We were tied up fixing dinner, after having talked with Fern outside with our friends Jeff and Sue on the boat Idyll Time, and all of a sudden, Fern comes over yelling, get off the the docks. A towboat going up the river had lost 3 barges full of coal heading straight for us. We started the engines, dropped the lines and pushed out into the river. Hoppie comes running down the hill and jumps into a john boat to push the barges away from the marina. It was pretty exciting. The barges missed the marina and went sliding south down the river by themselves, eventually being picked up by towboats later in the night. We left in the morning.