Killen to Guntersville, AL and Chattanooga, TN

We were up early and ready to get through Wheeler Lock before the barges extended our wait again. Luckily, we didn't have to wait at all and locked up right away.

The rock faces and mountains started to appear. These were welcomed scenery changes by all of us. We've been waiting to see this!

Guntersville was our second lock of the day. Both locks were uneventful, thankfully, given the less-than-desirable situation at yesterday's lock.

Our anchorage was perfect. We were tucked between two islands and had a beautiful vantage point for the sunset. Moose did some fishing, but didn't catch anything. It was cute to watch Hattie by his side, watching him. 

As the sun went down, we heard the unmistakable chorus of the frogs. It sounded like there were thousands of them! This seemed to be the perfect spot for them because all of the mosquitoes sent us inside as soon as possible. They probably feast on them all night, every night, and then some.

Locks today: 2

Locks of the summer: 19

Locks of the loop: 133

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Nickajack was our only lock today. We arrived in Chattanooga and tied up at the Bluff Dock at Erwin Marina, which is basically just a dock off to the side of the Tennessee River river, like the marina in Nashville was off to the side of the Cumberland River.

We hit waypoint 8888 on our navigational autopilot's mapping software. Counting from waypoint 1 started last summer, when we installed it, so it isn't counting our whole trip, but it is still an exciting number.

Ben did an oil change, while the kids fished off the dock. We didn't have enough time to get out and explore beyond the locked gate of the dock, but knew that would be accomplished over the next few days.

We’re officially in the Eastern Time Zone, for now, and we’re all feeling the time shift. It’s always a little weird adjusting after so many days in another time zone. The hardest part, but I think biggest advantage, is the sun sets earlier in the day. It ends our days a little earlier and gives us just a little more sleep! Everything feels a little off for the first day or two, but we always find our groove. Bonus: We head back to Central Time on our way back through here toward the Tombigbee River.

Locks today: 1

Locks of the summer: 20

Locks of the loop: 134

Counce to Killen, AL

Today was a big one—literally.

We tackled Wilson Lock, the largest lock of our summer at 100 feet. Navionics warned us ahead of time that this one “moves alarmingly fast,” and we had to go up in it.

Ben called to get their next opening and was told that pleasure craft is allowed through 9-10 and 4-5 only, so we'd have to wait until 4 to start that adventure. 

We made a midday stop around 1 PM at Florence Harbor Marina to fill up on water and get showered while we waited. The guy working at the marina told us that Wilson Lock was broken and that only one barge at a time could fit through. Apparently there were hundreds of barges waiting in the queue, so that was why the hours were restricted for pleasure craft. They were super backlogged!

Instead of one massive 100-foot lift, we’d have to go through the auxiliary lock, consisting of two smaller 50-foot locks. 

We made it to the staging area around 3 PM, and even though they’d told us the next lockage wouldn’t be until 3:30, they let us in early since we were the only pleasure craft waiting. This dang lock beat us up pretty good- physically and mentally. Here we were thinking we had a good feel for doing locks like this, and then we wound up being tossed around and even popping one of our fenders! It got stuck in a pocket in the lock wall and as the boat went up, the fender stayed in the hole, and popped! Then, we had to manually control the boat with our boat hooks to keep it from getting banged up.

Once we got to the top of the first lock, an employee mentioned to us: "This lock isn’t very friendly to rec boats.” Unfortunately, we noticed.

As the doors opened and we finished the first lock, we had to quickly flip our fenders and lines from starboard to port before we tied onto the floating ballard for the second lock. It was a scramble but we made the switch in time. By the time we wrapped up the second lock, the sky had turned gray, and just as we cruised out, the rain started.

We really wanted to squeeze in Wheeler Lock today too and anchor just beyond it. As we approached around 6 PM, we called to see when the next opening would be. Three hours. Nope. That wasn’t going to happen. We found a spot to anchor just ahead of it and decided to try again in the morning.

As our anchor dug into the mud at our anchorage, we could see bubbles indicating it was digging into the mud. Neat to see because the bubbles are not visible very often.

Locks today: 2

Locks of the summer: 17

Locks of the loop: 131

Ashland City back to Grand Rivers and down to Pickwick Landing in Counce, TN

We left Ashland City Marina this morning and spent most of the day cruising. Ben was at the helm while I caught up on the blog and he chatted on the phone— a pretty chill Father’s Day.

Locks today: 1

Locks of the summer: 14

Locks of the loop: 128

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Not much to report today. It was another one of those slow boat days where nothing major happened, which is kind of nice sometimes, when its mixed in with all of the sightseeing and things to do. Ben got the water maker fixed (yay!), but we quickly realized the filters clog up after just 10 gallons, so we’ll need to keep filling up at marinas until we hit the ocean again. The plan is to get a brand new one installed for next summer, as we use it a TON and spend way less time at marinas while in the Bahamas.

Our anchorage was very secluded and reminded us of our Georgian Bay anchorages. We had a very peaceful end of the day, before all the bugs came out.

No locks today!

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Watching the riverbanks, we noticed the structures changing. It is interesting to see how all of the land owners build on their lots, depending on where they sit on the banks. Some have houses that are built so the first floor is 12 feet off the ground (an attempt to stay safe from flood waters). Others have only excavated their land so they can leave their camper there year-round. Our favorite new structure: giant sheds, under which they park their campers- some even with white picket fences. My mind drifted to wonderings of if these places were primarily summer getaways, weekend homes, or places people live their daily lives. Thinking back to the books I've read where the same families take their vacations- year after year- in the same spot, wondering if these places have stories that are the plots of any current or future books.

Today was a HOT one. We spent most of the day tucked inside, watching TV, reading books, and doing a whole lot of nothing. Typically, the AC gets turned off in the morning when we start the engines and doesn't get turned back on until we are just about at our destination. Today was an exception. Honestly, the heat kind of demanded it.

We got a little rain, which brought cooler temperatures and a beautiful double rainbow in the evening!

Locks today: 1

Locks of the summer: 15

Locks of the loop: 129

Nashville back to Ashland City, TN

We left Nashville and made it to Ashland City in about two hours. The current was working with us once again today- we love when that happens! It gave us a nice little speed boost.

Once we got back to Ashland City Marina, we completed the usual tasks: filled up with diesel and got pumped out. Ben had a few boat projects lined up and was ready to dive in starting with the new windlass we had been carrying with us since May of 2024 in its box. 

Our friends Carlos and Libby live nearby and allowed us to ship some items to their house so we could get them when we saw them. Carlos brought their kids to the marina and delivered a whole stack of packages to the boat including a new toilet, fly traps, paper towels, hoses, connections, and other things needed to repair some items which contributed to more of this summer's necessary projects.

Ben wasted no time and got right to work installing the windlass. Carlos ran him to the store and back. Ben did a few more things before Carlos came back later around 6 PM to pick all of us up for dinner at his house.

It was so good to see Carlos, Libby, and their adorable kids. They moved here from Colorado about two years ago, and the kids and I hadn’t seen them since. It felt so good to catch up, share stories, let the kids play, and just spend time together.

These are the moments we love- when our crazy summer boat life not only brings us to new places, but we get to catch up with old friends.

Ashland City to Nashville, TN

We were up and off the dock early for a quick 3-hour cruise to Nashville. Pulling in, we spotted the skyline. Immediately I compared one of the buildings to Scooby-Doo. We all laughed because it looked just like him. I looked it up and it was the AT&T building, and some people refer to it as the batman building. 

As soon as we got tied up at the Lock 1 Marina (which was just under the pedestrian bridge leading straight to Broadway), we moved everything typically stowed in the cockpit, to the cabin. I'd read that this area can have frequent theft from the transient population and tourists, so we didn’t want to take any chances. We left Dixie out of her kennel as bark security.

First stop: The Country Music Hall of Fame & Museum. We spent over three hours there soaking it all in! The new Dolly Parton exhibit was so fun to see. There was a whole wall dedicated to Luke Combs, which made me so happy to experience with my mom since he’s her favorite. We also got to see small displays of Kane Brown, Ella Langley, Shania Twain, Keith Urban, Faith Hill, Tim McGraw. We finished our museum tour with a quick spin through the gift shop.

From there, we walked to Category 10, Luke Combs’ four-story restaurant. Parts of the road were blocked off due to the filming of Nashville 911. There was a live band playing when we arrived, featuring singing by Angel Edwards. Audience memebers could Venmo her directly to request songs, which was a neat idea! Roo wanted to hear "You Look Like You Love Me", so we sent in the request. The band went on break right after, but they promised to sing our song as soon as they came back.

During the break, the restaurant lead line dancing lessons on the dance floor. My mom, Roo, and I all jumped in to learn a new dance with a big group of people. It was so much fun! We laughed and stepped all over each other, but we kept at it, dancing all the way through several songs.

When the band came back, Angel announced, “Lisa, your song is next—I hope you’re still here!” Roo and I went right back to the dance floor. Roo danced and sang her little heart out with Angel. It was the absolute cutest thing. Such a sweet memory.

We wrapped up the night with ice cream from Mike’s Ice Cream and a walk back to the boat. On the pedestrian bridge, we overheard a group of women talking about wanting to go on a sunset cruise. Ben joked that we should offer them a ride for $40 per person. They overheard us and said they'd pay that. I chimed in, “We have two dogs, though...” They laughed and said, “We don’t care! We love dogs and miss ours.” Then they told us to be safe and went on their way. Ben got the idea that maybe we should start a little side hustle when we stop in cities- post a sign offering boat rides for $50 per person (no food or drinks provided). Moose immediately added, “Yeah, then once they pay, we just take them on the tender.” We got a good laugh out of that!

We hung out at the boat the rest of the evening.

  

We woke up, got ready, and walked over to Pancake Pantry for breakfast. There was a short 15-minute wait to get a table. Roo was complaining about a tummy ache (she gets like this from time to time), and I told her it was probably because she hadn’t eaten yet.

Despite the short wait, we had a delicious breakfast and then walked back to the boat to hang out while my parents packed up to head to the airport.

Later that day, our niece who lives in Nashville came to check out the boat with her friend and joined us for dinner. We walked down Broadway just after 5 PM and I was surprised to see that almost every door was already checking IDs. The party starts early in this town! Our niece suggested we eat at Prince’s Chicken inside Assembly Food Hall, which was really good. For dessert, we stopped for No Baked Cookie Dough.

On our walk back to the boat, we admired all the neon signs, music pouring out of every open window and doorway, and the steady stream of people everywhere. We waited to make sure our niece got back to her ride before heading in for the night.

The next morning, we walked to 417 Union for breakfast. Poor Roo was complaining about her tummy again. I took her to the bathroom while Ben ordered her a waffle, which was waiting by the time we got back, but she just didn’t feel like eating.

We debated our plans for the day since rain was moving in and we wouldn’t have enough time to walk back to the boat before it hit. We decided Ben and Roo would take a Lyft back to the boat to rest, while Moose, Bear, and I would explore a little more.

The three of us walked to the souvenir shops on Broadway and then caught a Lyft to the Grand Ole Opry. We looked around the gift shop, used the restroom, then made a beeline across the street to the mall to escape the pouring rain. 

Moose needed new shoes because his well-loved Crocs finally gave out. We wandered the mall for a few hours, picked up a few things, and eventually made our way back to the boat to relax for the evening.

Nashville has been fun, but I imagine it would be much more fun without kids. Ben wasn't a fan at all. Girls' trip!! 

Cumberland City to Ashland City, TN

Cheatham Lock and Dam was our first and only lock of the day. We waited for more than an hour for them to complete routine daily maintenance before we could lock through. Because they said it could be up to 2 hours, we anchored, fished and worked out while we waited. This was a lock that went only 17 feet up, which is small compared with what we've been doing. We tied, once again, to a floating ballard. These seem to be what happens in a majority of these river locks.

We pulled into Ashland City Marina. Got pumped out and chatted with one of the employees who recently lived in Gypsym, CO and has a sister who still lives in Colorado. It is a surprise when people ask us where in Colorado we are from, asking for a specific place because they are familiar with it. I like hearing where they're from or how they know someone who lives there.

Ben took a bike to a medical clinic. His ear had been bothering him. Turns out it was an inner and outer ear infection. He will be taking antibiotics and ear drops for the next 10 days.

While Ben was gone, my parents, Roo, and I walked the marina. We came back and I traded my parents for the dogs and Bear. Took them to a nice mini dog park where they were the only visitors and ran like crazy. It has been since the World's Largest Truck Stop in Iowa since they've been able to run free, off leash. Hattie didn't see the fence and literally folded in half at a 90° angle when she hit it. Dixie got tripped by Hattie and did a somersault. They ran and ran and wore themselves out in about 10 short minutes. 

When we brought the pups back to the boat, Hattie went to sleep for the night! We played Five Crowns and then went to bed.

Locks today: 1

Locks of the summer: 13

Locks of the loop: 127

Grand Rivers to Cumberland City, TN

Nothing too exciting today. The scenery is looking a bit more nature-y, which gives us things to look for souvenirs we cruise through. 

We anchored outside of a power plant. A giant 3x5 barge passed through while we were anchored. It made me nervous how close they got, but I kept repeating in my head that these captains are masters at what they do. They have to be or they lose their jobs!

We had a few meetings to watch. One we were out in the cockpit watching, but moved inside after a bit because we were being eaten alive by mosquitos. 

No locks today!