Columbus, MS to Grand Rivers, KY

Total Miles Traveled 2944

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It was great catching up with our boating friends at Columbus, we had a great visit and will see them again later this year as we head South this Fall. 

We departed the Columbus Marina on May 3^rd, there are 7 locks on the Tenn-Tom Waterway between Columbus Mississippi and Bay Springs raising us an additional 251 feet above sea level.   During the longer days in the Spring, and if the tow traffic does not hold us up, we can make all 7 locks in one day.  It was a long day, but we traveled 79 miles passing through all 7 locks and anchored at Bay Springs just before dark.  

Bay Springs is a reservoir approximately 9 miles long between the Whitten Lock and Dam and the Divide Cut, the canal that joins the Tennessee River, Pickwick Lake,  and Bay Springs.  The water is very clear as the reservoir is fed by several natural springs with a rocky shoreline.  There are also several great anchorages along the reservoir making this one of our favorite stops while cruising this area.

On May 4^th, we weighed anchor and continued North through the divide cut and entered the Tennessee River at Pickwick Lake.  Our last lock before reaching our home port is Pickwick Lock.  We weren’t as fortunate with the lock delays this time as we waited 3 hours before entering the lock and descending 54 feet to Kentucky Lake on the Tennessee River.  We continued to an anchorage behind Diamond Island, cruising 58 miles for the day.

After a few miles past the lock, we passed through a tornado torn area along the river.  Some of the structures were totally devastated.

Barn homes are becoming very popular, the tornado missed this one.

We only had 36 miles to travel on May 5^th to one of our favorite stops at the Clifton Marina and it was Cinco de Mayo day!  We arrived at the marina about 2 o’clock just in time for a bowl of Taco soup and a couple of house special margaritas to celebrate the event.  We also had dinner later that evening while listening to some local entertainment.  This is a great stop with super friendly owners, staff, and patrons.

Looks like a pretty productive deer camp

We’ve had great cruising weather for the past several days but with a chance of evening thunderstorms, we decided to depart Clifton on May 6^th and travel 63 miles to Pebble Isle Marina.  We always like to tie up to a secure dock if there is a chance of severe weather.  We have now entered a much wider part of Kentucky Lake which has access to several marinas and secluded anchorages.

Our last bridge on our travels north, I had to lower our antennas before passing under the bridge.  The bridge support is marked for the distance from the water to the lowest section of the bridge at the current water level.  Our antenna height is 24 feet 10 inches, and when lowered, we need at least 20 feet.  The marker indicates close to 25 feet.

Hang ten cruising on Kentucky Lake

All the storm activity bypassed us overnight and we now have several days of great boating weather ahead of us.  We are also in our home port cruising waters and can’t wait to anchor in some of our favorite spots.  On May 7^th we cruised 37 miles to an anchorage at Panther Bay, then on May 8^th cruised 26 miles to an anchorage at Sugar Bay, and on May 9^th cruised 4 miles to an anchorage at Duncan Bay.  

This bumble bee stayed with us for a mile or so, it just kept hovering in front of us, darting away, then back again?

On May 10 we completed our 2022-23 season cruising 12 miles to our home port at Green Turtle Bay marina.  We’ve logged 2,944 miles since leaving Green Turtle Bay October 13, 2022, and 30,190 miles since starting the Great Loop in 2015.  

After a few days at the marina, we were able to attend the annual flag retirement ceremony. A flag-burning retirement ceremony is an event during which a heavily worn or tattered American flag is disposed of through burning. According to the U.S. Flag Code, the American flag should be disposed of in a dignified manner. Among the approved methods for disposal is a flag-burning retirement ceremony. The ceremony is much like attending the funeral of a family member or a friend.  We have been saving one of our previous flags for this ceremony and added it to the collection.

I talked this veteran of the Korean war and thanked him for his service, he said he was assigned to an artillery unit on a mountain during the war. 

This will be my last posting for this season as we will be staying at the marina and visiting family and friends during the summer months.  I will resume my blog when we head south in September.