Integrity Cruise

Day 153: Cumberland Towhead to Grand Rivers, Kentucky

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Day 153: Sunday, September 18th: It was fogged in at our anchorage this morning so we were glad all the boats had planned to sleep in until an 8:30am departure time. It was only OK fog by the time we got underway but tended to clear and roll back in for much of the morning.

First step was to go around Cumberland Towhead, and island, and past the giant Federal Mooring Cells (as they are called):

We passed between the Towhead and Cumberland Island, the entrance to the Cumberland River off the Ohio:

The Cumberland River was foggy much of the morning. Occasionally we were afforded a respite from the fog and a nice view:

We began to notice a trend of better visibility and less fog. We could see our cruise mates ahead more:

A ways up the river we passed Bissell Bluff, the highest cliff on the Cumberland River:

We were only traveling about 30 miles up the Cumberland which was very narrow and offered a two-knot current or more. At about mile 24 we arrived at the "Blue Bridge" which carried Interstate 24 along the north edge of Land Between The Lakes:

A few miles farther we arrived at the Barkley Lock and Dam. We had seven boats to lock through:

We were fourth. This lock was huge and has a nominal 57-foot lift. Either this lock or the Kentucky Lock is the highest lock one must traverse on the Great Loop. We had traversed the Carillon Lock in Quebec which had a 65-foot lift. However, you don't have to go the way we went; either way, this is one BIG chamber.

The more modern locks like this one had floating bollards. You simply loop a line around the bollard amidships, secure it and it floats up with the boat. Really less stress. All we had to do was fend off the ends of the boat from the lock wall:

Yes, it is Barkley Lock:

At the top the lock walls seem relatively short:

Once we were out of the lock we went a couple of miles upstream on the Cumberland River. Actually this is in Barkley Lake formed by the Barkley Dam. We arrived at the Green Turtle Bay Marina and Resort, a very popular and large marina:

There were lots of Loopers in the marina. We chatted with many and enjoyed our first real marina since leaving the Illinois River. Among others, we saw Pilgrim III again, a 46-foot Grand Banks which we had seen in Georgian Bay a month or so ago. The captain had just used FSR to clean the starboard bow of the typical brown moustache. You don't appreciate how clean the bow is unless you see it in this state (Integrity's bow was even worse).

We enjoyed happy hour aboard Silver Boots with many of our cruise-mates. We then went to a famous restaurant, Patti's, which serves a 2" thick 16-ounce pork chop known all over the area. It was good but too much to eat. We took home several doggy crates.

They also had lemon meringue pie on the menu. It had a mile high meringue and we split a slice with enthusiasm! Ruth figured it was Bill's birthday present. Sorry, no picture.

We traversed one lock today for a trip total of 127.

Position tonight: N37 00.469 W088 13.627

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