great loop Archives — Trailer Trawler Life Blog

Ranger Tugs – A Serious Choice for Cruising the Great Loop Adventure

September 25, 2020
Lisa Favors
•TRAILERING, •TRAWLER RESEARCH, CRUISING

Looking for a Worthy Boat to Take On the Great Loop Adventure? We received a comment on our YouTube Page, asking us why most people planning on doing the Great Loop Boat Trip look for and buy, “Vintage, 20-30-year-old planing hull, fly-bridge boats.” “Why not buy modern, semi-displacement trawlers, that portray a serious dedication to seamanship?” This comment caused me to ask myself the question of why we became Ranger Tug owners many years ago. If those boats had been on our radar, would we have gone with a newer, smaller boat to do the "Loop?" Jim and I did…

A Simple Sailor Man

Tribute to a Friend – Tom Conrad We lost a good friend. Tom Conrad passed away recently and the boating community lost one of its best. We met Tom and Patsy Conrad many years ago through AGLCA (America's Great Loop Cruisers' Association). If the Great Loop boating adventure did not exist, we probably would never have met – with the Conrads living in Florida's Panhandle and us living in northern Michigan. What a loss that would have been for us. Because we shared a passion for boating and this adventure they call a "Loop," our paths crossed and our wakes overlapped. Loopers, ourselves included, often say that one of…

National Naval Aviation Museum – Orange Beach Marina – Pensacola, Florida

November 1, 2014
Lisa Favors
CRUISING, FLORIDA, Panhandle

Staying at Orange Beach Marina so that we can take a day to visit the National Naval Aviation Museum. We arrived late afternoon, got settled then borrowed the marina's loaner car to take a tour of the area and visit one of the beautiful beaches. Some folks stopped by (above) that knew us because they also own a Ranger Tug. It's a small world! The National Naval Aviation Museum in Pensacola, Florida – A Must-See Museum! On our third cruise through the Florida Panhandle, nine years after we heard about the museum during our first Great Loop adventure, we made plans to…

Great Loop Adventure – Loopers Rendezvous at Joe Wheeler State Park

Great Loop Adventure! The Great Loop Adventure! We packed up our boat and truck and headed down the highway to Joe Wheeler State Park in Rogersville, Alabama for AGLCA's 2014 Fall Rendezvous (AGLCA). Jim and I have been Loopers for almost ten years (we have done the Loop almost twice). The excitement and camaraderie we feel when out on the water cruising new territory, meeting other Loopers in far-off ports, and especially while connecting at one of the rendezvous, or Gold Looper Reunions, never gets old, in fact, it sustains us as cruisers. We laughed, we played, we shared boating…

2012 America’s Great Loop Cruisers’ Fall Rendezvous

Arriving at Joe Wheeler for the 2012 America's Great Loop Cruisers' Fall Rendezvous is the endpoint to our 2012 Tennessee River cruise. Our trip's mission was to spend some time on the Tennessee River, traveling its length along with this year's crop of Loopers, and commence the cruise by attending AGLCA's (America's Great Loop Cruisiers' Association) 2012 Fall Rendezvous held at Joe Wheeler State Park and Marina. To get to Joe Wheeler we had to lock through the Wheeler Lock and Dam, the last lock for us on this trip. We always try to get this spot at the Joe Wheeler Marina…

Time To Disembark at Grand Harbor Resort Marina

End of the line, Grand Harbor Resort Marina. After being on the hook a lot lately, a visit to Grand Harbor Resort Marina, located where the Tennessee, Mississippi, and Alabama borders come together (we're officially down south at this point), hit the spot. It has all the amenities a long-distance boater appreciates including a well-stocked ship's store, an elegant boater's lounge, laundry facilities located right on the dock where you can sit by the water as you wash and dry your clothes, they also have several loaner vehicles and they almost beg you to use one to explore the nearby…

Returning to Diamond Island to Anchor

Diamond Island welcomes Kismet back to its beautiful anchorage. A beautiful fall day presented itself to us as we headed out, from Clifton Marina early the next morning, with a plan to anchor out at Diamond Island. With bright blue skies and a pleasantly warm day, we basked in the scenic beauty along the Tennessee River during our cruise. Lots to see with many boats on the water, some Loopers passing us, and people fishing or relaxing along the sandy shoreline of the river. The houses along the river are interesting to look at and we enjoyed seeing this herd…

Launching in Mackinaw City – Post Wedding Trip to Mackinac Island

Mackinaw City seemed to be the logical choice to launch Kismet for our trip to Mackinac Island. Our son, Skyler, got married to, Sarah, on Labor Day Weekend. Most of our summer was focused on this big event; except for a few boat trips, we stayed close to home preparing and enjoying all the activities. I have to confess it took quite a toll on our blogging ability. After it was over, we needed to decompress and Mackinac Island came first to mind. This island is unique in its ability to transport a visitor back in time, one of our…

Doubling Our Pleasure in Covered Portage Cove

Rendezvous with Freedom's Turn in Covered Portage Cove! Doubling our pleasure comes to mind when we think of our visit to Covered Portage Cove in the North Channel. Not only was it our first time anchoring in this cove, but we also had the pleasure of rendezvousing with friends Charlie and Linda on Freedom's Turn (above). We met them in 2008 while doing our second Great Loop boat trip and cruised several times together, including a trip to Chattanooga and even the Bahamas. With a lot of shared cruising experiences in common, we were excited for the reunion in Covered Portage Cove. We…

Dining in the Keys with Crew of Chip Ahoy

Dinner in the marina tonight with friends Scott and Cyndi Perkins, on Chip Ahoy. It's always a pleasure to bump into this couple whom we met on our first Great Loop boat trip in 2006. Also from Michigan, Scott and Cyndi sail down Florida's West Coast to the Keys every winter. Cyndi is a talented writer/editor (Cyndi has also written chapter's in both of our books When the Water Calls and Women On Board Cruising). Scott is a gifted musician and performer. Click on the CD covers below to read more about and listen to some of Scott's excellent boating…

Haul Out – Driving to Goodland, Florida to Relaunch

February 13, 2012
Lisa Favors
CRUISING, FLORIDA

We've completed almost two Great Loop boat trips (a circumnavigation of the Eastern United States from the Heartland Rivers to the North Atlantic Seaboard, Canada and the Great Lakes) and both times we bypassed a few stops we wished we had had time to include in our schedule while in southwest Florida. The first is the little town of Goodland, Florida, just south of Marco Island and the second is Everglades City, at the mouth of the Barron River, on Chokoloskee Bay, just inside of Everglades National Park. Today, we pulled the boat out at Fort Myers Beach and drove to…

AGLCA Fall Rendezvous – Rogersville, AL

As "Loopers," we were excited to be able to tow our boat from Lake Powell to Rogersville, Alabama for the AGLCA (America's Great Loop Cruisers' Association) 2011 Fall Rendezvous. Little did we know that, not only would we make new friends, we'd run into a few Loopers that we did the Loop with back in 2005/06. Tom Conrad (above-center), here with his wife Patsy and Janice Kromer, was the MC for the rendezvous. He did a great job. Jim did a presentation on the St. Johns River. Fellow AGLCA Advisory Board members, Audrey Stehle and Patsy Conrad (above-left). Susann and…

Itching to Get Back on the Water

June 10, 2011
Jim Favors
CRUISING

Above are photos of a Ranger Tug Rendezvous, courtesy of Herb Stark. When I was a child, our family would drive to Lake Chemung (Howell, Michigan) to spend summer weekends, a family event I always enjoyed. Like many things children look forward to, like getting to the lake, it never seemed to happen soon enough. If I said it once I’d bet I said it a hundred times, “Are we there yet?” and I’m beginning to feel the same way about heading out west to get back to boating. This time with our Ranger Tug R27 trailerable trawler. Later this…

Women On Ranger Tugs —Women Ranger Tugs Owners Discover Boating As A Rewarding Lifestyle Choice.
SEE MORE!

Upside Of Downsizing To A Trailerable Trawler —Learn about the inherent benefits of owning a trailerable trawler.
Flexibility, Mobility & Affordability!
SEE MORE!

Women On Board Cruising – Want to inspire your wife, girlfriend or partner to do the Loop with you? Have them read this book. Twenty-five veteran women boaters share the trials, tribulations, helpful tips and humor about their long-distance cruising adventures. SEE MORE!

When the Water Calls… We Follow – Reflections On the Great Loop Adventure. Read how these “Loopers” prepared for the trip, overcame obstacles, also see what they enjoyed and learned while undertaking their Great Loop adventures.
SEE MORE!