The Panhandle-Gulf Crossing - Oct 18-31

The Panhandle!  Dolphins! Need we say more? 

We decided to slow down our pace to reward ourselves for accomplishing the rivers once again. The Panhandle continues to be a favorite area for us so it was great to take the time to take in the beauty of the beaches and pretty waters. We combined our time in fantastic anchorages as well as marinas located near shopping and restaurants. 

After crossing Mobile Bay we spent 2 nights at the upscale Wharf Marina in Orange Beach, AL. Then on to our favorite Panhandle anchorage at Ft McRee located 3 miles from NAS Pensacola Naval Air Base - home base for the Blue Angels. It’s a thrill to witness them practicing over the anchorage. Our other stops included Destin, Panama City Beach, Apalachicola and Carrabelle.  From Mobile Bay to Carrabelle we traveled 290 miles.

We planned our arrival into Carrabelle on Thursday to catch a forecasted weather window to cross the Gulf of Mexico on Friday. By the time we reached Carrabelle that weather window had evaporated. Next good weather for crossing showed for Monday. We had never stayed in Carrabelle before, so we spent 3 days enjoying the town. To position ourselves for the crossing we anchored out Sunday night just off St George Island. We were welcomed by a fabulous dolphin show. At the crack of dawn, we headed out for 163 mile crossing from St George Island to Tarpon Springs. The first half was rougher than we expected or cared for, but by the 2nd half, the seas had laid down and the crew could relax a little. For 7 of the 9 hours, we were incommunicado….no cell service, no other boats, no land in sight. Always thankful when we arrive at the other side. 

ALONG THE WAY:

Sunny, sunny weather until we reached Carrabelle 

Zero locks!

6 nights in marinas

6 nights on anchor

Blue Angel fly overs - a dozen

Sharks - 1

Dolphins - too many to count 

Captain Relaxation 

Miles of secluded beach.

Our Sentry guarding the boat

Ft McRee sunset 

Ft McRee

She tried to run, but they got her on a really small offense!

Leaving Carrabelle 

Cruising across The Gulf

Amazing flat Gulf

Tenn-Tom/Tombigbee - Black Warrior Waterway - Oct 8-18

Our first 2 nights on this part of our journey, we spent at Grand Harbor Marina, near Corinth, Mississippi. The use of a courtesy car was a welcome luxury so we loaded up on provisions, took care of some needed paperwork for home, and the Captain spent time in the man cave doing oil changes on the motors.  Next up our final stretch  to Mobile, AL.

This section of the rivers is considered the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway (Tenn-Tom) and the Black Warrior-Tombigbee Waterway.  This 450 mile long section consisted of lots a hours watching the trees along the river (not much infrastructure here) and traveling thru locks. Although locks frequently hold us up, we had one day where everything clicked, so we managed to knock off 6 locks on our list instead of just the 3 we had hoped for.  This put us in Columbus, MS a day ahead of our schedule so we could spend 2 days at the Columbus Marina where our friends Randy and Sherri Chester (past Loopers, now live aboards) spent the summer. So fun to catch up with them over 2 yummy dinners at their favorite restaurants in the area.

Our final lock once again put us back into the world of saltwater and tides. Arriving Mobile is always a culture shock - civilization, huge ocean going ships, and massive Navy vessels. AND….palm trees! 

ALONG THE WAY:

Sunny, sunny, sunny weather….continues

12 locks - locked down 415 feet

3 night at marinas

5 nights on anchor

1 night at the wall at the Convention Center in Mobile 

The rivers are now in our rear view mirror (if we had one)….

Stats since leaving Grand Haven:

26 total days, 23 days of travel, 3 non-travel days

1295 total miles

24 locks

Ending up 406 feet below Lake Michigan water level

Bald eagles, barges, Asian Carp: too many to count

26 days of sunshine!

Super smooth waters

Glorious sunset after a long day

In the lock, ready to go down

Ready for lock duty 

Work, work, work 

Doors opening for our exit 

White cliffs 

PV2 tied to wall at Mobile Convention Center 

Oil drilling platforms in dry dock 

Navy ships

Cargo ship

Kentucky Lake-Tennessee River - October 4-8

Twenty-two miles after turning off the Ohio River, we arrived at the Kentucky Lock to find 2 double size tows waiting to lock thru. 

The lock master advised us it would be 3-4 hours before we would lock through. Down went the anchor, out came the grill, lunch time! The first mate cooked while the captain worked on waxing the boat. 

Kentucky Lake has become a favorite area for us. A boater’s paradise. Too many beautiful coves to count. We could spend a whole summer here and never stay in the same anchorage twice. 

Our 190 miles on this portion of our journey was pretty equally divided between Kentucky Lake and then narrowed back to river travel. Our 2nd and final lock of this section proved to be a long wait also. 5 1/2 hours later we were thru. Argh! Fifteen miles later we arrived at Grand Harbor Marina at dusk. 

ALONG THE WAY:

Sunny, sunny, sunny weather….still.

2 locks, lifting us up 112 feet total.

1 night in a marina.

4 amazing nights on anchor. 

Huge full moon! 

PV2 at Kentucky Dam Marina 

Full moon at Dickey Tow Head
First repeat anchorage of the trip.

No Small Craft warning here!

Pickwick Lock, closing the doors behind us.

Mississippi River & Ohio River - Oct 1-4

We left Grafton on October 1,  beginning our journey down the Mississippi River. Fourteen miles later, we stopped in Alton to top off with fuel. While fueling up, the captain contacted the lock 1/2 mile away and was advised if we get there fast he’ll lock us right thru. Bam, done, we were out of there! Perfect timing. Our 2nd lock for the day went just as well. 

We dropped the hook up the mouth of the Meramac River. The river current kept us nice and centered in the river all evening. The next morning we found we were spun sideways and the back of the boat was somewhat stuck in the muddy bottom near shore.

By pulling  the boat ahead a few feet with the anchor winch, it allowed the back end to freely swing out with the current. Whew! 

Our journey on the Mississippi River took us 218 miles downstream, thru 2 lock, down 46 feet.

Our journey on the Ohio River took us 47 miles upstream, thru 1 lock, up 10 feet. (When we came up the river in 2021 the water was so high we actually went right over the dam rather than through the lock!)

ALONG THE WAY:

Sunny, sunny, sunny weather.

4 days of travel - never set foot on land.

3 nights on anchor - all new stops for us. 

Low water on the Mississippi provided beautiful, scenic beaches and log-free/stress-free traveling.

During a dinghy ride near Cape Girardeau, we excited a bazillion Asian Carp. Once the first mate stopped screaming she wanted to do it again.

Hello St Louis!

Exiting the lock. Tow waiting to enter 

Kayakers enjoying low Mississippi waters

The calm before the Asian Carp ruckus 

The Ruckus!!

Illinois River - Sept 24-30

As we entered the Cal Sag/Calumet River we also entered the world of bridges, barges/tows, dams and locks.

It’s time for the navigator to start earning her keep again - checking bridge heights, requesting openings, watching for tows. 

After 30 miles and one lock we again turned left and joined the Illinois River. 

Our journey on the Illinois River took us 303 miles and through 8 locks dropping us 157 feet from Lake Michigan water level. 

This took us 6 days of cruising with our final destination: Grafton Harbor Marina where the Illinois River meets the Mississippi.

ALONG THE WAY….

Sunny, sunny, sunny weather.

 Four nights on anchor, 3 nights in a marina. 

 Best brisket and pulled port this side of anywhere at the Blue Duck Tavern in Peoria. 

Bumping into, meeting, sharing anchorages and stories with many, many Loppers. (On a sad note, a couple we met at the marina made the decision to pause their Loop and leave their boat in Grafton to tend to their home on Pine Island, near Fort Myers, that was damaged by Hurricane Ian. Because they had to empty out their boat fridge and freezer they grilled up all their meat and shared it with all of us.  What a feast we had!) 

Next up…the Mississippi River! 

First lock. Many more to come!

Asian carp fish barrier 

Work, work, work. Finding the perfect anchorage.

Work paid off…perfect anchorage 

Dinghy exploration of our anchorage 

Pulling anchor - beautiful morning!

Tied to a mooring cell while waiting for a lock

Locking thru with 6 other Looper boats

Captain checking depths for an anchorage 

Grafton. Key West of the Midwest!

Hurricane Ian

 Hurricane Ian has devastated southwest Florida. It would be remiss of us not to comment on this tragedy. We have friends and family who have condos or homes in the Fort Myers, Fort Myers Beach, Englewood  and Punta Gorda area.  We also have Looper friends who lived full time on their boats in Fort Myers. We know for sure that at least one has lost their boat (their home) to the storm. We are thankful they are okay.

Our thoughts and prayers go out to all those who have lost so much. 

Grand Haven-Chicago - Sept 23

 Here we go again! After enduring the winter last year without a boat in Florida, we decided that should not happen again this year.

We have to say, we did make good use of the time the Pura Vida was in winter storage in Michigan . We made quite a few improvements and enhancements that make her better than ever. 

Friday, September 23 was go day! We left our slip at Keenan Marina, and topped off our fuel tanks by 11am, cruised out the Grand Haven channel and yes, once again, turned left. Our planned destination for the day was New Buffalo, Michigan with the intention of crossing Lake Michigan on Saturday. As we traveled down the shoreline nearing Holland, we were as always checking the wind and wave forecast. Saturday’s weather was not looking as good as it had earlier, so after a crew meeting we reset our destination on our chart plotter to Hammond, Indiana. With 96 miles to travel in 6 hours of daylight, the throttles were pushed far forward. Full speed ahead! It was a cool day, but the lake was very calm all the way. Although we never, never, never anchor out overnight on Lake Michigan, we dropped the hook in Lake Michigan just north of Hammond Marina in a well protected cove in front of Beer Can Beach.  The winds were out of the south so being on the south end of Lake Michigan the waters, were calm. 

Saturday morning we were moved and waiting at the Hammond Marina fuel dock before they opened. We topped of our tanks again and cruised 3 miles north to the entrance of the Calumet/Cal-Sag canal. 

Next up, the rivers! 

Getting us into River mode. Waiting for a barge and drawbridge!
Grand Haven Drawbridge 

Goodbye for now Grand Haven

Smooth day cruising 

Chicago skyline