Hoppie’s Marina Kimmswick Missouri

October 18-19, 2016

We arrived at Hoppie's early afternoon and met more Loopers. There are four pleasure craft on the dock including Mystic. Jean and Paul on a trawler, named Bob Tale; Rhonda and Scott aboard Mucho Gusto; and Henry and Micky the cat, on a 22 foot Spindrift, Sea Marie.

Scott and Rhonda meet Henry

Micky visiting Mystic

Beth getting Micky snuggles

Hoppie's is a unique and special place. It is the only marina between Alton, Illinois and the Kentucky Lakes. Some boats must stop here to fuel up in order to make the 320 miles to the next available option. Fern Hopkins is the matriarch of the family that owns Hoppie's. She comes down to meet the cruisers each night. Fern is well versed on navigating the rivers from Kimmswick to the Kentucky Lakes because she made the trip every year. She sat with us in the barge “lounge”, an area of the dock with couches, tables and chairs. She explained all the tough areas along the route, chain smoking and talking with a slight drawl. She told us to stay out of the way of the Tows and warned us of wing dams and weir dams and whirlpools. She gave us a list of the best anchorages, and enlightened us on how to talk to the Tow Captains. When she is done, she asks if we have any questions. I say, “Are we going to survive this?” She smiles and says, “You’ll be alright, you just gotta be careful and do what Ms. Fern tells you.” Fern says that having a buddy boat is a good thing. We look around the table and find comfort in being part of this group. Someone asks how we can get the Tow Captains to respond to radio calls. She smiled real big and says, “Well, you put your Admiral on the radio! Some of these men haven’t talked to a woman in 30 days! You can bet they’ll respond if they hear a woman calling.”

Rhonda, Beth, Fern and Jean at Hoppie's

Beth and Rhonda at the dock "lounge"

As we sat together mulling over the information shared by Fern, the American Queen cruised by us on it's way south. We waved and tried to get her captain to honk at us like school children do, laughing at our failed attempts.

American Queen cruising by Hoppie's

American Queen Cruising South on the Mississippi

Everyone, except the crew of Bob Tale decided to stay another day in Kimmswick. We’ve been traveling long distances for several days in a row and need a break. Wednesday’s forecast calls for thunderstorms. It’s a good decision to wait.

Mystic is tied up on a creaky old barge section. We are not sure how comfortable we will be but we sleep well. We woke to the sun rising and Bob Tale heading out from the dock. Fern had warned us that when we leave we need to be mindful of the strong current and the wing dam sticking out just below Hoppie's Barge dock. She instructed us to point slightly out from the dock, give the engine just a little juice, then move away heading up river. Very quickly the current would catch the bow of the boat and carry it sideways into the channel. You had to clear the wing dam before you could do the 180 to face downstream and leave. We watched Bob Tale do this maneuver, seemingly out of control but exactly as Fern directed. Very quickly they moved out of sight heading south.

We walked to town for breakfast but found that nothing opens until 10:00. The Blue Owl was open when we returned from exploring the town. We are surprised at how crowded it was. Kimmswick is a popular tourist town; the kind of town that brings busloads of people to visit.  From senior centers to community groups, the place was packed full of tourists by 10:00 am. The rain and t-storms arrived early evening but we were able to get a short run in. I brought my cell phone in case we were able to find the historic “log” buildings that Kimmswick is famous for. I think we found them all.

Kimmswick, Missouri Shop

The Blue Owl

Windsor Harbor Road Bridge (Walking Bridge)

Smokee Robinson's Cajun Smokehouse

Hoppies Welcomes You

One of many Log Buildings

Jefferson City Park, Kimmswick, Missouri 

Gift Shop, Kimmswick, Missouri 

Antique Barge Chair

Phone booth on the docks

Fortress Wall

Kimmswick barn

Kimmswick Halloween

Log Cabin

MeeMaw's Cabin

There was a kayaker moving along the river behind us. We passed his campsite North of Hoppie’s. The kayak is so small that I almost miss it on the shoreline. It must take a lot of courage to navigate the inland waterway on a kayak.

We met two young men pulled up to the shoreline next to the barge dock. Chris and Connor are from Oar Northwest, a non-profit adventure group. They are currently rowing the entire Mississippi from the source, at Itasca to Mobile, as part of a relay team. They have Google Earth hardware on board and are mapping the river as they go. When we met them, the Google Earth equipment was out of service. The guys are hoping to be back up and running soon. In the meantime, southward they go. They told us they heard a Tow call over the radio in a slow southern drawl,” It appears there’s a row boat on the river. They ain’t got no motor and their facing backwards.” The things one sees and hears on the Inland Waterway.

Oar Northwest Row Boat

Scott, Dave, Chris and Connor

Chris and Connor on Oar Northwest