Day 108 & 109 October 6 and 7th, 2022

Day 108 Thursday October 6, 2022

Paducah Kentucky to Green Turtle Bay, Grand Rivers Kentucky

Underway at 7am we left the Paducah town dock as the sun was rising.  Two paddleboat cruise ships had come into the harbor during the night.  

      

We were a caravan of 6 boats. We met 7 tows and a dredge within the first 30 minutes.  The tow Captain John Coe, had us wait at double bends of the river to give him enough room to pass.  The Chickotaw Sou slowed down so that we could all turn in front of him onto the Cumberland River.  

 "Pray for our Men and Women in Uniform" is painted on the side of the tow.

 

The cows got their drink and were headed back to pasture.  We watched a straggler run to catch up with the others.

   There's a lot of weight there!

This is what happens when a barge runs into the cell meant for tying to!

We continued our travel to Barkley Lock as a caravan of 6 boats.  We called the lock in advance to advise of our intention to lock through and get an arrival time.  We were told to plan our arrival for 12noon.  Most of our group arrived timely but the trail of boats was spread apart. 

We were gently reminded by the lock master that we should be together when approaching a lock.  If we had taken too long and a tow was coming he might have had to delay all or part of the group to accommodate the tow.  That would make for a very long day.  The Barkley Lock was a 57 foot lift; we were out at 1:30pm.

We arrived at Green Turtle Bay Marina shortly after the lock.  The marina is huge and a favorite stop for loopers.  It offers 2 courtesy cars, laundry, Ship's Store, restaurant and bar, as well as a resort with pool and spa.  There is also a beach where there are actual turtles you can feed.

The marina staff expect to be overwhelmed with boats each time the lock opens; they follow boat traffic on Nebo so they can see what's coming.  This time of year is tough for them too, as everyone is headed off the Great Lakes and through the rivers. They do their best to find room for everyone.

We headed straight to the fuel dock.  Diesel was $5.09/gallon, we are still getting 3 gallons/hour total.  Off to our slip we find it OCCUPIED.  This is the 2nd time this has happened to us.  We notified the dock master and headed back to the fuel dock until it got straightened out.  We were finally in our slip at 3:30.

Everyone settled, the ladies snagged a courtesy car and headed to the Village Market for groceries.  While we were gone the guys joined in on a 70th birthday docktails celebration at the gazebo.  Dinner on our boats (most everyone had leftovers) and then chatting on the patio dock until we couldn't stand the chill any longer.

Day 109 Friday October 7, 2022

Laundry and more errands were on the agenda.  This time the courtesy car was on a mission to find propane.  We need it for our gas grill but The Grand Wazoo uses it for their stove top and oven as well. 

We scored it at the local ACE Hardware store and got to pet the resident kitty! We hit the Food Giant next door and found a much better selection there.  Last job -- the liquor store.  Beer selection is often limited, to none in the grocery stores, and forget ciders or seltzers.  Every state is different.

A "reception" for loopers, hosted by Greg and Susan, Platinum Loopers (they've done the loop 2 times) and Susan and Danny from Phil-N-Wild was planned for the evening.  Opportunity to meet more loopers, snack and play some games.  We won a Green Turtle Bay pin for the boat name with the most letters.  

 Politics is everywhere!

Everyone gathered again on the dock for conversation, a captain's meeting and delicious rum bundt cake made by Arlene (Arion).  This time we showed up with blankets.

Tomorrow Arion, The Grand Wazoo, Phil-N-Wild and Eric's Inheritance will head for the AGLCA Rendezvous in Paris Landing Buchanan, Tennessee.  Call Me Curly and La Vida aren't going to the Rendezvous so will enjoy Green Turtle Bay a bit longer.

 The only turtle that we saw....