Demopolis, AL – Bashi Creek, AL - October 29, 2008

The boat we were rafted to last night (Decision) planned to leave at 7:30 this morning, so we set our alarm for 7 to be ready to move for them. Our plan was to re-dock, use the marina’s courtesy car to do a little re-provisioning and then leave after that. Decision delayed their departure due to fog and then relayed to us that the lock was expecting heavy commercial traffic but would lock down one group of RV’s (recreational vehicles) first.

After hearing that we shelved our plan of using the courtesy car and got ready to leave immediately. We certainly didn’t want to wait several hours to go through the lock, especially since we needed to go 71 miles today for an anchorage. There was an “iffy” anchorage in 47 miles, but it was recommended it not be used unless it was an emergency.

There were 2 more boats tied up near us at the marina. There was a 90’ power catamaran and a 70’ motor yacht rafted to the cat. They were huge, beautiful boats. They were also in the lock with us, along with 3 other boats. They soon passed us, they go much faster than we do.

The first six miles south of the lock are very scenic. The banks of the waterway are smooth rock walls, rounded, shaped and carved by water. Moss grows on the rocks and hangs form the trees.

We passed the remains of the old Rooster Bridge. On April 19, 1979 a powerful current turned the tugboat Cahaba sideways, then pushed it down and under the Rooster Bridge. The river was at a record level of 24 feet above flood stage and had come to within a few feet of the steel drawbridge.

The captain was following accepted procedures, but was unable to buck the current and back away from the bridge. That’s when it happened. Eyewitnesses saw the tug disappear into the water and heard it being banged and scraped along the underside of the bridge. But, because the tug had a lot of cement ballast, it popped up on the other side. Badly battered and with water pouring out of its pilothouse, the tug still had one of its two engines running. Three crewmembers, although badly shaken, weren’t seriously injured.

In early 2002, hundred of thousands of internet users and magazine readers were able to see photographs of this event. Google Cahaba Tug to read the story and see the pictures.


We are no longer on the straight canals of the waterway. We are now on the Black Warrior River in this lower part of the Tenn-Tom. This is a photo of one page of the chart book. It is 144 miles by road from Demopolis (where we stayed last night) to Mobile. It is 216 miles by river. The river twists and turns all the way down.

At about 2 this afternoon, Darrell mentioned that we hadn’t seen any tows today. Immediately after he said that we met 3 of them. Beth has discouraged him from saying anything about the last lock we need to go through.

We anchored in Bashi Creek at 5 p.m. 70.3 miles. This was a very narrow creek and we needed both bow and stern anchors. Two boats that were following us rafted to us for the night, one on each side.

Tonight is supposed to be quite cold. 31 degrees. No heat.


1 lock – total 106

Carrollton, AL – Demopolis, AL - October 28, 2008

It was 91 miles and 2 locks to the next marina (in Demopolis) and we, along with Ebb Tide discussed getting a very early start in hopes of getting there today rather than anchoring. We don’t mind anchoring, but it was going to be quite cold tonight and, if we don’t have shore power, we don’t have heat.

We set the alarm at 6 and hoped the lock ¼ mile away was available. When we called the lock we found they had just locked up a northbound tow and had a southbound waiting to go. There went our chance of reaching the marina today.

However, a little later we found out that the northbound encountered some problems and was crossways in the channel. The southbound tow couldn’t get to the lock until the northbound got straightened out.

We had our radios on and when the lockmaster called to say we could lockdown now, we immediately left the marina. We were through the lock at 7:20. Not as early as we had hoped, but not as late as it could have been.

It was very cold and, for the first time this trip we were going to pilot from the salon, which was warmer than the flybridge. It is unusually cold here, about 20 degrees below normal. Beth has been wearing her scarf!

About 10 we went back up to the flybridge. It actually became warmer up there with the sun shining through the clear plastic of our enclosure.

We called the 2nd lock when we were about ½ hour away to check on availability. They had just locked down, but would turn it around and it would be ready for us when we got there. YES! We got out of the lock at 12:05, with 50 miles to go. We were now committed to getting to the marina, because there was no other place to spend the night, not even an anchorage.

We passed the halfway point between the Tennessee River and downtown Mobile. The rest of the trip should go more quickly because we have already gone through 10 of the 12 locks.

This is Ebb Tide, the boat we had been traveling with for a couple of days. A 25’, very small.

We passed the white cliffs of Epes. They are very pretty.

We arrived at Demopolis Marina at 5:45. There were no slips available, so we had to raft up to another boat, but we are here. A long day, 89.4 miles in 11 hours.

The final 216 miles of the Tenn-Tom have no marinas and we will be anchoring out every night. It is unlikely we will be able to post to our blog until we reach Mobile.

2 locks – total 105

Aberdeen, MS – Carrollton, AL - October 27, 2008

The marina where we stayed last night was only ½ mile from our next lock. We got up at 6:30 to check for lock availability and fog. The lock was ready with no waiting and there was no fog (due to the wind we were experiencing). We left the marina at 7 with Ebb Tide, one of the 6 boats we were traveling with yesterday. Ebb Tide had stayed at the same marina. The rest of the boats continued on.

Ebb Tide is a 25’ Ranger Tug. It is a very cute boat, but it is small. We think it would be hard for us to travel in that small of a boat. Phil and June, along with their dog, started the loop in Hilton Head, NC. We used the courtesy car the marina offered and went to dinner with them.

In the morning the Tenn-Tom Waterway was narrow and straight. We occasionally saw the original Tombigbee river as it wound in and out of the canal. The original river was very narrow here. This afternoon we traveled more on the original Tombigbee river as it grew wider. There were more curves and higher banks.

We traveled by Columbus Air Force Base whose runways were only a few miles east of us. During World War II, more than 8,000 students came to this base for pilot training. In 1951 it provided training for pilots during the Korean War. Four years later it became the base for the Strategic Air Command (SAC). In 1969 it resumed its training mission and now trains a third of all new U.S. Air Force pilots.

Surprisingly, the number of landings and takeoffs at the base not only makes this the Nation’s busiest Air Force base but also ranks it right up there with Chicago’s O’Hare and Atlanta’s Hartsfield, the two busiest commercial airports.

We saw many T-37 jet trainers. The T-37 has a distinctive whistle, is nicknamed the “Tweety Bird” and is the first trainer Air Force pilots climb into. The other trainer used here is the T-38 or “Talon” that introduces pilots to supersonic and high altitude flight and is used by NASA for chasing the space shuttle during landings.

We got to our second (and last) lock of the day. It was very windy and Ebb Tide had much difficulty getting tied to the bollard. They were finally able to catch the bollard and we locked down.

Today was our daughter Keely’s birthday. We called her this morning to wish her Happy Birthday. We will be seeing everyone in less than 1 month!

We got to Pirates Cove Marina at 2:30. We are now in Alabama and will be for the rest of the trip on the Tenn-Tom Waterway. It is supposed to get quite cold tonight, 29 degrees. We are glad we are in a marina and can use shore power to heat the boat.

2 locks – total 103

Fulton, MS – Aberdeen, MS - October 26, 2008

Last night was another very cold night. It was hard to get out of our warm bed. We did get up about 7:15 and called the next lock to check on availability. We were anchored about ½ mile from the lock and he said he’d have everything ready in about 20 minutes. There were 6 boats staying at a marina about 2 miles from the lock and when one of them heard our radio conversation, called to ask if the lockmaster would hold the lock so they could lock down with us. That was fine with us, if you miss a lock opening it’s a minimum 1 hour wait to get in.

We were out of the lock at 8:30, along with the other 6 boats. The next lock was in 11 miles but we found out there was a northbound and a southbound tow that would need to go through the second lock before we could. So, we slowed way down and got to the lock as the upbound tow was coming out. We still had to wait for the southbound tow to go through and we had passed them about a mile before the lock. That was where he waited until the northbound tow had passed him.

It was quite frustrating to wait, because by the time the southbound tow got in the lock, we could have been locked down and the chamber refilled and ready for the tow. So, while waiting, we dropped the anchor and had lunch.
We came across the identical situation at the third lock. This time, however, the lockmaster asked the tow captain if he should let the pleasure boats go first. The tow operator said yes. We were very appreciative.

Fortunately we were planning to go only 36 miles today, but with the 3 locks plus the wait, we didn’t get to the marina until 3:30. It took us 8 hours to go 36.7 miles.

There was a lot of debris in the water today. We had to keep an eye out so we didn’t hit any logs or anything that will hurt the propeller. It turned nice and warm by mid-afternoon. A welcome change after the past few days.

3 locks – total 101

Fuzzy at the Rocket Center

Fuzzy got to go to the Space and Rocket Center with Nana and Papa. The Space and Rocket Center is a place that’s all about astronauts and outer space. Fuzzy didn’t know what an astronaut was. Papa told him an astronaut is a person who travels into space.

Fuzzy saw a movie about 3 Flies hitch-hiking a ride to the moon with the astronauts. It was really good.










Fuzzy got to see the rockets that take astronauts into space and to the moon. He saw the Space Shuttle and the Lunar Rover. He learned about the equipment astronaut’s use and saw the spacesuit that astronauts wear. He and Nana were in an Apollo Command Module Simulator.








There was also a rock climbing wall and Fuzzy got to go on that. The instructor helped him a lot. Fuzzy found out that he liked rock climbing.

Fuzzy found out that there is a Space Camp for kids. After going through the museum and learning all about space and astronauts, Fuzzy wants to go to Space Camp. Then he will study hard in school because now he wants to be an astronaut when he grows up and astronauts have to know a lot, especially about science and math.

Fuzzy is bringing you some astronaut food. He found an ice cream sandwich that is just like astronauts take into space.

Zippy Branch, TN, - Fulton, MS - October 25, 2008

When we got up this morning there was a beautiful blue sky, but heavy fog down near the water. We weren’t able to leave until 8:45, after some of the fog had burned off.

After a few miles on Yellow Creek, we started our 450 mile trip down the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway. This is known as the Tenn-Tom for short and, in reality, is only the 234 miles between the Tennessee River and Demopolis Alabama. The 217 miles between Demopolis and Mobile is the Black Warrior-Tombigbee Waterway however, when boaters refer to the Tenn-Tom they generally are talking about the entire 450 miles.


Construction began on the Tenn-Tom project in 1972 and it opened January of 1985. There are 12 locks and dams on the system. It was a huge project and more dirt was moved to build the Tenn-Tom than was moved to build the Panama Canal. Until we reach Columbus, Mississippi there are only long sections of canals between the lakes that were formed due to the locks and dams that were built. We are told that if we pay attention and just look, there is much beauty in this section of our trip. After Columbus we head southeast into Alabama and that is when we are on many of the small rivers, with twists and hairpin turns.

We met our first (of many) tows on the Tenn-Tom. When on one of the straight stretches of the canal this isn’t a problem. But if you happen to meet a tow on one of the sharp turns you must go to the side they direct you to (usually the inside of the turn). If you don’t you could be forced into shore as the tow swings wide to make the turn.

Our first three locks on the Tenn-Tom were within 13 miles of each other. The first had a drop of 85 feet and is the start of a total drop of 414 feet to the Gulf of Mexico.


We arrived at our first lock about 1:30. There were two boats about 2 miles ahead of us that waited in the lock until we arrived. Then we waited about ½ hour longer for another boat to arrive that had been about 5 miles behind us. The locks like to get as many boats in as possible and prefer to wait to lock rather than locking several times. Once we got through the first lock the rest are supposed to go rather quickly. The lockmasters talk with each other and let them know how many boats are on the way. We did have to wait at the third lock for a tow that was coming out.

“Line up the boat ramp at starboard with the red buoy and the Ford sign on land. Turn to port slightly downstream of the red buoy.” How’s that for anchoring instructions? It was a long day. We didn’t get anchored until 6 p.m.

3 locks – total 98

Rogersville, AL – Zippy Branch, TN, October 24, 2008

Just as forecasted, there was rain this morning when we got up. It was also cold. We could see our breath when outside. However, after calling the lock and finding it was open, we left the harbor at 7. According to the forecast of last night, we should be running out of the rain sometime late morning or early afternoon. Beth wore long underwear, jeans, turtleneck, jacket and full raingear.

We arrived at our first lock at 7:30 and waited for 2 other boats that had also left today. They arrived about ½ hour after us and we got through the lock about 8:30.

When locking, we have usually been able to tie up on the starboard side. The door to the salon is there and, since you must always attend your line when you are locking, if there is bad weather you can just slip inside, stay dry and still watch the line. Today the lockmaster said to tie up to port so, not only did Beth have to move all the bumpers and lines in the rain, she had to stand outside all the while. Even in full rain gear she got drenched. She is sure the lockmaster took his time and lowered the water slower than usual. It must be noted that Darrell volunteered to stand in the rain while locking through but Beth insisted on handling the lock line.

The three boats stayed together and reached the 2nd lock about 10. This was a drop of nearly 100 feet. We also tied on port but fortunately it stopped raining while we were locking. It started up again just as we left. Since there were only 2 locks today, there was no need to travel together after the 2nd lock. One boat passed us and traveled faster than us and one boat wanted to run slower and fell behind.

The rain stopped around 11, just as was forecast. It eventually cleared and became a beautiful day.

We reached the mouth of the Tenn-Tom Waterway at 3:30. We had decided to anchor tonight, about 1 mile in. We were in and set for the night at 3:45.

2 locks – total 95

Rogersville, AL – October 23, 2008

Today is the last day of the Fall Rendezvous. This morning Darrell listened to a speaker about the Abacos area of the Bahamas. We are considering whether to go there this winter.

This afternoon we attended separate men’s & women’s sessions. These sessions are geared towards answering the questions of people who have not yet started the loop. It is also helpful for those people currently on the loop. There are always new things to learn.
There was a discussion about the challenges of living 24/7 in very close quarters with your spouse/partner. Sometimes discussions can get heated and non-verbal ways of letting off steam are needed. Beth shared Barbara I.’s “full bouquet” spousal communication technique.

We are planning to leave tomorrow but have found out just recently that the Wheeler lock, which is 5 miles away and the first lock we need to go through, is closed due to high wind. There are also several tows waiting to go through when the lock opens again. We are hoping that the lock re-opens tonight and will be available for us tomorrow. There is also rain forecast for tonight & tomorrow – up to 2”. We are hoping we don’t get delayed right when we’re planning to start.

Tonight is our last reception and group dinner. No speaker tonight, but an award banquet
and many drawings for prizes.

Rogersville, AL – October 22, 2008

Another day of information and visiting with people. We found that there are 2200 memberships in the AGLCA. Most of the memberships are comprised of 2 people so there are approximately 4400 members. Of the 2200 membership, 360 have already completed the Loop, 220 are in the process of doing the Loop and 1620 want to do the Loop.

There is a complete e-mail listing of all the members and everyone uses it to offer information, ask questions and give opinions. That’s a lot of people sharing knowledge.

The lodge at Joe Wheeler Park offered a shuttle into town every afternoon this week. This afternoon Beth took advantage of it and went in to pick up a few more items. The driver Ed, retired to Rogersville from California about 4 years ago. He volunteers at Joe Wheeler Park 40 hours a week. He was very helpful and took us every place we wanted to go.

The dinghy race was held late this afternoon. Each dinghy held 2 people, the helmsman and the navigator. All they had to do was go out 100 yards, round a mark and return. The fastest team won. Sounds simple, right? The driver was blindfolded and the dinghy was driven backwards! A lot of fun to watch! The third place boat used oars rather than an engine.

Tonight, another reception and dinner. There will be a speaker talking about Weather and Weather Radio.

Rogersville, AL – October 21, 2008

Registration for America’s Great Loop Cruisers’ Association (AGLCA) Fall Rendezvous & Reunion started at 1 p.m. yesterday. There are 55 boats here for the Rendezvous and 187 people. Many of the attendees arrived by car and are staying at the lodge.

The AGLCA is a wonderful organization. The people who belong are those who have completed the Great Loop, in the midst of doing the Great Loop or those who plan on doing the Great Loop. Everyone is very helpful and share their knowledge with others.

Today we listened to speakers talking about the next 2 segments of our trip. The Tenn-Tom to Mobile, Al. and then Mobile to Carrabelle, FL. There was a “Looper Crawl” where people gave tours of their boats. There was also a Kayak race.
Each evening there is a reception followed by dinner and a speaker.

Rogersville, AL – October 20, 2008

Yesterday, we spent most of the day at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville, AL. Huntsville had once been a small and quiet county seat town and has become a busy and thriving city. It is Alabama’s third largest city and aerospace is the reason for its growth.

It all started with Dr. Wernher von Braun who led a team of German scientists in developing Germany’s famous V-2 rocket. Hitler used the rocket to bomb London during the latter days of WWII. When von Braun realized the war was ending and that Russians would soon occupy their test site, he and he team bluffed their way through German checkpoints and surrendered to American forces. In late 1945, more than 100 members of the von Braun team agreed to come to the United States to work under U.S. Army supervision. They were originally assigned to Ft. Bliss, Texas, site of the Army’s expanding rocket program.

In 1950 the Army moved the team to the Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville. Here, von Braun and his team were responsible for the creation of the Saturn V rocket. This was the vehicle used for orbital space flights and the Apollo missions. Following this were the successes of Skylab and the shuttle programs that continue today.

The Space & Rocket Center is the world’s largest space museum and has the Nation’s largest and finest collection of NASA rockets and army missiles.

There are dozens of hands-on exhibits, flight simulations, an IMAX theater and an extensive outdoor exhibit. There are military rockets, the 354-foot Saturn V moon rocket, a 98-ton full size model of the Space Shuttle, a U.S. Air Force SR-71 Blackbird spy plane, and many artifacts from the Mercury and Apollo space missions. We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.

This afternoon is the start of the Fall Loopers Rendezvous event. We have already re-connected with several people we met earlier in our trip.

Rogersville, AL – October 19, 2008

Last night was even colder than the previous night. Neither one of us wanted to get out of our warm bed. We have been showering on the boat because the marina shower is quite a distance away. Today we had to use our space heater when we got out of the shower. Beth even used her heating pad to warm her clothes before she put them on. If this keeps up we won’t need to chill the champagne we have on board to celebrate our completion of the loop.

We went to the U.S. Space & Rocket Center today. More about that tomorrow.

Fuzzy in the Cotton Field

Fuzzy was riding in the car when he saw a cotton field. Did you know the cotton clothes you wear are made from cotton plants? Fuzzy didn’t know that.

Cotton starts as a seed that grows into a plant. Flowers grow on the plant, then fall off and leave a small seed pot called a boll. The boll keeps growing and finally splits open. This is the cotton. The cotton is picked and the seeds taken out. Then the cotton is spun to make it into thread which is woven into cloth. It is a long process to change this small piece of cotton into a shirt or dress.


This picture is of Fuzzy by cotton plants where the boll has opened. Do you see all the white things? That’s the cotton and it feels like the cotton balls you have at your house. Ask your mom or dad to let you feel a cotton ball.

Fuzzy got a piece of cotton from the field. You can feel it when he gets back home.

Rogersville, AL – October 18, 2008

It got quite cold last night. We added blankets to the bed and Beth wore her winter pj’s. When we woke this morning we turned on the space heater. It was supposed to warm up to 68 degrees today, but we don’t think it made it there.

We got our rental car around 9:30 this morning and drove into Huntsville. We did a lot of shopping, hoping to get most of what we need for the rest of our trip.

A movie was on the agenda and, after checking out what was available, we decided to go to Eagle Eye. It is a techno-thriller, non-stop action, great special affects and an impossible plotline. (At least we hope it’s impossible). We both enjoyed it.

Driving back to the boat through Joe Wheeler Park we saw around 20 deer, from young fawns to adult does. Tomorrow we’ll go to the Space Center.

Rogersville, AL – October 17, 2008

Today was spent doing chores around the boat. Darrell was in the engine room all morning and part of the afternoon. Beth was cleaning and defrosting the freezer (yet again). Many Loopers are here already with more coming in the next few days so we want to get everything finished so we are free to visit and trade stories.

The Huntsville excursion that we signed up to attend next Friday was cancelled due to lack of participation. We were to go to the U.S. Space & Rocket Center, the Botanical Gardens and Burritt on the Mountain. So, we are renting a car for tomorrow and Sunday and will visit some of these attractions ourselves. We will also provision for the last leg of our trip.

It is quite cool today, a cold front passed through last night. It does certainly feel like fall.

Huntsville AL – Rogersville, AL. - October 16, 2008

Considering we needed to go 56 miles today, we got a rather late start. It was 7:45 before we got underway, however we had no locks we needed to go through.

It was overcast and cool today. It was calm, no wind and water like glass. A little after noon the wind picked up a little and we had sprinkles. Around 2 it started raining.

There was one railway bridge we needed to open for us. It is 9’8” when down and when we approached it there was a train crossing. We had to wait until the train was off the bridge and a certain distance away before the bridge could raise.

Darrell spent some of today working to get our autopilot and GPS working together. If he can do that he can plot a course on the GPS, engage the autopilot and the boat will steer to the plotted GPS course, not just the autopilots internal compass which is sometimes erratic. It would come in handy for the one night crossing of the Gulf we need to do.

We arrived at Joe Wheeler Park and were tied up at 3 p.m. We will remain here for another week. The fall Great Loop rendezvous starts on Monday.

Scottsboro, AL – Huntsville, AL. - October 15, 2008

We had planned to be underway this morning at 7, but when we got up there was very heavy fog. This is the first time in our trip that fog caused a delay for us. We finally left at 9, with our radar on. There was about 100 yards visibility. By 10 the sun had burned through the fog and it turned into a beautiful day.







As we retraced our route we passed the bat cave again. This time we got a little closer and took a picture. It’s a little hard to see, but is just above the waterline and is protected by a wire fence.

When we arrived at Guntersville Lock they were just getting ready to open to lock down another boat. We were fortunate and were able to lock down with them. After the lock we were back into Wheeler Lake.

From Guntersville Lock it is 72 miles to Joe Wheeler Park. We stopped at Ditto Landing Marina again for the night. Tomorrow we will travel the 56 miles to Joe Wheeler.

1 lock – total 93

TN. Anchorage – Scottsboro, AL. - October 14, 2008

The anchor was up and we were underway by 7. We were at the lock at 7:10 and got in after only a 10 minute wait.

There are many of these railway lift span bridges along the way. Most of them have enough vertical clearance so we don’t need to have them opened. They are all manned 24 hours a day to be able to raise the span on request. The bridge operator sits in the little box on top of the center left bridge.




We passed Widows Creek power plant. It is the third largest of TVA’s 12 coal fired plants.












This is the biggest pleasure boat (ship) we have seen on the Tennessee river. Darrell thinks it is at least 100’ long.

There were a few things Darrell wanted to pick up at Home Depot. We knew there was one at Scottsboro and, since the marina there also had a courtesy car, we decided to stay there tonight. We were tied up by 1:30.

1 lock – total 92

Guild, TN - Anchorage, October 13, 2008

Beth and Keely took a trip this morning to Rock City near the top of Lookout Mountain in Chattanooga. Rock City began in the late 1920’s when Garnet and Frieda Carter began to develop a large walk-through garden on their private estate. In 1930, Frieda marked the original path which was constructed and is now maintained by master craftsmen from this area.

On May 21, 1932, during the Depression, the Carters opened their “Rock City Gardens” to the public. There are huge rocks and boulders throughout this garden, with several trails and very interesting areas. We walked along the Grand Corridor, Swing-Along Bridge, Goblin’s Underpass, Fat Man’s Squeeze and Needle’s Eye. We saw Mushroom Rock, Shelter Rock, Tortoise Shell Rock, Deer Park and 1,000 Ton Balanced Rock. We walked to Lover’s Leap from which we were able to see seven states, Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia. On a clear day (today) we were also able to see the Smokey Mountains. We also saw Fairyland Caverns and Mother Goose Village.

Keely left for the airport at 1:45 this afternoon. We were very happy that she was able to come for a visit. Our son Greg had come earlier in our trip. We wish our son-in-law Tom and daughter-in-law Heidi had also been able to visit.

We left the marina around 2 this afternoon and traveled only 5 miles to our anchorage. We only had a few choices today, stay in the marina, travel 5 miles to anchor or travel 55 miles to a marina/anchorage. We choose to anchor just above Nickajack Lock. We will start early tomorrow and hope we can get right through the lock.

Chattanooga, TN – Guild, TN – October 12, 2008

There are some attractions in Chattanooga we wanted to see where a car, bus or taxi was needed. Guild, TN., where Keely met us with a rental car, was 33.5 miles and 4 hours away from Chattanooga by boat, yet only 20 miles and 15 minutes by car. Since we needed to back to Guild anyway so Keely could pick up the car and drive to the airport Monday afternoon, we changed our plans and left Chattanooga early this morning. We docked at the marina, picked up the car, and drove back to Chattanooga.
Even though we are now retracing our steps, and will be until we start going south on the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway, we are seeing new things. We passed the TVA’s (Tennessee Valley Authority) Raccoon Mountain pumped storage project. A 520-acre lake was created on top of 1,100 foot Raccoon Mountain into which water is pumped from the river during times of slack power use. Then when there are peak demands for electric power, water is allowed to flow down the mountain through giant tubes and turbines to generate electricity.

We arrived back at Hales Marina at 11 a.m., docked, had lunch and were back in Chattanooga by 1 p.m. The first thing we did was drive to the top of Lookout Mountain, where we took a ride on the Incline Railway. The Incline Railway is the steepest passenger railway in the world, with a 72.7% grade. The railway was originally built in 1895 to avoid the 4 hour road trip (about 20 minutes today) necessary to get to the top of the mountain. The views are really spectacular. We found that Lookout Mountain is the southern most mountain in the Appalachian Chain.

After our trip on the Incline Railway, we went to the Ruby Falls cave. Ruby Falls was discovered over 75 years ago when a group of men were trying to find the original site of the Lookout Mountain Cave. Ruby Falls is a 125’ high waterfall and is the largest underground waterfall open to the public in the United States. In order to see it we took an elevator 260’ down and walked 1125’ into the center of the mountain. The tour took 1 hour and we walked 1 mile.

It was very beautiful in the cave. There were stalactites and stalagmites and columns (when stalactites and stalagmites meet). There were many unique formations as well as an earthquake fault line. We took many pictures but, again, the pictures don’t represent the beauty we saw.

Fuzzy and Aunt Keely

When Fuzzy found out Aunt Keely was coming to visit he was very excited. He hadn’t seen Aunt Keely in awhile and was looking forward to playing with her.

Aunt Keely didn’t get here until after Fuzzy was asleep, but he saw her first thing in the morning. She was also happy to be here with Fuzzy, Nana and Papa.

Fuzzy got to go to the aquarium. There were all sorts of things to see and do. He got to touch a stingray and a shark! Their skin was very smooth.

He especially liked the penguins.

He saw a butterfly land on Aunt Keely's camera!

And he saw some fish like Nemo!

As Fuzzy was leaving the aquarium he saw some of his friends and had his picture taken with them. Can you find Fuzzy?

Chattanooga, TN – October 11, 2008

The fall 2008 sculling head races were taking place here today. They finished just to the right of our boat. It was fascinating to watch all the people complete in this sport. All ages were represented. There were youth up to men and women looking to be in their
30–40’s. There were also several categories, from 1 person up to 8 person skulls plus coxswain.
A head race is a time trial rowing typically held in the fall or early spring. In this form of racing, competitors race against the clock and the crew with the fastest time is deemed to be the winner. Racing usually takes place in different categories of boat class and abilities. The length of these races is usually between 3 km and 6 km. Boats are started at 10 to 15 second intervals. To minimize collisions, Boats are usually seeded so that the fastest start first.
After watching the races for awhile, we got on the free trolley and rode it to the Chattanooga Choo Choo. The Chattanooga Choo Choo is a Holiday Inn Hotel that started out in 1909 as a Railroad Terminal Station. It closed in 1970 and in 1989 was converted into a vacation complex. The old terminal is now the lobby of the hotel. In addition to regular rooms, you can also stay in converted railroad cars. This is also the site of the Model Railroad Museum.

We had lunch, then decided to see a movie. We picked Body of Lies with Leonardo DiCaprio and Russell Crowe. We enjoyed the movie.

Keely and Beth walked around the art district for a while and visited an art gallery. We are all impressed with how beautifully the Chattanooga waterfront has been developed. It’s the center of tourism for the city with the aquarium and all the waterfront events that are planned. Restaurants are all over and there is ample parking. There are many other attractions here, some of which we will see Sunday and Monday. Chattanooga would be a wonderful family vacation spot.

Keely enjoying her vacation.

Guild, TN – Chattanooga, TN- October 10, 2008

Our daughter Keely arrived last night around 11. She flew into Nashville, then rented a car and drove about 90 miles to the marina.

We left about 9:45 this morning, with a sunny and beautiful blue sky. This stretch of water from here to Chattanooga is known as the “Grand Canyon of the Tennessee”. The scenery was indeed beautiful, with mountains dropping steeply into the river that, in places, is barely 700 feet wide. The river makes dozens of turns as it twists through the mountains. Everyone has told us that in a couple of weeks the fall colors will peak and the views will be spectacular. Although we won’t be here then, we are beginning to see the start of the colors.

We were passed by many raceboats, all going very fast. We found out later that there are races this week-end on the other side of the next dam. Wonder what their fuel bill was!!


We rounded a bend and saw Lookout Mountain, one of America’s most famous landmarks. The mountain is more than 2,000 above the river and extends for nearly 100 miles into Georgia and Alabama. The last battle of the American Revolution was fought here. And it was here in November of 1863 that Union and Confederate forces fought in the “Battle Above the Clouds”, one of the bloodiest battles of the Civil War where more than 34,000 were killed.






We arrived in Chattanooga and were tied up by 1 p.m. We stayed at Marine Max, just a few blocks from the Tennessee Aquarium. We had heard many good things about the aquarium so that’s the first thing we did.

All of us enjoyed the aquarium. We took a self-guided tour through both an ocean and river journey. There were sharks, stingrays, jellyfish, turtles of all kinds, penguins, alligators, otters, a live interactive butterfly exhibit, seawater and freshwater fish, macaws and frogs, just to mention a few. There was also an exhibit on seahorses. It was surprising to find the many kinds of seahorses and to actually see them. Some were really strange. It is interesting to know that the male seahorse gives birth to the young. It was all very interesting. (Some of the pictures didn’t turn out very well, going through glass)

Back to the boat late afternoon – dinner and bed. We were all tired.

Scottsboro, AL – Guild, TN October 9, 2008

It was a little overcast and hazy when we left this morning at 7. There were a few lone fishermen out in their boats.

We had a 1-1½ mph push from the current at the start of today …and we were going upriver. It was almost as if we had turned the wrong direction coming out of the marina….until Darrell realized that all the rain yesterday probably accounted for it. All the streams and creeks feeding into the lake were raising the water level and pushing water upriver from the dam.

We only had about 43 miles to go today, including one lock, but because we stayed an extra day in Scottsboro we must get to our next stop today. There is always the worry that there will be a tow going through the lock and that it will cause a major delay.

The Tennessee River meanders and wanders. We have been on the Tennessee River in Alabama since September 23, but today re-entered Tennessee.

We passed the southern end of Sequatchie Valley. This is one of the world’s two rift valleys. The other is the Great Victoria Valley in Africa. Both were created by the earth’s surface literally splitting apart. Sequatchie Valley is more than 125 miles long, but never more than five miles wide. Because the cliffs provide ideal conditions for hang gliding enthusiasts, the valley is known as the “Hang Gliding Capital of the East.”

We got into the Nickajack Lock with no wait. While locking up we discovered several “smart” blue herons. As the lock filled with water small fish rose to the surface. The herons were perched on the railing and swooped down to the water to eat the fish. They found an easy way to catch fish.

After the lock we entered Nickajack Lake. Only 5 more miles until we reached our marina. We arrived at Hales Bar Marina and Resort at 2 p.m. In addition to the marina, there are floating cabins available to rent.

1 lock – total 92

Scottsboro, AL – October 8, 2008

When we woke this morning it was pouring outside. It continued to rain all morning. We could have left and run in the rain, but since we had an extra day before we needed to meet our daughter, we decided to wait and see what happened.

The rain stopped early afternoon, but it was too late for us to leave and make our planned anchorage. There weren’t any other anchorages for us to consider, so we decided to remain here another day.

We used the marina’s courtesy car again and drove around Scottsboro. There is a super Wal-Mart here along with quite a few other stores. Unfortunately there isn’t a theater. Today would have been an excellent day for a movie.

Scottsboro, AL – October 7, 2008

Since we don’t need to be in Chattanooga until Thursday we decided to stay here another day. Goose Pond Marina is a small part of Goose Pond Colony. It is a 360 acre recreation complex owned and operated by the city of Scottsboro. Besides the marina, it features an 18-hole, 6,900-yard, par 72 golf course. There are also many cottages available for rent, as well as campsites, swim pool and outdoor amphitheater.

Today was overcast and quite windy with some periods of rain. We haven’t seen rain for several weeks. We’ve been quite fortunate with the weather.

We hung around the boat most of the day. We did take a walk in between showers. There is a restaurant here that is supposed to be very good. We went there for supper. We enjoyed our meal.

Huntsville, AL – Scottsboro, AL, October 6, 2008

We got underway again this morning at 7:30. We cruised 16 more miles on Wheeler Lake until we came to Guntersville Lock & Dam. We called ahead to check status and the gates were open for us when we arrived.

Prior to getting to the dam we ran into a fog bank and turned on the radar. Luckily there wasn’t much traffic on the lake. Seeing the fog rise off the lake with mountains in the background was very beautiful. The pictures don’t show how pretty it was.

We went by a cave that is a sanctuary for federally endangered gray bats. At dusk, thousands of bats fly from the cave to feed on insects. The number of bats living in the cave fluctuates annually but ranges from 20,000 – 45,000 between April and September. The cave is warmer than most and is used as a bat nursery. In September all the bats migrate to a cooler cave in the hills a few miles north of the river. There are 11 more caves in the Tennessee Valley having a significant gray bat population.

We arrived at Goose Pond Marina and were tied up at 1:45. This is one of the few marinas having a courtesy car. We are really appreciative of courtesy cars. Most marinas are not located in towns and are not close to shopping. Having a car to use lets us re-stock and occasionally do some sightseeing.

1 lock - total 89

Rogersville, AL – Huntsville, AL – October 5, 2008

We were underway this morning by 7:30. It was good to be on the move again. Our day was spent on Wheeler Lake (on the Tennessee River). There were no locks for us to go through and only one railroad bridge to open for us today. There was no wait, we called and the bridge tender opened it just as we approached.

We passed Decatur, AL, then 15 miles of the Wheeler National Wildlife Refuge. On both sides of the river, it is 34,500 acres of wildlife and recreational interests. It is the southernmost wintering ground of Canadian geese. Thousands of geese and ducks spend the winter here.

The scenery was beautiful along the way. As we neared our marina in Huntsville, we could see mountains in the distance. We have been told that between here and Chattanooga are some of the most beautiful views on the Tennessee River.

Huntsville is located on the Cumberland Plateau of the Appalachian Mountains. There are several mountains around Huntsville. The largest is Monte Sano. There is also Huntville Mountain, Green Mountain, Wade Mountain and Berry Mountain, to name a few.

We arrived and were tied up at 3:00 p.m. There is a campsite next to the marina. It is very pretty and there is a large stone open air pavilion with a huge fireplace. The bathrooms and showers are in another part of the building. We took a long walk around the park.

Fuzzy goes Fishing

Fuzzy remembered when Papa went fishing in Canada and when he saw more people fishing at our marina he wanted to try it.

So, Papa got the fishing pole all ready for Fuzzy and let him fish off the bow of our boat. Fuzzy tried really hard but he didn’t catch any fish. He guessed the fish weren’t hungry, but he’s going to try again.

Jackson, do you remember when Papa took you fishing at the marina in Lake City? You caught some big fish. Papa is looking forward to taking you fishing again. Hayden and Emma, would you like to go fishing too? Do you think Halle would like it?

Rogersville, AL – October 4, 2008

We spent some of today getting the boat ready to leave tomorrow. We plan to make our way to Hales Bar Marina, Tennessee by Thursday when our daughter Keely will arrive for a visit.

We also took a nice, long walk around the park. This is a beautiful park, with marina, golf course, lodge, campsites and many acres of woodlands.

Today is our wedding anniversary. 39 years – we ate at the restaurant in the lodge, a seafood buffet……we should have eaten on the boat.

Rogersville, AL – October 3, 2008

Darrell spent some of the day touching up paint around the boat. He also washed the hull. It was very dirty down by the waterline.

It is very frustrating to not have cell phone coverage. We can occasionally get a signal if we walk around and happen on the right spot. Unfortunately the right spot changes constantly.

Rogersville, AL – October 2, 2008

Darrell returned the rental car this morning. We spent the rest of the day puttering around the boat.

Many of the boaters who were on our dock have used this time before the Fall Rendezvous to take trips home. There are still several boats on the dock, but not very many people.

The leaves are just starting to change color. The next few weeks should be beautiful.

Rogersvile, AL – October 1, 2008

We spent a lot of time on the road today and were able to see a lot of the Alabama and Tennessee countryside. There were cornfields, cotton fields, soybean fields, cattle farms, horse farms, steep hills and valleys, creeks … lots of beautiful scenery, and also a Polo Club.

Beth got to see Coon Dog Cemetery. This is the only cemetery of its kind in the world and began in 1937 with the burial of Troop, a legendary coonhound. Since then, other hunters started doing the same thing when their favorite coon dogs died. Today there are more than 185 coon dogs from all across the United States buried here.

There are headstones, some crafted of wood, some of sheet metal. There are also others having granite headstones like those found in a “normal cemetery”. The names, however are different. Patches, Preacher, Smoky, Bean Blossom, Bomma and Night Ranger are some of the names. Burials are still allowed in this cemetery, however the dog must be an authentic coon dog and there must be a witness to verify this.

Beth was, however, disappointed in the cemetery. She felt that because it had been advertised as tourist stop it should have been well kept up and well tended. In reality it was overgrown with grass and weeds. Darrell was happy to leave Coon Dog Cemetery. Beth thinks he did enjoy the roller coaster drive of the twisting, winding road getting there.

Our next stop was to a much more serious place, the Shiloh National Military Park. This park is the actual site of the April 6th & 7th 1862 battle between the Union and Confederate soldiers. 23,000 men were killed or wounded. We took a car tour after watching a 25 minute video. It was very moving to be on the actual grounds where such a horrific battle took place.

It was interesting to find out that there were 2 battalions from Iowa (our home state) involved in this battle. There were also men from Minnesota, Wisconsin, Indiana, Michigan and Ohio involved in the fighting. Some of these men ended up at an area called the Hornets Nest where they repelled seven attacks of the Confederate Army. They were finally overrun and captured when the Confederates assembled all available artillery to bombard their position. However, their heroic efforts enabled General Grant to set up defensive positions for his remaining force as well as allowing time for reinforcements to arrive. This enabled his forces to defeat the Confederate forces the following day.

We also stopped at the Tennessee river Museum in Savanah Tennessee. It chronicles the history of the Tennessee river, the animals and the people that lived in and on it’s banks from pre-historic times to the early 1900’s.