Rollin' on the river

As I've mentioned in the past, I'm not a big fan of the Fourth of July. That being said, this year was probably the most pleasant Fourth I've had in fifteen years.

Darren and I did nothing remotely related to Independence Day, which is probably why I enjoyed myself so much. After a leisurely start to the morning (I slept in until 6:00!), we drove down to La Crosse, Wisconsin, Darren's home town. We headed to the marina on French Island, and sipped drinks on a sunny outdoor terrace for an hour before boarding a large yacht for 90-minute cruise on the Mississippi.

We found a nice spot in the sun, sipped more drinks, and chatted while the yacht meandered up and down the river. 

Here are a few pictures from our lovely afternoon.

Darren looking handsome (he's good at that) on board the yacht as we waited to depart the marina




The Cass Street Bridge as seen from the Mississippi




A view from the stern. (Listen to me, with my seaman mouth!)




A railroad bridge that opened to let us pass through




A great view of the bluffs along the river




We saw many handsome shirtless fellows on boats that passed by.  Many of the them waved to us--well, to me I suspect--which is yet more proof that men from Wisconsin find me irresistible...

Our time on the Island Girl (yeah, classy name) wasn't quite as memorable as our two hour cruise on Berlin's Wannsee in May, but it was a very enjoyable way to spend an afternoon.

I hope your holiday was every bit as pleasant!

~WG

Comments

[CJ]

Looks like a great time. Especially if you had semens mouth. Was it just you two on the voyage?
Great pics!

[Paul]

Two summers ago I went on a paddleboat cruise on the Mississippi from St. Louis to St. Paul. The Mississippi is absolutely gorgeous, and LaCrosse was one of the places we docked at and were able to explore for a few hours. It's a lovely place - my favorite stop during the trip. (Oh, and I was a good son and was on the cruise with my mother. I was the youngest one on the "Mississippi Queen" - the entire boat was groups of retirees from all over the country. I know I have a lawn chair at the right hand of God for THAT little excursion.... LOL!)

[jimbo]

I used to jump off that railroad bridge! Usually off from the top of the operating shed, but a few times from the very top!

We would dare each other to do it, often with a bribe of buying a DQ Ultimate Burger at the Onalaska DQ.

[Michael]

So Darren is from WI! I moved to Madison, WI, to be with my partner, Don, after I retired. He was a transplant, too, but has been here long enough to be called a "local" by most anyone's standard. :)