The Saginaw in the Soo Locks
Bubs, Anne and I trooped down to Portage this morning, to watch some of the lake boats lock through. Six down bound boats had just passed the cabin and we figured that we could catch some of them there. This chasing of lake boats from the cabin was once a thing, back in the day, when cars were slower and people faster. We caught the last two boats in the chain. The pictured Saginaw being the last of the six. In the lock’s observation platform Bubs was able to regale the tourists with tales of her childhood, when she could cross the lock gates that are now walled off to all. We watched the tug Missouri lock-up. She was on her way up to rendezvous with a down bound salty. Interestingly, she shared the lock with a river tug and her barge. The river tug was called the Sir Kolb and is ported in Jeff City, MO. When the Saginaw blew her departure horn a little boy asked, “Who farted?”
After boats, we decamped to Karl’s, the restaurant on Portage next to the putt-putt golf course. A few years ago, Karl’s had acquired Superior Coast Winery, then just another store down Portage. Now that acquisition has been expanded to include Superior Coast Brewery. Anne and I each ordered one of their ciders, raspberry and blackberry. Their colors were almost identical, but their flavors were distinctive. I ordered a soup and sandwich combo, a half Reuben sandwich and a special of the day, a cup of Reuben soup. It was a great combination.
The big deal in town today was not the boats, but a basketball tournament down on Portage. The games were 3-on-3 half-court. I later learned that there were age categories and that teams qualified based upon the age of their eldest player. Add on all of that that no fouls were being called, I think that we could have competed. Bubs could have fiercely beat the other team with her Staff-of-Power.
After all of this, we still made it back to the beach, through the rain, again. On my first walk down the beach, I flushed an eagle from the shoreline trees. It came back, but I was still unable to get a decent photo of it. Tonight’s evening sky was spectacular. Actually, the whole day was a pretty good photo-op. It is amazing what a little sun and blue sky can do to improve ones life outlook.