It was a cool morning as we headed into Florida, the state where our Great Loop voyage began. Our first stop was Pensacola Shipyard for repairs to broken engine mounts (sigh!). While stranded there we took in the sights of the town which included many cleverly painted pelicans. Midday was warm enough to enjoy the beach, a real treat for a Jersey Girl in December! … Continue reading The Finish Line
Many boat days start early, and the sun rose as we entered the Tennessee-Tombigbee (Tenn-Tom) Waterway https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tennessee–Tombigbee and crossed into Alabama. We typically only watch for deer crossing when driving on land, but today we avoided a deer swimming across the waterway. The Tenn-Tom is a narrower route and we saw familiar boats again and again. We traveled through locks together, and met up at … Continue reading The Tenn-Tom
We left Green Turtle Bay and followed the Barkley Canal to beautiful Kentucky Lake. This area is called “The Land Between the Lakes” as there is Kentucky Lake on one side and Lake Barkley (and the Cumberland River) on the other. We crossed into Tennessee and the changing leaves were lovely to see as we made our way to Pebble Isle Marina. The dockmaster told … Continue reading Kentucky Lake
Rolled into town, a break from the boat. A different world from the one back home. Hall of Fame, so much to see. Visiting Nashville, Tennessee! And we have found. Beer, bands, bowling. Terrie tried a new thing. Everybody plays, everybody sings. Hollywood with a touch of twang. To be a star you gotta bang, bang, bang! Pickers, Parthenon, checked it out. Whiskey and moonshine, … Continue reading Nashville, Y’all!
There are some stunning cliffs where the Illinois River merges with the Mississippi River. Our first stop was a marina under the bridge in Alton, Illinois. We found a fun group of Loopers at the marina, some familiar and some new to us. We had docktails and talked about traveling the next leg of our journey together. Tom and Julie joined us for dinner and … Continue reading Mississippi River
We left Chicago and headed south on the Illinois river. The weather was gloomy, and the area was very industrial. Tug boats were busy moving barges along the river. We crossed an electric fish barrier (no swimming!), set up to block Asian Carp (an invasive species). Not the most beautiful part of the voyage, but interesting to see. We went through large locks in the … Continue reading Illinois River
“We’re 106 miles to Chicago. We’ve got a full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes, it’s dark and we’re wearing sunglasses…Hit it.” What a beautiful city. The approach from Lake Michigan was stunning. “Come on, oh baby, don’t you wanna go? Come on, oh baby, don’t you wanna go?” The sun went down and the city lit up. We hadn’t seen Rita & … Continue reading Chicago!
Our first day heading south on Lake Michigan was lovely. The weather was clear and the water was calm. Our first stop was Charlevoix, and we entered the Pine River and cruised through the blue bridge that led to Round Lake and our pretty, protected marina for the night. We cut through the downtown area and into the neighborhood behind it to find the Mushroom … Continue reading Lake Michigan
We headed north from Detroit and crossed a busy Lake St. Claire. Then we continued up the St. Claire River, again traveling the line between USA and Canada, until we reached Port Huron. We walked the waterfront to see the sights and found lunch at a brew pub by the water. A rainbow greeted us the next morning as we entered Lake Huron. Our first … Continue reading Lake Huron
We made a few stops along Lake Erie as we headed southwest toward Cleveland. “The lake was angry that day, my friends.” When the water is rough, we try to secure things on the boat. If we don’t, they find their way to the floor during the trip. By the end of the day we had four broken wine glasses, and a new seatbelt for … Continue reading Lake Erie
