Home!

On Wednesday, May 15, we went from Sale Creek to one of the best anchorages we've seen...Martin's Light at mm 548.2 on Watts Bar Lake.  But the journey was not without "issues."

This time the issue was a Coast Guard barge traveling upstream.  We hailed the Watts Bar Lock as we were about an hour out to see how their day looked for lock throughs.  Turns out this barge, Garyville, was just now getting to the lock and the lock master anticipated it would take about 4 hours to get it through.

YIKES!  We were close to Sewee Creek by that time and decided to just anchor there for a couple of hours (sigh) before making our way up the lake. 

Maggie thought we should be more playful during this break and was ready with the ball...

After about an hour and a half we got antsy and decided we should be up there in front of the lock well before the barge job was done.  Good thing we did.  As it turns out, it only took about 3 hours for the barge to be moved through in sections.  We swirled around for about 1/2 hour before the lock doors opened for us and one other PC (pleasure craft) or REC (recreational boat) to go through.

Another long day, but, as I said in the intro, we were rewarded on our last night of anchorage with a beautiful spot.

View as we were leaving Sale Creek on Wednesday....




The following three pictures were taken at the Martin's Light anchorage.  They don't do it justice, but still will help us remember the place....

And leaving the anchorage the next morning as the sun rose...

And calm waters for our trip home...

In addition to Thursday, May 16, being the culmination of this trip, we also celebrated having put 12,000 miles on this boat during the time we've owned it (since 2014).  That number is recorded on upper right corner of our Raymarine display.  Having already put 10,000 miles on our previous boat, SEGUE, that brings us to a whopping 22,000 miles traveled on water in the past 16 years!

Tuesday, May 14, 2019 - from Sale Creek Anchorage, mm 495

Yesterday, May 13, we went from Little Cedar Mountain Anchorage to Anchorage at mm 476.2.  We traveled a total of 50 miles and it took 8 hours.  We had a lot of water coming down against us!  We spent a calm night there.

This morning, May 14, we started out from our anchorage...but pretty soon we heard the alarm on the boat that tells us the engine is overheating.  We pulled over to the side of the channel so we could anchor and Wayne went down to try and find the problem.  Turns out we needed to have the impeller changed.  The spare we had onboard wasn't a new one so Wayne called Island Cove Marina, just a few miles ahead of us, and confirmed they had a new one he could buy. 

From there we called Boat US and had a towboat come out to pull us into the marina, which they did.  Wayne then tackled the job and finished at around 2:30PM.  New impeller in place we took off again and got to Sale Creek Anchorage, mm 495, at 5:30PM.  Whew! 

Maggie and I did some walking while at Island Cove and spotted this heron looking for lunch....

Sunday, May 12, 2019 - Goosepond Colony Marina to Little Cedar Mountain Anchorage, mm 427

On Saturday, May 11, we went the short trip from Short Creek to Goosepond Colony Marina.  Since it only took a couple of hours we had plenty of time to get the courtesy car, have lunch at the Liberty Cafe...and fetch a few more groceries.  We had a little rain off and on that afternoon, but not enough to stop Maggie and me from taking a couple of good walks.

This morning we were up early and out on the waterway by 6:45AM.  We had 49 miles to go from Goosepond to the anchorage at Little Cedar Mountain, and it took eight hours what with the Nickajack Lock towards the end of the trip.  Again we had some spotty showers but nothing long or dangerous.  ;-)  Tomorrow our goal will be to make it through Chickamauga Lock and either anchor or go to Island Cove Marina for the night.

Views of our anchorage...

I guess there's a reason they call it Goosepond....

Sunrise this morning....

Friday, May 10, 2019 - Riverwalk Marina to Anchorage at Short Creek, mm 361

We traveled 56 miles today and went through Guntersville Lock.  No rain today...though it's predicted for tonight.  It was a calm day of travel.

We are anchored now in Short Creek, an area surrounded by TVA land.  If this doesn't get posted tonight you'll know we don't have enough of a signal. ;-)

Maggie, making herself comfortable with a view...

Thursday, May 9, 2019 - Florence Harbor Marina to Riverwalk Marina, Decatur, AL, mm 305

We were out and going up in the Wilson Lock by 7:30 AM!  Lucky us, the lock master had a tow waiting to go up, too, but put us in there first.  We've had the best experience ever on this trip getting through Wilson Lock.  Something to smile about! ;-)

As we entered Wheeler Lock a while later we had light rain greet us.  That was just the beginning of a deluge of water and at times lightning and thunder.  We ended up pulling over in a cove to anchor during the rough part of the storm.  We went through rain for much of the trip to Riverwalk Marina at Decatur, AL. Looks like more rain to come tonight...tomorrow...and maybe the next day.  We'll try to make 40-50 miles daily as we get closer to home.

What a lovely lock wall in the Wheeler Lock!

Catching Up

Monday, April 29, 2019 - Sugar Bay Anchorage to Pebble Isle Marina, mm 96

We traveled 63 miles today from 7:15AM to 3 PM.  The weather was generally pleasant (coats in the morning, shorts in the afternoon).  Not much boat or tow traffic…nice day!Maggie and I took a walk, first thing. We were both ready to hit the dirt again!  Pebble Isle is a nice stop on this part of the river.  Fuel was $2.99 with Boat US discount and there’s a restaurant on site.  I’ll post some pictures tomorrow when we have better reception…

Tuesday, April 30, 2019 - Pebble Isle Marina to Indian Creek Anchorage, mm 168

Left the marina this morning a little after 7…after Mags and I took a little walk. We set out to get as far as we could today, fearing the current will get so strong going up to Pickwick Lock that it will take us a long time.  Our first choice for anchorage was at mm 155 behind an island.  We got there before 3 and decided to go for Indian Creek.  We got here at 5.  Made for a long day on the water, but I think we’ll sleep better knowing we have only 38 miles to go before we get to Pickwick.  The weather today was very pleasant.  Cool-ish in the morning and even in the early afternoon depending on direction of the wind.  We’ll see what time we get through the lock and then decide where to anchor for tomorrow night.  On Thursday we’ll get to Florence Harbor and spend a night or two so we can do “boat chores” (laundry, groceries, etc.)  Zippo on the connectivity here, so it will be a while longer before this gets published. [tight grin}

Wednesday, May 1, 2019 -  Indian Creek to Panther Creek,  mm 218

We left early, as usual, anxious on this day to see how long it would take to get to the Pickwick Lock with the current against us. We got to it around noon and, after a short wait while they brought another pleasure craft down, were out of the lock and settled in at our Panther Creek anchorage.  This was a beautiful cove on the right descending bank of Pickwick Lake.  The only problem we had with it was ZERO signal on the phones.  OK. Lesson learned. You can have a lovely setting, surrounded by a nature preserve (read: no roads, no power poles)...you just may not be able to contact the outside world.

A pretty rough rainstorm hit with a lot of wind.  Despite being jerked in all four directions, the anchor held tight.  It turned out to be a very pleasant evening.

Thursday, May 2, 2019 - Panther Creek to Florence Harbor, mm 256

View from our anchorage this morning:

We had a nice day of travel to Florence Harbor and got there in time to have lunch from the River Bottom Grill.  We decided to stay 2 nights at Florence so we could run around a little with the courtesy car. We dropped off laundry at a wash and fold place and got groceries. The chores done...we looked forward to Friday being a day "off."

When we pulled into our slip we found ourselves next to A Frayed Knot, an Albin Express trawler that we've seen before at Ft. Loudon Marina. We re-acquainted ourselves with Bob and Elaine Stevenson who were getting ready to leave for places down river.  As Bob started out of the slip, though, the throttle stuck at a high rpm and he shot out and over to the dock on the other side of the aisle, slamming into a pontoon boat.  Fortunately, neither boat was really hurt...but they had to stay another night to work out a solution to the problem, which they did.

As we traveled up river this morning the water was calm...

Friday, May 3, 2019 - Florence Harbor

We were sipping our first cup of coffee that morning when Wayne's sister, Linda, called to tell us that Wayne's mother had died early that morning. We immediately made plans to leave the boat at Florence Harbor and rented a car to drive to Athens, TN, that day.  We were there by 3PM, in time to be in on the final plans for coming events.   

Wayne, Maggie, and I drove home that evening and were there for the weekend.  On Monday we drove down for receiving of friends, 5-7.  Our son, David met us down there and then went home with us that night.  The next day we picked up Maggie from the Dog Nanny who'd kept her Monday night and went back to Athens for the funeral at 2 PM.  After going to the cemetery we said goodbye to most of the family and friends that had come and went to Linda's house for a shared meal.  Dave took off after the burial so he could get back to Wake Forest by midnight.

Mrs. Prichard, or Mamaw, as we called her, lived a full life (100 years old in March) and passed away peacefully.  She was an amazing woman, raising two children alone and working until she was 95 (when she retired from Walmart). The receiving of friends brought in quite a crowd!  She was much loved and will be missed...but we all know she's at rest now.

Wednesday, May 8, 2019  - Florence Harbor

After the dinner last night we loaded up and drove down to Chattanooga to spend the night. This morning we loaded up and got to Florence by 10:30AM.  Stocked up on a few perishables, filled up with water, and we're ready to finish our trip home. We think we'll be back within 2 weeks.  Tomorrow is calling for high winds and storms in the afternoon so we'll get out early and see how far we can get.  More to come....

Taking a break

Sunday, May 5, 2019 - We're home for a few days....back on the boat Wednesday.  On Friday morning Wayne's mother, "Mamaw Prichard," died peacefully at her assisted living home.  We rented a car and came back to help with arrangements and attend the receiving of friends (tomorrow) and the funeral (Tuesday).  We are grateful for the way Mamaw died...and for the 100 years she's lived.