August 1, '06, the Caboose leaves Saint petersburg, Fl for St. Paul MN. This trip covers most of the western portion of what is known as the "Great Circle Route" or the "Great Loop."

Not easy to identify on this small scale chart, the route begins in Tampa Bay, crosses the Gulf of Mexico to the Florida panhandle/Gulf Coast region, then enters the Gulf Intracoastal Watereay to Mobile, AL. Thence northward by way of the Mobile River, Warrior River and Tennesee-Tombigbee Waterway to Pickwick Lake and the Tennessee River. Next comes a 50 mile stretch of the Ohio River to Cairo,IL, where a hard right turn puts us on the Mississippi River headed upstream to St. Louis and beyond. Twent-nine locks later, the Caboose makes landfall in St. Paul, almost exactly 2,000 miles from St. Pete!