November 18, 2017 - Stats Update

We have done some very interesting travel since my last post. We have completed the inland rivers from Hammond, Indiana to Mobile Alabama, with a side trip to Chattanooga Tn. The good thing is weather was not an issue, no tides and for the most part not much current to deal with. We love the locks, so that was good, but for those people that don’t like them it would be brutal.

 We are currently in Mobile , AL and will be here for a week, doing errands, hopefully getting a few maintenance issues taken care of and relaxing. To date, 11/18/17,  here are our stats for our Loop so far:

Miles Travelled          4,250

Days Travelled           91

Hours Travelled         380

Fuel Consumed         2223 gallons

Average Speed           11.18 MPH

Locks Traversed        164

Bridges Crossed        457, of which 66 were in one day on the Chicago River

Tunnels Crossed        6

Days lost to weather      25

Days lost to repairs        9

We will begin the Gulf Intercoastal Waterway after Thanksgiving and then the Gulf crossing when the weather permits, hopefully getting to Tarpon Springs, Fl., by December 15^th or there about. The old saying is that the most dangerous thing on a boat is a schedule, and I agree with that. If you let your schedule drive you, it will cause you to make dangerous decisions. So we just go with the flow.

November 4, 2017 - Side Trip to Chattanooga, TN

Just a quick note before I start.  We have been over 3300 miles and 6 months since we left; both about the half way point to our loop trip.  All is well with the exception of our looper burgee.  It has taken a beating.  It's faded and separating at the seams.  Don't think it is going to make it but we are leaving up for as long as it will hold together.  And here I thought I would be the one that be a bit ragged around the edges! :)

One of the things Ken and I had pretty much decided before we even left our home dock, was to make a side trip to Chattanooga, TN.  Everyone we had talked to or had read about it, was that town was well worth the 500 mile round trip.  I will say, I really enjoyed it, even though the weather was a bit hit and miss.  We set out from Florence, Alabama on October 25th for the 4 day trip up the Tennessee River.  On our way we locked through at Wilson Lock and Dam which had the highest water level change at 93'.  Pretty cool view, as unlike other locks, instead of lock doors there was a single gate that lowered into the water that we then boated over as we left.  Only panicky moment was what met us as we watched the gate lower and a 3 X 4 tow came into view.  We were sure there was no room for us to maneuver out of the lock and around the tow.  Gosh, now what do we do, but we quickly realized that there was plenty of room though still pretty daunting to pass it.  Glad to leave that behind us.  Literally!!  Our first night found us anchoring out Carter's Creek.  Great anchorage, beautiful night and "BAT BUGS".  Yes, you read right, Bat Bugs.  I have no idea what they really were but they attached themselves to Independence and just hung there like bats.  There were dozens of them having a sleep over, anywhere they could find a place to hang.  They appeared to be harmless but needless to say, they got the outside of the boat and we took refuge on the inside.

Wilson Lock and Dam, Tennessee River - A 93' rise in water on our way to Chattanooga and the highest water level change of all the locks we will encounter.

Wilson Lock and Dam, Tennessee River - Notice between Independence and the tow, a gate that is lowering into the lock on the left and almost gone on the right.  Felt odd knowing that when we left the lock, the gate wall us under us.

Wilson Lock and Dam, Tennessee River - Here is the        3 X 4 tow that met us outside the lock.  We have been up close to tows before but not this close.  The crewman standing on the bow in the pic below gives an idea of why we definitely feel a bit like David to Goliath.

Our "Bat Bug" neighbors at Carter's Creek on the Tennessee River.  

Creepy little things!!!!  

   

We did find one the next morning, below.  Not any better looking by the light of day.

The next couple of days were quiet as we continued up river to Chattanooga.  It was misty and cool most of the time but it did not de-track from the beauty of fall colors and clam waters.  And we got to enjoy the 26 mile long Tennessee River Gorge also known as 'Tennessee's Grand Canyon'.  We followed it the rest of the way into Chattanooga.

The Tennessee River Gorge, Tennessee River

We arrived in Chattanooga the morning of day 4 and tied up at the downtown city docks.   We were between two bridges, the Walnut Street walking bridge and N. Market Street traffic bridge.  It was a peaceful refuge in the middle of the city.  We were within easy walking distance from the Tennessee Aquarium, great eats and beautiful parks.  We mapped out our initial visit and headed out the next morning across the Walnut Street bridge to walked to the waterfront where we could see downtown Chattanooga and Independence nuzzled up against the bluff.  We crossed back by way of the N. Market Street bridge and had lunch at Moe's BBQ, delicious.  We then headed to the Tennessee Aquarium.  Really glad we went.  It was split between freshwater and ocean environments.  The freshwater was one continuous journey starting in the Tennessee mountains and tracking the water flow all the way to the gulf.  It was excellent and getting to see the animal life along the way was amazing.  We spent so much time here that by the time we got to the ocean environment we were a bit foot sore and getting tired.  Even though we did not spend as much time in the ocean exhibits, it was well worth it.

Chattanooga, TN - Tennessee River.  This is the view out the port side of Independence of the Walnut Street Walking Bridge.  And to our delight, the bridge was lighted at night and reflected off the water.  Awesome!

The Walnut Street walking bridge - A great walk with views of the city.  Pic above from the bridge is Independence with the aquarium to the right (see pyramid glass peaks on top of the red buildings).  In the background is Lookout Mountain.

Riverwalk Trial across from downtown.  Independence in the background.

Some of my favorite creatures from the aquarium.  The turtle in the top left is asleep.  Nothing too unusual except his back leg is propped up like he is swimming in his dreams.  Did you know lemurs have yellow eyes, top right.  This guy kept his eyes on me, too cute.  They even had a butterfly enclosure.  The monarch, left pic, stayed still long enough for a good pic.  My favorite was blue but refused to land and though not too fast, was too fast for me to capture in a pic.  The penguins were adorable but this fellow, right pic, was a real show-off.  He was flapping his wings, shouting and jumping but also posed in between.  Had to reward all his effort by including him.  

On our way back from the aquarium, we came through the Passage (pic to right), which is a walking link between downtown and the river.  Here we discovered a permanent outdoor exhibit known as the "Trail of Tears", which represents the forced removal of seven clans of the Cherokee Nation to Oklahoma, where 4000 died before reaching it.  The exhibit is a set of seven segments of steps with flowing water and six foot ceramic disks, that tell the story and history of the Cherokee Nation.  Very moving.

To the right, we were met by a grey heron, guarding our boat.  So graceful and exotic.  Great day!

The following day, which was Halloween, we rented a car and headed out to explore Lookout Mountain and the surrounding area.   Lookout Mountain is actually in 3 states...Georgia, Alabama and Tennessee.  Not only does it have stunning natural attractions, it was also part of fierce fighting during the Civil War to take control of Chattanooga, a key in the path to the invasion of Georgia by the Union army, led by General William T. Sherman.  We all know how that ended and I had never really understood how important Chattanooga was to blocking the Union advance.

Our first destination on Lookout Mountain was Ruby Falls.  Ruby Falls itself is a 145' waterfall that is underground.  It was discovered in 1928 by Leo Lambert and a crew of excavators which was located over 1120' below the surface of the mountain.  The falls were named for his wife, Ruby.  After a taking an elevator down and a mile walk we arrived at Ruby Falls but not before seeing beautiful formations.  Above left is Ruby's chandelier and to the right, awesome limestone flows.  We passed many name formations, like the  Beehives, bottom left.  Others were flights of great imagination such as Dragon's Foot, Fish, Bacon and potato chips.  But the highlight was definitely the falls, bottom right.  It just took my breathe away, not only by its beauty but also by the fact that the source of the waters that create the fall are still unknown.  Truly gorgeous.

After Ruby Falls we went to Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park at Point Park on Lookout Mountain.  Here we found very well documented timeline of the fall of Chattanooga, known as the "gateway" to the Confederacy.  It was so in your face to read and see where family fought against family and friends.  I pray we have learned from this horrific experience and will never have to come to arms again in our own country.

View of from artillery battery at Point Park looking down on the City of Chattanooga and the Tennessee River.  Notice canon wheel to the right.

At the end of the day, we were met by our grey heron when we got back to the boat.

There was a sad part of our visit.  On our last day in the city, Roofus got sick.  We had noticed red in her urine and knew she needed to see a vet as soon as possible.  We found one about a mile away which we walked and we were lucky to get an early morning appointment.  After a through exam, urine analysis and an x-ray, we were able to rule out a bladder stone.  She had already had surgery for a stone a few years ago and knew that she would most likely not be able to tolerate another surgery.  Without having to go through further extensive testing she was treated for a UTI.  She started antibiotics immediately and spent the rest of the day resting and being treated like the princess she is.  Not that that is any different than any other day, though she did get extra hugs and kisses.  And for the next two days, I slept with her on the couch so she could be near water, food and her piddle pads.  Poor baby but after the first day we have seen no more blood, so pray she is on the mend.

The next day we headed back down the Tennessee river and to Florence, AL.  The weather was cloudy, foggy and misty but still a very scenic.

Lookout Mountain as we leave Chattanooga, TN

Carrion birds gathering in a dead tree along the Tennessee River.  Not something you see everyday.

Early morning mists and fog on the Tennessee River.

Fall in full beauty on the Tennessee River Gorge.  Love the reflections on the river.

We even saw white pelicans along the way.

Joe Wheeler lock on our way to Florence, AL.  The water was so calm.

Back in Florence, AL we started planning the next leg of our great adventure...the Tenn-Tom Waterway, a 450 mile, 12 lock trip that will bring us to Mobile, AL.  But more about that in our next posting.

PS from Roofus:
It's been a tough few days but my humans have really pampered me.  All I want to do is sleep and pee.  Well, eating in between too, of course.  Though I do not like being poked and held by strange people, I am now getting to have twice as many cookies for breakfast and dinner from my Dad human, love you Dad.  (Note from Mom human, she is taking 2 antibiotics along with her other to meds for the next 2 weeks before each meal.)  I did miss sleeping in my bed, well the bed I share with my humans.  Mom slept with me in the salon.  I know I was peeing constantly but hey, a girl has to do what she has to do.  It would have just been a tiny tinkle in the bed and not sure what the big deal was about but at least my Mom human suffered two nights away from bed too.  I guess she really does love me.

October 25, 2017 Kimmswick, MO to Florence, AL - The Mississippi, Ohio, Cumberland and Tennessee Rivers

This part of our adventure was 538 miles by way of the Mississippi, Ohio, Cumberland and Tennessee rivers.  Just to level set we traveled through the states of Illinois and Missouri by way of the Mississippi river then Illinois and Kentucky on the Ohio river, Kentucky on the Cumberland river and then Kentucky, Tennessee and Alabama on the Tennessee river.  I am really adding this more for me as I found my lack of knowledge in regional geography kept me continually asking Ken..."So where are we now, what state, what river?"  And I still admit to not having it all pieced together.

We left Grafton, IL on Tuesday, October 10th to start our trip down the Mississippi River.  We were only on the Mississippi a couple of days but it was different from anything else we had experience due to so few places for safe docking or anchoring, as well as the water levels being very low and having to deal with swift river currents.  On our way we passed the city of St. Louis and its famed arch.  It was a bright spot and this overcast and misty day.  Our first stop for the night was the famed Hoppies marina owned by Fern and Hoppy.  I use the term marina loosely as it was really a series of barges tied together.  The treat was getting to meet Fern, as her daily river conditions updates are known through out the AGLCA community.  As we were the only boat tied up for the night we got a one on one update.  Fern is a no nonsense kind of gal but with a great sense of humor.  As we were wrapping up, Hoppy and his son-in-law showed up, so we got to meet Hoppy too.  Great stay.

Limestone cliffs and caves outside of Grafton, Illinois on Mississippi River

Mel Price Lock and Dam on Mississippi - Really different as the upstream gate is a single lock gate that rises from the bottom of the lock. 

Entering St. Louis - Love the bridges crossing the Mississippi with the Gateway Arch in the background.

St. Louis, MO from the Mississippi River - The Gateway Arch - Monument to American westward expansion

  Wing dams on the Mississippi.

The purpose of these dams is to direct water flow that will allow a natural dreading of the river.

Mississippi River - Even though it was a cloudy day, the beauty in the calm waters comes through.

Mississippi River at Hoppies on the Missouri side - Me and Fern after her daily update on the river conditions.  And Independence docked up for the night.

Our next stop was the Lil' Diversion anchorage.  I only mentioned this as we have done very little anchoring.  We were successful on our first try and had a very quiet and peaceful night.  The next day we left the Mississippi river and entered the Ohio river, where we encountered Lock 52.  What a mess.  Believe it or not, we were impacted by Hurricane Irma and the tremendous amount of rain run-off impacting this lock in Kentucky.  We had expected to plan for and deal with locking delays from tow/barge travel but not because of high waters.  Lock 52 was closed until the water receded to a safe level.  As a result the tow/barge traffic was backed up for miles in both directions, and since we were a pleasure craft our locking through was at the bottom of the pecking order.  We anchored for 2 days before the water levels were low enough for locking through.  Fortunately for us, there were a total of 14 pleasure craft waiting at this point.  The lockmaster took pity on us and allowed all 14 of us to lock through between an upstream and downstream tow/barge load.  Yoohoo!

Lil' Diversion Anchorage on the Mississippi River - 3 Loopers rafting up in the upper left corner before the railroad bridge.  Also, notice the right bank and how low the water is.  Made navigating a bit challenging.

Ohio River passing a 5X6 tow.  That is 30 barges rafted together.  I will tell you they take up a lot of the navigable river!

Snapshot of our nav showing all the backed up traffic on the Ohio River waiting to lock through at 52.  Hard to see but each blue shape is a boat or tow/barge waiting.

Ohio River, Kentucky - Above and to the right is the new Olmstead Lock and Dam under construction with a planned opening in 2018.  It will replace Locks 52 and 53 which have been in operation since 1928 and 1929, respectively.  River traffic flow will greatly improve with the new lock.

Notice in the pic to the left  and how smooth the lock walls are.  Just a point of observation so that you can compare to pics below of Lock 52.  There is no doubt in my mind that building this new lock was way over due.

American Queen Riverboat - we past her on the Ohio River on our way to Lock 52.  She's a beauty.

Maintenance on the fly.  We had just finished anchoring on the right bank of the Ohio river, below Lock 52, to wait for the water levels to decline.  We noticed a sound we had never heard before, which is always a bit frightening, needless to say.  After a few minutes, Ken discovered his props were still turning as result of the swift river current.  Unsure of the potential risks and damage this might cause, Ken called Captain Chris, our go to expert.  Turns out it was not a real problem though the sound was annoying.  Chris recommended stopping the props and Ken used wrenches to accomplish this.  Of course, Ken needed maintenance after too, to stop the blood.  

Sunset on the Ohio River at Lock 52 - Two other pleasure craft waiting it out too.  

Sunrise on the day we went through Lock 52. To the right, the flotilla of pleasure craft begin moving into the lock.  It was a beautiful, calm morning on the river, which was only enhanced by our thrill be locking through.  Yoohoo! 

Inside Lock 52 - Recall I mentioned to compare this with the new Olmstead 

Lock.  Well this is what the lock walls look like after 89 years of continual

operations.  The concrete was worn and metal casing rusting away.  There was

exposed remains of what appeared to be ladder (right pic).

Time for a retirement party!

Not too long after we got through Lock 52 we entered the Cumberland river and made it to Green Turtle Bay Marina, KY where we stayed or I should say, Independence stayed for a week.  We had planned to attend the AGLCA Fall Rendezvous at Joe Wheeler State Park in Alabama but there was no way we would get there in time by boat.  We gave up our slip reservations, rented a car and headed out.  It was great to see old friends, newly made friends and catch up on the latest happenings.  At the end of the week we drove back to Green Turtle Bay Marina to then head back to Joe Wheeler but by water this time.  It was interesting to boat under highway bridges we had just traveled days before by car.  And even more so to pass through the Joe Wheeler lock then under the bridge we traveled everyday to get back and forth to the rendezvous.  We ended this part of our adventure in Florence, AL where we met up with Jacques and Nelly, our buddies from France.  We first met each other in Chesapeake, VA at Atlantic Yacht Basin.  Independence was having repairs done from the lightening strike and they were having service work done.  We had seen each other briefly in Hammond, IN and were happy to have a couple of days together to catch up and share our adventures.  They will be crossing their wake in Clearwater, FL and hopefully we will meet up again before they head back to France.

ROAD TRIP!  Appears the Enterprise in Paducah, KY see a lot of Loopers.  Roofus all snuggle in for the 4 hour ride to Alabama and the Fall AGLCA Rendezvous.

Back from rendezvous at Green Turtle Bay, Three Rivers, KY - Gorgeous sunrise the day we headed out.

Another gorgeous sunrise at Pebble Isle Marina in New Johnsonville, TN on the Tennessee River.

Our journey on the Tennessee river took us through the states of Tennessee, Mississippi and Alabama on our way to Florence, AL.  Along the way we enjoyed the beautiful cliffs.  I love the cliff formations as they appear to be neatly stacked layers of thin rocks but hardly strong enough to support themselves let alone homes.

This one really was neat as you can see where the rock layers did collapse and fall to ones below.

And along the way, the beauty of the cliffs was enhanced by the beginning of fall colors.  Wow, hard to believe it is fall, already.






From here we have decided to take a side trip to Chattanooga, TN.  A 500 mile round trip adventure that will be the subject of our next blog.

PS from Roofus:
Ok, first let's talk about that car trip.  I don't know where my humans went but I was in a strange room and left alone while they went off gallivanting.  And to add insult to injury, I was left on the floor like some common pet.  Yeah, they left me food and water, and gave me my blankies and my mom human even gave me her baby pillow but can we say puppy abuse!  They did try to make it up to me by taking me for nice walks in the open air, yummy treats and lots of hugs and kisses when they were there but I can tell you, I was happy to be back on Independence.  Wow, what a statement, who would have thought I would be happy to be on Independence!!!!  I must really be loosing it.