After a six-week break to see family, friends, and neighbors - who are also friends, we returned to the Great Loop. A nice two-day drive from Philadelphia brought us back to Egret (at the Green Turtle Marina in Grand Rivers, Kentucky on Lake Barkley,) which we found in wonderful condition. All of our pre-departure preparations paid off, and there was no evidence of mold nor mildew. However, there were quite a few spiders, and the outside needed plenty of cleaning but generally, the boat was in good shape. We were overjoyed that the 2 fans we had running 24/7 for six weeks didn't overheat and burn down the boat. We emptied the refrigerators and the freezer before we left, so there was a fair amount of provisioning that needed to be done before we could think about leaving.
The trip from Chicago down the rivers to Mobile has lots of different personalities. The Illinois River to the Mississippi River is pretty industrial with a fair amount of barge traffic, but also nice towns and marinas. The Mississippi River is basically 200 miles of river with massive barges and very few spots to anchor. The goal is to get on and off the Mississippi as quickly as possible which we achieved in two days thanks to some favorable current. The Ohio and Cumberland Rivers are very pleasant with nice towns and plenty of anchoring opportunities, but also lots of barge traffic. We are looking forward to the next section of the rivers that appear to have plenty of towns, marinas, and anchorages, but also have scenic sections as well with reduced barge traffic.
When we left Chicago on September 8th we were in the first 25% of boats down the rivers. When we left Green Turtle Marina after our six-week break, we were in the last 25%. We parted company with lots of good friends - many of whom have already "crossed their wake" and have become landlubbers.
We are well known for our late departures, but our departure from Green Turtle Marina was particularly late. After stowing most of our provisions, taking showers, and paying our bill, we got underway at the crack of noon.
The objective of the first day was to get off the dock and get moving. Chrisy found a nice anchorage about thirty miles down Kentucky Lake - Sugar Bay - that was very peaceful and quiet. A great way to start back on the Great Loop.
We're headed into an area with some notoriously bad cell reception so we might be dark for a little while.
The day after Halloween at Patti's. They turn things around quickly.
Scenes from Kentucky Lake and the Tennessee River
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