Spring 2019 Trip to Clarksville, TN

Monday, April 15, 2019 - Fort Loudon Marina to Anchorage at Little Paint Rock Creek, mm 576

Well, this has taken some time…but we’re finally on our way for a little cruise this spring.  We started out with the idea of going back down to the Panhandle.  Those plans were dashed when we realized that the Tenn-Tom Waterway (which runs from the Tennessee River to the Mobile Bay) is silted over in a spot and the waterway is closed to all traffic right now.  The Army Corps of Engineers anticipated starting to clear a 150 foot passage on April 1 and thought it would take at least 3 weeks.  THEN we pictured all the barges/towboats that were lined up to go through and decided to opt out of that mess.
After much talk and scanning of charts we decided to go to Clarksville, TN, instead.  We’ll go down the Tennessee River to a “cut through” near the Kentucky Dam, and that will take us to the Cumberland River.  Upstream on the Cumberland about 125 miles we’ll come to Clarksville, TN, and visit for a day or two.
We’d planned to leave, then, on April 6 or 7.  That was before Wayne realized we needed to replace all the batteries in the boat.  That done, we set the departure date for today, April 15.
But wait!  There’s more!  We got down to the boat on Sunday the 14th so we could be ready first thing Monday morning to lock through the Fort  Loudon Lock.  Wayne was running through his check list and tested the bow thrusters…which weren’t working!  After roaming around in the engine “room” (can’t really call it a room since there’s no chance of standing upright in it) for a while he uncovered the problem: we needed a new bus bar.  Don’t even ask what that’s for…I do well to remember the name of the thing.  All I know is…we won’t be leaving without it.
This morning Wayne went to West Marine and bought a new one…and installed it.  By noon we were in the lock and headed downstream.  It was a little chilly this morning, like in the 40’s with a pretty bold wind.  We made good time, though, due to going downstream, and anchored at about 4 PM.
The wind has died down and it’s very pleasant at 5:30.  We’ve had the river to ourselves today…only the occasional small, fast boat.  Tomorrow we’ll get in a full day of cruising.

Maggie and Wayne taking in the afternoon sun....