As a Mark Twain fan and a lover of his memoir Life on the Mississippi, where he was for several years a river pilot, the charms of the river’s upper reaches have long held an allure. So, when we came across Paula and Paul Yantorno’s story of a week-long cruise from Dubuque, Iowa to Minneapolis, Minnesota and back, we knew we needed to share it.
(Paula and Paul Yantorno)
The Yantorno’s trailered their Monterey 27 Navetta from their home in Denver, Colorado to Dubuque, a trip of some 18 hours, where they launched at the public boat ramp. Interestingly, a local inspector had to check Navetta’s bottom for zebra mussels and other invasive species. She passed.
It is 275 miles from Dubuque to Minneapolis and the trip would take them through 11 locks, from lock number eleven to lock number one. As Paula notes, this section of the Mississippi was one of Twain’s favorite.
He wrote, “The bluffs that over look the river, along through this region, charm one with the grace and variety of their forms, and the soft beauty of their adornments.”
The trip took them through towns and small cities with names like La Cross, Marquette, Trepealeau and Pepin –all French names—which stirred memories that it was French explorers and trappers and La Salle in particular who were the first Europeans to explore the upper Mississippi River.
One of the highlights of the round trip on the river was the abundant bird life. According to Paula, sixty percent of North American migratory birds use the Mississippi River basin as a flyway. They saw numerous eagles, plus a varied assortment of ducks, geese and sand hill cranes.
Paula and Paul had owned a 52-foot sportfishing boat in which they cruised the East Coast and completed a circumnavigation of the Great Loop. So, Navetta was a down-size for them, yet they considered it a comfortable nest for a week on the river. Paula noted, “Mark Twain once said, “To get the full value of joy you must have someone to divide it with.” Paul and I might add, “And you need a boat.”
