Hey All!
We’ve had a great week! We left Green Turtle Bay on Monday, visited some interesting marinas and are now headed north again on the Cumberland River. We’ll stop at Green Turtle Bay to stay again for a couple more days on Tuesday & Wednesday, to get some laundry done and borrow their courtesy van for a run to Kroger…almost out of Sesame Nut Mix!
Last Monday night we stayed at Lake Barkley Marina. There were two marina workers there…one kid to catch our lines and a lady in the office/ship’s store to check us in. The ship’s store consisted of a shelf of snack foods, a refrigerated cooler with 7 kinds of iced tea, a display of a variety of shot glasses…”Bottom’s Up” (and you can imagine what’s pictured on that glass!), a selection of Lake Barkley Tee-Shirts, and 4 aisles of fishing lures! (I’ve never seen so many different kinds of rubber worms!) We were one of only 2 transient boats and there was no activity at all on any of the permanent slips, so we spent a nice quiet evening there. This is where they put us next to another boat called “Headquarters”…what are the odds?
On Tuesday, we moved South on the Cumberland River to Clarksville, TN where we stayed on a free dock within walking distance from historical Clarksville. Here’s a weird thing…the river flows north, but we were heading south…up river…very confusing. The free dock was new and it was nice and clean, but we’d heard some things about safety that made me nervous (people untying boats in the middle of the night, etc.) I think I worked myself up into a bit of a state and had BK tie up all sorts of “special” lines, had him put on the chain with the padlocks, and even tie the small door shut that comes from the swim platform (can you say paranoid?) Turned out to be a very nice place (my paranoia was unfounded) and we’ll be staying there again on our way back down river! (It helps that there’s a great brew pub with awesome pizza within walking distance!) P.S. The “special” lines, the chain & padlocks along with tying the back door shut will still be implemented!
Our next stop for Wednesday night was Harpeth Shoals Marina which had some great stuff written about it in Quimby’s. But once again…we got there and didn’t see any other boaters (lots of boats…no people). We were on a gated dock with a coded entry and we decided to walk to the office to check in and settle up. So out the gate we go…walk around the lagoon to the office and find nothing but locked doors and dark windows. Bob had a phone number for the office but when he called, he got a message: “Hi…sorry I can’t come to the phone right now, please leave a message and I’ll call as soon as I get back from picking up my kid from day care.”….. “B-E-E-E-E-P!” ;o) In the meantime, we realized…yep…can’t get back on the dock and our boat because we don’t know the code that opens the gate and the only people around are the guys putting in docks and “Nope” they don’t know the code. But the guy did offer to shuttle us over on his little work barge and we took him up on it, hanging on to the little crane as we crossed! I tried to get him to come back and get us for dinner, but he just smiled. “Ha-ha…real funny.”
On Thursday we pulled into Nashville to their municipal dock and we were literally docked at the foot of the city! When we decided to make this little side trip to Nashville, I was thinking “Yeah…it would be nice to see Nashville”… but I was mostly just excited for Bob more than anything. Well – I gotta tell y’all (that’s how they talk here)…I LOVE this city! Music City! We took a trolley tour, visited the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, had yummy b.b.q. and listened to SO MANY bands perform live! We were here 2 days and both days we wound up in town walking from bar to bar listening to awesome bands! I never knew I liked country music as much as I do. The musicians would call out for requests and out of MY mouth comes… “How about ‘Ring of Fire’?!” Bob’s like…hello?...Johnny Cash? Really? One band started to sing George Jones… “He Stopped Lovin’ Her Today”… and I’m a bucket of tears…”Oh, don’t play that song…it always makes me cry!” (But you have to say “cra” in a Southern accent.) Then I start singing along with them! (I know the words?...huh?...who knew?)
As Bob told you, we saw a little mini concert at the Country Hall of Fame & Museum… a tribute to Blind Alfred Reed… and once more… it was a great show! (You just can’t beat live performances!) You could tell how much all the performers just absolutely loved playing music and sharing it with anyone who’d listen. The man who organized this tribute, Tim Obrien, started out the show by saying, “Thanks for being here…but, make no mistake…we’d be singing and playing anyway, but it’s always nice to have an audience.” Reminded me of 2 of my sisters (Mooie & Jeanie) and my brother (Hoke)…they just love holding on to a microphone and singing up a storm! Other performers included, Kathy Mattea, John Lilly, Connie Smith, the Carpenter Ants, and Todd Burge (recognize any of those names?) BK told you the name of one of the songs that Blind Alfred Reed wrote…here are a couple more:
· Always Lift Him Up and Never Knock Him Down
· How Can a Poor Man Stand Such Times and Live
· You’ve Got to Have ‘Em, That’s All (referring to women…hm-m-m)
· Black and Blue Eyes
These folks that we saw perform yesterday have made an album called “Always Lift Him Up: A Tribute to Blind Alfred Reed”. Some of the songs on this album were originally recorded in 1927 during the famous Bristol Sessions. It’s kind of oldy country, bluegrassy kind of music…lots of toe tappers with fun lyrics…I think I’m going to look that one up! (Hoke & Mooie – you’d probably love it too!)
Tonight we’re going to the Grand Ole Opry and (I can’t believe I’m saying this…) I’m really looking forward to it! I’m bringing binoculars! By the time y’all see me again, I’ll have Dolly Parton hair and all my clothes will have rhinestones on them! And Annie – I’m keeping my eye out for a pair of red cowboy boots! Yee-Ha!
Hope you are all staying dry, that your boats are floating in the same spot that you left them, and that the waters go down soon! Remember…
Life isn’t about waiting for the waters to recede…it’s about learning to dance in the puddles!
Lots of luck to you and yours! First Mate-----Deb
P.S. Look again at the picture BK sent earlier of outside the Country Music Hall of Fame…the windows look like the black keys on a keyboard! Cool!
Saturday, September 20, 2008
Friday, September 19, 2008
Log 35; day 122; Nashville, TN
Log 35
Day 122
Kathy Mattea during their tribute to Blind Alfred Reed
Deb...it's official...we're tourists
Inside Tootsie's
Great band...that girl played "The Devil went down to Georgia" good enough to make Charlie Daniels worry.
Saturday, September 20, 2008
6:40 AM CDT
Location: Municipal Marina, Downtown Nashville, TN
Weather: 68* with calm winds; forecast is for 81* and partly cloudy today
It’s a little warmer this morning than it has been for a while. There is also no dew or fog. I’m sitting on the back of the boat and things are fairly quite (as quite as they can be next to downtown Nashville) except for that bass boat that just flew by at about 50 mph. It’s light out, but the sun is not up yet, and when it does come up it will have trouble shinning with all these clouds. That said it will be plenty warm and very nice.
Yesterday was a fun and interesting day. After spending the early morning cleaning up the boat both inside and out we decided to walk to town for lunch. I had in mind some BBQ, which I always love in the south. When we were at Harpeth Shoals marina I asked the dock master is she knew of a good place and she told me to go to Jacks...so we did...and it was great. We had the beef brisket plate...if you come to Nashville...go to Jacks...you’ll love it. After lunch we went to the Country Music Hall of Fame. On our tour on Thursday we passed it and decided to go see it. (side note: for all of you who have told me over the years I need to slow down more and smell the roses; please note in the last 2 days I have taken a scheduled tour (not a Bob Koerner whirl wind tour...one where some one else was driving) and visited a museum...is this what you had in mind?). It was actually the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum...and we both enjoyed it. We were also fortunate that when we started our tour they had a special concert tribute to Blind Alfred Reed (included in our ticket price they kept telling us) and it was very good. I have never heard of Blind Alfred Reed (I wonder if anyone has) but for his tribute they gathered many singers and musicians from West Virginia (where he lived) and had them all there. You can see one picture I included...the lady is Kathy Mattea...who is a famous country singer...and very good. One quick note on Blind Alfred Reed...although I have never heard of him or his music...it was good. Here is one of his song titles...”She does the best she can, woman was made after man, and she’s been after him ever since”. Yes...that’s the title...and it’s a good song.
After all that museum lookin’, we were both parched and needed to find a beer and a band (not hard to do at any time in Nashville) so we ended up at Tootsie’s (who I might add is mentioned at the Country Hall of Fame). The pictures are taken inside Tootsie’s. This band was very good, and like all bands we saw, played only for tips and the hope someone would discover them. Deb and I both agreed we really liked Nashville..and Deb tells me she has a much greater appreciation for country music. Me...I already loved it. Back at the boat by 5 we enjoyed another boat cocktail with our new friends Ted and Billie on Main Course...they plan to leave early today...heading back to Clarksville. Dinner was on the boat, and Deb cooked some awesome fish, and we ate it while watching some reruns of Andy Griffith (I knew all those recordings would come in handy). Probably the 10th time (at least) I have seen that episode...and I laughed just as hard as the first time.
Today...should be a fun day. We are leaving the Municipal Dock because it is full tonight due to the Titans game just across the bridge. We will go down river about 15 miles to Rock Harbor Marine where we will stay tonight and plan to get a taxi and come back to The Grand Ole Opry. When we were booking Nashville Deb tried to get tickets for Friday night, but when they told us who was playing we had never heard of a single act. But then the lady said...to bad you’re not going to be here on Saturday, because we have a special treat. For the same price as Friday (with no names) on Saturday they have playing...Alan Jackson; Charlie Daniels; Kathy Mattea; and a few others I can’t remember, but I recognized them when Deb told me. So we are really looking forward to going tonight.
Side notes:
· For one of the first times since I retired I felt funny yesterday. For some reason when we are cruising during the week I do not feel like I should be doing anything else. But when I was walking around the hall of fame, on a weekday, with all those older folks (well compared to Deb and I), I thought “what the heck am I doing here”?
· I promised myself I would not watch the market every day and let that determine my mood...but it sure was nice to see another 400 points positive yesterday.
· Rumor has it that the marina we are going to tonight is owned by the former husband of Wynona Judd ( a famous country singer and 1/2 of The Judds). Actually I’m not sure you can call it a rumor because the owner (Arch) told Ted and Billie (on Main Course) this was the case when they stopped for fuel on the way up here...and they told us. What he actually said was “he got the marina in a divorce settlement because he came home and found her in bed with another man”. Seems like a lot to share with someone who just stopped by to buy gas doesn’t it? I wonder how much he’ll share with us if we spend the night????
I hope everyone is doing well...I’ll keep you posted.
BK.
Day 122
A shot from outside the Country Hall of Fame
Kathy Mattea during their tribute to Blind Alfred Reed
Deb...it's official...we're tourists
Inside Tootsie's
Great band...that girl played "The Devil went down to Georgia" good enough to make Charlie Daniels worry.
Saturday, September 20, 2008
6:40 AM CDT
Location: Municipal Marina, Downtown Nashville, TN
Weather: 68* with calm winds; forecast is for 81* and partly cloudy today
It’s a little warmer this morning than it has been for a while. There is also no dew or fog. I’m sitting on the back of the boat and things are fairly quite (as quite as they can be next to downtown Nashville) except for that bass boat that just flew by at about 50 mph. It’s light out, but the sun is not up yet, and when it does come up it will have trouble shinning with all these clouds. That said it will be plenty warm and very nice.
Yesterday was a fun and interesting day. After spending the early morning cleaning up the boat both inside and out we decided to walk to town for lunch. I had in mind some BBQ, which I always love in the south. When we were at Harpeth Shoals marina I asked the dock master is she knew of a good place and she told me to go to Jacks...so we did...and it was great. We had the beef brisket plate...if you come to Nashville...go to Jacks...you’ll love it. After lunch we went to the Country Music Hall of Fame. On our tour on Thursday we passed it and decided to go see it. (side note: for all of you who have told me over the years I need to slow down more and smell the roses; please note in the last 2 days I have taken a scheduled tour (not a Bob Koerner whirl wind tour...one where some one else was driving) and visited a museum...is this what you had in mind?). It was actually the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum...and we both enjoyed it. We were also fortunate that when we started our tour they had a special concert tribute to Blind Alfred Reed (included in our ticket price they kept telling us) and it was very good. I have never heard of Blind Alfred Reed (I wonder if anyone has) but for his tribute they gathered many singers and musicians from West Virginia (where he lived) and had them all there. You can see one picture I included...the lady is Kathy Mattea...who is a famous country singer...and very good. One quick note on Blind Alfred Reed...although I have never heard of him or his music...it was good. Here is one of his song titles...”She does the best she can, woman was made after man, and she’s been after him ever since”. Yes...that’s the title...and it’s a good song.
After all that museum lookin’, we were both parched and needed to find a beer and a band (not hard to do at any time in Nashville) so we ended up at Tootsie’s (who I might add is mentioned at the Country Hall of Fame). The pictures are taken inside Tootsie’s. This band was very good, and like all bands we saw, played only for tips and the hope someone would discover them. Deb and I both agreed we really liked Nashville..and Deb tells me she has a much greater appreciation for country music. Me...I already loved it. Back at the boat by 5 we enjoyed another boat cocktail with our new friends Ted and Billie on Main Course...they plan to leave early today...heading back to Clarksville. Dinner was on the boat, and Deb cooked some awesome fish, and we ate it while watching some reruns of Andy Griffith (I knew all those recordings would come in handy). Probably the 10th time (at least) I have seen that episode...and I laughed just as hard as the first time.
Today...should be a fun day. We are leaving the Municipal Dock because it is full tonight due to the Titans game just across the bridge. We will go down river about 15 miles to Rock Harbor Marine where we will stay tonight and plan to get a taxi and come back to The Grand Ole Opry. When we were booking Nashville Deb tried to get tickets for Friday night, but when they told us who was playing we had never heard of a single act. But then the lady said...to bad you’re not going to be here on Saturday, because we have a special treat. For the same price as Friday (with no names) on Saturday they have playing...Alan Jackson; Charlie Daniels; Kathy Mattea; and a few others I can’t remember, but I recognized them when Deb told me. So we are really looking forward to going tonight.
Side notes:
· For one of the first times since I retired I felt funny yesterday. For some reason when we are cruising during the week I do not feel like I should be doing anything else. But when I was walking around the hall of fame, on a weekday, with all those older folks (well compared to Deb and I), I thought “what the heck am I doing here”?
· I promised myself I would not watch the market every day and let that determine my mood...but it sure was nice to see another 400 points positive yesterday.
· Rumor has it that the marina we are going to tonight is owned by the former husband of Wynona Judd ( a famous country singer and 1/2 of The Judds). Actually I’m not sure you can call it a rumor because the owner (Arch) told Ted and Billie (on Main Course) this was the case when they stopped for fuel on the way up here...and they told us. What he actually said was “he got the marina in a divorce settlement because he came home and found her in bed with another man”. Seems like a lot to share with someone who just stopped by to buy gas doesn’t it? I wonder how much he’ll share with us if we spend the night????
I hope everyone is doing well...I’ll keep you posted.
BK.
Log 34; Day 121; Nashville, TN
Friday, September 19, 2008
Just one shot of the many beautiful hills (and some mountains) we passed
Not sure if this shot does any justice...but this was a typical view out the front of the boat as we went up the Cumberland
This was the view of Nashville as we came around the corner
This is the municipal dock where we are parked...that boat in the picture is Main Course and the bridge above is the one in the picture below
Just after we parked the tour boat General Jackson went by us...I think they go from here 8 miles up river to Opryland
The trolley we took on our Nashville tour
This is very near downtown Nashville and is supposed to be an exact replica of the Parthenon in Greece??
The mural on the wall of The Stage
The band we saw at The Stage...great
Our slip at the Municipal Marina...Deb is standing at street level
The bridge above our boat
Our boat at night in her slip...cool place.
7:10 AM CDT
Location: Municipal Marina, Downtown Nashville, TN
Weather: 61* with calm winds; forecast is for 84* and mostly sunny today
As I sit here this morning I can look to my left and see downtown Nashville...to my right (across the Cumberland River) I can see LP Field where the Tennessee Titans play football. It’s light out, but the sun is not yet high enough to shine brightly...which I think it will do soon, based on the few clouds I see. I’ve got the heat on in the helm area because it’s 61 outside, and the coffee tastes great. Pretty good morning so far.
Yesterday was a great day. As you can see by the picture, it started off very foggy...but cleared up quickly and we left the dock at 8:15. The 32 miles up the Cumberland were some of the prettiest river cruising we have ever done. I put a couple of pictures of the scenery...but as I looked at them, they do not do any justice to how pretty things were. One of the many highlights of the short trip was going by the home of Alan Jackson (the famous country singer). Rumor is he just sold the place to Kenny Chesney...I’ll check it out and let you know. After 32 miles all of a sudden we were downtown. Not a lot of buildup or warning...it was just there. After tying up and getting settled we had a quick lunch and walked into town to check things out. We ended up taking a 1 hour trolley ride around Nashville, and it was not bad. Learned a lot about the history and attractions. After the trolley ride I wanted to find a bar with a live band. I had this vision of “wana-a-be’s” who would play in these bars during the day in order to get discovered...and we found one...a place called The Stage (see the 2 pictures). Turns out they had a great band...just a few guys who were having a blast playing music. We knew we should go back to the boat...but neither of us wanted to leave. It was one of those “one more song and we’ll leave” kind of things. I’ll bet we go back today.
Back at the boat (about 5) we walked up the dock and officially met a couple we had been talking with on the radio since Lake Barkley Marina. Ted and Billie (on Main Course) are from St. Louis and both retired. He was President of a hospital...she was in education. Very nice couple and we ended up touring their boat...then they came to our boat for a tour. After that they decided to go to town for dinner...we ate on the boat.
Side notes:
· Happy to see the market go up yesterday...made the ride a little better.
· So many pictures yesterday...would love to put them all on the web page, but it takes too much of our Verizon data usage to send them all...we get a certain amount each month as part of our package.
· Nashville is a cool downtown...lots of old buildings that are not neat bars and restaurants
· Too many highlights to explain on the trolley tour...but we did see where Elvis recorded most of his records. An old small brick building that had no character at all. The tour guide said he loved it because it had the best acoustics of anywhere in Nashville. How do tour guide know all this stuff? I think they just make it up to sound good.
· Remember the cool bridge we stayed under in Alton...well we are under another one...the pictures are cool...but don’t do it justice.
· Because we are tucked under some trees at the municipal dock our satellite TV does not work for the first time, because it can’t see the satellite. No TV for 2 days. Good thing I have all those Andy Griffith episodes on the DVR
· Deb just got a call from a gentleman named Tommy Greer. He said he has been following our blog and lives 17 miles up river from Nashville and wanted to know if we needed anything. On one hand it was a strange call...on the other...mighty neighborly. If you reading this Tommy...thanks for the offer.
Today...not sure. Just a lazy day in Nashville.
I hope everyone is doing well...I’ll keep you posted.
BK.
The fog as we were getting ready to leave our slip. If you look close you can see the two large condo buildings in the backround
Just one shot of the many beautiful hills (and some mountains) we passed
Not sure if this shot does any justice...but this was a typical view out the front of the boat as we went up the Cumberland
This was the view of Nashville as we came around the corner
This is the municipal dock where we are parked...that boat in the picture is Main Course and the bridge above is the one in the picture below
Just after we parked the tour boat General Jackson went by us...I think they go from here 8 miles up river to Opryland
The trolley we took on our Nashville tour
This is very near downtown Nashville and is supposed to be an exact replica of the Parthenon in Greece??
The mural on the wall of The Stage
The band we saw at The Stage...great
Our slip at the Municipal Marina...Deb is standing at street level
The bridge above our boat
Our boat at night in her slip...cool place.
7:10 AM CDT
Location: Municipal Marina, Downtown Nashville, TN
Weather: 61* with calm winds; forecast is for 84* and mostly sunny today
As I sit here this morning I can look to my left and see downtown Nashville...to my right (across the Cumberland River) I can see LP Field where the Tennessee Titans play football. It’s light out, but the sun is not yet high enough to shine brightly...which I think it will do soon, based on the few clouds I see. I’ve got the heat on in the helm area because it’s 61 outside, and the coffee tastes great. Pretty good morning so far.
Yesterday was a great day. As you can see by the picture, it started off very foggy...but cleared up quickly and we left the dock at 8:15. The 32 miles up the Cumberland were some of the prettiest river cruising we have ever done. I put a couple of pictures of the scenery...but as I looked at them, they do not do any justice to how pretty things were. One of the many highlights of the short trip was going by the home of Alan Jackson (the famous country singer). Rumor is he just sold the place to Kenny Chesney...I’ll check it out and let you know. After 32 miles all of a sudden we were downtown. Not a lot of buildup or warning...it was just there. After tying up and getting settled we had a quick lunch and walked into town to check things out. We ended up taking a 1 hour trolley ride around Nashville, and it was not bad. Learned a lot about the history and attractions. After the trolley ride I wanted to find a bar with a live band. I had this vision of “wana-a-be’s” who would play in these bars during the day in order to get discovered...and we found one...a place called The Stage (see the 2 pictures). Turns out they had a great band...just a few guys who were having a blast playing music. We knew we should go back to the boat...but neither of us wanted to leave. It was one of those “one more song and we’ll leave” kind of things. I’ll bet we go back today.
Back at the boat (about 5) we walked up the dock and officially met a couple we had been talking with on the radio since Lake Barkley Marina. Ted and Billie (on Main Course) are from St. Louis and both retired. He was President of a hospital...she was in education. Very nice couple and we ended up touring their boat...then they came to our boat for a tour. After that they decided to go to town for dinner...we ate on the boat.
Side notes:
· Happy to see the market go up yesterday...made the ride a little better.
· So many pictures yesterday...would love to put them all on the web page, but it takes too much of our Verizon data usage to send them all...we get a certain amount each month as part of our package.
· Nashville is a cool downtown...lots of old buildings that are not neat bars and restaurants
· Too many highlights to explain on the trolley tour...but we did see where Elvis recorded most of his records. An old small brick building that had no character at all. The tour guide said he loved it because it had the best acoustics of anywhere in Nashville. How do tour guide know all this stuff? I think they just make it up to sound good.
· Remember the cool bridge we stayed under in Alton...well we are under another one...the pictures are cool...but don’t do it justice.
· Because we are tucked under some trees at the municipal dock our satellite TV does not work for the first time, because it can’t see the satellite. No TV for 2 days. Good thing I have all those Andy Griffith episodes on the DVR
· Deb just got a call from a gentleman named Tommy Greer. He said he has been following our blog and lives 17 miles up river from Nashville and wanted to know if we needed anything. On one hand it was a strange call...on the other...mighty neighborly. If you reading this Tommy...thanks for the offer.
Today...not sure. Just a lazy day in Nashville.
I hope everyone is doing well...I’ll keep you posted.
BK.
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Log 33 Day 120 Ashland, TN
Log 33
Day 120
Thursday, September 18, 2008
You can see I look excited to get started...but Deb needed another picture
This was taken from our boat...looking out at the Cheatam Lock. Notice the fisherman trying to fish in that current.
6:45 AM CDT
Location: Harpeth Shoals Marina, Ashland City, TN
Weather: 61* very foggy and calm winds; forecast is for 84* and sunny today
Very foggy this morning...actually the first totally foggy morning since we left Michigan. We have seen some patchy fog...but nothing like this. Might have to wait a while to head out this morning. The river is fairly narrow at this point and the channel is even narrower...I don’t need to be out there until the fog is totally gone.
The 47 mile ride from Clarksville to Ashland City, TN was a very nice ride on a beautiful day. The sun rose to a crystal blue sky and it warmed up to the mid 80’s in no time. We had most of the isinglass open all the way and it was great (the only problem we had at all is I was listening to CNBC market watch on our Sirius radio and going crazy listening to the market take another dive...why do I put myself through that?)
As we get closer to Nashville the river continues to get a little narrower and a little higher banks. We are also seeing more channel markers (to keep us in the deep part of the river) and the channel is much shallower than it has been (15 feet verses 40 to 50 feet down river). About 20 miles up river from Clarksville we had to go through the Cheatam Lock (see the picture of the dam next to the lock). A boat who we met down river (Main Course) had radioed us and ask if he could follow us up to, and in, the lock because they had never taken their boat in a lock before, and were not familiar with the procedure. I told them no problem...follow us. On my chart plotter I could see that there was a tow boat heading up river (remember I have the AIS system installed on my boat...a great tool for traveling the river) and I was trying to calculate how fast we would be catching him and how soon he would make it to the lock. I also was thinking about going fast for a while to pass him and possibly get in the lock before him to save us a wait time of up to 2 hours. After some consideration I decided to not go fast...but I did hear the tow call the lock and give the lock his information and discuss locking through. At that point I called the tow and asked him if we could get in the lock with him...which he said no. So I called the lock master on the phone and told him he had two pleasure craft heading up river and we were just behind the tow and could we go in with him...to which he said no. I was very nice with him (which I always am with lock masters) and told him we would be below the lock and would love a “lift” as soon as he could get to us. About 15 minutes later something interesting happened. When the tow originally called the lock he told him that before entering the lock there would be “crew change” which means that a new crew would be coming on deck and that crew would be taking the tow through the lock. When that happens there is normally a delay (because the barge slows way down...or even stops in some cases...to change crews) and so the lock master called the tow on the radio and asked him if he had changed crews yet...to which the tow said no...and so the lockmaster asked the tow if he could lock through a couple of pleasure craft before he got to the lock and the tow captain said sure...so we passed the tow and went right in. We were in the right place...and did the right thing.
From the lock to our slip for the night was about 10 miles of more beautiful river. Harpeth Shoals Marina is a new (no one lives here yet) beautiful condo complex with a new marina attached. The place is so new they don’t even have a credit card machine yet so we had to pay cash ($1 per foot for the night), but the docks are great (all of them covered) and the area is first class. About 1/2 of the slips are full at this point...but I’m sure they won’t last long, being this close to Nashville. The dock master said they had 136 condos in the complex and only 41 were left to sell. They start closing and people start moving in next week. After settling in at the dock Deb did some reading and book work and I did some cleaning on the boat. We had left over spaghetti for dinner and a nice quite evening.
Today we head up to Nashville and will be staying downtown at the municipal marina...a run of only about 32 miles. We plan to stay 2 nights in Nashville and then head down river.
Well I can see the sun now as it peeks through the fog and it is starting to lift a little bit. Hopefully by the time I get this log sent and start to get the boat ready for cruising it will be burnt off. Looks like it will be another great day.
I hope everyone is doing well...I’ll keep you posted.
BK.
Day 120
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Our slip at the municipal dock in Clarksville
You can see I look excited to get started...but Deb needed another picture
This was taken from our boat...looking out at the Cheatam Lock. Notice the fisherman trying to fish in that current.
6:45 AM CDT
Location: Harpeth Shoals Marina, Ashland City, TN
Weather: 61* very foggy and calm winds; forecast is for 84* and sunny today
Very foggy this morning...actually the first totally foggy morning since we left Michigan. We have seen some patchy fog...but nothing like this. Might have to wait a while to head out this morning. The river is fairly narrow at this point and the channel is even narrower...I don’t need to be out there until the fog is totally gone.
The 47 mile ride from Clarksville to Ashland City, TN was a very nice ride on a beautiful day. The sun rose to a crystal blue sky and it warmed up to the mid 80’s in no time. We had most of the isinglass open all the way and it was great (the only problem we had at all is I was listening to CNBC market watch on our Sirius radio and going crazy listening to the market take another dive...why do I put myself through that?)
As we get closer to Nashville the river continues to get a little narrower and a little higher banks. We are also seeing more channel markers (to keep us in the deep part of the river) and the channel is much shallower than it has been (15 feet verses 40 to 50 feet down river). About 20 miles up river from Clarksville we had to go through the Cheatam Lock (see the picture of the dam next to the lock). A boat who we met down river (Main Course) had radioed us and ask if he could follow us up to, and in, the lock because they had never taken their boat in a lock before, and were not familiar with the procedure. I told them no problem...follow us. On my chart plotter I could see that there was a tow boat heading up river (remember I have the AIS system installed on my boat...a great tool for traveling the river) and I was trying to calculate how fast we would be catching him and how soon he would make it to the lock. I also was thinking about going fast for a while to pass him and possibly get in the lock before him to save us a wait time of up to 2 hours. After some consideration I decided to not go fast...but I did hear the tow call the lock and give the lock his information and discuss locking through. At that point I called the tow and asked him if we could get in the lock with him...which he said no. So I called the lock master on the phone and told him he had two pleasure craft heading up river and we were just behind the tow and could we go in with him...to which he said no. I was very nice with him (which I always am with lock masters) and told him we would be below the lock and would love a “lift” as soon as he could get to us. About 15 minutes later something interesting happened. When the tow originally called the lock he told him that before entering the lock there would be “crew change” which means that a new crew would be coming on deck and that crew would be taking the tow through the lock. When that happens there is normally a delay (because the barge slows way down...or even stops in some cases...to change crews) and so the lock master called the tow on the radio and asked him if he had changed crews yet...to which the tow said no...and so the lockmaster asked the tow if he could lock through a couple of pleasure craft before he got to the lock and the tow captain said sure...so we passed the tow and went right in. We were in the right place...and did the right thing.
From the lock to our slip for the night was about 10 miles of more beautiful river. Harpeth Shoals Marina is a new (no one lives here yet) beautiful condo complex with a new marina attached. The place is so new they don’t even have a credit card machine yet so we had to pay cash ($1 per foot for the night), but the docks are great (all of them covered) and the area is first class. About 1/2 of the slips are full at this point...but I’m sure they won’t last long, being this close to Nashville. The dock master said they had 136 condos in the complex and only 41 were left to sell. They start closing and people start moving in next week. After settling in at the dock Deb did some reading and book work and I did some cleaning on the boat. We had left over spaghetti for dinner and a nice quite evening.
Today we head up to Nashville and will be staying downtown at the municipal marina...a run of only about 32 miles. We plan to stay 2 nights in Nashville and then head down river.
Well I can see the sun now as it peeks through the fog and it is starting to lift a little bit. Hopefully by the time I get this log sent and start to get the boat ready for cruising it will be burnt off. Looks like it will be another great day.
I hope everyone is doing well...I’ll keep you posted.
BK.
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Log 32
Day 119
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
4:45 AM CDT
Location: Clarksville, TN
Weather: 59* and no wind; forecast is for 82* and sunny today
It is one of those real early mornings today. I woke up early and got up a little before 4 am. I feel great now but will probably need a nap later. There are a lot of things I love about cruising and living on a boat...but on the top of the list are the mornings. I can’t wait to get up each day...no matter what we are doing...but when we are cruising each day I am even more excited. I also figured out a new “hot setup” this morning. Yesterday I mentioned that it stays dark later so I need a light in the morning. Bringing out a lamp to the helm area each morning was a pain, so I thought about it and came up with the idea to use one of Deb’s book lights. I clipped the book light to the top of my computer and “bingo” I have a light for the computer without bringing out a lamp. (Note; the entire helm area has lots of lights...but they are too bright...I just want a little light to work with).
It’s a beautiful morning...cool and no wind. Sitting on the back of the boat I am looking up at the town of Clarksville, TN all lit up and just a very short walk away. We are tied to the town’s free floating dock (with no water...but free 50 amp electric) which sits just off the channel of the Cumberland River and about 2 blocks from Clarksville’s downtown. The weather radar shows no rain anywhere near here and the forecast say it will be nice weather where we will be cruising for the next several days...actually they say it will be nice until next Friday...10 days from now.
Yesterday...we left the Lake Barkley Marina at 8:40 am and arrived at Clarksville, TN at 4 pm. The 67 mile trip up river (as we traveled south) was very pretty. It turned from a wide body of water (Lake Barkley) to a fairly normal river (Cumberland) and it will be this way all the way to Nashville. Actually the river would remind you of the Illinois River (very pretty with lots of trees) except the banks are much higher, and rocky, and the channel is much deeper. We also passed a couple of Civil War battle fields (can’t remember the names) that looked really cool. Once we arrived at Clarksville and got the boat settled down Deb and I decided to take a walk into town. I had talked to a guy on the dock at Green Turtle Bay and he told me there was a great brew pub in town that had the best pizza he had ever had...so we went in search of this place...and found it. I’m not sure if it was the best I ever had...but it was very good. We will be stopping here on our way back from Nashville...maybe we’ll go back. (We will definitely go into town again...it looked very nice and I’m sure they have more than one pub. Deb saw a few stores that looked interesting as well). Back at the boat it was not long before we retired for the night.
Side note: The heavy rains and flooding in the Midwest has caused lots of problems for other Loopers behind us. I belong to the America’s Great Loop Cruisers Association (AGLCA) and follow lots of Loopers...via email blogs. Many of these emails tell stories of several boats staged in different locations (from downtown Chicago to St. Louis) waiting for the rivers to crest and then get to a level they can travel on. Locks and rivers are closed from Chicago to Cairo where the Ohio River meets the Mississippi. Many of these boats have been waiting for over a week and may have to wait another week or more before they can head south. I am so glad we left when we did...because the rivers were in great shape and we had no issues. I really feel for those folks on the Illinois and Mississippi...they have a tough time ahead of them.
Today we will go 23 miles and go through Cheatam Lock and then another 9 miles to Ashland TN...our stop for tonight...and the last stop before Nashville. So today will be an easy day. Before we leave I need to see if I can fix our internet connection. For some reason our wireless modem stopped working yesterday and we can not log onto the internet without hooking the wireless card directly to our computer. There are certainly a lot worse problems we could have, but Deb and I really rely on the internet for cruising. Everything from weather...to paying our bills at home...to making reservations for slips. It’s an important tool, so I need to get it fixed as soon as possible. Maybe that’s why I got up so early?
I hope everyone is doing well...I’ll keep you posted.
BK.
A shot to show how close the channel is to the shore as we went the 2 miles off the Cumberland to Lake Barkley Marina
If you look closely you will see the house boat we parked next to at Lake Barkley Marina is also called Headquarters...only the 2nd one we have seen in all our years of boating.
Claudia will hate me for putting this picture on here...but this is how she looked trying to climb in the boat after we went swimming in a cove.
Steve and Claudia with us at Patti's restuarant in Grand Rivers, KY
Deb, Claudia, and Steve taking a dip to cool off in a Lake Barkley cove
Just one of the bass I have been catching...actually the biggest one.
Day 119
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
4:45 AM CDT
Location: Clarksville, TN
Weather: 59* and no wind; forecast is for 82* and sunny today
It is one of those real early mornings today. I woke up early and got up a little before 4 am. I feel great now but will probably need a nap later. There are a lot of things I love about cruising and living on a boat...but on the top of the list are the mornings. I can’t wait to get up each day...no matter what we are doing...but when we are cruising each day I am even more excited. I also figured out a new “hot setup” this morning. Yesterday I mentioned that it stays dark later so I need a light in the morning. Bringing out a lamp to the helm area each morning was a pain, so I thought about it and came up with the idea to use one of Deb’s book lights. I clipped the book light to the top of my computer and “bingo” I have a light for the computer without bringing out a lamp. (Note; the entire helm area has lots of lights...but they are too bright...I just want a little light to work with).
It’s a beautiful morning...cool and no wind. Sitting on the back of the boat I am looking up at the town of Clarksville, TN all lit up and just a very short walk away. We are tied to the town’s free floating dock (with no water...but free 50 amp electric) which sits just off the channel of the Cumberland River and about 2 blocks from Clarksville’s downtown. The weather radar shows no rain anywhere near here and the forecast say it will be nice weather where we will be cruising for the next several days...actually they say it will be nice until next Friday...10 days from now.
Yesterday...we left the Lake Barkley Marina at 8:40 am and arrived at Clarksville, TN at 4 pm. The 67 mile trip up river (as we traveled south) was very pretty. It turned from a wide body of water (Lake Barkley) to a fairly normal river (Cumberland) and it will be this way all the way to Nashville. Actually the river would remind you of the Illinois River (very pretty with lots of trees) except the banks are much higher, and rocky, and the channel is much deeper. We also passed a couple of Civil War battle fields (can’t remember the names) that looked really cool. Once we arrived at Clarksville and got the boat settled down Deb and I decided to take a walk into town. I had talked to a guy on the dock at Green Turtle Bay and he told me there was a great brew pub in town that had the best pizza he had ever had...so we went in search of this place...and found it. I’m not sure if it was the best I ever had...but it was very good. We will be stopping here on our way back from Nashville...maybe we’ll go back. (We will definitely go into town again...it looked very nice and I’m sure they have more than one pub. Deb saw a few stores that looked interesting as well). Back at the boat it was not long before we retired for the night.
Side note: The heavy rains and flooding in the Midwest has caused lots of problems for other Loopers behind us. I belong to the America’s Great Loop Cruisers Association (AGLCA) and follow lots of Loopers...via email blogs. Many of these emails tell stories of several boats staged in different locations (from downtown Chicago to St. Louis) waiting for the rivers to crest and then get to a level they can travel on. Locks and rivers are closed from Chicago to Cairo where the Ohio River meets the Mississippi. Many of these boats have been waiting for over a week and may have to wait another week or more before they can head south. I am so glad we left when we did...because the rivers were in great shape and we had no issues. I really feel for those folks on the Illinois and Mississippi...they have a tough time ahead of them.
Today we will go 23 miles and go through Cheatam Lock and then another 9 miles to Ashland TN...our stop for tonight...and the last stop before Nashville. So today will be an easy day. Before we leave I need to see if I can fix our internet connection. For some reason our wireless modem stopped working yesterday and we can not log onto the internet without hooking the wireless card directly to our computer. There are certainly a lot worse problems we could have, but Deb and I really rely on the internet for cruising. Everything from weather...to paying our bills at home...to making reservations for slips. It’s an important tool, so I need to get it fixed as soon as possible. Maybe that’s why I got up so early?
I hope everyone is doing well...I’ll keep you posted.
BK.
This is a Kentucky prison (that looks like a castle) just up river from Green Turtle Bay Marina
A shot to show how close the channel is to the shore as we went the 2 miles off the Cumberland to Lake Barkley Marina
If you look closely you will see the house boat we parked next to at Lake Barkley Marina is also called Headquarters...only the 2nd one we have seen in all our years of boating.
Claudia will hate me for putting this picture on here...but this is how she looked trying to climb in the boat after we went swimming in a cove.
Steve and Claudia with us at Patti's restuarant in Grand Rivers, KY
Deb, Claudia, and Steve taking a dip to cool off in a Lake Barkley cove
Just one of the bass I have been catching...actually the biggest one.
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Log 31 Day 118; Lake Barkley Marina, Cadiz, KY
Log 31
Day 118
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
6:00 AM CDT
Location: Lake Barkley Marina, Cadiz, KY
Weather: 58* and no wind; heading for 77* and sunny today
It is staying dark so much longer that I have to use a light out in the helm area each morning when I get up and get on the computer (it is light enough to see without a light at about 6:15). I like it better when the sun comes up early...but I also like it when the sun sets early.
Cool out this morning...I think the coolest morning since we were in South Haven. It’s nice to have the heater in the helm area to warm it up. We are sitting in a very pretty area about 2 miles off the main Cumberland River channel at MM 59.5. We changed our minds and decided to head up the Cumberland River (but heading south) to Nashville and then turn around and come back down the Cumberland and join the Tennessee again next week.
The last few days...Steve and Claudia arrived at GTB last Thursday evening. We had a great 4 days with them. Steve brought his fishing boat and we fished both Friday and Saturday, both beautiful days on the lake. I’m not sure what has happened in the bass fishing deal...but all of a sudden I have learned how to catch bass. I have been going out in the dinghy by myself and practicing. My secret it to only use 1 lure...a rubber worm, and reel it VERY slow. Not sure why...but it works great. Between the 2 of us we probably caught 20 to 25 bass and had a great time. After we fished in the morning, we came back to the boat for breakfast and some relaxing and then both days took the boat out to one of the local coves for some swimming...lots of fun.
On Sunday morning we got some of the backlash of hurricane Ike. Not much rain...but winds that were a steady 25 to 35 and gusts reported over 60 mph. It was quite a morning. At about 9 am we lost power (for about 30 miles in all directions)...and it still is not back. The good news is we can run the generator and have normal power on the boat, but I don’t like doing that for a long time so after dinner and a movie (steaks and “Dave”...the movie with Kevin Kline) I shut down the generator and we slept with all the windows open during the night...with no electricity (the winds had calmed down early in the afternoon). On Monday morning (about 7 am) I started the generator again so we could have coffee and breakfast. Steve and Claudia were planning on leaving early and did so at about 9. I talked to folks at the marina about when they planned on getting the electricity back...and the answer was between 24 and 48 hours...so we decided to leave (a day earlier than planned) and head up river to find a marina that had power...and we ended up at Lake Barkley Marina...about 30 miles south. Hard to understand, but we are going south...up river.
For some reason I can’t upload the pictures I had planned with this log, and I think it is because of a very weak internet signal. I’ll see if this log will upload...otherwise I’ll send it later today when we get to Clarksville, TN our next stop. The plan today is to travel about 67 miles and enter Tennessee (the state...not the river) and stop at Clarksville. The cruising guide says they have a free dock right near down town and it is highly rated by some of the cruisers we have talked to...so we are going to give it a try. From there we keep going south and our destination (on Thursday) is Nashville where we hope to spend 2 nights.
Well it is light now...but very cloudy, and 61 degrees. I need to make some breakfast and then I want to wash the boat off before we head out...which we plan to do so at about 9. I also need to completely fill the water tank because there is no water at Clarksville...but they do have power. The forecast calls for the clouds to go away and for it to be very sunny this afternoon...looking forward to it.
I hope everyone is doing well...I’ll keep you posted.
BK.
Day 118
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
6:00 AM CDT
Location: Lake Barkley Marina, Cadiz, KY
Weather: 58* and no wind; heading for 77* and sunny today
It is staying dark so much longer that I have to use a light out in the helm area each morning when I get up and get on the computer (it is light enough to see without a light at about 6:15). I like it better when the sun comes up early...but I also like it when the sun sets early.
Cool out this morning...I think the coolest morning since we were in South Haven. It’s nice to have the heater in the helm area to warm it up. We are sitting in a very pretty area about 2 miles off the main Cumberland River channel at MM 59.5. We changed our minds and decided to head up the Cumberland River (but heading south) to Nashville and then turn around and come back down the Cumberland and join the Tennessee again next week.
The last few days...Steve and Claudia arrived at GTB last Thursday evening. We had a great 4 days with them. Steve brought his fishing boat and we fished both Friday and Saturday, both beautiful days on the lake. I’m not sure what has happened in the bass fishing deal...but all of a sudden I have learned how to catch bass. I have been going out in the dinghy by myself and practicing. My secret it to only use 1 lure...a rubber worm, and reel it VERY slow. Not sure why...but it works great. Between the 2 of us we probably caught 20 to 25 bass and had a great time. After we fished in the morning, we came back to the boat for breakfast and some relaxing and then both days took the boat out to one of the local coves for some swimming...lots of fun.
On Sunday morning we got some of the backlash of hurricane Ike. Not much rain...but winds that were a steady 25 to 35 and gusts reported over 60 mph. It was quite a morning. At about 9 am we lost power (for about 30 miles in all directions)...and it still is not back. The good news is we can run the generator and have normal power on the boat, but I don’t like doing that for a long time so after dinner and a movie (steaks and “Dave”...the movie with Kevin Kline) I shut down the generator and we slept with all the windows open during the night...with no electricity (the winds had calmed down early in the afternoon). On Monday morning (about 7 am) I started the generator again so we could have coffee and breakfast. Steve and Claudia were planning on leaving early and did so at about 9. I talked to folks at the marina about when they planned on getting the electricity back...and the answer was between 24 and 48 hours...so we decided to leave (a day earlier than planned) and head up river to find a marina that had power...and we ended up at Lake Barkley Marina...about 30 miles south. Hard to understand, but we are going south...up river.
For some reason I can’t upload the pictures I had planned with this log, and I think it is because of a very weak internet signal. I’ll see if this log will upload...otherwise I’ll send it later today when we get to Clarksville, TN our next stop. The plan today is to travel about 67 miles and enter Tennessee (the state...not the river) and stop at Clarksville. The cruising guide says they have a free dock right near down town and it is highly rated by some of the cruisers we have talked to...so we are going to give it a try. From there we keep going south and our destination (on Thursday) is Nashville where we hope to spend 2 nights.
Well it is light now...but very cloudy, and 61 degrees. I need to make some breakfast and then I want to wash the boat off before we head out...which we plan to do so at about 9. I also need to completely fill the water tank because there is no water at Clarksville...but they do have power. The forecast calls for the clouds to go away and for it to be very sunny this afternoon...looking forward to it.
I hope everyone is doing well...I’ll keep you posted.
BK.
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