DQ -- Nashville?

Pat,

We usually lock thru the Cheatham Lock between 9pm and 11pm when we are headed to (Upbound) Nashville and in the wee hours of the morning headed out (Downbound 1-5am).

~Travis~

Speaking of the DQ - where is she today? According to a schedule I have, she was supposed to be in Paducah from 12 noon til 5 PM today - no sign of her on the web cam.

Pat,

I am embedding a link you can use to tell when the boat has locked at Cheatham, or any other lock, for that matter.

http://www2.mvr.usace.army.mil/omni/webrpts/omni_vl/river_lock.cfm

Just choose the river, then click on "All" to see all the locks on that river and the lock queue, vessels up and downbound in each pool. Yo don't say whether you live above or below Cheatham -- this site will help you one way, but not the other, depending on which way the boat is headed.

You can also call the lock on the telephone, (area code) 792-4349. They will either have heard the boat on the readio, or will be able to call them for updates and ETAs.

Pat,

She is at Paducah...however the river is so high she is on the lower end of the landing and doesn't show up on the cam. I talked to Mary a little bit ago and she assurred me the boat was there and they are tied up to a tree in the parking lot across the street from the flood wall because the river is so high there (the line is going thru the flood wall on the lower end I am told). All this recent rain is raising the Ohio again. The Lower Mississippi ain't goin down anytime soon, that is for sure. We keep filling it back up with rain!

~Travis~

Thanks

Thanks, everyone, for the replies! They are most helpful.

I will most certainly give the lock web site a try. I thought of calling the lock/dam (the number is local for me), but I figured that they would think I was crazy or something... so I didn't. If my calculations are right, based on the downbound lock timeframe, the DQ must leave Nashville around 6:30 or 7 PM.

The approximate lock-thru times are good to know; I live 8 miles upriver from the dam. Fortunately, all but two of those miles are right next to the road. If I catch the DQ at the dam or at my house (depending on direction), I'll be with her for a good hour or so.

Night photography isn't my specialty, but if I get any good pictures I'll be sure to post them here!

Thanks again! See you on the river

The Web Site

Bob, that web site is very useful... thanks!

I now see where the DQ finished locking through Kentucky Dam at 8:40 PM. Apparently, instead of going down the Cumberland and locking through Barkley Dam, she locked through Ky. Dam and will use the canal at Grand Rivers to cut over to Lake Barkley/Cumberland River.

DELTA QUEEN 225875 05-18-08 20:40 CDT Done

Very cool site, indeed!

Bob, thanks for the link to the lock system - I live in Florida, so am nowhere near actually being able to watch her move along the rivers.

And Travis, thanks for the info that she was there anyway, just out of range of the web cam.

Pat

Calling locks

Pat, before the advent of that webpage I always called the locks on the Upper Miss. But I would call BEHIND the boat, to see when she had locked through. I know the time it takes from one spot to the next, so that was surer for me than depending on the next lock having info. Many of today's pilots don't radio the lock as early as the oldtimers did, so occasionally you could get shorted on your time to get to the site if you waited for the approaching lock to get the ETA. One warning: the website is only as good as the info put in, and occasionally when a lockman is busy putting another boat in right after the DQ, he doesn't get the info entered timely. So if you are suspicious about the time entered, or if it isn't entered at all, by all means, call the lock. Cargill puts out a dandy little pocket info sheet: Keys to the Locks, which includes the phone numbers for all the locks on the Mississippi River System. ... Judy Patsch - just back from cyberspace neverneverland, got logged out somehow and didn't have my password.

Calling locks - timing between

Judy's advice worked well for me last Friday AM. With the posted departure time from Cinncinatti of 1 PM (from a helpful forum member), and a downstream estimated speed of 8-10 mph, I figured the DQ would arrive at McAlpine locks about 5-6 am. Calling the locks at 6:30 indicated the DQ had departed at 6 am. (not sure what TSA will do in the future, but I simply explained to the lockmaster I wanted to take some photos of the DQ and needed to know about when it (she) departed).

Using a large scale map (Delorame) I figured where it might be about 8 am when the cloulds opened a bit. I caught up near West Point, just as traffic was getting heavy going in the opposite directon towards Louisville.

Follow-Up

Using the information provided by Travis, I made my way to Cheatham Lock Monday evening and arrived at exactly 9 PM. Lo and behold, there she was, slowly making her way around the final bend in the river about 500 yards below the lock!

This makes only the third time in my life that I've actually seen the Delta Queen. And this time, it was very up close and personal! She is MUCH bigger than I thought she was, and more beautiful as well!

I spent the next hour +/- tracking her from below the lock until about 10 minutes after she had locked through and continued her journey. In all, I made 91 pictures and shot 12 videos. I will post some of the pictures and some links to the videos once I have time to process them, which could take a while, unfortunately. Now for some observations.

As she pulled out of the lock, I heard a whistle sound. I don't know if it was the Delta Queen or the Lock's whistle. I was expecting steam, but the sound I heard sounded more like a typical tugboat whistle. Also, I could swear I saw what looked like side thrusters in use; I didn't know she had side thrusters. The stack was down, and dark smoke was billowing out the small quarter-stack. And my favorite... there is a set of ANTLERS on the front of the wheelhouse!

More later, including pictures

The Queen is on the Nashville North Sky Cam at 8:45 AM. Here is the link: http://www.newschannel5.com/Global/category.asp?C=101674
I hope that the camera stays there for a while

Pat, did you have a camera set up on a tripod? I think it must have been you that we spotted coming out of the lock. Also a car followed us for awhile. It's great fun to communicate with one of the folks weloming us along the way.
Ginnie

Hi Ginnie

If you're referring to Cheatham Lock, then that was me.

I shot several pictures right before you entered the lock, as well as some pictures and video when you left the lock. As you were leaving the lock, I was on a grassy flat to your left, at the water's edge. I was shooting video at the time, and the video of the DQ leaving the lock is one of the best videos I've ever done.

If you were standing on the front deck or the port (left) deck, you are in my video. The video quality is excellent, but it won't play back on my compuer without jerking. I will post the video somewhere once I get it fixed, and I'll post the link here.

If the car following you was just past the lock, then that was me in my Ford pickup truck. I had "hoped" to go in FRONT of the boat, set up my equipment, and then shoot a picture of the Delta Queen steaming through the darkness at full throttle. However, she was too fast. She would pass me before I could get my equipment set up. After three attempts, I went home. I actually live on the river, a few miles up, but the lock and dam make better photo opportunities.

If you let me know what you were wearing, I'll check my picture collection and see if I can find you.

Pat,

Let me add my two cents worth that those are fantastic shots. You have discovered what many others have known for years...that boat may only go from 6 to 10 mph, and you think, "Oh, that's so slow!" but just try to catch one going up or down the river, and you find out 8 mph ain't as slow as you think!