July 2009 (Part 2)

Here's the second part of the look back at July 2009.

This is from July 16. Pardon me if I still call it the Gallipolis Locks and Dam instead of the Robert C. Byrd Locks and Dam, but it's my favorite, I grew up on the Ohio side near it and, well, Robert C. Byrd didn't have anything to do with it.

Here are two from July 19. The first is a Crounse boat heading down the Ohio at Huntington. The second shows two people on a personal water craft (JetSki is a registered trademark). I think they're enjoying the Crounse boat's wake. One thing I learned was to set my camera on shutter priority instead of aperture priority when trying to get this kind of shot.

On July 20, I was at Catlettsburg, Ky., when I saw one of my favorite boats heading down the river. The Tri-State was the first of two Ashland Oil boats I got to ride for a day.

Nine days later, in a medium rain, my older son, Joey, held the umbrella while I got pictures of the Tri-State on an upbound trip.

Marathon sold the Tri-State a few years ago, and it operates under a different name down south. I kind of miss it, although it helps when I see the nearly identical Gene Neal every now and then.

On July 30, I saw what I think was a crew change for the Mountain State.

And far from the river, I saw this critter on the road in front of my house. It's not a river picture, but it does remind me of my life in recent months.

 I don't know why.