DAY 30 - October 31, 2023

 

After a cold night, we awoke to see frost on the hood of cars in the marina parking lot. Our goal was to get the boat ready to move out on the lake by 9:00, but the cold seemed to hurry us along and we were on the move by 8:00.

The moist cold air from yesterday's rain blowing over the warm waters of the lake, led to a lot of fog. However, we had about a half mile of visibility and nothing showing up on the radar or the AIS monitor, so we continued in the fog until it was completely gone a couple of hours later.

The green line on this map is the 42.8 mile route we followed from Pickwick Landing State Park to Florence Harbor Marina. We crossed the Tennessee/Mississippi state line several times, but the last half of today's trip was in Alabama. We got settled in at the marina, then walked to the Florence Center for Tourism. Denise got brochures from a bunch of sites and talked quite a while to the person on duty there. Since we'll be staying here for five days, we'll likely be visiting several of the featured sites and reporting on the blog about what we learned.

DAY 29 - October 30, 2023

 

We were supposed to have left Pickwick Landing State Park this morning, then anchored out in the evening and overnight. However, with rain predicted throughout the day and a forty degree drop in temperatures, we chose to stay put for another day. This photo was taken from the back of our boat and fog can be seen rolling into the harbor from Pickwick Lake. Denise spent part of the afternoon making chili, which was a welcome meal for dinner. Dennis took care of filling up with diesel, pumping out the black water tank and refilling our potable water. We also had several looper boats pull into the marina and I helped a couple get tied up. Our plan is to continue our journey early tomorrow morning and go to Florence Harbor Marina 53 miles away. With the current cold temperatures, it's a very good idea to be able to hook up to electric at a marina rather than anchor somewhere on the lake.

DAY 28 - October 29, 2023

Through the wonders of the internet and FaceBook Live, I was able to sit in the cockpit of my boat on a beautiful morning in Southern Tennessee and watch the worship service of my home church back in Elizabethtown, Ohio.

Denise went out for a morning run and took this photo as I was leaving on my little electric bicycle to attend worship service at a church several miles up the road. The road is too dangerous for Denise to go with me, but I don't mind living dangerously at times.

The church I attended is the Pickwick United Methodist Church. As expected, I was greeted warmly and had an opportunity to extend greetings from my home church.

It may seem odd that I began my day at church, then ended my day at a sports bar. However, you can see Joe Burrow on the screen in the last photo, which its an indication we were there to watch the Bengals beat the San Francisco Forty Niners. Besides Denise and I, a couple from Ohio were there to cheer on the Bengals and another couple, wearing forty niners shirts, were there to cheer on the losing team. The Bengals won with a final score of 31 - 17.

DAY 27 - October 28, 2

Parks across the country have been developing "storybook trails". These are nature trails with child high signs which tell a story as you follow the trail. This evening the park we're at, Pickwick Landing State Park, had a "scarybook trail" for the Halloween season.

We were picked up at the marina for a hayride over to the trailhead. We arrived at the pick-up sight on time, but there was already quite a crown waiting. We sat out the first several wagon loads thinking the crowd would thin out, but the carloads kept coming in. So, we got on the fourth wagon load.

We were greeted at the trail by a park ranger. She said the story

begins with a little boy who went into the woods to camp.

As we walked the trail, we came upon signs lit by kerosene lanterns 

telling the story and directions of what to look for.

One sign said to look for a bobcat and another a coyote.

Although it was very dark, I took this photo along the trail and 

the camera compensated for the low light with this silhouette photo.

At the end of the trail we were met with another park ranger and a live barn owl.

Before loading onto the hayride wagon, guests could join a campfire to roast marshmallows.

DAY 26 - October 27, 2023

In the Tennessee River we have seen several strange looking creatures attached to surfaces underwater. Some people speculated they may be some type of fresh water jellyfish, but after some research we discovered they are not a single plant or animal at all. They are actually colonies of tiny invertebrates with tentacles that capture suspended food particles. A jelly-like material gathers in the middle of the colonies which causes the the shape to be like jelly. The name of this blob of creatures is called a bryozoan. Their presence is a sign of good quality water. We don't see them around Cincinnati because the winters are too cold. But we've seen them from the southern part of Kentucky down to where we are in southern Tennessee. The video above was taken by suspending our waterproof camera down into the water a couple of feet.

Upon arriving at an area grocery store, I was greeted by this sign in the front door.

This is a photo of the Pickwick look we went through several days ago. The lock 

and dam has a road running over it, so I took this photo from the road.

This is a photo of the beautiful scenery near our boat dock.

DAY 25 - October 26, 2023

All photos can be clicked on to enlarge. Click on videos to play.

Today we rode our bicycles around our location at Pickwick Landing State Park. Historically this town was a steamboat landing, but with the damming of the Tennessee River and decline in commercial shipping on the river, the area has become an area for fishing, boating and tourism.

There are lots of tall, straight trees which support commercial logging in this area.

Logging trucks run back and forth regularly along the nearby Route 57.

The park has a designated swimming area with a sandy beach. Ohio and 

Indiana have virtually eliminated opportunities for swimming in state parks.

Beautiful scenery with water are all around us.

The tiny Pickwick Post Office appears to be a place where residents see 

each other and have long conversations in the parking lot.

DAY 24 - October 25, 2023

The turquoise color thing on top of our boat is a kayak. Some people haul dinghies with them to get to shore when anchoring. This is especially important for people traveling with dogs so that the dogs can run and use the bathroom on shore. We have a dinghy, but decided to travel without it. In the rare event we anchor and need to go to shore, we can use the little kayak. I've even rigged up a way both of us can get to shore by using a rope reel attached to the dinghy which allows the first person ashore to let the person on the boat pull the kayak back to them.

Today we practiced getting the kayak down from the top of the boat and also practice getting in and out of the kayak. Denise took the first practice run. You'll notice we are not using a kayak paddle. We are instead using a telescoping emergency paddle because it takes less space to store.

Dennis then took a practice run.

This video is of the system I designed for getting the kayak on and off the boat.

    

DAY 23 - October 24, 2023

 It’s been said, “No News, is Good News”. We decided to stay put at Pickwick Landing State Park Marina for the next week. At $1.00 per foot ($27.00 a night for us) we have a great setting, privacy, laundry facility, close restrooms, nearby sports bar/hardware store/dollar store and the best showers we’ve encountered. Our looper rendezvous is two weeks and 75 miles away, so this is a good place to pass some time. We didn’t take any pictures today and spent most of our time doing laundry and cleaning the boat. So all-in-all, it’s been a “good news day”.

DAY 22 - October 23, 2023

 

This is a photo taken by the lock master at Pickwick Lock & Dam. He posted it on their FaceBook page and radioed us to look for it. We're the boat on the left, in back. The lift in the lock chamber is 55 feet and was just about completed when this photo was taken.

After leaving Pickwick Lock we pulled into the Pickwick Landing State Park Marina. This place is very clean and quiet. We're planning to stay here at least two days.

While riding my electric bicycle I stopped at this old fashion hardware store. They had all kinds of antiques hanging on the walls and from the ceiling.

About 2 miles from the marina, I found a General Dollar store. This one was exceptionally clean and well stocked. This was just one part of their fresh produce and frozen foods aisle.

Today we travelled 13.2 miles. We're traveling slow and staying a while at our stops. We will be attending the America Great Loop Cruisers Association Fall Rendezvous, which doesn't being until November 7th. So, with not much farther until we get to the rendezvous location, we're looking for other things to do over the next two weeks.



 

DAY 21 - October 22, 1923

 All photos can be clicked on for a larger version.

Dennis began the day at the Clifton United Methodist Church. About 25 are in attendance each Sunday. They are undergoing a rebranding and as of the beginning of November will be known as Clifton Fellowship. Everyone was very friendly and I was able to share a bit about my home church with them during announcements.

Denise took this parting photo of Clifton Marina as we were leaving a little after noon.

The Kentucky Lake has narrowed into a more typical Tennessee River. There are lots of cliffs and rock structure lining the water.

There are some absolutely beautiful "mansions" along the river. Some don't even look like single family homes because they are so large.

We passed by what appeared to be white chairs and a wedding arch, along with tables for an open air reception. Using my telephoto lens I was able to zoom in from 3/4 of a mile away and actually see the bride and groom posing for pictures.

We anchored for the night in this tranquil setting next to Wolf Creek, which is next to the city of Savannah, Tennessee. A little after dark another looper boat anchored about 100 yards from us.

This Great Blue Heron was looking for a meal along the shore near us. This one wasn't as blue, (or even blue at all) as the ones we see around Cincinnati. Even though, this is indeed a Great Blue Heron.

At the anchorage, we were treated to two Bald Eagles vocalizing back and forth for about 20 minutes. Earlier in the day we saw a bald eagle flying toward us as it picked up a fish near the surface of the water and flew away with its prey.