Lorenzo & Delois Johnson

We have left Lil’ David at Green Turtle Bay, and we are home.  Judy’s father became suddenly ill, and She and Gary  rushed to make preparations to return home to visit him.  

We were planning to return home in November, so we decided to come home now and not come back in November.  This way, we can stay on the same schedule and continue to travel together.  our plans are now on hold, dependent upon Judy’s Father’s progress.  We will need to get back to the boats within the next month so we are on hold until then.

We left the anchorage this morning and headed for the Cumberland River.  We survived the night without incident.  The marina is only 30 miles and 1 lock away from where we were anchored.

The Cumberland proved to be very scenic.  I was surprised at the minimal amount of development along it’s shores.  There was a few rock quarries on the banks, but very little recreational development such as boat launches and no marinas. 

We locked through Barkley Lock at 2PM, and were fueled and docked by 3:30.  Lois was glad to get off the boat and walk on land.  It had been three days since we last walked on land.

The Green Turtle Bay Resort is awesome.  It has every amenity You could want;  excercise room, indoor pool, massage rooms, and lots of good restaurants.  It is located in the Kentucky Lake area.  This resort area was made possible by the building of dams and Locks to create a larfge lake area which provides the conditions needed to use the water to make electricity with a hydro power plant.  It also improved flood control and improved river shipping traffic capabilities.  The project was a joint effort between The Tennessee Valley Authority and The Army Core of Engineers.  The locks are used to raise Cumberland river traffic up approximately 70 feet above the level of the Mississippi River. 

We are going to stay here for a week and relax.  It will also be an opportunity to catch up on oil changes, clean the boat, and other routine maintenace items.  

Today was one of those days that You would like to miss.  It started in the rain, and remained rainy, dark and dreary all morning and most of the afternoon.  Most of the Tow boats had pushed their loads against the bank and were waiting for a change in weather due to the poor visibility.

We reached the end of the upper Mississippi, and entered the Ohio river.  It felt like we had hit the brakes.  The Mississippi current was flowing with us at 5 to 6 knots, and the Ohio current was flowing against us at 2 to 3 knots.  Our speed was cut in half, and the engines were still running at the same speed.  It seemed as if we had slowed to a crawl.                                                             

We had planned to moor to the Federal Mooring buoys 1 1/2 miles past Lock and Dam #53.  We arrived there at 3 PM, and there were no buoys  at this location.  Apparently, the long tows waiting to enter the lock were using that side of the channel to push their barges against the bank to hold them in place while they waited.  Apparently, the Federal buoys were victims of the waiting tows.  We would not have stayed there even if the buoys were present.  Too many barges.

We had one other possibility. According to our travel guide, twenty miles further, at Metropolis (Superman’s home town)  we would find room to anchor near the State Park boat ramp.  When we arrived there, We found that this area was not a good anchoring location  due to the Tow boats waiting to pass through the lock nearby.  We planned to continue on, and possibly reach the Cumberland Island Towhead shortly after dark.  This would provide a safe anchorage.  We called the lockmaster for locking instructions, and he informed us that it would be 2 to 3 hours before we could pass through.  We then proceeded to cross the river to the Kentucky side, and started surveying the area to locate a  safe area to anchor.  We found a location that was perfect;  Water depth of 15′, close to the Kentucky shore and tall trees to provide a shield from winds, and shielded from the main channel by a shoal that was too shallow fot the barges to cross.  Shortly after securing the anchor, the Lockmaster called and said that we could lock through.  It was still more than a hour before dark, and He said that there was a new dock available in Paducah where we could spend the night.  The dock was only 30 minutes from the lock.

We pulled anchor and rushed to the lock.  We were locked through, and headed to Paducah.  You can guess the rest.  No dock.  The only dock that we were able to find was suitable for one or two Jon boats.  We surely could not tie our three boats to this temporary looking structure.  It is now after nightfall.  We continued on our way, but we were steadily looking for a safe place to anchor.  With hundreds of tow boats and thousands of barges working the immediate area, safe took on a new meaning.  At around 9:30, Gary found a place that was suitable.  It was located in a cove, and two abandoned barges were far enough apart to allow us to anchor, or hide, between them.  We were on the Kentucky side, and there was lots of activity on the opposite shore, about 1 mile away.  There were 40 to 50 lighted towboats moving about, and hundreds of barges anchored or moored along the shore.  We went past the large concentration of moored barges on the Kentucky side, but it sure made me feel uneasy watching the activity on the opposite shore. 

Sleep will not come easy tonight.

We are anchored in a diversion or drainage canal off the Mississippi River.  The canal is barely wide enough for us to anchor, but the next possible anchoring location is 40 miles away, and the nearest Marina is 142 miles away.  This canal is an approved anchorage, so we will be OK.

The Missippi River is far different than my expectations.  I was expecting to see a barren, deserted muddy river that is very much like Mother Nature left it.  Instead, I have found it to be a beautiful river with beautiful shores, beautiful sandy shores, and improvements per mile than any river I have ever seen.  The Army Core of Engineers has installed rock diversion dams or Wing Dams as they are properly label, along the entire length of this river.  The Wing dams force the current flow to the center of the river, preventing shore erosion and ensuring that silting will not occur in th emain channels.  There are 30 to 40 wing dams on each mile of the river.  Each dam is constructed of rock and juts out 50 to 75 feet into the river.  They are constructed of rock, and are 20 to 25 feet wide.  When the river is at normal level, these wing dams will be underwater, and can present a hazard tothe uninformed.

Tomorrow, we will enter the Ohio River, and travel past Paducah Ky. where we wili enter the Cumberland River to reach the Tennessee River.  These rivers are much less prone to flood and have hazardous travel conditions than the Mississippi. 

If all goes well, we will be at Green Turtle Bay Resort and Marina by Friday afternoon.  We will probably stay there several days until the weather settles, or we will find another excuse to stay and enjoy their facility.

We are finally on the big Missippi!! What a day!!  2 locks, lots of fast flowing current, and many very large tows.  We travelled with the big boys today!

We passed through St Louis, Mo, and got a close up view of the famous Arch.  That was very exciting.  If St Louis is the Gateway to the West, then the cowbows must have been traveling by barge.  I have never seen so many barges before.  They were everywhere.  It was difficult to determine which ones were moving and which ones were stationary until You got real close.  This is truly an industrial center, and the barges are at the center of it. 

We are staying at Hoppies Marina.  It is simply some old barges tied together on the river bank to provide a place to tie up.  Fuel, water, and electricity are available, and nothing else.  The nearest competitor is 75 miles heading North, and 200 miles heading South.

The next availabilty of fuel, water, or any facilities of any type is on Kentucky Lake, approximately 200 miles away.  We will be without the comforts of marinas for the next 3 days, and will have to anchor and use the generator.  Water use must be watched closely.

The weather is playing havoc with our planning, since we are traveling toward the areas affected by hurricane Gustaf.  The rains can cause flooding and lots od debris in the water.  Tomorrow morning, we will watch the weather forecasts, and make our plans accordingly.

Arrived at Grafton Harbor Marina at around 4 PM.  A really interesting day today.  All the boaters were out for the Holiday weekend boating fun, and many of them were operating their vessels in a very reckless manner.  A very tense day for us, but no problems. 

 The Asian Carp population is much less here than on the Northern end of the Illinois river.

This is the largest and most modern Marina that we have seen for a long time.  It has everything, so we have decided to stay here until after the Holiday and then continue our travels.  The ladies borrowed the owners pickup truck and drove to another town to get their Wal Mart fix.  Lots of groceries and other things followed them home. 

Very poor cell phone service and no internet was available.  The marina WI Fi was too weak at the dock we were located at.  

The people in this town are really enjoying themselves.  Lots of partying and music everywhere. 

 The boaters at this marina are very friendly and helpful.  Everyone seems to be interested in the Loopers, and lots have plans to make the trip someday. 

Not many good restaurants within walking distance, and no taxi service available. 

This Marina is located at the junction of the lllinois and Mississippi Rivers.  There is lots of barge traffic, and lots of boat traffic during the holiday weekend.  We are looking forward to entering the traffic flow down the Missippi, but I am sure glad that we will not be traveling during the holiday weekend.

In June of this year, the Missippi river flooded, and rthe water levels were approximately 18′ above normal levels.  It was very interesting to see the high water marks as we walked around town.   The marina and all it’s buildings, including the swimming pool,  are built on floating foundations due to the frequent floods. 

We finally found a good place to anchor and spend the night.   This is a really nice anchorage, well protected from the weather and impossible for the tow boats to enter.

The low water levels have really impacted our travels through this part of Illinois.  We should be in the Missippi River in a few days, and conditions will surely change, hopefully for the best.

We were really tired when we stopped at around 6 PM.  Lois prepared a very simple dinner and we relaxed on the aft deck for a while.  The sunset was absoulutely beautiful.  I made my engine room checks, and we went to sleep before 11 PM.