Ollie's 2023 Itinerary: He Made it!!!

Ollie Update: Friday 2pm 8/18/23. Ollie made it!! He did GREAT!!! and he raised nearly 1 Million for shelters

For 2024, it's Ollie's River Adventure Part 2: Finishing the Job. In an effort to raise 4 Million more, every penny donated directly to shelters, Ollie will Jet Ski 510 miles from Cincinnati to where the Ohio River ends and pours into the Mississippi River!

Dams

Last year Ollie skied 475 miles and went through 12 dams. This year's trip is 510 miles but he will only have to pass through 7 dams. It’s actually called “locking” through because barges, boats and Ollie’s Jet Ski enter a “lock” (a large chamber in the dam that "locks" on both ends) where they lower the water to match the level on the other side of the dam then open the doors for Ollie to pass through. The Army Corps of Engineers runs the dams and they're great people. We've met a lot of them. They have strict safety rules to ensure safe passage: (Barges First, Boaters Wait, which can mean delays.) Safety First. Always.

Speaking of Barges

Barges stay in the Barge Channel, clearly marked with red and green buoys. Ollie rides close to shore, far from the channel. Ollie's Chase Crew will use phones and GPS to track Ollie’s location. There are mile markers, just like on the freeway shown on the map below. Mile markers indicate how far West you are of where the Ohio river starts in Pittsburgh, at Mile Marker 1. He'll start where he left off at the Cincinnati Public Landing (mile marker 470), all the way to the end of the Ohio where it meets the Mississippi )mile marker 981). That's 510 miles!

Safety First. Always

On the Jet Ski, we have the latest safety gear: life vests with extra floatation, Paddles, anchor, 2 cell phones and a GPS locator so the chase vehicle is always just a few minutes away. Chase boats and Jet Ski’s will follow us. All boat ramps are mapped just in case Ollie needs to get off the river due to weather. Also Ollie is connected to Michael and Michael is connected to the Jet Ski with a safety strap on his wrist. Michael hasn’t fallen off the Jet Ski in 10 years, but if he did, Ollie will fall off with him, the Jet Ski will stop and they'll climb back on. Safety First.

Day 1 Tuesday August 13th

Tuesday morning, as shown on the map below, Ollie will leave Cincinnati. 😊 He'll cover as many miles as possible with stops at local marinas, etc to meet people, sign “pawtagraphs” and pose for pictures and lock through a few dams. All weather permitting of course.

Day 2 Wednesday August 14th

He’ll Jet Ski between dams, stop to meet people, sign “pawtagraphs” and do pictures. He’ll be doing media interviews and “Meat and Greets” where everyone can feed Ollie a little bit of his regular food to feel like a part of his trip and set a world record for most people to feed a dog in one day! He’ll have a shady spot to sleep on the Jet Ski. He'll also spend time with his mommy when he's on shore.

Day 3 Thursday August 15th

Weather permitting, he'll cover 100-125 miles or more in pretty smooth waters, at an average speed of about 15-20 miles an hour. He’ll stop for interviews, pawtagraghs, pictures, “Meat and Greets”, Naps and time with mom!

Day 4 Friday August 16th

It’s possible that Ollie may be nearing the Mississippi on Day 4. He’ll be “Keeping it green on the bottom and blue on top.” This should be the best day to cover a lot of miles. After his last dam, he will have locked through 7 dams with a total drop in water level of nearly 200 feet since Cincinnati. That's how much water the dams hold back. The river averages 25 feet deep. Without dams, we'd call it the Ohio Creek! Barge travel would be impossible. As usual, he’ll make stops for “Meat and Greets”, pictures, interviews, and Naps!

Day 5 Saturday August 17th

This is the day Ollie should arrive finish his trip, all 510 miles.😊

Day 6 Sunday August 18th

Very unlikely, an extra travel day, only needed if we have really bad weather. Safety First. Always. Michael gets safely off the river before any storm can come close. We travel with the latest weather radar at our fingertips.

At the end of Ollie’s trip, we'll humbly express our gratitude for all the help and all the good this trip will do.

Ollie's mom & dad are excited! More importantly, he’s excited to do good. After all, he’s Ollie The Do Good Dog.

Thank you so much to ALL those who donate, volunteer, sponsor and participate.

Most Sincerely,

Ollie, Cammy and Michael

And we'll back with a new project next year!