Steve, Nancy and Bill Do the Tenn-Tom

Hello from Fulton, Mississippi on the Tenn-Tom Waterway.  The Tenn-Tom gets its’ name from the fact that this waterway joins the TENNessee and TOMbigbee Rivers (get it…Tenn-Tom).  The waterway shortened the trip for vessels to various ports by as much as 720 miles.  (A boat going from Pensacola, FL to Chattanooga, TN would travel only 771 miles via the Tenn-Tom instead of 1541 miles via the Mississippi River).  Now days, there is just one problem with this route, you must go through a series of 12 locks from the top of Mississippi until you reach Mobile, AL.  Locks take time, as I have explained before.  Today we started with the first lock, the Jamie Whitten Lock, which happens to be an 84 foot drop!!!  We had to chew gum so our ears didn’t pop…just kidding!  We have proceeded through two more and have just tied up at a marina.  The manager of this marina looks just like Billy Bob Thorton.  Gosh, we are sure meeting the “look alikes”, huh?  And believe it or not, he is originally from Grinnell, Iowa!  Small world.

Going down in the lock

The doors begin to open...



The doors are almost open...



Out we go....

Nancy & Bill in the lock

 

Now I will back up a few days and retrace our steps.  We had planned to leave Grand Harbor Marina on Saturday morning.  We awoke to windy, cold and rainy conditions.  We looked at one another and decided to stay one more day.  After putting on our jeans and sweatshirts, we managed to take a hike around the wooded area near the marina and visit with the other boaters.  We are constantly running into boats we have met along the waterways, and Sat. was no different.  We ended up doing dinner with our friends from Time and Tide.  The Broken Spoke Restaurant proved to be as “tasty” as had been reported.  Sunday wasn’t “quite” as cool, so we started our trip down the Tenn-Tom.  This section of the river is not heavily populated, so you see lots of birds, trees and beautiful scenery and that’s about it!  Sorry folks, I just can’t make anything too spectacular happen out of that J  So, I am once again doing the laundry and in an hour or two, we will take the loaner van into town to WAL-MART.  This is the life, right!!!!  Just kidding, we will stop for dinner on our big night out!  So long for now and say a little prayer that the South starts to warm up.  According to the locals, they are twenty degrees below normal temperatures for this time of year!  A-shucks! 

Dinner with Gary, Christelle, and Bill at the Broken Spoke

 

What’s a Normal Day?

Fall River View

Sunset at Grand Harbor Marina

A number of people have asked me, “What do you do every day when you are on the boat?”  As I blog and give updates of our adventures, you might know, not every day is full of excitement.  I call those “normal days”.  The last two days have been what I call “normal” so that is where this blog is coming from this A.M.

Leaving Clifton, TN to Pickwick, MS:

* Left the harbor around 8:30 (which is late for us) due to ground fog.  You don’t want to meet a tug/barge in the fog!

*Sailed up river past all of the areas we had driven by and visited on our road trip to Shiloh.  We saw the Savannah, TN bridge over the Tennessee River, the cat fish restaurant and Pittsburg Landing where the Union troops arrived by boat at Shiloh.

*In Savannah, from the river you can see the historic mansions that still remain.  (see picture below)  The Cherry Mansion was the headquarters for General U.S. Grant in the spring of 1862.  Alex Haley’s paternal grandparents (the author of Roots) lived in Savannah.  His grandmother Queen worked as a maid at the Cherry Mansion and his grandfather was a ferryman.  They are buried in a Savannah cemetery.  Interesting note, also, was that the women who worked in the Cherry Mansion were Confederates, so Grant would not wear his uniform when he was in the home out of respect for them.

*We were sailing up current in the river and the current became very strong the closer we got to Pickwick Lock and Dam.  (In non-boater terms…if we normally go about 7 miles per hour, in strong current we only go about 4 miles per hour…much slower travel.)  Steve called the lock to let them know we were getting close and the lockmaster replied, “Keep it coming, Captain, I’ll have the doors open for you when you arrive!”  He was good to his word and we sailed right in.  This lock took us up 57 ft. and out we went into Pickwick Lake.  This is a beautiful recreational area for southern Tennessee and northern Mississippi.  We pulled into the marina at 5:45 P.M. and tied up. 

*Ate dinner, relaxed and went to bed.   SEE….a normal day!

Cherry Mansion

Drove over this bridge one day and under it the next

Hagy's Catfish Hotel from the river

Pittsburg Landing

A Day at the Grand Harbor Marina

Condos at Grand Harbor

 

*After our morning coffee, I made pancakes for breakfast. 

*Laundry day…enough said about that.  Yahoooo!

*Steve and I signed out the “loaner van” from the marina and went into the local town.  We found a place for Steve to get a haircut and stopped by a local coffee house and talked with the locals.  Southern hospitality is so gracious and heartfelt. J  Next, we picked up a few groceries and headed back to the boat.

*Met some boaters for a little happy hour on the dock.  They have the cutest covered gliders on the waterfront and it’s so nice for just sitting and talking.

*Got a shuttle ride to a local restaurant, Freddie T’s, for dinner. The Loopers we have met several times along the way, joined us, too. 

*Back to the boat and time for bed.

Waiting for the Freddy T's van to take us to dinner

 

So, my dear friends, that is a boater’s life on the river.  Kind of “normal”, huh?  Until next time, good-bye from Mississippi.

 

Your blogger at work

 

 

 

Tennessee History 101

After my last blog, we sailed for four hours in the rain, so we were quite happy to see Clifton, TN Marina!  Due to the weather forecast, we made a decision to spend three days here and enjoy the sights. (plus or minus the rain!)  The manager and owner of this marina are so helpful and seemingly would do just about anything for you.  We happen to think that Sonja, the manager, looks and talks just like Dolly Parton (we’re talking her FACE).  I asked her if anyone ever said that to her and she said, “Yes they do OR Loretta Lynn!”  So we are staying with Tennessee royalty!  We have discovered that Tennessee has a rich history with the Civil War or as it is known here The War of Northern Aggression!!!  Every pamphlet we have read has a rather southern twist to its history!  I don’t know, maybe we got it wrong up north and the Confederates really won???  Can’t believe everything you read, huh? I thought I would let you in on some of the interesting facts and places we have visited the last two days.

Steve, Nancy, and Dolly (aka Sonja)

Clifton, TN

Clifton is right on a large bend in the Tennessee River.  It is one of the best-preserved river front towns in the state. In its early days, it lost by a few votes to Nashville to become the state capital.  During the Civil War, it was overrun by the Federalists (as they call the Union soldiers) and a local Presbyterian Church went from a Confederate hospital to a stable and blacksmith shop for the Union Army.  After the war, they asked for money to rebuild the front of the church and repaired it.  You can see the different bricks to this day.  I, also, liked the sidewalks!  There is a sign that says, “Caution Uneven Historical Sidewalks!”  Right downtown, for any history buffs, General Nathan Bedford Forrest twice crossed the Tennessee River during his West Tennessee Raid in the Civil War.  Quite the quaint little town!

 

 

Shiloh National Military Park

Today we used the marina’s loaner car and drove to the Shiloh Battlefield.  I was quite proud of the three of us, because we did our homework prior to our arrival.  The marina manager had given us a tape about the battlefield and we used our computer to sharpen our knowledge about one of the fiercest battles of the Civil War.  When we arrived, a park ranger, dressed as a Confederate soldier was giving a school group a talk and demonstration about the nine steps to loading a musket.  Interesting point:  To be a soldier in the war, you needed to have a least two teeth (one on the bottom and one on the top) in order to bite off the top of the powder cartridge to pour the gunpowder into their musket!  As he added, oral hygiene in those days was lacking J  I am not a battle strategist, but it was amazing how very subtle things happened in the two days at Shiloh that really turned the tide for the Union.  Grant and his army were the victors, but the nice Southern folks who man the welcome center, almost give a little different version.  In all, more than 24,000 soldiers were killed, wounded, or captured in a two day time frame.  Quite a somber place!



This is the Shiloh Church for which the battle was named.

Cemetary at Shiloh Church



Union Cemetary at Pittsburg Landing

 

Hagy’s Catfish Hotel

Once again, the manager of the marina gave us a tip….eat at Hagy’s Catfish Hotel/Restaurant.  It is about two miles from the Shiloh Battlefield and on the scenic Tennessee River.  This area is the self-proclaimed “Catfish Capitol of the World”.  Folks use to stop by this little spot on the river and enjoy the family’s home cooking and wonderful catfish.  They would stay after dinner “spinning yarns” so late into the evening that many times they slept there. (Thus the name “Hotel”.)  Now I must admit, I am not sure if I have really ever eaten catfish, but they were delicious and it was all you can eat.  Plus, you are in the South, so there were hush puppies, potatoes, “slaw” and pie!!!  MMMM!

 

 

Leftovers...

Catfish Chairs



Steve and the man in gray

We are back at the boat now and I am blogging and Steve is  preparing the boat for our trip down river tomorrow to Pickwick Lock and Dam.  There we will enter the Tenn-Tom Waterway and go through the state of Alabama to Demopolis. This will be our last section of the river before heading to Mobile!!!!  Hope you have enjoyed Tennessee history, because there will be a quiz!  Hehehe!  Talk soon! 

Tennessee Tales

September 30^th marks one month since we left Lake Michigan….and we do have many “tales” to tell.  As I write this morning, we are sailing down the Tennessee River on a cool fall morning.  We’re about half way through the state of Tennessee headed for a bit of Mississippi and then into Alabama!  So, here’s what’s happening in our little corner of the world.

 

Paris Landing State Park

A bard owl at the lodge.  It had a crushed wing and this group found them and they keep them since they cannot go back into the wild.

 

When I last wrote, we were just getting started on Kentucky Lake and it was raining.  The day continued to be a bit soggy until we tied up in Paris Landing.  If Paris Landing is any indication of the State Parks in Tennessee, they do a FINE job!  The marina itself was lovely, as well as the beautiful surroundings, campgrounds, walking trails and the lodge/hotel on site.  As soon as we started to tie up, we heard a familiar voice…a gentleman named Tom from the boat Q’s End came right over to help us.  He and his wife were the people from our 1^st Wal Mart shopping trip in Illinois.  They had been in this marina for several days playing a few rounds of golf.  It’s always good to catch up with where everyone has been.  For dinner, we walked to the gorgeous lodge for an “all you can eat” seafood buffet.  I won’t even mention how many times the three of us headed back to the dessert bar J.   

Fishing Boats

I think you must have to own a fishing boat in the state of Tennessee to be an official citizen.  They’re everywhere and going fast in their “state of the art” boats with all of the electronics on board!  At both marinas we have visited, each day there was a fishing contest going on.  I believe they were catching small mouth bass and catfish. 

Pebble Isle Marina

 

Last night, we stayed at the Pebble Isle Marina, which was a great place, too!  Of course, as we pulled up to the dock, there were some more friends we had met farther up the rivers.  So, as all good loopers do, we had to have a little get together.  Steve had promised to make margaritas for our sailing buddies on Time and Tide…and he produced!  The first part of the party was on board Kathryn, but as more boats arrived, we spread on out to the dock! There were lots of good “tales” of the river from each boat as we exchanged experiences.  The restaurant at this marina is called The Gray Heron and they had some tasty delights! (one being a HUGE hot brownie, covered in ice cream and whipped cream…delicious!) Our waitress told us about the gray heron who resides in the marina.  We had seen it flying here and there all afternoon.  All the way down the Illinois and Mississippi Rivers, we had seen blue herons, but here their cousins, the gray herons, are prominent.  They are very large birds, especially when they take flight!

 

 

 

Our gray heron...do you see him?

 

So, our destination for today is to Clifton, Tennessee where there promises to be another great marina.  We have a sailing book called Skipper Bob’s Cruising from Chicago to Mobile to help us plan our trip and places to stay.  There is, also, a website called Active Captain that people write reviews of places they have been and have stayed along the river.  So, this helps us each day to make our plans.  So long, dear friends!

Scenes From the River:

 

Louisville and Nashville RR Bridge with span removed

 

 

An abandoned dock that stood here before they flooded the river to make Kentucky Lake in the 1940's

 

More barges

Can you see the lighthouse home in the trees?

 

A wise man builds his house on a rock!