Time to catch up! It has been quite a week full of wonderful scenery and new experiences.
Tuesday-Wednesday, November 10-11 - We traveled with Sum Escape and Mazel Tug and anchored out both nights in a couple of great anchorages. We anchored along the river behind the bouys marking the shallow section of the river. Both days we cruised long days, met a few tows/barges along the way, and stayed in the channel. The lower part of the Tenn-Tom/Black Warrior Rivers took a lot of time because there were a lot of twists and turns as we followed the natural curves of the rivers. We did see more Bald Eagles along the way - some with fish in their talons as they "fished for dinner" in the river around our boat. It is a sight to see! Both nights when we anchored we heard owls and coyotes in the distance at night.
Thursday, November 12 - The two other boats we were traveling with decided to leave our anchorage early so they could spend a long day cruising to get to Dog River Marina in Mobile, Alabama. We wanted to anchor out one more night before we arrived in Mobile so we left a couple of hours later. We found a great anchorage in the Tensas River. We cruised up and down the shoreline of this river to find a good depth for us to anchor for the night. We finally found a spot that was about 11 feet deep. The good thing about this anchorage was that the river had a strong current so LeeLoo stayed straight and we didn't have to throw out a stern anchor. It was a wonderful evening of listening to the owls and watching Mother Nature's show -- a beautiful night sky full of stars!
LeeLoo anchored for the night along the Tenn-Tom.
Friday, November 13 - We woke up and luckily our boat had stayed straight in the current. There were 2 other boats who anchored in the river for the night. One boat was probably a 25 foot boat (and we thought LeeLoo was small!). We left before the 25 foot boat and as we cruised by them, we realized that they had a tree that was longer than their boat wrapped around their boat. The tree was caught in their anchor chain and the captain was on the bow trying to push the tree off his boat. The current was so strong that it pushed the tree along and it caught on this small boat! We circled back to see if the captain and his admiral needed assistance, but they were finally able to dislodge the tree. Now that's not something you see everyday!
As we cruised down the river towards Mobile, the landscape changed quite a bit. The first sign was that we started seeing trees with Spanish Moss.
Spanish Moss in the trees - notice how muddy the river is.
We also cruised under a fairly new railroad bridge with a 7 foot clearance when it is closed. After radioing the bridge master, the bridge was raised so we could go under it. What we found interesting about this bridge was that it looked to be in really good shape. Most of the other railroad bridges we have gone under have looked very old and in need of some upkeep.
Cruising under a railroad bridge on a beautiful day!
We were so used to dealing with tows pushing huge barges on the Mississippi, Ohio and Tennessee Rivers, but once we were on the Tenn-Tom, the barges were few and far between. Below is a picture of the last tow/barge we passed.
As we traveled down the river towards Mobile (we are now at sea level), the shoreline became more swampy and the water shallow. We heard reports from other Loopers who had gone before us that they had spotted alligators, but we did not see any. We did see more Pelicans and other water birds.
Shoreline along the river as we approached Mobile, Alabama.
Once we reached Mobile, the river opened up into a huge shipping channel! There were ocean going barges and ships everywhere. We felt so small on LeeLoo as we cruised by them. There is also a Navy shipyard there and we saw some of the ships they are building. The pictures probably do no do justice as to how huge these ships were.
As we cruised passed Mobile and all the huge ships, we did notice the skyline of the city. The city was beautiful against the blue sky!
Now, the fun began! We had spent 2 months cruising on the (for the most part) peaceful rivers. We now found ourselves on Mobile Bay, which seemed like an ocean of water before us! Our destination was Turner Marine Services in Dog River where we would spend several days. Suddenly, we had waves (something we had not seen since Lake Michigan) and not much depth to the water (skinny water). Navigating on Mobile Bay was a challenge since we had to stay in the channel or be in very shallow water. The channel is marked by green and red markers and you have to stay between them. As we rocked and rolled along, Carey steered while Nancy used the stabilized binoculars to find the next set of markers. Someone later asked if we had seen any dolphins in the bay. Needless to say, we had no time to look for dolphins! As we finally approached Turner Marine, we called on the radio for our slip assignment and we couldn't get anyone to answer us (sadly, that's not uncommon). We finally called on our cell phone and talked to someone who gave us directions. It was very frustrating after a challenging day.
Fishing boat in Mobile Bay.
Saturday and Sunday, November 14-15 - One of the reasons we came to Turner Marine Services was to have some repair work done on LeeLoo. We had a raw-water pump that was leaking and needed rebuilding, a couple of fans we wanted installed, and the shaft seal inspected and reseated. Unfortunately, Turner Marine Services does not do repairs on the weekend, so we had to wait until Monday. So, we rented a car and did some sightseeing instead!
Our first stop was to the USS Alabama Battleship Memorial Park. This was a short drive away along Mobile Bay. The battleship was a WWII-era battleship that was built in February, 1940. The battleship is now a museum and visitors are allowed to tour the entire ship from top to bottom. There were self guided tours through the ship with lots of information available. The battleship was huge and its history fascinating. There were other planes, tanks, and a submarine on the grounds of the memorial park.
Pictures from the USS Alabama. The last picture is of Carey in the engine room.
Monday-Wednesday, November 16-18 - Repairs on LeeLoo are taking longer than expected. On top of that, a bad storm is moving through the area and Mobile Bay is very rough. The water forecast we get is choppy, moderately choppy, very choppy and rough. We have a hard time translating that into what we had on Lake Michigan since everything was measured in wave height. We are hoping that the repairs get done so we can leave on Thursday for Orange Beach. Time to move on - we've been here almost a week!
Saturday, November 7 - We woke up to rain, rain and more rain. Actually, it rained all day. We left Columbus Marina with Mazel Tug and Sum Escape and headed south, locking through 2 locks on the way. We were lucky - no waiting at the locks. At 3:00 p.m., we arrived at Sumpter Landing, a small bay off of the Tenn-Tom. After we anchored (still raining), we gathered for a potluck dinner on Sum Escape. It was a peaceful evening and we slept well because there was no wind. We did not have to worry about the anchor dragging.
Sunday, November 8 - Our destination was Demopolis Yacht Basin which is at the end of the Tenn-Tom Waterway. From this point forward, we will be on the Black Warrior River and then the Alabama River which empties into Mobile Bay.
Today's passage was challenging because there was a lot of debris (logs and branches) in the river that we had to avoid. The river was very muddy after all the rain. On a positive note, we saw 2 bald eagles. One was sitting on a dead tree and the other was in flight. We also saw some beautiful scenery along the Tenn-Tom. It would have been prettier if it wasn't so overcast.
Cliffs along the Tenn-Tom - Beautiful!
The Demopolis Yacht Basin is brand new. The facilities are new and modern and clean! The dock hands were very friendly and helpful. It was probably the nicest marina we have been in since we left Reefpoint Marina in Racine, Wisconsin. Several Looper boats arrived today, so we had docktails tonight at 5:00 p.m. Docktails consist of Loopers bringing an appetizer to share (can be anything) and also bringing their own drinks. It is a lot of fun and a great way to catch up with our Looper friends - and meet new Loopers.
Tomorrow (Tuesday, November 10), our plan is to travel down the Black Warrior River approximately 50 miles to an anchorage. Unfortunately, the anchorages along this stretch of the river are not as protected as previous anchorages. Essentially, you anchor along the edge of the river instead of going into a bay or lake off the river. Because of the several days of rain, the river water will be higher and the current will be stronger. We will probably have to watch out for more debris along the way. We won't get to Mobile, Alabama until Friday which means we won't have internet until then. The good news is that starting tomorrow, it will be sunny again! It's been a long time since we've seen the sun.
Monday, November 2 - We left Aqua Marina at 7:00 a.m. and started down the Tenn-Tom. It was a cloudy day, but no rain. We were with Looper boats Sum Escape, Grand Baron and Sea Moss. The Tenn-Tom Waterway proved to be much different than the Tennessee River. Narrow in some places and very swampy most of the way.
Typical Shoreline in the Tenn-Tom Waterway
We continued to see a lot of Blue Herons and Eagles (including Bald Eagles), but now also saw White Egrits and Canadian Geese. The day before, we even passed a nest on top of a day marker that had a Bald Eagle sitting in the next! Now, that's not something you see every day!
Bald Eagle sitting on next on top of day marker in river.
We had 3 locks to lock through - all going down (Whitten Lock at 84 feet, Montgomery Lock at 30 feet, and Rankin Lock at 30 feet). All the lock-throughs were uneventful - going down is a lot easier than going up!
Nancy fending LeeLoo off the lock wall.
Mazel Tug (Captain Ralph) going through 84 foot Whitten Lock.
We cruised to Midway Marina at Mile Marker 394 on the Tenn-Tom and spent the night. There were good facilities at this marina and Nancy was able to catch up on some laundry. We enjoyed the evening with docktails on Grand Baron (Vicki and Tom). It was a very pleasant evening!
Tuesday, November 3 - We left Midway Marina by 8:00 a.m. and spent another cloudy day cruising. We went through two locks, then found an anchorage with Sum Escape (Julie and Tom) and Grand Baron (Vicki and Tom) at Mile Marker 366. Grand Baron anchored first, then Sum Escape anchored with their bow next to Grand Baron's stern. Once they were anchored, they tied their boats together, then we took LeeLoo in and rafted to Sum Escape so that all three boats were tied to each other. It was nice because we could go from boat to boat without having to get the dinghy down and go by water!
Grand Baron (left) and Sum Escape (right) positioning themselves to anchor and tie themselves together.
Sum Escape (left) and Grand Baron (right) after they successfully set anchor and tied together.
The main event of the evening was to set off a Chinese Lantern from Sum Escape! We have seen this done, but never participated in setting one off. It was beautiful in the night sky! Launching a Chinese Lantern at anchor gives a new definition to a dark sky since there is no ambient light!
Wednesday-Friday
, November 4-6 - We woke up leisurely and finally left our anchorage at almost 10:00 a.m. We cruised to Mile Marker 334 to the Columbus Marina near Columbus, Mississippi. The interesting thing about this marina is the amount of water hyacinths here. When we left the channel of the Tenn-Tom to cruise to the marina, it felt like we were driving the boat through a salad! This plant life is easily moved by the motion of a boat or a breeze, but the plant growth is everywhere!
More water hyacinths than you can imagine!
While at the Columbus Marina, we have been able to borrow the courtesy car a couple of times. Yesterday, we took a car full of shoppers to go to Walmart and the liquor store! Then later we all went out to dinner at Huck's in Columbus. Great Cajun food! Today, we borrowed the car again and toured the Old Waverly Mansion just outside of Columbus, Mississippi. This mansion was built in 1852 and the family that owns it has opened it up to the public. The mansion is very old and very beautiful, although it appears to be a full time job to keep up with the maintenance!
Walking up to the Old Waverly Mansion in the rain.
Tomorrow we plan to be back on the water again - heading toward Mobile, Alabama! We will be anchoring out again tomorrow night, so no internet again!
Thursday and Friday, October 29 and 30 - We anchored out both nights. Our anchoring skills have improved. We even anchored out with both a bow and stern anchor one of the nights. The advantage of anchoring out is that we see both awesome sunrises and sunsets!
Sunrise at Anchorage at Joe Wheeler State Park
Sunset at Anchorage at Racoon Creek
Nancy on Bow of LeeLoo at J.P. Coleman Park Anchorage - It Was Chilly!
Saturday and Sunday, October 31 and November 1 - On Saturday we had a short trip of only 5 miles from an anchorage in J.P. Coleman State Park to Aqua Yacht Harbor where we met up with the Loopers we had been previously been traveling with.
The transient dock at Aqua is a long face dock (wall) where the boats are essentially parallel parked. Unfortunately, boats on the wall are prone to being waked by passing boats and, as we were to learn later that day, they are subject to large waves caused by passing storms. The waves were so strong and the boat was rocking so severely that we stood on the dock and gathered as many fenders as we could to protect the boat. The weather front passed quickly and it was calm by nightfall.
LeeLoo With All Her Fenders Out - It Felt Like We Were Back On Lake Michigan!
Aqua Yacht Harbor is at the start of the Tennessee-Tom Bigby Waterway (Tenn-Tom). The Tenn-Tom is a canal and river system that connects the Tennessee River to the Gulf of Mexico at Mobile, Alabama. The canal system is 216 miles long and it connects to the Black Warrior River which empties into the Gulf.
The first part of the Tenn-Tom is called the divide cut. Instead of building locks and dams, the designers decided to build a channel that was deep enough to match the water level on both sides. It's said that more earth was moved to build the Tenn-Tom canal system than was moved to build the Panama Canal. Tomorrow we plan to travel through the first 3 locks and reach Midway Marina - a trip of about 54 miles.
Monday - Wednesday, October 26-28 - Our trip to the U.S. Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville was a lot of fun! Unfortunately, with the rain it was hard to see the outside exhibits. But, the inside exhibits, especially the Saturn Hall, were outstanding!
Huntsville bills itself as "Rocket City". It near the Army's Redstone Arsenal which is where early rocket research was done. The Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo space programs were managed nearby at the Marshall Space Flight Center. Space camp (remember the movie) for kids and adults alike is here at the U.S Space and Rocket Center.
We spent several hours looking at the exhibits, then left for Atlanta - still raining. The trip from Huntsville, Alabama to Atlanta, Georgia is not an easy one. There are no direct routes to take and it was a very long trip. After many hours of driving we finally got to Atlanta, only to have bad rush hour traffic! We sat in traffic for nearly two hours as we headed to Carey's father's house. It is definitely easier to be on a boat!
We had a short, but very nice visit with Carey's dad, his sister and her family. We felt like we were in college - we took our laundry with us to do at Stacy's house! The next time we will plan to visit with the folks in Atlanta is over Christmas! We are excited that our son Paul and his family will join us in Atlanta then. We miss our grandkids!
This morning (Wednesday) we left early to drive back to Huntsville. Again, not an easy trip, but the rain was off and on so it was an easier trip. We stopped at Walmart on the way to finish re-provisioning LeeLoo. Nancy even bought a hot-air popcorn popper - all the luxuries of home. We are now set for awhile!
Tomorrow we will leave for Joe Wheeler State Park with four other Looper boats and will anchor for the night. The colors in the trees are really changing now - should be a beautiful trip! Then on Friday we will head to the starting point of the Tennessee-Tom Bigby waterway that will take us south to Mobile, Alabama on the Gulf, about a 450 mile trip.
Sunday, October 25. Time to get caught up! It's been almost a week since our last blog post because we had no internet.
Monday, October 19. We had a short cruise to Goose Pond Colony Resort, about 40 miles upriver. Our final destination was Chattanooga, Tennessee. We must be adopting the Looper lifestyle because we did not originally plan to make this side trip; we heard from many Loopers that the Tennessee River Gorge on this side of Chattanooga is beautiful. On the way to Goose Pond, we went through Guntersville Lock with a lift of 39 feet. Goose Pond Marina was back a shallow and windy creek, but the facilities were nice. One of the Loopers borrowed the courtesy car and shuttled 16 Loopers to a restaurant at a nearby town for dinner. As good as the facilities were, we had not internet.
LeeLoo docked at Goose Pond Colony Marina
Blue Heron sitting on marker in Tennessee River
Tuesday, October 20 - We traveled approximately 50 miles to an anchorage called Cedar Mountain Creek. We were traveling with 4 other Looper boats and together we passed through Nickajack Lock, another 39 foot lift. This is the highest point we will reach on the Tennessee River; from this point forward, all locking will be down. As it turns out, locking down is easier than locking up because there is far less turbulence when the lock chamber is being emptied compared to when it is being filled.
Going through the locks has gotten easier since we now know what we are doing. Below is a picture of a floating bollard, which is along the lock wall. As a boat comes into a lock, Nancy's job is to capture the bollard with a line that is tied to a cleat which is just out the pilothouse door on LeeLoo. Carey's job is to stop LeeLoo as close to the bollard as possible without hitting the wall! We have both gotten good at our jobs! As the lock chamber is filled or emptied, LeeLoo travels up or down tied up to the bollard. Once the lock through is complete, the doors open, a horn is sounded, and it is safe to untie from the bollard. The boats who are in the lock file out of the lock and continue on their way.
LeeLoo secured to a bollard in a lock.
There are often two choices to tie up to a bollard - a high and a low. We have found we have greater control if we tie to the low bollard.
American Tug behind us in the lock. We will be locking up 39 feet!
Once we cleared the lock, 3 Looper boats tied up to a nearby free pier at a county park. Sum Escape and LeeLoo continued on to Cedar Mountain Creek where we rafted together for the night. Rafting is where the larger boat sets the anchor and then the smaller boat ties up to the larger boat. We all took a ride in our dinghy to explore the shoreline. We had dinner with Tom and Julie on the aft deck of Sum Escape and then played cards. It was a restful evening because we didn't have to worry about the anchor dragging.
Rafted to Sum Escape in Cedar Mountain Creek.
Rafted together - LeeLoo looks small!
On a dinghy ride - notice LeeLoo behind us!
Beautiful shoreline in Cedar Mountain Creek
Wednesday, October 21 - We woke up to fog so we delayed departure for one half hour. Once the fog cleared, the sun came out and the river was beautiful. Our arrival in Chattanooga was a bit confusing because the marina did not answer the radio and the directions we received by telephone were unclear. We tied ups to the commercial dock and then learned we had to move LeeLoo to a different dock. Because the marina in downtown Chattanooga is directly on the river, there are very few conventional slips to pull into, rather, you have to parallel park the boat on a long face dock, This can be challenging because of the river current. When we talked to the office about staying a second night, it was suggested we move to a conventional slip that was off the river. This turned out to be a perfect slip in which to dock LeeLoo, although we were not near any of the other Loopers.
Foggy morning in Cedar Mountain Creek
For more than 40 years, we have driven through Chattanooga on our way to Atlanta to visit Carey's family. For 40 years, we have driven along the Tennessee River as it winds its way into Chattanooga. It was very exciting to be on a boat on the river, looking up at the traffic on the road that we have driven on for over 40 years!
Thursday, October 22 - The city of Chattanooga has a beautiful waterfront and it is a very walkable city. We spent the day walking - just under eleven miles and over 25,000 steps! We made up for no walking while being anchored on LeeLoo! In the morning we walked to a local - and we mean local - grocery store. We also went to the Tennessee Aquarium in the afternoon, where we saw an amazing display of all kinds of jelly fish! Then we took the free electric shuttle bus to the other side of the river and found a Walgreen's and a Publix supermarket for a few more groceries. We walked back over the river on a pedestrian bridge. Very cool!
Tennessee Aquarium
Friday, October 23 - We left Chattanooga with Mazel Tug. Our destination was Racoon Creek, about 60 miles downriver. We locked down through Nickajack Lock, which was uneventful. Racoon Creek was a large, but shallow, lake off of the Tennessee River. We anchored in 7 feet of water near Mazel Tug (Ralph and Linda). We dinghyed over to Mazel Tug for docktails and, while we were there, we saw a bald eagle attempting to catch a duck for dinner. The eagle would swoop down in an attempt to grab a duck and the flock would scurry away. We don't know if the eagle was successful, but it is not a sight you see every day.
Mazel Tug - a 37 foot Nordic Tug in Racoon Creek
Saturday, October 24 - We were preparing to leave when Ralph on Mazel Tug reported problems with his alternator overheating. We stood by until it was clear that Boat US (Sea Tow) had dispatched a boat to come for him. There was no cell service and no one to contact via the VHF radio, so Ralph used a satellite communicator to contact Boat US. Once we knew a rescue boat had been dispatched, we departed for Ditto Landing (10 miles from Huntsville, Alabama) where we were a week ago - and we were last able to update the blog.
Sunday - October 25 - The day was spent at Ditto Landing cleaning LeeLoo inside and out (was she ever dirty)! The Tennessee River is really beautiful, but full of mud that cakes on. We also ended up getting spots of tar-like substance on the outside of LeeLoo, so that took some extra scrubbing. But, now she is beautiful again! Tomorrow we are renting a car for 3 days. We plan to go to the U.S. Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville and then continue on to Atlanta so we can visit with Carey's dad, his sister and her family. The weather forecast is for rain for the next few days so it will be a good time for a visit!
At long last, we have internet! Our cell service and internet connection continues to be spotty. Never fear, we are fine and will continue to update our blog as the internet service allows!
Sunday, October 11 - We left Grand Harbor Marina at 10:00 a.m. for Florence, Alabama. We woke up to a foggy day on the river so had to wait for the fog to clear. As soon as the fog cleared and the sun came out, it was beautiful! We were soon joined by 5 other boats headed our direction. We cruised to Florence, Alabama where we spent the night at the Florence Municipal Marina. Unfortunately, as we entered the marina, the dock master kept asking us if we were sure we had a reservation. It seemed that the person who took our reservation up and quit that day - and took with her the list of boats who had made reservations! They found a place for us on the fuel dock for the night. While in Florence, we shared a taxi with a couple of Loopers and went to downtown Florence to walk around and have dinner. Little did we know that downtown was only about a mile away - we walked back afterwards!
Monday, October 12 - We woke up at 7:00 a.m. and realized that quite a few boats were starting their engines and leaving. Someone had called the lock master at Wilson Lock and found out that if we wanted to get locked through without too much waiting, we had to leave now! It was one of our fastest departures ever! As we looked behind us on the river, we saw that we were with many other boats. It was actually quite a sight to be in a flotilla of boats heading the same direction!
Flotilla of Boats Heading Toward Wilson Lock
The first lock (Wilson Lock) was huge - we ended up locking up 93 feet! We had to tie to a mooring cell and wait for an hour before the lock master told us to enter the lock. Wilson Lock was the first lock that really was challenging for us. We tied up to a bollard on the mid-cleat, but LeeLoo's stern kept swinging out. As the stern swung out, LeeLoo's bow would go into the lock wall. We tried with all our might, but were unable to push LeeLoo's bow off the wall. Carey finally ran for another fender (Bob, as some of you will remember we used for doing man overboard drills) and were able to position into place and save LeeLoo's bow. We did lost a bit of rub rail in the process. Live and learn - more fenders!
The second lock (Joe Wheeler Lock) only locked up 48 feet. Not as stressful, but once again our stern seemed to swing out a big as we were locking up. For the next lock, we will try to tie to the lower bollard and see if that helps.
Beautiful scenery along the Tennessee River
More beautiful scenery . . .
We had planned to anchor out Monday night, but decided to go on into the marina at Joe Wheeler State Park. Unfortunately, docking was a bit stressful as the first slip we were given was simply not acceptable. It was at the end of a T-dock and LeeLoo's stern was hanging out by at least four feet. We were also unable to safely get off LeeLoo because there were metal structures on the dock that made it impossible to get off easily. The squeaky wheel gets results, so we complained until we were moved to a better dock and slip, only to find out that we had to move one more time! Finally, we were given a slip that worked for us.
LeeLoo in her slip - third and final!
Tuesday, October 13 - Joe Wheeler State Park was the main destination for us so we could attend the AGLCA (American Great Loop Cruisers Association) Fall Rendezvous. The rendezvous was scheduled to begin on Wednesday, so we had Tuesday to wash the boat, catch up on laundry, and replace the burgee flagpole that we lost in the Mississippi River. It was a fun day because a lot of fellow Loopers arrived. Joe Wheeler State Park is a beautiful location. The marina is large (with 300 slips) and there were at least 80 Looper boats that arrived to attend the rendezvous. Unfortunately, in spite of the large marina, there are only two showers (one for men, one for women) in the marina office. There is also a state park lodge and one of the rooms was offered up for the boaters to use to take a shower. The laundry facilities were a little lacking, too. One washer and two dryers - for the whole marina!
Wednesday, October 14 - Check-in for the rendezvous began at 3:00 p.m., so we took a shuttle into Rogersville for lunch and a little grocery shopping. The town of Rogersville welcomes Loopers and are were very happy to see us! The best part of the day was that we were finally able to replace our AGLCA burgee and proudly fly it on LeeLoo's bow!
Thursday-Saturday, October 15-17 - The AGLCA Fall Rendezvous was a very successful event. The days were filled with seminars about what to expect as we cruise down the rivers, cross the Gulf of Mexico, and cruise in Florida and the Bahamas. The seminars were relevant and very informative. There were also a number of vendors who attended and offered their products and lots of information. The rendezvous was completely sold out. People not only traveled by boat, but also drove and filled the Joe Wheeler State Park Lodge. Many people who traveled by car are in the planning stages of doing the Loop and do not currently have a boat. One of the events of the rendezvous is a "Looper Crawl" where boat owners sign up to open their boat so that attendees can tour it. We participated in the Looper Crawl, but we were so busy showing off LeeLoo that we barely had time to look at the other boats! We had a steady stream of visitors who wanted to see LeeLoo.
On the last night of the rendezvous, there was an impromptu concert and sing along. Any Looper who played a musical instrument was invited to participate as part of the "band" and Looper who wanted to sing were invited to be in the audience! It was a lot of fun!
Loopers showing their musical talents!
We must comment on the buffet meals provided by the lodge. The quality of the food and menus offered to us was outstanding. The food was plentiful, delicious and creative. The servers were congenial and worked really hard to please us. It was a great experience! Thank you, Joe Wheeler State Park Lodge!
Sunday, October 18 - We left the beautiful Joe Wheeler State Park and cruised 56 miles to Ditto Landing Marina, 10 miles from Huntsville, Alabama on the Tennessee River. No locks today! We cruised with Julie and Tom on Sum Escape. It was chilly all day and we kept LeeLoo closed up as we cruised. That is the advantage to having a Nordic Tug - we can close up the boat and stay warm as we cruise! Again, more beautiful scenery. We have said this before, but the Tennessee River is truly beautiful by boat! We had to pass under a railroad bridge along the way that, when down, only has a 9 foot clearance. As we approached the bridge, a train was going over. After a short wait, we called the bridge master and he raised the bridge to 30 feet for us to pass under it.
Shortly after we arrived at Ditto Landing Marina, several other Looper boats arrived. Tomorrow we plan to leave at 8:00 a.m. and have one lock to go through. The low tonight is 37 degrees! Wait . . . are we in Chicago?
