Jul 23

Left Martins Ferry early this morning. The marina owner let me sleep in a storage building so I didn't have to put up my tent or take it down which is always a hassle. Walked to a little grocery store where a woman made me two breakfast sandwiches, bacon, egg and cheese on Texas Toast. And a large coffee. Very tasty. People at the marina were great. Stayed up until eleven talking with two families that travelled the river a lot. They told me all about what to expect. One thing, their favorite town is Marietta, Ohio. Told me to spend a couple days there, so I probably will. Get a hotel.

Which brings up a sad set of circumstances. There have been four places where I anticipated staying in hotels. In Pittsburgh, there was no river access to the Hampton Inn, although they told me there was when I made the reservation. And again in Wheeling, a hotel right on the river bank but no way to get there from the river. Two for two. In the Ohio River guidebook, a hotel was listed in Chester, West Virginia, but it had been converted to lofts, and here in Moundsville there is a hotel, great river access, but full tonight. That's four for four.

I took a photo of a local area scourge, the geese, Canadian geese, I think. They are everywhere and the folks around here wish they'd all go away. For one thing, they can be noisy, especially if they are disturbed which seems to be their constant state. They also make quite a mess - their droppings are pretty enormous, and also everywhere. A lot like dog crap, but no one goes around behind them with plastic baggies to clean up. They are protected, so if you accidentally happen to shoot one, or run over one with your car, you can go to jail for a long time. They are big fat birds and you might think they'd be good to eat, but I have it on bona fide account that they are not.

So tonight finds me in Moundsville, WV. Named so because hundreds, thousands more likely, of years ago the area was inhabitated by the mound builders, a group of native Americans who created huge mounds of earth in which they buried their dead. A lot of the mounds have been destroyed by developments, roads, bridges, private homes, golf courses. What a shame, not so much that we have lost a lot of history, but that we are so callous to think that it doesn't matter.

Walked into town but all I could find open was a Chinese buffet. So I had a weeks ration of MSG and greasy hot and sour soup. The egg rolls weren't bad if you slathere!d them with sweet and sour sauce. It's hard to understand why those buffets are so popular unless you take notice of the people who eat there. Large people, large appetites, large adults, large kids. Large plates of food.

So I have gone two hundred miles now, one hundred, give or take a mile, on the Monongahela, and actually a little over a hundred miles on the Ohio. Fifteen paddling days and two rest days. Two towns I am looking forward to are Marietta, Ohio, about seventy five miles, or five days away, and Pomeroy, Ohio, one hundred fifty miles from here. Both towns are celebrated river towns, stops for the Delta Queen. I will explore them both.

A last note, but an important one, Patti connected with me this morning. She sent a package, general delivery, to the post office in Bellaire, Ohio. I got there about noon, went to retrieve it and found delights abundant. Packs of Sport Beans, a newly developed energy snack, two Army t-shirts, a bunch of crossword puzzles and a very warm letter, which I read several times. Odd to think that you can still send mail general delivery. It made the paddling worthwhile. A great day.