Just because we are living on the water right does not mean that we can't enjoy the holidays. Most Loopers take the occasional holiday very seriously. That's what happened Friday night on the dock in Chattanooga. The only thing missing were costumes. We even had a pumpkin decorating contest (last one, bottom right was Jim's creation). Amazing what you can create while on a boat when you put your mind to it.
Once settled on the dock in Chattanooga we caught up with some old friends on Foreign Exchange, Golden Lily and Shore Thing for drinks and dinner at Sticky Fingers.We enjoyed walking around this town.We found an art district which overlooked the river. It had a well done sculpture garden right on the edge of a cliff.We spent most of Thursday at the Tennessee Aquarium. They have both a salt and fresh water display housed in two beautiful facilities that sit…
The Tennessee River Gorge is twenty-six miles of unspoiled, mostly undeveloped hills, cliffs and mountains that reach as high as 2,300 feet from the winding river. As we meander towards Chattanooga we are in awe of how the magnificent views put us in a frame of mind to just sit back, relax and enjoy the beauty. Each turn in the river seemed to provide a view that was even more spectacular than the last.
We left Goose Pond Marina in a seven boat caravan heading to and through the Nick-A-Jack Lock to a secluded cove where most of us rafted together for the night.This cove, Little Cedar Mountain, provided a rock cliff on the side of the mountain and served as a backdrop for a relaxing evening. We quietly watched the sun set on the bow of Bella Luna's boat as well as being their guest for a North Carolina Crab Cake dinner.The morning…
We arrived early at Goose Pond Marina. Everyone was excited to use the loaner car to go to the famous Unclaimed Baggage Center. Actually there were so many of us we had to borrow two cars to visit this store plus make a stop at Wal-Mart (of course).We left Goose Pond Marina early after a scrumptious breakfast aboard C-Life.
Not more than ten minutes after helping each other tie up chairs, tables, food and drinks appeared on the dock. Everyone was eager for Happy Hour and with this group it truly is "Happy." We were really excited when Louis and Diane on Bella Luna invited us to travel up the Tennessee River to Chattanooga with their caravan. Most of them have been traveling together on and off (mostly on) since they left North Carolina where three of the boats…
Our destination today was the Free Dock in Guntersville. It was more than big enough for all seven of our boats and plenty more. We helped each other get tied up.
A beautiful fifty-four mile cruise to Guntersville today. It is starting to get very hilly with cliffs and valleys.We saw the famous Bat Cave today at the bottom of a huge cliff.This photo of Bella Luna (below, left) shows how big these locks are when lowered.
We are traveling with six other Looper boats up the Tennessee River to Chattanooga. Our first stop on the way is Decatur, a short twenty-nine miles from Joe Wheeler State Park. It was a short run for us and with an important Michigan/Michigan State football game in progress it felt more like a Sunday afternoon when we congregated on Bella Luna to watch the game and have Margaritas. After the game we had dinner in the restaurant/bar right in the…
After eleven fun filled days at the beautiful Joe Wheeler State Park in Alabama we are off with a group of six other boats upriver to Chattanooga, Tennessee. We got up early, got organized and headed over to get a pump out. After sitting still for awhile we are itching to move and see some new territory. Thank you AGLCA for a wonderful week at the Rendezvous.
We have worked on saving our dinghy since July and have not had much success. So we bit the bullet and ordered a new one. The guys had a fun project putting it together.
It was the last night of a fun filled four days. We met old friends and made some new ones. We laughed, we played and we even learned a few things.One of the things we the women learned was what a "Full Bouquet" means. (It is this hand waving thing you do when the captain has an "attitude problem"). We got our table to demonstrate our new skill. We were all very impressed when Fred Myers received the Skipper Bob…
We Loopers sure know how to have fun at the Rendezvous. Between the receptions, Looper Crawls (this is where we have tours of each other's boats), Kayak and dinghy races we pack in a lot of great times.The Kayak races were very popular and many turned out to have a chance to win. The dinghy race was a little more challenging. The driver was blindfolded and turned facing the motor of the dinghy and had to drive the dinghy in reverse while…
The first evening of the AGLCA Rendezvous brought some attention to the "River Rats." We are a group of boaters who were caught up in the flooding of the Illinois River after Hurricane Ike ravaged much of the south. Many of us were stuck or held up much longer, at docks, marinas and anchorages, than we had planned due to portions of the river being closed and locks with debris or mechanical problems.Shortly after the initial flooding it occurred to…
Yes, this boat, Dad's Idea, is doing the Loop. This is definitely a dream in the making. Followed here by Lil Looper, Ron and Eva Stob's boat (they are the founders of AGLCA).We toured a lovely steel boat Amalia, owned by Leslie (below) and Greg Marsh.
Joe Wheeler has been a great stop for a number of reasons, one being that we've been able to tie up to a dock off the beautiful Tennessee River to enjoy some amazing scenery, morning fog and sunsets. The other reasons being opportunity to participate in the America's Great Loop Cruising Association's (AGLCA-It's not really a cult, it's just a great boating club) Fall Rendezvous where we are able to renew some old acquaintances and also make some new ones…
On Monday we left the great state of Tennessee, however we remained on her river as we head southeast into Alabama on our way to the American Great Loop Cruiser's Association's Fall Rendezvous. We've not been on this part of the Tennessee before and we are finding it to be increasingly beautiful as we travel further up stream. We saw our first step lock while on this river system (see below).After sixty-eight miles we found a home for the night…
Sunday we left Clifton, Tennessee and headed out to Diamond Island to anchor for the night. Diamond Island is just this side of Shiloh National Park, the location of one of the bloodiest battles during the Civil War. For us, to anchor out, on the Tennessee River as the water flows calmly by, is an experience we thoroughly enjoy. The stars, sunsets, jumping fish and refreshing fall breezes all make it worth the effort it took to get here.We took…
We arrived at the Clifton Marina in Clifton, Tennessee on Saturday morning with thoughts of going into town for lunch. Clifton is a Mayberry type town founded in 1840. It now has one barber, one bank, one gas station and two restaurants which we found out don't open until 5 PM, so no lunch in Clifton today. Everyone here is very friendly and helpful and they all waved to us, as we walked the mile from the marina into town,…
We stopped at Densons Island three years ago and were happy to return again for another beautiful evening on the hook, in paradise. We woke up Saturday morning to fishing boats buzzing back and forth on the river all eager to claim a vacant spot to fish.
Unusual sights while in Tennessee. Not sure what the building was, the guidebook says that it is an abandoned dock that was sunk when they flooded the Tennessee River.This submarine like sailboat really caught our eye. Looks like its seen better days.
We had always heard that Pebble isle was a place that we must visit while on the Tennessee River. We had heard how nice the owners and staff were to all the boaters who come their way. And this is exactly what we found when we stopped for a short visit Thursday. Tami and Randy (see below with cinnamon rolls), part owners of the marina have a genuine warmth which they extend to the boaters who visit their marina.Before we…
We left Green Turtle Bay on Tuesday late morning and followed friends, on Victory, to and anchorage off the Tennessee River, Sugar Bay. It was a short, wavy ride (almost reminding us of Lake Michigan) about 14 miles, and overcast with a little rain which we haven't had much of lately. It was a welcome, peaceful night.Wednesday morning we cruised to Leatherback Creek where we anchored out again. Tomorrow we will be at Pebble Isle Marina for a chance to…
We had a couple of fun Happy Hour get-togethers while at Green Turtle Bay. The first one was while there were about twenty Looper boats here and another smaller one, the day after many of them left, when new Loopers arrived.Our last night here we went to Patti's Settlement restaurant, famous for their two-inch port chops. The group that went to Patti's was a small reunion of... Good News, Foreign Exchange and Shore Thing were all stuck with each other on the…
Green Turtle Bay was seen as the place to get to be out of the rivers and the flooding situation that we all recently experienced. So for many of us it was a feeling of relief to be tied up in this Looper friendly marina.Three days to clean the boat, change the oil, get excercise, swim in the beautiful new indoor pool, provision the boat, rest and socialize. We had breakfast with fellow Loopers we had just met, Mojo and…
Sixteen more miles up the Ohio River from Lock 52 and we entered the Cumberland River and the beginning of our descent into the south. This part of the cumberland is a beautiful meandering river that runs thirty miles before it meets the Barkley Lock and Dam. Barkley Lock has a lift of 57 feet. This is one of the larger locks on the Great Loop trip.We had only one mile to travel to get to Green Turtle Bay Marina…
Excited to be close to a three-day rest at Green Turtle Bay Marina we woke to heavy fog that would not burn off for three hours after our scheduled departure time. However the fog created its own beauty as the boats we were anchoredwith, and the morning sun, would dodge in and out of view due to the varying thickness of the fog moving through.Finally when the fog finally burned off all five of us pulled anchor and headed to…
Once the fog lifted we pulled up anchor and headed back out into the swirling Mississippi River. When we reached the Ohio River we said goodbye to Mistress as they were continuing down the Mississippi River to New Orleans to complete their Loop.It was a sharp left hand turn onto the Ohio River where the water calmed down and is a shade of blue instead of the muddy waters we have recently experienced. The turbulance of the Mississippi stops here…
Our first heavy fog during this trip so far. When we first got up we could hardly see the other boats and out of the channel it was even worse. We had to wait until 8:45 to leave the anchorage which means that we will probably not get as far as we had hoped today.
We left Hoppie's this morning with very little fog. The nights are getting cooler now with the daytime warming up nicely to somewhere in the seventies. Our main problem most mornings now will be the fog and how long it takes to lift.There was a caravan of six of us who left Hoppie's this morning bright and early. Mistress, Grettatude, Our Turn, Seque, Blue Max and us. We helped each other navigate the turbulent Mississippi River by radioing notices about…
As we inch south we leave Grafton for the start of the Mississippi River. Today we traveled in a five boat caravan all the way to Hoppie's which is south of St. Louis. We traveled through two locks, past Alton and St. Louis with its iconic arch.Hoppie's Marina is a famous Looper stop. It has been in business for 74 years.View across river from HoppiesAlmost immediately after arriving we walked into the little town of Kimmswick, a cute little town…
