We never know what to get Mom for Christmas and last year we decided to give her a couple of day trips around the area, and it usually turns out as much fun for her as it is for us. So even though this was the second year that this was her gift, we all look forward to finding places to go and exploring new things to do. This past Friday was one of the days that we scheduled for a trip down the Mississippi river on the Spirit of Dubuque.
The Spirit of Dubuque Paddleboat
The trip was a leaf tour and we were even a little bit worried about having the leaves turned and it would be too late in the season. Because by us some of the trees are already bare, we didn’t really know what we were going to see for fall colors. After getting everything finally coordinated and planned who was going to be where and who was driving – the day started early at Ma’s. After a couple of stops to pick up the rest of the gang, down to Dubuque we went. Now you can just about imagine the conversations in the car can’t you? They were about snoring, dancing, and even who gets the most noodle soup of the bunch when Mom makes it (OK, maybe of the girls this would be me 🙂 ) We finally made it to the river and had no trouble finding the dock that where we needed to be. We got on the Paddleboat and off we went.
Kicking up some water
It was a little cold at times, but at least it never rained. We had Chuck the musician in the background playing music and I’m not sure, but I’m thinking that he liked our group the best. Now I’m not saying anything about the rest of the groups on the boat – but he always looked at our table and smiled. Maybe it was because some of my sisters got up and was learning how to do the two step waltz and some other dances. And because no other people were dancing to his music, I would like us the best also if I was him! I’m just saying…
Trying to learn some new dance moves
Chuck the musician
We spent some time on the second deck and then up to the bridge we went to visit with Captain Mike. He was a little surprised when all five of us was in the bridge with him, but he was a good sport. It turned out that once we were talking about where we were all from, he had relatives in the same town as my Mom and she knew his parents.
I think Mom was seeing if she could be part of the boat crew. Captain Mike
We were all starving and it was time for lunch. We had some cookies earlier on the boat, but they didn’t last too long. The scenery when we were eating was so pretty outside and because the area was part of the Driftless Area, the cliffs were formed over 790,000 years ago and can be almost 600 feet tall. So it’s always so funny when I hear people say that the Midwest is so flat. They obviously have not gone to the river before!
The trees were beautiful!
Another interesting person that we met was the guy who bought my Dad’s old Packard car many years ago. It was so cool that we were able to talk to him about the car and put a face to the name. He said that Dad’s car got sold again to someone in Arizona. It really is a small world. After spending around 4 hours on the boat, it was time to leave and start heading home again.
Bridge over the water for trains. Later in the day we saw a train using this bridge.
Julien Dubuque Bridge
On the way to our dock, we had to go under the Julien Dubuque Bridge. They started to build this bridge in 1942 and finished it 1943. It was a toll bridge and because of all the traffic on it, the bridge was paid off 11 years early in 1954 They painted it grey to help camouflage it in case of an enemy attack.We went driving around after we docked and found an old brewery that wasn’t too far from where we got on the boat. We were thinking that a little taste testing sounded good in the afternoon, but it was more of a restaurant and winery now. So we checked it out and started home. We were planning on visiting my cousins along the way home, but we never could figure out just for sure where she lived. You know when everyone has an ‘idea’ on where someone lives, and it becomes really clear that they really were not really sure. So after a bunch of laughs and teasing, we kept heading northwest to drop off one of my sisters. When we were at the town where her car was parked, we decided that we should get some supper first. So again another trial and error of where a restaurant was, we pulled into a parking lot to get our barrings and we were at the restaurant. It’s just a good thing none of us are tour guides that’s all I can say. Finally the day comes to an end and we are already looking for something new to do as a group again and hopefully soon.
Just the girls