Life and Travels on the Loop: Nov. 3, 2015

 

 

         What our boats looked like from the bridge in Nashville.

 

This picture is for my brother, David.

            

                                                     Our water homes at Green Turtle Bay

 

                                                           This is Clarksville Marina.

This is the Team from the Nashville Sheriff's Department.

We were very grateful to get off the Ohio River.  The Cumberland River is a beautiful winding waterway consisting of a variety of landscapes including bluffs, rolling hills with gorgeous homes and great fall foliage.  Unfortunately, some of the time we spent on the Cumberland was with rainy or gray weather.  The fall foliage didn't always show its true colors. 
     Our goal was to take a side trip to Nashville.  Taking the Cumberland led us to Lake Barkley with a stop at Green Turtle Bay Marina in Grand Rivers, Kentucky.  We did see several "Loopers" but their travel schedule keeps them way ahead of  2nd Knot and Serendipity. 
     Following 3 days catching up with necessities, we continued to Nashville with an anchorage at Dover Island and a stay at Clarksville Marina.  We have been blessed with wonderful sunny and basically warm weather until our trip to Nashville.  Nothing is more exciting than trying to anchor or tie your lines in the cold, windy rain.
     Luckily our 2 full days in Nashville gave us a sunny break.  We had fun listening to music in several bars.  It is interesting how your perception of a city changes from a boat/water outlook versus driving through the normal, crazy road traffic.  At least that has been Rod's and my experience on our way to and from Florida recently.  This Nashville felt like a small town with lots of music, boots, hats, beer, and people enjoying music - some good and some - not so much.
     Our boats were tied near the Titans Statium and under a beautiful walking bridge.  We may not have met anyone famous but as we returned to our boats after a day of exploring, we met 5 members of the Nashville Sheriff's Department.  They were off duty and involved in a scavenger hunt.  They needed to dunk one of their buddies in the cold water.  We enjoyed helping them out.
     We made our way back to Green Turtle Bay - a 3 day trip.  We are preparing for our next part of our journey - The Tennessee River which will eventually lead us to Mobile, Alabama and then the Gulf of Mexico.   Perhaps there will be a side trip to explore.  As you can tell, we are not on a schedule.
      Life on 2nd Knot:  It is beginning to feel homey.  We each have our own bathrooms which is key to finding our own space which is important to our adjustment to being with each other 24/7 for the first time in almost 28 years of marriage.  Another adjustment:  we are both retired teachers:  our teaching/learning styles clash from time to time.  I could be more specific but lets leave it at that.
      My sleep schedule is backwards.  Riding slow on the river to save fuel and enjoy the scenery tends to put me to sleep.  We are on the water for several hours which leads to another adjustment - lack of excercise.  Walking back and forth on the boat just doesn't cut it.  And of course, checking out recommended restaurants like Patti's in Grand River tonight didn't help.  Had to test their potted bread and highly recommended lemon meringue pie!  Best part was bringing left overs back to the boat for our next meal. Several restaurants in the small towns near marinas have courtesy cars. 
     In case you are wondering:  YES, I am homesick.  Seeing ads on tv for the holidays is hard.  It doesn't feel like Thanksgiving weather but I hear that weather back home isn't typical either.  I think of my kids and grandkids and what they are doing every day.  Little personal side note:  CALL.  We are not in the boonies.  We do have cell service.  We even have TV - I just forget to turn it on sometimes.
        My homesickness was really tested today, Wednesday, Nov.4.  My pregnant daughter, Rachel, fell at school and broke her nose - before kids arrived.  Matt took her to ER, then hospital where she  and baby were monitored for several hours.  Both doing ok.  Will get her nose fixed Friday, hopefully.  I want to be there to wrap my arms around her but I know Matt and the kids will take good care of her. This is the hard part of a trip like this.  I wanted a Magic Carpet to whisk me away to Oconomowoc.  I also need to talk to Ryan and Nikki too.

This is a lock.

This is Green Turtle Bay Marina.

      Our blogs, both Ann and mine, may not be as frequent as expected because sometimes there is not much to tell:  running on the river, tie up either at an anchorage or marina, do wash, eat supper.   Oh, I forgot:  I am driving the boat for longer periods of time.  Rod sets the boat on Auto pilot and I just move the knob to the right or left and make sure that a red line is on the black line which keeps us in the channel. (not very technical.)
        I put pictures on!   Yippee for me.  I couldn't have done it without Harley's great tutorial.  Steps are written down very specifically.  The pictures are not in any particular order.  They are there and that is what counts.   Another side note:  If you ever want to visit Grand Rivers, Kentucky by land, we would highly recommend it.  Green Turtle Resort is wonderful.   Hope you enjoy both my blog and Ann's blog.  We work hard to entertain all of our followers.  Love ya, Mary and Rod
                                                         

This is the walking bridge in Nashville.