Loudoun to Chickamauga

Here's Wayne, Lucy, and Journey in the background as we took Lucy for a walk on Wednesday morning.



















Then we motored up to Ft. Loudon Marina for fuel and water...then into the lock and out by 10:45.   I was a little windy in the chamber, but we got in and tied up without issues.  (Caught a good shot of lock wall for future art projects, too!  Feel free to copy.  ;-)

It was pretty chilly during the trip down Watts Bar Lake.  We now realize how nice it is to have the entire upper helm enclosed!  We had planned to anchor at Cozy Cove at mile 547 but made really good time, thanks to the current and winds.  Instead, we anchored at Hornsby Hollow Recreation Area near mile 541.  We've spent a week there in years past so were drawn back by the "pet friendly" factor.

Morning brought fog, and lots of it.  We could see enough to take Lucy into the dock, but waited until about 11 to leave the site and head down to Watts Bar Lock.  We decided to try locking through from the lower helm.  Wayne drove and found it to be a much better perspective for us on the lock wall.  Always a good thing, to find something else that makes locking through easier.

Coming out of the lock we caught this view of the Watts Bar Nuclear Plant, Unit 1
(with cloud floating from the top) and Unit 2 ("Unit 2 will be the first new reactor to achieve commercial operations in the U.S. since Watts Bar Unit 1 in 1996." TVA website

As we went along our route into Lake Chickamauga today the sun came out and we were treated to a beautiful day on the water.  We saw a couple of eagles, but none close enough to capture on film.  We worked on honing our chart plotter/autopilot skills for most of the afternoon ride and got a lot accomplished.  This is the first real opportunity we've had to play with the system while traveling.  We do LOVE the autopilot!

This evening we're docked at Blue Water Campground and Marina, Dayton, TN,  a friendly and well-located stop.  50 ft. covered slip, cable TV, internet, Papa Johns within delivery distance...for 75 cents /foot.  Hard to beat!  

We'll be anchored out for the next three nights, or that's the plan right now.  Next marina stop will be Goose Pond.

Oh, and in case you, too, have been wondering about the spelling of Loudon (Loudoun)...here's an piece from WBIR that attempts to explain the variations.