Tennessee

We had some very strong thunderstorms again last night.  Melissa and I got up around 1AM to make sure our lines were holding securely. At least now Aye Sea No Snow is well washed of any salt water left from the Keys.

The Bar B pulled out at 7:10 AM.  I ran into a couple from Ashland WI on the dock.  Keith and Barbie were headed to the Cumberland River.

We pulled out at 10:30 since we do not have very far to go (73 miles in two days).  There were several large tows on the river; Edwin Kennedy, Terah Huckabee, and the Washington.

Crane Creek Ferry

A bridge to No Where

It was a little cool so we took the Bimini down.

Rachael enjoys the sun on the Fly Bridge.

It was a pretty lazy day so we played Scrabble on the Fly Bridge.

The Grad student won of course.

There was also a bunch of professional bass fishermen that must have been getting ready for a tournament.

Just before we reached our destination we came upon a training exercise of Nave Seals.  They were parachuting into the river from a Chinook helicopter.  Very cool to watch.

Ready for pick up.

We pulled into Paris Landing State Park Marina around 3PM.  Good thing we were early as they close at 4PM.

Coast Guard station at Paris Landing

We walked across the highway to have dinner at the state park restaurant.  Rachael was thrilled as it was Crazy Chicken night at the buffet.

A couple of ducks met us at the dock when we got back to the boat.

Rachael feeds the ducks.

Tomorrow we have 43 miles to get to Kentucky Dam Marina where we will leave the boat until the 1st of July. When we come back in July we will tackle the mighty Mississippi River!

Happy Crew!

Kentucky Lake

June 4th, 2012.

We lucked out as strong storms passed by north and south of us last night.  The Girls watched MTV movie awards while the Captain kept an eye on the weather and listened to the weather bank radio until 1AM. At 6:30 there was still a light rain but it let up by 7:30.

The girls were up by 8AM but we were in no hurry as we only had 60 miles to do today.

The Captain and First Mate keep each other warm on a chilly day.

Pulled out of Riverstone Marina about 9:15 and headed downstream.  It was cloudy, cool, but no rain.  Very little traffic on the river today.

Always reading.

A few fishermen, a dredge, one pontoon pulling some tubers, and one tow pushing 12 barges.

The First Mate relieves the Captain at the Helm

The harvest gravel from the river with a dredge.

Still reading.

The First Mate limits the Captain on the number of pictures allowed per day.

Interesting lighthouse on a river?

What's wrong with this picture?

Must be expecting high water.

Break from reading

River tree.

The sun finally came out at 2:45 as we approached Kentucky Lake.

Hippie chick enjoys the sun

 We pulled into Pebble Isle Marina just after 4PM and immediately recognized Bar B already in the marina.

After we pulled in we chatted with Bob and Barbi.  They used the courtesy car to go to dinner while Melissa caught up on a little work on the internet.  When they came back, we used the car to go to Tequila John's for dinner and then to Wally World to pick up a few supplies.  It all worked out nicely.

We were back to the boat by 8:30 for a night of scrabble.

Full moon over Pebble Isle Marina

Pickwick

Easy morning at Grand Harbor Marina.  The Captain worked on the blog while waiting for the girls to rise and shine. 

Grand Harbor Condos

Out of the marina at 10AM.  Arrived at Pickwick lock at 10:40.  Big Eddie was in the chamber going down so we had to wait for the lock tender to turn the lock around.  

Mystery passenger!

We shut down the motors and drifted in the bright sunlight while Rachael worked on her tan. 

The doors opened up at 11:12 and we motored passed some fishermen into the chamber.  We left the lock at 11:45.

Melissa concentrates on keeping us secure in Pickwick Lock.

Best Crew on the river.

Another successful lock through.

Pickwick will be the last lock we pass through on this leg of our journey.  We plan on leaving the boat at Kentucky Dam Marina just a mile from Kentucky Dam.  When we return June 30th we will lock through at Kentucky Dam but no other locks until then.

Yuck!

Passed the tow Alvin Johnson going up at 12:25.  We stopped to swim about 1:30 just outside the channel.  We all got in the dingy to motor over to shore.  First Mate Melissa had to row us back to the boat to retrieve the key to the motor as the Captain had forgotten about that part of the equation. 

The girls decided the water was too muddy so we motored around in the dingy for a while.  Back onboard and had lunch.  The dingy davit system the Captain had installed in Key West worked great.

“Peg Leg” motored by at a fast pace and waked us pretty bad.  The Captain called Peg Leg on the radio to let them know we were not pleased by the lack of consideration.

Nice home

Nice Shed

Nice Tent

Nice Canopy

Nice Stilt House

Must be a one percenter

This tree must believe in the advice from Gunnery Sargent Highway...Adapt, Improvise, and Overcome!

Dredge

Rock formation

This lady stopped by as we went down river to ask if we were Loopers.  She and her husband had just completed the Great Loop on their boat.

We were back underway by 2:30 with a target of 5:30 arrival at Riverstone Marina.  Melissa took the helm for most of the completion of the day’s journey and we pulled in right on time.

Riverstone Marina is a very nice small marina operated by Matt Spitzer.  Very nice guy.  He and his staff really went out of their way to make sure we were comfortable.  

Aye Sea No Snow safely secured at Riverstone Marina.  

Their full phone number is 731-549-2345 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting            731-549-2345      end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Very secure location to hold up during spring storms!

We plan on stopping at Riverstone again next fall on the way back down. 

We hunkered down for the evening as some strong storms were moving through. 

The crew is finally off duty for the day!

The girls are happy with satellite TV giving us the MTV Music Awards.   The Captain kept an eye on the lines to make sure we were safely secured.