Every spring was a nightmare wondering if and when the floods would come, how bad they would be, and how long would they last. It was not unusual for flooding to last through July of some years. Then there was 1993 when the "Great Flood" put 36" of nasty Mississippi river throughout our house leaving 6" of mud on the floors. Even after we had it raised 4' the water still completely surrounded us some years (2008) and made the use of it impossible.
In 2009, we bought the 1995 Cruisers Inc, 3950 to replace our 31' Carver 310 Santego which had an engine problem. We decided to try out marina life to see how we liked it. We got a slip in the marina at Grafton, Illinois. It is close to all kinds of things to do. After one season in the Marina, put our river home up for sale. Marina life was for us. When the river flooded, the docks floated higher. During high water the marina provided a "water taxi" to take us to and from our boat, the marina office, and even the local drinking establishment. When the water went down, the Marina cleaned up the mud. What a deal!
I had always dreamed of doing the loop but didn't feel that any of the boats that we had before were capable of extended cruising. Finally we had a generator, twin Diesel engines, and 2 staterooms for the additional crew members that we knew would want to tag along on various portions of the trip.
Extra motivation came in the form of a High School friend that had already started the loop. Many thanks to Floyd and Linda of the Tumbleweed for their encouraging remarks and suggestions. They helped convince a "reluctant spouse" to agree to accompany me on this trek.
