During our evening cruise we encountered the Spirit of Peoria. We paid special attention to her because we had a breakfast cruise booked with her on the Sunday morning. This was the first trip to the Tall Stacks Festival for the Spirit of Peoria. Dubbed the “floating wedding cake” the Spirit of Peoria is one of the few true stern driven paddle wheelers that navigate without the aid of any thrusters or props. Many of her decorative fixtures, including the captain's bell and a brass tube that serves as a telegraph from the pilot house to the captain's quarters, were purchased at auctions from much older steamboats. She has three desks and is 160 feet long. The Spirit of Peoria's home port is Peoria, ILL and she offers overnight cruises down the Illinois river valley. More about that later.