Heartland cruising on the River Explorer: a lazy barge cruise weaving through a tapestry of Midwestern landscapes

Cruise Travel, Nov-Dec, 2002 by Randy Mink, Karen Mink

A cruise aboard this one-of-a-kind vessel is hardly racy and definitely not for everyone, but if you're looking for total relaxation and slices of river life, consider barging through America. The memories will last forever.

Published rates for the eight-day "America's Junction" cruise as described herein begin at $2,080, per person/double occupancy. The River Explorer sails year-round on a variety of four- to 10-day excursions on the Mississippi River system and the Gulf Coast of Texas and Louisiana, at rates from $750 to $3,395. Fares include meals, tips, and shore tours.

For more information, contact your travel agent or RiverBarge Excursion Lines (Cruise Travel Magazine), 201 Opelousas Ave., New Orleans, LA 70114; call 888-GO-BARGE; or log on to www.riverbarge.com.

RELATED ARTICLE: Goodies in the Galley.

With food available 24 hours a day on the River Explorer, passengers never have to worry about going hungry.

Besides offering three meals a day, the dining room (called The Galley) gives guests a chance to "Raid the Fridge." That means that whenever you want a sandwich, cup of yogurt, or slice of pecan pie, you just help yourself.

The emphasis is on home-style cooking in an informal, we're-all-one-big-family atmosphere. Guests are free to dine with whomever they please.

Breakfast and lunch are buffets, while the dinner menu offers three a la carte entrees--one a vegetarian dish, another a "Blue Plate" regional specialty. One of our favorite Blue Plates was melt-in-your-mouth catfish fried in cornmeal and served with hushpuppies and collard greens.

Breakfast favorites included biscuits and gravy (thick, rich, peppery) and oatmeal garnished with raisins, pecans, and brown sugar. The omelette station did a good business, and the homemade pastries--cranberry nut bread, lemon/poppy-seed muffins, cinnamon rolls, chocolate-chip pound cake--were heavenly.

In the purser's lobby the Perpetual Cookie Jar is a round-the-clock temptation, and Sky Deck's Under The Bridge Bar has popcorn and make-your-own chili dogs during the middle of the day.

--Randy & Karen Mink