Monday......30 April  2007 ..........Back to Work !

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Our River Picture of the Day........  was sent in by Sharon Gwillim.  She snapped a picture of a red and green buoy a bit to close to navigate between.

Oh Buoy !

Bill,

   This is a picture of a couple of buoy's that are obviously off their mark.  Could you get your boat through there?? 

  We saw them on the way to the Wing Fling on 521. 

  Click here for Wing Fling  Pictures.

Sharon G

Yester Year's River Picture of the Day  ------  What picture was steering RiverBill's up-river on this day in years past ? 

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One of the River Picture Of The Day  in 2006 ...... was of river dawg "Bear" and his friend Barron.  Bear is working with Barron to teach him to be a real River Dawg.

I have a little backlog of River Dawgs  right now.

  If you sent a picture in......Look for your dog soon.  

All of our River Dawg pictures  will all be on display at this years

 Dog Days Of Summer Festival in downtown St. Charles.

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River History ------  
   Did you know that there was a Union Prison in Alton, IL during the Civil War ?  Escaped prisoners would attempt to cross the "Mississippi River" to the state of Missouri because it was a slave state a the time..

  Click here for more information about Alton, IL.

Missouri Conservationist on-line Magazine........The May on-line edition of  Missouri Conservationist Magazine is out..     

Click here to view the on-line magazine..  

This issue has:

• A short article about the Ladue Middle School's Stream Team.#76.....Click here

• An article in the Outdoor Recreation section about The State of Missouri's "Free Fishing Days" on  June 9 and 10. On Free Fishing Days the Department of Conservation suspends the requirement for fishing permits, trout permits and daily tags ....Click here and scroll down.

 Fri, Sat, Sun......27, 28, 29 April  2007 .........

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Our River Pictures of the Day.....Sunday...  are of the bands that provided the entertainment yesterday at "Cedar Hill's" Grand opening and Kinder's Luau Party.

  It's the "Piping Hot Buttery Biscuits Of Blues"  band ( top picture) that played on the deck at Cedar Hill yesterday afternoon.    

  It's the "RoadHouse" band (bottom picture) that rocked the crowd last night at Kinder's Luau Party.  

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Our River Picture of the Day.....Saturday...   I ask Capt'n Mike Holas where is the new deck at the Duck Club was located.  He sent us the above picture and the following description.  

Hi Bill,
  I am attaching another picture of the deck at the Duck Club. 

  You can see the deck on the far right. The pool is "downstream" of the clubhouse, and the deck is riverside.

Mike

RiverBill says......Thanks Mike......Mike and Rosie hail out of the Duck Club in the cruise Swing Set

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Our River Picture of the Day.....Friday... Was sent to us Capt'n Mike Holaus, who hails out of the Duck Club in the cruise Swing Set.  

It's a shot of the new deck at the Duck Club Yacht Club !

Yester Year's River Picture of the Day  ------  What picture was steering RiverBill's up-river on this day in years past ? 

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The River Picture Of The Day  in 2005 ....Sunday... was of a   helicopter heading up river near Royal Landing.   It looks like it is low enough that it could pull a water skier.

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The River Picture Of The Day  in 2006 ....Saturday... was from Betty Bannister.  It's pics from  "Jon Boat Wednesday".    A group of boaters that get together on Wednesday's and go boating....... in jon boats.......   

This one took place on Thursday.......

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The River Picture Of The Day  in 2006 ....Friday... was of a River Sunset taken near the UMR 224 mile marker.  The sun, in this picture,  is setting over Calhoun County, Illinois due to the bend in the Mississippi River in the St. Louis area.  When it got down below the tree line that evening it seemed to just start glowing and the red colors started showing up.......Sensational !

Another Door Missing At Woodland...Plus more...

Bill, 
I must admit I read that article on the missing Starboard door of the 89 St. Tropes and thought you were talking about my boat. I as well have an 89 St. Tropes and am also docked at Woodland Marina. The Starboard door from our swim platform was also missing (stolen) since last year. I have called everywhere trying to find another door like that and have had no luck. I never thought anyone stole our door, what we thought happened was the door opened during a storm and one of the dock lines caught it. After reading the story on your web-site it make me wonder. If nothing else our boats will look the same, missing the same door. While we have everyone looking for this door, we can also have them look for our Gensen Marion radio and Sony Stereo and speakers which were stolen from our boat on the dock at Woodland........

Joe Grygiel
Party-Cruz

A Short Story For Our Fellow Pool Boaters ....

Chapter 1 Small Door

The swim platform of our 89 Wellcraft St. Tropez has two small compartments. Port side houses a shower head and the starboard side for storage. The small doors, 8 x 16 inch are secured with a stainless steel piano hinge and 14 rivets.

Chapter 2 Big Pain

Between Sunday, 04/22, afternoon and Thursday, 04/26, somebody popped 7 of the 14 rivets and walked off with the starboard side door.

The end.

The only good use for this little door is covering the compartment of my boat. I suppose the door would also cover the same compartment of another St. Tropez. 

Any one know of another St. Tropez on the pool that needs this door? The best security for our boats are the eyes and ears of our fellow boaters.

We appreciate any help our fellow boater can give.

Ron Hering
Say Steel
Woodland Marina

RiverBill says...Lets help Ron find this thing !   Take a look around at any 89 Wellcraft St. Tropez you know of that were missing this door.   

River Levels and Weather ...............

The Weather and River Levels,  located at the top of this page on RiverBill's, is "updated every 20 minutes" now..... thanks to the hard work of Capt'n Gary Bowers, who hails out of Woodland Marina.  

 RiverBill says........ Thanks Gary for all you do !

Saturday  May 5    Great Grafton Pub Crawl ..... 

Grafton, IL

Cinco De Mayo Pub Crawl ..Cooler cups ...T-shirts, Live Music

10 Pubs $12.00   ...Transportation..

          For more info call 618 - 786-7678

Saturday  May 5    Alton Block Party ..... 

Alton, IL

Cinco De Mayo Block Party...Mexican Food and Drink

Starts at 4PM ...Music starts at 6:30PM...The Phins Band

For more info

Go to ......http://www.visitalton.com/story.cfm?id=15            

Call........ 618 - 465-6676

Alton Block Party Schedule ........ 

May 26..... Living Proof
June 30..... Bone Daddy & the Shakers
July 28 ...... Jimmy Buffet Tribute Party with The Phins
August 25...The Bel-Airs
Sept. 29.... "Poco"

For more info

Go to ......http://www.visitalton.com/story.cfm?id=15            

Call........ 618 - 465-6676

Lewis & Clark Statue Underwater on St. Louis Riverfront---- Old news.....Missed this one ...It's from March 23, 2007.   

~~~This one falls into the  "The Isle Of Bad Judgment"  category ~~~

    According to an article in  "Lewis & Clark' Road Trips.com"   the  "Captains Return Statue", that commemorates the Lewis and Clark Expedition's return to  St. Louis was partially underwater on March 22, 2007.  

   It's located on the St. Louis Riverfront near the Eads bridge and the rising waters of the Mississippi River were claiming the area where the statue sits. In the pictures the statue still looks sort-of-OK.  Almost like it's a sinking boat...heading for shore.  

  The river question of the day is  ...What were they thinking ? ?

   Click here to read the article. 

RiverBill's Classifieds.......  Click here  ...A 2002 Montana 5th Wheel trailer and a 1993 Sea Ray 330 Sundancer boat were just added !  

Fishing Report  ------ The Missouri Department of Conservation has issued this week's Fishing Report.  

Mississippi River (above St. Louis):

61 degrees, falling, muddy; all species slow. (Report made on 4/26/2007)

Missouri River (below New Haven)

54 degrees, high, muddy; catfish fair on natural baits; all other species slow. (Report made on 4/26/2007)

Check out the report for the entire state of Missouri

.................go to  http://www.mdc.mo.gov/fish/fishrt/

What Going on At River Restaurants This Week ?.......Click here check it out !

Pre-1840 Period Fall Encampment and Shoot ... Sept 15 & 16….  

Columbia Bottom Conservation Area

   LHR will be having their Fall Encampment on the South Bank of the Missouri River at the Confluence to the Mississippi River.
   Spend the weekend on 4,000 acres of property owned and operated by the Missouri Department of Conservation. A wildlife area with wetlands loaded with game just as the earlier settlers would have enjoyed.
   Walk in the footsteps of the Spanish Fort “Fort Don Carlos” (1767-1780) located on the south-side of the mouth of the Missouri River. It was officially known as Fort Don Carlos el Senor Principe de Asturias, and it was an 80-foot square palisade with four bastions. 
   Visit the Missouri Department of Conservation Education and Visitor Center. Hike the trails thru the property. View the confluence of these two great rivers on a viewing platform built for all to enjoy. Or just sit back and enjoy the fall colors and smell the smoke from the campfires.
   Music by: Booneslick Stings Food by: Turkey Legs
   Militia de San Carlo / Lewis & Clark Fife and Drum Corps.

Click here for more info.  (MSWord doc)

The Blond Boating Joke of the Day .... is from our friend Larry Demko of Fastrac Media.  

   There was a blonde driving down the road one day. She glanced to her right and noticed another blonde sitting in a nearby field. She was in a boat rowing, with no water in sight.

   The blonde angrily pulled her car over and yelled at the rowing blonde, "What do you think you're doing? It's things like this that give us blondes a bad name. If I could swim, I'd come out there and kick your butt!"

RiverBill says.....Thanks for the joke Larry....good one !....Hah

Kinder's Luau Party .....Saturday.... April 28th ...

 8 PM - 12 midnight                                                   

 The Works Band  will be playing the  tunes    

~~~ Wear your Best Hawaiian Clothes  ~~~ 

~~~ Come and Join in the Fun  ~~~          

Click her for Kinder's Restaurant website

Cedar Hill Opening Day.....Saturday.... April 28th ...

“The Piping Hot Buttery Biscuits of Blues" Band

2PM - 6PM ...Sat 28th

Cedar Hill Resort will be open Saturday April 28th Come Hell or High Water. We have some new menu items that we think you will like. This year we have went back to Bottle Beer on the inside only. We will open the season with an all Blues Music Weekend (Weather Permitting). Our opening band will be “The Piping Hot Buttery Biscuits of Blues”. This band is worth the trip up to listen to, even if you have to drive a car. They will play 3:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. Saturday the 28th. Come help us start the boating season with a big party and continue a great 2007 season on the river. Happy New Year!

Dave and Carrie Ash

Hope to see you Saturday the 28th

  Click here for Cedar Hill's website

Sunday  April 29

Mushroom Festival .....Mushroom Cookoff

Piasa Winery in Grafton, IL

Saturday & Sunday  April 28 & 29

Riverside Flea Market

Grafton, IL

 Thursday...26 April  2007 ..........  

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Our River Picture of the Day........ Was sent to us Capt'n Robert Cope of the boat "SlowRide".   

Robert wrote:

Bill,

A couple pics from Saturday. Looks like the season is here in full force.

Robert

RiverBill says...Check out Robert's site....   

                      http://360.yahoo.com/rcope2@sbcglobal.net 

Yester Year's River Picture of the Day  ------  What picture was steering RiverBill's up-river on this day in years past ? 

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One of the Pictures on This Day in 2006 ..... was of a   Turtle Fest in the Lehmond Island Slough.   These guys were all negotiating for a spot on this one log in the middle of the slough to get in some "Sun Time".   There were more turtles on the log when we first seen them, but some slipped off into the water as I approached.   Looks like there were still about 15 -16 left when this picture was taken, depending if you count them on the small picture or on the full size one.   Lehmond Island Slough is located between Dardenne Slough and Highway B at approximately the UMR 227 -228 mile marker.

ITCS Memo ......Illinois River Update on Watch Phase's ---- Advisory issued... high water watch phase for various locations on lllinois and Mississippi Rivers, including  0.0 - 9.9 on the ILR....and....241.4 - 324.8 on the UMR.

Click here to read the ITCS Memo #2522  o read the ITCS Memo #2522  o read the ITCS Memo #2522 

Boil Order Update  - Grafton IL …. According to an news story on 4 kmov.com the 3 week old " boil order" in Grafton, IL remains in effect because ...... "One of the city's two water wells tested positive for bacteria after routine maintenance." 

    Crews are installing a pipe to try and bypass the suspected problem.  The boil order is expected to last another 5- 7 days.    

    Click here to read the news story on 4kmov.com

Plans To Raise The Nutwood Levee….  According to a news article in the on-line Alton Telegraph there was meeting on Tuesday evening, at the Calhoun County High School, about plans to raise the Nutwood Levee along the Illinois River by 2.5 feet.  The US Army Corps of Engineers predicted that the new levee height would be topped by flood waters only once every 130 years.   The levee protects local land as well as Illinois Routes 16 and 100.

  Click here to go to the on-line Alton Telegraph and read the news story.

 Wednesday...25 April  2007 ..........  It's All About "Dutch" Day

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Our River Picture of the Day........ Was sent to us by Dutch.   He is piloting his cruiser "The Scoundrel" around the loop.....He left St. Louis late last fall in the Scoundrel heading down the Mississippi River looking for warmer weather.  He spent a lot of the Winter months in Bahamas and that area.  Now he has worked his way up the eastern seaboard to New York..   

RiverBill says....Good to hear from you Dutch.  Enjoy and be safe !  See ya soon.

   Keep your anchor right here for updates and more pictures of Dutch's trip and you can check TheScoundrel.com ,  in the left hand column of this web page for travel updates. 

Yester Year's River Picture of the Day  ------  What picture was steering RiverBill's up-river on this day in years past ? 

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One of the Pictures on This Day in 2006 ..... was of our friend Dutch and a couple of his lady friends last year on the sundeck at Cedar Hill Resort.  Dutch brought the dancers along with him on his cruiser,  the Scoundrel, to provide entertainment for everyone that day.   Yeah Dutch ! 

  Check out  www.cedarhillresort.net  for more pictures from that afternoon.

Mississippi River Forecast…. The river levels at Winfield, Grafton and Alton are all below "Flood Stage" and "Action Stage".  

 Click here for today's river stages and forecast.  

430 Acre Nature Preserve Along The River Road Near Grafton ------  According to an article in the on-line Alton Telegraph ..... A new nature preserve, named the Palisades Preserve, is has been created near Raging Rivers Water Park along the Great River Road just down-river from Grafton, IL.  

   It is in a flyway for migratory birds and will provide protection for endangered / threatened species of plants and animals.   The preserve contains historic landscapes along the confluence of the Mississippi, Illinois and Missouri Rivers, undisturbed forests, limestone cliffs and loess hill parries.

  Click here to read the article in the on-line Telegraph.

Corps Of Engineers Missouri River Plan Update …. According to an article in this week's Waterways Journal the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers held a meeting in St. Louis in mid April to provide updates on their annual operating plan for the Missouri River. They expect to provide minimum service levels with a shortened season, but not the same drought conditions as last year. 

Click here to read the article in the Waterways Journal

What Going on At River Restaurants This Week ?.......Click here check it out !

Wings of Spring Confluence Birding Festival…. at the Riverlands Migratory Bird Sanctuary in West Alton is planned for Friday, Saturday and Sunday, May 4th, 5th and 6th. 

Located 30 minutes north of the Arch on the Mississippi River near Alton, Illinois

Click here for more information

Illegal Paddlefish Caviar Ring in Indiana…. Yesterday's on-line Post Dispatch had an interesting news story about an illegal caviar ring that was broken-up in Indiana. Due to a short supply of sturgeon caviar it has become profitable to market paddlefish eggs as caviar.  The paddlefish were being "illegally caught" in tributaries of the Ohio River. One fish can yield up to $800 worth of eggs.

Click here to read the news article on STLtoday.com

 Tuesday...24 April  2007 .......... 

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Our River Pictures and e-mail of the Day........ are a couple of river shots "of" and "from" the McKinley Bridge sent in by Dave Vance. 

Dave wrote:

Hi Bill, 

  This is the view a river pilot would see as he approaches St. Louis from the North. I am working above the river everyday, rebuilding the old McKinley Bridge (picture attached). This 100 year-old bridge is scheduled to reopen later this year without any tolls. It will also carry a bicycle path. 

Dave Vance

RiverBill says......Thanks for the great pictures Dave !    

   I found some history about the the old bridge that is sort of  interesting.

    It is normally assumed that the bridge was named after President William McKinley; but the name in reality is that of the builder.  The bridge was dedicated on Nov. 10, 1910 and recently closed for repairs in October 2001.   At one time it carried both automobiles and trains......later converted to carry only automobile traffic.

   According to the information in the link below, "the McKinley Bridge was the last sighting of the Little Green Man, a ghostly figure said to fly off the bridge into the night during the '50s and '60s when cars or RR personnel approached."

   Click here for history and pictures of the historic bridge that spans the Mighty Mississippi River..

Yester Year's River Picture of the Day  ------  What picture was steering RiverBill's up-river on this day in years past ? 

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The "Picture of the Day"  in 2006 .... was sent in by Richard Dorn.......It's "river cute" response to the  Wisconsin Houseboat we had on the other day. 

Rich wrote in his e-mail:

River Bill,

   Attached is a photo of MY house boat. 

   I've seen the one you had posted on your website Friday, 04/21/06. I'm not one that likes to have second best, so I opt out for the deluxe model with twin outboards. I'd challenge the owner of the other houseboat to a race for pink slips, but I currently have 169 monthly payments left on my rig before I can can say she's all mine! I'd have it paid of by now if I didn't get that home improvement loan last year, but them new hup caps sure look good on my mobile home.

Sincerely,

Bubba, A.K.A. Rick (LUNATIC FRINGE)

Arkansas U.S.A

HaHa!

Mississippi River Forecast…. The river levels at Winfield, Grafton and Alton are all below "Flood Stage" and "Action Stage".  The levels are forecasted to continue falling !

 Click here for today's river stages and forecast.  

Illinois Department of Natural Resources - Fishing Report......... is out for this week for the  Mississippi and Illinois Rivers.

Click here for the Mississippi River and scroll down to your favorite fishing area. (4-21-07)

Click here for the Illinois River and scroll down to your favorite fishing area. (4-20-07)

For the complete report go to http://www.ifishillinois.org

Kinder's Luau Party .....Saturday.... April 28th ...

 8 PM - 12 midnight                                                   

 The Works Band  will be playing the  tunes    

~~~ Wear your Best Hawaiian Clothes  ~~~ 

~~~ Come and Join in the Fun  ~~~          

Click her for Kinder's Restaurant website

Cedar Hill Opening Day.....Saturday.... April 28th ...

“The Piping Hot Buttery Biscuits of Blues" Band

2PM - 6PM ...Sat 28th

Cedar Hill Resort will be open Saturday April 28th Come Hell or High Water. We have some new menu items that we think you will like. This year we have went back to Bottle Beer on the inside only. We will open the season with an all Blues Music Weekend (Weather Permitting). Our opening band will be “The Piping Hot Buttery Biscuits of Blues”. This band is worth the trip up to listen to, even if you have to drive a car. They will play 3:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. Saturday the 28th. Come help us start the boating season with a big party and continue a great 2007 season on the river. Happy New Year!

Dave and Carrie Ash

Hope to see you Saturday the 28th

  Click here for Cedar Hill's website

 Monday...23 April  2007 .......... 

CLICK ON PICTURE TO ENLARGE

Our River Picture of the Day........ is another aerial shot of the river sent in by Lloyd Bollinger, who hails out of the Yacht Club of St. Louis in the houseboat "SunKist III".  

Lloyd wrote:

Hey Bill,
   Attached is a good pic of the Dardene Slough and Main Channel of the Mississippi. You can see Woodland, Jack's, the Duck Club, as well as the upper part of Mason Chute.

LB

RiverBill says....Another good river shot Lloyd.. Thanks !.

Yester Year's River Picture of the Day  ------  What picture was steering RiverBill's up-river on this day in years past ? 

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The "Picture of the Day"  in 2005 .... was of the Towboat America in its new home north of Kampsville Ferry on the Calhoun County side of the Illinois River.   Looks like the Goldenrod Showboat moored next to it.   These pictures were taken from the Kampsville Ferry last year by Captain George Schindel in his land yacht.

Mississippi River Forecast…. The river levels at Winfield, Grafton and Alton are all below "Flood Stage" and are forecasted to keep falling !

 Click here today's river stages and forecast.  

Water Projects Bill Gets OK in House ------  According to a news article in the on-line Post Dispatch..... The House passed the Water Projects Bill that includes billions in funds for the Mississippi and Illinois waterways.
   About a fourth of the bill's total cost is slated for Missouri and Southern Illinois. Most of the money is for the construction of seven 1,200-foot locks on the upper Mississippi and Illinois rivers....And.... it includes money for the restoration of  surrounding ecosystems !

  Click here to read the story in the on-line STLtoday.com

Iowa Island 04/21/07....PhotoShow "…. Terrie Eudaley and Brian B sent us a Photoshow of their Saturday afternoon boat outing on Iowa island.

  Click here and take a look.

Mississippi River Numbers........The on-line Travers City Record-Eagle had a series of  articles about the Mighty Mississippi River last week.  Lots of river-facts, numbers, history, etc...  

Click here ...The 'Big Muddy' remains vital to health of national economy - 04/14/07

Click here ...Mississippi by the numbers  - 04/15/07

Click here ...Altered channel causing Louisiana coast to disappear - 04/16/07

Click here....Moving river barges into place is a tricky process - 04/17/07

Click here....River has an impact on literature in U.S. - 4/18/07

 Fri, Sat, Sun .....20, 21, 22 April  2007 ..........