Red Tail RV Trips

Again UP EARLY, as the flight leaves Little Rock at 0755. Motel had no coffee ready so had to suffer on the way to the airport. Thankfully it only took about 30 minutes. Then the rental car agency was not open so just had to leave the keys. Guess things go slowly in Arkansas.
Starbucks was open and the flight was on time to Phoenix. Shuttle waiting and was soon home, unpacked and ready for an afternoon nap.

It was a great trip, one I would recommend to anyone. Both Uncommon Journeys and The American Steamboat Company know how to please a guest! I would like to take a cruise on the Upper Mississippi or the Ohio, as there is more activity along the river. The lower river is mainly a work area for all the barges. It is not uncommon to see one tug (although they push) with 25 - 50 barges loaded, going each way.

I hope to write a more detailed recap shortly.

Up to a leisurely breakfast and then on the road to Little Rock. This part of the trip was necessary because SEA does not fly into Memphis. Our Dr talk car was a new Chrysler 300, very impressive.

Too early to check in at the hotel so we went exploring Drove by the state capitol and other office buildings . It was a little strange as some flags were at half mast and others were not. No one knew the answer. Then on down to the river front and the rely River Market. Lots of fresh produce and several booths of handicrafts. Still needing to kill time we went to the Clinton Presidential library. It was an impressive stainless steel building hiring out towards the river. As with all preside talk libraries, it logged the history of his 8 years in office.

Honestly and off the boat, actions have to be vacated by 8 and all people off the boat by 8:45. We had the car rental agency pick us up at the dock and we then drove sightseeing around Memphis, beyond where the tours took is. One very interesting stop was the under run away slave house. This person purposely built his house on the outskirts of town and near the river. He built very small holes in the foundation for the run seats to enter the basement . He would harbors them until a safe boat beading north was passing on the river. Then they use the tunnel rorschach the river and get on the boat.

Uncommon provided a signing tour late in the afternoon followed by a run and catfish dinner at the Blues City Cafe, outstanding. After dinner the others boarded the VHS for the ride to the train station and the way to Chicago. We beaded back to our hotel and will drive to Littlefield.

Memphis home of the Blues and Birthplace of Rock and Roll. We pulled into the dock very early took on supplies then went further up stream to wait. We were schedule for an 8 o'clock reveal with all the press and local dignitaries. After leaving the temporary tie up reader down stream and sure enough we tied to the disembarking dock at exactly 8. Lots of fanfare, ribbon ,urging and the like as this is the inaugural trip after several years of not running. Tours were offered all day along the downtown area.Downtown is full of museums for everything you can imagine. A stop at the Lorraine motel and the balcony where MLLe was shot. This is now a civil rights museum. Other stops were Beale street (full of bars and juke joints), the St Jude Childers hospital founded by Danny Thomas. Weather was clear and windy.

In the afternoon Priscilla Presley was on had to meet and.greet. She will be dominated the boats God Mother on Friday. Uncommon provided it's members a great happy hour interior deck. Later a huge all passenger buffet was offered followed followed by music and dancing by the Harry James orchestra. Great way to end the cruise. Bags have to out the door by midnight for movement to the pavilion for claiming.

Helena Arkansas, second largest and most important city in the state at one time This is where the Union soldiers amassed for.their run at Vicksburg, this is where the cross rivers plied the Mississippi with almost hourly departures of railroad greets. Helena was once a town of over 40,000 people but now is down to about 10,000. The railroad bridge could do in 5 minutes what it took the greets to do in 5 hours. This that trade was gone. The war was over and roads and bridges built so it was no longer needed as a supply point. However during it's high time many musicians started to visitor play image bars. This tradition has held and each year together a Blues Festival with several thousand people attending. As with all the other Towns we have visited, the town folk are excited to see the return of the riverboat. It's visits will will help.the economy.

Day at sea, NO day on the river with no stops. Many activities planned, most importantly lectures snot river life and reinvesting. On the river they use the term Dietitian instead of historian. These people KNOW the river and it's many stories. They are experts at keeping you on edge as they weave their takes of lore. Life on the river was not easy but those that lived the life loved it. At one time there was more than 1800 riverboats hauling freight and passengers up and down the river. Merchants and shippers were always seeking to.get their goods to destination the fastest. As a result steamboat racing was popular to prove your boat was faster and tone able to wear the golden deer antlers (the symbol of speed). Each Captain had his techniques for trying to win a race, some legal some not so legal. Competition on the river was fierce as it translated to dollars in the pocket. Today there are still races among those boats left on the river. One is coming up the week before the.Kentucky Derby in Louisville. The Louisville Belle will race against this boat, the American Queen. Although different is size the power weight ratio is nearly the same . Watch for it.

Another beautiful day diversifying on the Mississippi. Awoke this morning tied to the shores of Vicksburg. This is the town that Gen Grant and Gen Pemberton (CSA) engaged in a long and deadly battle during the war. The North finally won by placing a siege around the city and not allowing supplies to enter. This is also the city in which Coca Cola was first bottled. Be fire it had been a fountain drink only. A museum is in place where it first happened.
Many of the antebellum estates are gone because of the fierce fighting. Residents had to move into caves to avoid the barrage of shells from both sides.

The evening brought us to a party sponsored by or tour company, Uncommon Journeys. I can not speak highly enough about the tour company. They off ties to match their name uncommon. Several of the tours are one of a kind, nearly all the tours offer many modes of transportation. The on board guides are knowledgeable and friendly. I first started reading their as in the USATODAY. They advertise at least weekly and sometimes daily. The are based in Oakland CA and have a website.

Natchez, here we are. We have a longer docking here. In the morning we had a special sponsored by Uncommon Journeys. This was to the Antebellum house owned by the chief chef for the cruise lines. Here we toured the house and she demonstrated how she makes her famous biscuits. Also had a few samples to taste. She was most interested what we thought on the foods provided on board.

In the afternoon we visited the tourist centre for local information. We discovered the reason the town was not burned during the Civil War was because the Towns folks surrender and put up no resistance. This saved the nearly 100 homes and plantations from destruction. Another mansion to be, Confront, was visited. This 30,000 sq ft,
8 sided, 5 story home was started a year.before the was broke out. Since the builders were from Pennsylvania, the all headed back home. The local tradesmen did not have the skills to build the structure. Only the basement was ever finished. When the war was over the owner was broke because she.net.put.all her money in a confederate bank and it was worthless.

A little about the boat, not ship, we are on. Ships are on.the.oceans, boats are on the rivers. The American Queen was built in 1995, it is 418 ft long, 89.5 ft wide and 109.5 ft high. Thur talk smoke stacks can be lowered as well as the wheel house for passing.under low bridges. It has 222 staterooms, carrying 436 passengers and a crew of 167. Of the rooms 168 have verandas. Travelling on the river it draws 8.5 feet of water, travels 5 to 8 miles per hour. It is mph not knots on the river. Total tonnage for the vessel is 3,707 tons.

Arrived at St Princisville early morning and was all secured by the time I awoke. This is a sleepy little town that had to be moved back from the river because of constant flooding. It now sit high on a bluff and has no worries except that the river does at times cover the road. Population of the town is 1500 and of the parish is 12,000. However 5,000 of the the 12 are prisoners in the maximum security federal prison. Normally the prison would be an excursion destination but the is rodeo week in the prison and they cannot accommodate tours. Tourism is it's other attraction and we received Harry welcomes wherever we went. The Riverboat had not been to port in over there years. Several old mansions and cemeteries were on the tour list.

A word about the tours on the American Queen. At each port of call they have developed stout route. They have large busses, painted to look like a river boat, that drives the route every 15 minutes or so. As passengers we can hop on and hop off at our leisure, spending whatever time we desire at each point of interest. This is all include in the fare of passage. Once in awhile they do have a premium tour you can take for an extra charge. This is shear feature!

Entertainment in the evening was a group of master musicians playing New Orleans style Dockland Jazz. Outstanding!

On the American Queen and docked at our first stop, Oak Alley, LA. The is Oneida the choice plantations that has been restored and open to the public. It got it's name from the two rows of oak trees leading g up to the main house. There had been planted over a hundred years before the house was built. They are now over 300 years and stool going strong. Their life is considered to be over 600 years. The namesake from the river boat Capt's that would call attention to the Alley of Oaks as they passed, this Oak Alley. The tour told of the branches that had lived or owned mine 1200 acre plantation. It was and still is a airfare producing plantation.

Back on the Queen as she sailed at One for the next destination of St Francophile.

Guides tour by the Uncommon tour guide to the French Quarter. Darlene was a licensed guide by NOLA. She was born and raised there and knew her history. This the 200th anniversary of Cuisines becoming a state. It is also the 200th year since the Valle of New Orleans. In remembering this Fleet Week was taking place in the harbors. There were 3 talk ships from Ecuador, Indonesia and our own USCG Eagle. All were open for tours as well as tyranny naval ships from several countries.

Boarding of the American Queen started at 2pm with some 400 passengers waiting to board. Sailing was delayed waiting for a group arriving by air. The ship has been refurbished and is in brand shape. Our choice was early dining so a reasonable time to view the evening show could be had. The first show was a man depicting Mark Twain and his life on the river. Sleeping was good, no feeling of motion and no engine noise.

Clickers-Clack, clickers-clack only you don't hear that sound any longer. Now with the longer rails and being welded together Althea track noise is gone. Now you hear the rumble of the cars and the blowing of the air horn at every cross road. Dinner in the dining car and then toned. Steward had narmada up the room speed did it ourselves.
Upper bunk was very narrow with a ladder to get there. Bottom bunk much bigger but not enough for two.people. Sleeping went fairly well but the constant blowing of the horn was disturbing. Morning arrive and breakfast was served. Spent time in the observation car with much bigger windows. Sightseeing was arithmetically be side of all the trees close to the tracks. Good time was made and we arrived at nearly stop early. Even got int NOLA an hour early.

Connections were made with the tour guide and transpiration to the Hilton was waiting. There we got our documents for the cruise and further instructions. Next a venture tithe French Quarter was in order. This should be on York bucket list for at least one visit. The atmosphere is crazy, even more so with the Fleets of several countries being in town. Clothes and costumes were prevalent, and not much material used. Every.bar had special drink prices and live music louder than the last one. Oysters and special drinks were the headliners on every menu. Found a good steak house and enjoyed a great meal. By the time we walked BA,I the Bourbon Street was even busier and louder.

Another tour day and what beautiful day. Not a cloud in the sky and only a light breeze. We had to check.out of the Congress Hotel by noon since we leave later in the day. We ride the bus to the Field Museum, perhaps the best in the city and perhaps in the country. The had there special show plus the normal exhibits. First was a special mummy display. Here they had the mummies and beside them the CRY scans of the interiors. They were ave to tell about the curly hair and the ages of the mummies. Second special display was the history and life of Genghis Kahn. He was truly a remarkable leader. Many of his ideas we are using today such as passports and libraries. As with most leaders, once they pass the heirs fight and the kingdom came tumbling down. The third was not quite as interesting. Here you made believe you were shrunk robust one inch talk and took a tour underground animate the roots and critters.

After taking a ya,I back to the hotel we gathered our luggage and headed Union Station. Although huge and ornate it does not compare to Grand Central in NYC or Union Station in Washington DC. Here we met the guide not Uncommon Couldn't've and he guided us to the train we were taking to New Orleans. After getting settled in our compartment we headed to the Dining car for our late dinner. After which we learned how to maneuver in a space smaller than our motor home.
Off toned rocking and rolling, listening to the engines air horn as we traverse the farmlands of Illinois.

Tour day on the Hop On Hop Off Trolley. After a nice breakfast at the Corner Bakery we headed on the trolley to the Navy Pier. This was originally the Navy base and pier in Chicago. it has since been several things and is currently the most visited attraction in Chicago. The second floor is the Children's Museum while the main floor is filled with shops and eateries. There is a large museum of stained glass. Most of this comes from Europe and the old cathedrals. All this and the children's museum are free, a novel concept. the weather today was much cooler, about 68 instead of 78. However since the cold front was moving thrifts wind was very strong, sometimes gusting to 40 mph. At times it was difficult to walk against it.

From the Navy Pier we erode to the base of the Hancock Tower. This is the second tallest building in Chicago. The elevator to the top, some 800 feet took only 40 seconds. At the top a guided head phone tour told you what to look at and see on all four sides. Four stateS are visible from the top. And Lake Michigan is the money Great Lake entirely within the US.

Next came the Hershey building and some free samples. A small Italian cafe across the street was chosen for lunch, big mistake! Almost needed to refi the house for the tab. On down to Millennium Park fOr the free T-shirt and a nice walk back to the hotel. Dinner at the hotel was on the agenda for the evening.

a beautiful morning in Chicago, partly cloudy skies and a light breeze. Everyone up.and about and out the door by 9. Got a bite to eat at a nearby bakery and off to the trolley. We penlight a there day pass for the Hop on Hop off tour of the city. We plan to ride the entire route and then start doing the hopping. The buss we got on was a double Decker with an open top. The narrator on this bus was outstanding. Hens been doing this tour for several years and really knows the city. He was able to tell many of the background circumstances of the buildings. The ride, in entirety takes just over 2 hours. It covers the downtown LOOP in detail. We were able to determine those areas we wanted go back to visit. The guide told us a Chicago hot dog was a must, SO for lunch we followed his directions and had one. This is a loaded hot dog with everything but catsup. Catsup on a dog here in the windy city is frowned upon greatly. It was good, nytimes was enough. We themselves around looking at several buildings. Seems Chicago is very famous for architecture. An exact scale model is exhibited in a building and is updated as new buildings are built.

We took the subway to Chinatown in hopes of finding a place to eat. Very disappointing,not many eating places and they all looked bad. No shopping either, this Chinatown was strictly for residents not tourists. So back to the LOOP area in search of something moist. Dick.a Last Resort was right on the river.This always a good place for drinks and good. West outside so the waiters had be somewhat nice. Attesting the skies opened up Andorran to rain,HARD. We scrambled road nearby hotel and caught a taxi back to our hotel. Great day until the last. Although rain looked good having not seen any for some time.