The riverboat captain is a storyteller. Captain Don Sanders shares the stories of his long association with the river — from discovery to a way of love and life. This a part of a long and continuing story.
By Capt. Don Sanders
Special to NKyTribune
Something’s always happening on the river.
Two weeks ago, as I sat at my desk poring over my column for the NKyTribune, the frozen Ohio River dominated the river news. However, with temperatures on my front porch thermometer reaching nearly 70 degrees over the past two days, the mighty Ohio is surprisingly ice-free. Although local tributary streams remain ice-choked, concerns about rising water levels now dominate much of the conversation around Aurora Bend. Yet there’s still room to converse about other river-related matters. For example:
The DELTA QUEEN often crops up in conversation whenever river rats gossip on the electronic sternline telegraph, as the internet becomes. Although there is nothing new to report concerning the QUEEN’s latest plight for survival, those of us closest to the elder Queen of the Delta, and beyond, haven’t lost faith that a well-heeled guardian angel lies just beyond the next bend.
Gary Busey’s band, CARP, had the right perspective back in 1970, when they sang, “Save the DELTA QUEEN. Don’t let the termites get her.”
Who would have ever imagined, back in Busey’s time aboard the DELTA QUEEN, how forgotten and forlorn she’s become? Certainly not I, nor anyone who remembers when the QUEEN was, perhaps, the most famous and beloved steam passenger boat in the world. The 21st Century, so far, has been a disappointing epoch — unlike anything anyone in the last half of the 20th Century envisioned for the “future.”
On one bright note, a certain artistic fellow contacted me lately, explaining he wanted to travel the length of the Ohio River, from Pittsburgh to Cairo, Illinois, some 981 miles, in a small boat. Along the way, he intended to employ his artistry in photography to record the visual scenes along the watery course. My friend also noted that his wife intends to accompany him on the journey. Although both are especially enthusiastic about the long water adventure, neither has any river or other boating experience. Which means they need, first of all, a satisfactory boat.
My wannabe captain-friend generally feels that the craft he seeks should fit within these parameters:
“Something simple. A floating photo studio/apartment that can be self-sufficient for 5 days.”
So simple, yet so complex. So after I found a completely unsuitable boat for a fluvial novice, I contacted the “go-to” riverman around Aurora Bend, Cap’n Ron Abdon, who suggested:
“The biggest problem is finding something that is trailerable and comfortable enough for that kinda trip, especially with his wife, she’s probably going to want all the luxuries of home. He’d probably be better off with a nice tritoon with a spacious cabin and 4-stroke engine; they’re pretty comfortable nowadays and trailerable. They have a spacious front and rear deck for walking out to take pictures and relaxing on and off the boat, and they ride well. Plus, the 4-stroke Honda and Suzuki are so quiet, more trouble-free, and so much better on fuel than the inboard boats.”
As we are still searching for the right boat for the trip, all suggestions are welcome. Please post them on any of the many Facebook pages where my column appears. I’ll find them.
Recently, a few people contacted me asking about what is happening to the Rising Star Casino, formerly the Grand Victoria Casino & Resort, in Rising Sun, Indiana. Coincidentally, next Saturday, February 28, marks 30 years since I became the Senior Captain of the GRAND VICTORIA II sternwheel casino boat. After 16 years of service, I retired when the casino let go of the U. S. Coast Guard licensed marine officers after the 330-foot gambling boat went “permanently dockside.”
From what I have gathered, the crucial Indiana State Gaming License will soon be moved to a new location with a greater influx of prospective patrons than the isolated Rising Sun location can accommodate.
According to a recent news release:
“A bill recently passed by the Indiana House would relocate Rising Star’s existing gaming license from Rising Sun to a new casino in Northeast or East Central Indiana. As written, House Bill 1038 would allow the license to move to either Allen County, DeKalb County, or Stuben County — all near the Ft. Wayne area — or Wayne County, which is 75 miles Northwest of Cincinnati.”
So how will the loss of the casino affect the tiny town located across the Ohio River from Rabbit Hash, Kentucky?
According to one resident, “Rising Sun is totally scr*wed. So much funding came from the casino.”
Another added: “There goes the City of Rising Sun. You’all think it’s bad, now– wait and see.”
From my perspective, I saw the casino property go from a soybean field to a thriving casino and resort when the GRAND VIC carried a full complement of more people onboard than lived in the entire town of Rising Sun, with that many more wannabe gamblers waiting in the cavernous pavilion for their turn after the boat returned from a mandatory cruise up the river and back.
If, or rather, when the license moves as proposed, everything at the once-thriving property will immediately cease operating — the casino, hotel, golf course, restaurants, and the ferryboat running to Boone County, Kentucky. Of course, the numerous jobs lost required to keep such a large business operating will be a tragedy to all those who’ve depended on them for their livelihood.
Again, when asked what I thought would be the fate of the once magnificent stern paddlewheeler, the GRAND VICTORIA II, formerly the QUEEN OF NEW ORLEANS – HILTON FLAMINGO, which I commanded for 16 years. Would someone buy it and make it into another type of passenger boat?
Frankly, with the unkind fate of so many other magnificent passenger river boats, including the DELTA QUEEN, AMERICAN QUEEN, DUTCHESS, PRINCESS, countless casino boats, and lately, the AMERICAN EMPRESS, I hold little hope that my long-time command, the GRAND VICTORIA II, will find a better destiny than did those other splendid riverboats.
Something’s always happening on the river, for sure. Some may be agreeable — others, not. But whatever happens will transpire whether we like it or not.
Captain Don Sanders is a river man. He has been a riverboat captain with the Delta Queen Steamboat Company and with Rising Star Casino. He learned to fly an airplane before he learned to drive a “machine” and became a captain in the USAF. He is an adventurer, a historian and a storyteller. Now, he is a columnist for the NKyTribune, sharing his stories of growing up in Covington and his stories of the river. Hang on for the ride — the river never looked so good.
Purchase Captain Don Sanders’ The River book
Capt. Don Sanders The River: River Rat to steamboatman, riding ‘magic river spell’ to 65-year adventure is now available for $29.95 plus handling and applicable taxes. This beautiful, hardback, published by the Northern Kentucky Tribune, is 264-pages of riveting storytelling, replete with hundreds of pictures from Capt. Don’s collection — and reflects his meticulous journaling, unmatched storytelling, and his appreciation for detail. This historically significant book is perfect for the collections of every devotee of the river.
You may purchase your book by mail from the Northern Kentucky Tribune — or you may find the book for sale at all Roebling Books locations and at the Behringer Crawford Museum and the St. Elizabeth Healthcare gift shops.
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