Farewell to the Queen!

I didn't hop across the big pond and have high tea with Queen Elizabeth and Prince Phillip but I am sure they are breathlessly waiting by their phones for me to call. :-) No I am talking about the grand old lady, the Delta Queen Steamboat. She made her last stop here in Cincinnati on Tuesday and we went down to the river to say goodbye to her. She is being forced into retirement because of decades old safety rules. For those of you not familiar with her, she is a steamboat that was built in 1926 and carries 174 passengers along America's inland waters. She is made mostly of wood and that is the safety issue that is coming into play. But to me she plays a part in my childhood memories. I grew up on the Ohio River and remember this beautiful boat going up and down the river playing her calliope as she cruised on by and my Dad telling all of the kids to hop in our boat and we would ride her giant waves that her paddle wheel would create. I never set foot on her decks but will miss her. She is a part of our American history and she will forever be in my childhood memories. All of the photos are mine except the last one but I wanted to show a photo of her actually sailing on the river.

We ran into my brother in law Bill, he was taking a walk during his lunch. Maddie really didn't care about the big boat.

Look at this big old paddle wheel!

Farewell to the Queen!