Third Time’s a Charm – Tennessee River Cruise

Kismet will be cruising the Tennessee River for four weeks!

For die-hard boaters, like us, there’s no better feeling than heading out on the road (for trailerable boaters) on the cusp of an adventure, we were just itching to do a little river cruising. We took our Kismet on a 680-mile road trip, from Traverse City, Michigan, before we floated her off of the trailer today into Lake Barkley at Green Turtle Marina, in Grand Rivers, Kentucky. Our intention is to cruise the Tennessee River for the next four weeks.

We had spent a couple of days at home, prior to departure, rigging the boat up and provisioning for our month-long excursion. We also made storage arrangements, ahead of time, for our truck and trailer in Grand Rivers, Kentucky for the duration of our cruise.

The reason for choosing Green Turtle Marina as a starting point is because this marina, nestled in the calming waters of the Kentucky Lakes, is a natural gathering place for “Loopers.” Upon arriving at the marina, they are usually exhausted from experiencing one of the most treacherous rivers in the United States, the mighty Mississippi River (followed by a short stretch of the Ohio and Cumberland Rivers – or Tennessee River depending on the chosen route). By the time they get through the Lake Barkley Lock and Dam, they are ready to unwind and regroup a little before they head out on the calmer waters of the Kentucky Lakes and Tennessee River.

We’d been to Green Turtle before and, even though we’re not currently cruising the Great Loop trip ourselves, we wanted to get to know some of this year’s participants. Launching at Green Turtle will also give us an opportunity to re-explore the beautiful 240-mile stretch of water from Grand Rivers down to Joe Wheeler Marina, in northern Alabama, our final destination, it’s where we plan to attend AGLCA’s 2012 Fall Rendezvous. Our aim is to try to recapture a little of the thrill of doing the Loop and observe the excitement amongst the current Loopers, many whom we hope to get to know as we bump into them while cruising south on the same route.

The first person to greet us when we pulled up to the boat ramp in the marina was Paul Kessinger (his son, John, above, joined Paul on their sailboat, Memsahib, to do the Great Loop boat trip). See what they have to say about that encounter on their blog… The Tardis Project.

Bruce, (above) on Tango, was our dock mate at Green Turtle, he’s doing the Loop boat trip in this 25-foot sailboat. Bruce is the perfect example of the spirit and determination it takes to do a 6,000-mile boat trip. We hope to bump into Bruce again, and several other Loopers we met at Green Turtle, as we make our way down the Tennessee River to Joe Wheeler in Rogersville, Alabama for the AGLCA (America’s Great Loop Cruisers’ Association) 2012 Fall Rendezvous.

The Tennessee River begins at the confluence of the Holston and French Broad Rivers, east of Knoxville, Tennessee, and runs 652 miles southwest to Chattanooga, Tennessee, down into Alabama where it runs south and west before turning and heading north at the Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee borders. From here the river runs north through Tennessee and the western section of Kentucky before it ends at the Ohio River, just east of Paducah.

When Loopers arrive at Green Turtle Marina they will actually be going upriver, although traveling south, as they access the Tennessee River via the Barkley Canal shortly after leaving the marina at Grand Rivers.

Lisa and I have navigated these waters twice before during our two Loop boat trips and have gone as far east on the Tennessee River as Chattanooga. We know there will be lots of territories still left for us to explore and we’re excited to get started.

Most of the boats tied up to this dock are Looper boats.

We are leaving Green Turtle (below), headed for the Barkley Canal, and the start of our return trip to the Tennessee River.