Meeting of the Great Rivers

After spending 3 wonderful nights alone anchoring on the Illinois River, we pulled into Grafton Harbor Marina on Wednesday evening. Historic Grafton, IL is a sweet little town offering both scenic nature & wildlife as well as a picturesque main street with antique shoppes, specialty stores featuring the work of local artisans and a variety of restaurants. We ate dinner last night at The Mississippi Half Step, which we would highly recommend. I had a glass of a local Illinois wine from a nearby winery and it was delicious!

This is where the Illinois River meets the Mighty Mississippi...all along the confluence of the two rivers the water birds are plentiful...We've spotted thousands of the migrating white pelicans...and less than 20 miles away, the Missouri River converges just south of Alton, which is our next stop. It is amazing to be in the place where these three great rivers come together. From where we are docked we can see the Mississippi River and the limestone bluffs in the distance...the sunrises and sunsets here have been breathtaking. Grafton is best known for the birds that come through this area in flocks as they follow the great rivers south. It is the winter home of the majestic American Bald Eagle. The road that runs along the river, known as The Great River Road in Illinois has been rated one of the "10 Greatest Drives in the Nation"...

I never thought I'd ever be cruising down the Mississippi River in my own boat someday...well, today's the day...Come on Captian, let's get going...our next adventure awaits us!

"Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry and narrow-mindedness." ~ Mark Twain