Anchoring on the Tennessee River

Beautiful red Cypress tree!

Kudzu
"The plant that ate the South"

Beautiful reflection of a fall day!

Saturday, October 22 -- After spending eight days at Grand Harbor Marina on Pickwick Lake we figured it was time to leave. We had spent the week watching several of our Looper friends come and go. We saw many we had met this past six months. There were also several Loopers come through that we had not yet met. We had so much fun meeting and catching up with everyone. It's amazing how many Loopers are out there somewhere at one time! Several were on their way to the Fall Rendezvous at Joe Wheeler State Park, but there were also a lot either heading to Chattanooga or on south down the Tenn-Tom.

We attended the Fall Rendezvous last year. It's a lot of fun but we decided we'd pass on it this time.

We left the marina with plans to anchor out a few nights and to work our way up the Tennessee River to Joe Wheeler where we'll connect with Jim and Dale (Sweet Pea) again after the Rendezvous. We will then head east to Chattanooga with them for a few days before heading on down the Tenn-Tom to Mobile.

Our first anchorage was in Little Bear Creek just a few miles from Florence, Alabama. We had tried a couple of other anchorages but there wasn't enough water. We thought one was a good place but we wanted to check out the depth. So Mike got the dinghy ready to check it out. BUT, of course, when we really needed the dinghy, the motor wouldn't start! So he had to "row" it into the cove. This one proved to be a little shallow. If fact we bumped when we decided to leave it. Luckily, we didn't get stuck!

Finally we found the one in Little Bear Creek with about 12 feet of water. We had Corky's Ribs for dinner. They were selling them at the marina so we picked up some before we left. Corky's is one of the best places in Memphis to eat ribs! It's a real race between them and The Rendezvous. Anyway, these were very good ribs. If you have a chance to pick up some at the marina, we highly recommend it. We sat and watched the barges go by while following the World Series on a live blog. (No TV!) GO CARDS!!!!

Sunday morning we were planning to head out early but the fog changed our minds. Didn't mind though – we have no place to be for a while….. BTW – the motor on the dinghy started on the first pull this morning. Go Figure!! We finally left around 11:30. We met up with Coconuts at the Wilson Lock and Dam. They were tied off at the lock wall waiting for their turn. We rafted up to them and waited about an hour. This lock is a lift of 93 feet! That's a lot of water! When the gates opened three cruisers came out. One of them was Bavarian Cream! We hadn't seen them in months! We only saw them from a distance but it was still good! Glad to see they're still afloat. LOL!  Hopefully we'll catch up with them sometime soon.

Once we were in Wilson Lake we realized that this is a very pretty lake! There were several coves to choose from for an anchorage. We had originally planned to lock on through the Joe Wheeler Lock. However that would be another 15 miles plus the wait at the lock. We decided to anchor out instead. Remember, we're in no hurry….. We found a beautiful area with lots of water and good protection just about five miles from the Wilson Lock. There's a camp back in the cove named "Camp David". However, I don't think this is the one our President uses. LOL! It is a beautiful place though!

What a life! Here we sit on a Sunday night - our boat in Wilson Lake on the Tennessee River - heading to beautiful Chattanooga in a few days – drinking a beer while listening to the World Series (on our computer) and our St Louis Cards! Who would have thought!!!!
At time of this writing though – Cards are down by 4 at the bottom of the 7th.   Oh well, Come on Cards!

Till next time!  

Admiral "C"