here's an excerpt from my river trip book (Old Goat in a Tin Boat) that explains these two pictures..

""I had passed a couple paddling downriver in a canoe a few miles up and noticed they had a couple of fishing poles sticking up in rear of canoe so didn't figure they were going a long ways down river. While waiting for lock, they came paddling up and stopped a short distance away...
Tom and Judy Johnson had launched at Prairie du Sat on the Wisconsin River and along with their dog "Harley" were paddling and camping down to Galena, Ill. (about 170 miles)...Their canoe drifted up beside my boat and our conversation soon turned to dogs while I scratched Harleys ears...Dogs know good ear scratchers when they see them and Harley already had his head raised up and leaning over the side when the canoe got close enough for me to reach him...Tom related that he went through a really tough period in his life some years back and he credited Harley with helping him survive. Consequently Harley goes everywhere with them...I have an especially close relationship (my wife says obsession) with my English Cocker retriever (Blue) and I seriously debated whether to bring her on this trip...She would have been great company and would have thoroughly enjoyed it but two things made me decide against it...She would have been a major distraction while I was running the boat because she has to bounce from one side of the boat to another looking for ducks or birds of any kind to retrieve (whether they've been shot or not). Also I had limited ability to find pet friendly motels on this trip...Me and dog sleeping in boat because no motel in area would take dogs didn't appeal to me at all....The lock opens and I wish Tom and Judy a safe trip and they do same.""

Good story.

Do you have to use radios to talk to the lock operators or can you talk person to person?

several different ways to communicate with lock operator....they prefer you use a VHF radio channel 16 to request permission to go through the lock but you can also call them on cell phone or go up to edge of lock and use pull chain and they will come out and talk to you....you hear a lot of stories about rude lock operators but I've never experienced anything but really nice and cooperative lock personnel...