Heading Home
On Thursday morning, October 13th, our good friend Jeff Homan drove our truck down to Grand Rivers to Green Turtle Bay to bring us home. We returned home to pick up our trailer, get new tires put on, visit with family, and catch our breath before returning on Sunday to bring the boat home. We arrive...
Crossing Our Wake
We rose early in the morning in anticipation of crossing our wake just a few hours later as we cruised to the Cumberland River. We left Paducah with a dozen other Loopers, including Tinn, one of our most favorite buddy boats, and Rival, Loopers we'd just met the previous day. As we cruised down the...
Paducah
We left our anchorage early in the morning to continue our journey that would lead us back to the Ohio River where we'd started our loop. We left the shallow waters of the Mississippi and entered the deeper Ohio River. We arrived in Paducah in the middle of the afternoon, eager to reunite with Lisbe...
Anchorage Near the Ohio River, Angelo Towhead
We left early in the morning, just as the sun was beginning to rise. The full moon was still hanging high in the sky. Barges were already on their way to deliver their bounty. We set out with Blondie and Prime Interest for a long day of travel with no locks to contend with. Our hope would be to trav...
Kaskaskia Lock & Dam Overnight
What a lovely safe spot to tie up after traveling down the Mississippi River passing barges, grain operations, and the changing leaves. We continue to find the sandy beaches of the Mississippi as evidence of the draught situation that the river is in. During the cruise, I worked on making chili, rol...
Hoppies - More Than a Spot to Tie Up for the Night
We left early in the morning for our trip to Hoppies that included two lock, Mel Price and Lock 27 (aka The Chain of Rocks). Tony was named Lieutenant of the Floatilla by the Swedish sailor after he called the locks and successfully got us all in the cue without much wait. As we cruised into the St....
Alton
We left Grafton at the comfortable time of 9:30. It didn't take long to arrive in Alton. After we sucked up the water in the bilge, we headed out to wander around town and find a lunch spot. We decided on My Just Desserts. We shared chicken pot pie soup and salad and then enjoyed a piece of Ledbette...
Grafton
We left Mel's Riverdock Restaurant after breakfast and after the fog had lifted, around 9:30, with Blondie. We'd rafted to Blondie overnight. We traveled the short distance to Grafton where we met Smile with the Rising Sun and Charmed. We were also greeted by Bobby and Joyce Mullins, family friends...
Mel's Riverdock Restaurant
We left early in the morning with Blondie to travel a long day to Mel's Riverdock Restaurant, just a short distance from our destination the next day. We arrived late in the afternoon with plans to walk to Barefoot Restaurant for dinner since Mel's was closed on Tuesdays. We were met on the dock by...
Quiver Island
We headed out of Peoria and looked forward to meeting up with Blondie again. They'd not been able to get a marina slip in Peoria and so they'd anchored out nearby. We met up with them as we approached the Peoria Lock and then tied up on the docks at Kuchie's as we waited for the lock repair. We ende...
Peoria
We left early in the morning with the fog still lifting off the water as we headed to the lock with several other looper boats, including Volare. We traveled past Henry and onto Peoria where we would meet up with Pam and Vince one more time before they headed north to the UP to visit Pam's family fo...
A Short Trip to Ottawa
In the morning, we woke to fog and a delay at the lock. We'd anticipated leaving early and traveling farther than we did, but after the delay, we left around 11:30 and decided to only go as far as the next town and the marina at the other side of the lock, Heritage Harbor in Ottawa. We arrived aroun...
100 Hour Service Appointment
We left our floatilla of six in Seneca to get to our last 100 hour service appointment. We were fortunate to have a truck available to us without limitations during our stay. We were able to head over to Heritage Harbor hear Jeremey's detailed briefing about traveling down the rivers through Paducah...
The Famous Joliet Wall
After a full day of travel on the river, we stopped at the Joliet Wall at the Bicentennial Park in Joliet, made famous as a necessary stop on the Loop after Chicago and by some recent shenanigans at the wall that makes some loopers feel unsettled and unsafe about staying there. We tied up the boat s...
Chicago is My Kind of Town
We arrived into Chicago in the middle afternoon along with Pam and Vince. It was perfect timing to meet back up with Mary and Gary and set off to find some Chinese food for dinner. We didn't have to travel all the way to Chinatown! It was delicious! Then we walked to Navy Pier for ice cream. Gary tr...
Stuck in Racine
We arrived in Racine early afternoon on Monday with plans to stay one or two nights. We ended up being here five nights due to wind and waves on Lake Michigan. Gary and Mary left on Tuesday for Chicago and made it as far as Waukegan and then Chicago the next day. We remained stuck in Racine with Pam...
Milwaukee
We arrived at the Milwaukee Yacht Club around noon. After checking in and settling in our slip, we took a walk toward the area suggested for restaurants and found an Italian bakery with lots of yummy things. We settled on a few sweet treats and a soft pretzel. We headed back to the boat and met up w...
Manitowoc
We arrived in Manitowoc in the late afternoon after a bumpy ride from Sturgeon Bay. We set out to explore some of the town and find a place to eat dinner. We promptly found an ice cream place for after dinner. We ate at a really good pump with really interesting food. And then of course we returned...
Sturgeon Bay
We arrived in Sturgeon Bay on a cool rainy day around 10am. We put the enclosure down over the cockpit, knowing it would rain over the next few days while we stayed in Sturgeon Bay. We set off for the lounge area to make chili in the kitchenette. We invited Volare and RAMBLR to join, along with Pete...
Egg Harbor
We arrived at Egg Harbor late morning. We made a trip up the hill to the farmer's market and then wandered around the town before going to lunch at the Mexican restaurant with Volare and RAMBLR. Tony and I continued to wander around town before meeting the group for drinks at sunset on the rooftop b...
Fish Creek
We arrived at Fish Creek in the early afternoon. We had time to explore the town and found a fish boil for dinner. The fish boil included potatoes, corn, white fish, onions, and cornbread and slaw on the side. We went for a walk after dinner along the waterfront. It was a short day in this quaint to...
Sister's Bay
We arrived at Sister's Bay around noon and head out with the group (Volare and RAMBLR) for lunch at the Door County Creamery. We walked through the town, observing the goats on the roof at Al Johnson's and the large Green Bay Packer Gnomes decorating a yard. We returned to the boat before going out...
Washington Island
We arrived at Washington Island in the early afternoon and promptly decided to rent the van for the day with Volare and RAMBLR. We set out about 2pm with an island map in our hands in the spider invested Scooby van and made the following stops - Albatross Drive-In for a burger and an ice cream cone...
Fayette State Park
We arrived at Fayette State Park late afternoon, due to a side trip to Escanaba to get gas. We set out right away to explore the abandoned buildings in the old deserted town. Mary and Pam and Vince had participated in a guided tour earlier in the day and share information with us about each building...
Exploring Beaver Island
We traveled to Beaver Island with Volare and RAMBLR. We arrived mid-morning and reached out to Tim and Tricia from Tricia Ann. Tricia stopped by as we were having lunch. Tim arrived a few minutes later. They offered us the use of their car while we'd be on the island and invited us to visit them at...
Mackinac Island Adventures
We set out on a short run from Hessel to Mackinac Island with R.A.M.B.L.R. (a boat named after the mothers of the captain and first mate). Volare cruised on to Mackinaw City. We settled into our slip and then set out to explore the island on foot. We walked to the Grand Hotel to decide on what meal...
Hessel: Friends, Fish, and a Birthday
The next morning, after a walk to the post office with a fresh stack of postcards, we set out with Little Blue T. Tracy seemed very comfortable driving and docking their boat, as she took the lead the next morning from the flybridge. They headed to Mackinac Island and we followed behind and peeled o...
A Rocky Wet Ride
We woke up in the morning to find the rain that had been predicted. We knew leaving Sault Ste Marie that it would rain for much of our trip south. We headed out after we let freighter traffic clear the waterway near the locks. W e buddy boated with a freighter called American Century. She's 305 mete...
Crossing the River
We crossed the Saint Mary River to get back into the good ole USA. We used the app to check back in without any inspection, via video nor in person. We spent a day wandering around the town, watching the freighter vessels pass through the locks and taking in the tourist sights. We started with ice c...
One More Lake
We set out this morning in search of just one more Great Lake to add to our list of waterways! We dipped the bow of the boat into a choppy Lake Superior around 2pm after traversing through the Candian Sault Lock. We were the show for the tour boat that locked through with us. We think that there are...
One Night in Thessalon and Sunset Beach Was Closed
We followed Volare to Thessalon from Blind River to Thessalon. As soon as we left the marina at Blind River we spied a waterspout in the distance. I did some research and discovered that it was likely a fair weather waterspout as opposed to a tornadic waterspout. We watched it dissipate and then ref...
A Golfing Adventure
We spent the last hour cruising into Blind River quickly trying to get a pump out, gas and into our slip with time for a shower before heading off to play a round of golf. Darryl, the dock master, was kind enough to offer us a ride to the golf course. We played Huron Pines Golf and Country Club and...
Little Current Big Adventures
We scooted under the bridge at Little Current and then tied up at the town docks in time to help tie up our looper friends coming in after the bridge lifted for them. At the dock that night were Polaris, Naut Fantasea, Nice Goin, Rambler, Volare, and us. We had dock tales at 5pm in the pavilion and...
Rafting in Beautiful Baie Fine
It feels as if our loop is starting to close, and at the same time it seems that it’s getting better and better making new memories and sharing new and wonderful experiences with other loopers. We left Killarney with Volare and Nice Goin and headed to Mary Ann Cove in Baie Fine in the North Channel...
It Keeps Getting Better and Better
We arrived mid-afternoon to the Benjamin Islands and found our buddy boat, Volare, anchored and waiting for us to raft with them. We also found Pivot anchored nearby. We quickly changed into our swimming clothes as the sun was warm and the cool water inviting. As we swam, Jennifer and Elliot paddled...
Killarney Mountain Lodge Resort Vacation
It felt like another vacation from the loop when we arrived at Killarney Mountain Lodge! We had a beautiful view from the red Manitoulin (Adirondack) chairs at the end of our dock. We attempted to do our loads of free laundry, but found the one machine full. We relaxed at the boat before heading to...
Potluck Dinner Looper Style
We arrived at Wright's Marina mid-afternoon along with several other loopers. We quickly rounded up a plan for a potluck with the crews from Rambler (Vince and Pam), Third Swan (Ron and Cathy), and Polaris (Emily and Rick). We threw together a feast - cheesy hotdogs with all of the condiments, inclu...
Clawson's Cottage
We got up early to get the boat to Desmasdon for routine service where we met Ted Slumskie at Desmasdon and talked to him about where we'd move the boat after the service work would be completed. Ted offered for us to move the boat to his house where an empty dock with electric waited for us. We wer...
A Quiet Rest
We traveled from Henry's Restaurant early in the morning to Point au Baril where we would meet friends Jim and Sandy Clawson and have routine service work done on the motor. Tony estimated a 70 mile day that turned into a 40 mile day. Needless to say, we arrived early and had a lovely quiet spot to...
A Hike & a Fish Fry
We set off from Midland on a dreary day with hopes that the weather would clear. We waited until 9:30 to depart, waiting for the wind to lay down and the misty rain to stop. We cruised into bluer skies with the sun beginning to shine through in the distance. It turned out to be a lovely day with a c...
The End of the Trent Severn
We finished up the Trent Severn yesterday by leaving Orillia early in the morning and traveling through the last three locks, one being the famous Big Chute Railroad Marine lock. It carried us and our boat over land and dropped us into the water on the other side of that land. It was a bumpy quick r...
Colorful Orillia
We crossed Lake Semcoe and went through The Narrows this day. It was a beautiful day across the lake and through narrow canals. It reminded me of the Dismal Swamp which I loved! We saw eagles and their nest, ducks, a loon, and heard many other birds in the trees. When we arrived at Port Orillia, we...
Picnic in Thorah
We moved the short distance from Kirkfield to Thorah early that morning. We'd be spending another night without electricity on the lock wall. Sojourn was tied up with us and Dove was at the top of the lock due to lack of space below with us. Tony and I took a walk along the trail beside the lock wal...
Pit Stop in Rosedale
As we made our way early in the morning from Fenelon Falls to Kirkfield, a very short distance to the next lock, we arrived early enough to tie up and take a shower at the lock station before the lock opened. We later paid $3 for the shower when the lock attendants arrived for work. We were invited...
Fun in Fenelon Falls
We left Bobcaygeon for Fenelon Falls pretty early in the morning with hopes of getting electricity on the lock wall for the day and night. We were successful! We tied up, plugged in, and set about exploring the town and anticipating the arrival of Jack and Vickie on Sojourn. Several other Loopers sh...
Busy Bobcaygeon
We arrived at the Bobcaygen lock mid-morning on a Wednesday, to find the lower wall full of boats, and no where to tie up for the day and night. So we went through the lock and got lucky to find a boat leaving at the same time we were looking for a spot. Several Canadian boaters helped catch our lin...
Lovely Lovesick Island
We were not disappointed with our quiet stay at Lovesick Island at the top of Lock #30. What a quiet remote peaceful spot. We met Donna and Robert, Canadians on Summer Quarters, and Ken and Kathy from Nice Goin. We realized that we'd both been tied up at Stock Island Key West in February and that Ka...
Lazy Lakefield
After waving good bye to the Tinn as it left the lock, we had a quiet couple of days in Lakefield tied up to the wall as Lock #26. We were in the shade, plugged into electricity with a key to the shower, and a short walk to town where we could find groceries, ice cream, butter tarts, and restaurants...
Enjoying the Journey
We arrived in Hastings in the early afternoon after a beautiful cruise through the blues and greens of the Trent Severn. The marina was located at a beautiful spot under the bridge into town. Homes dotted the shoreline and the clouds in the sky offered a beautiful canopy to the day. We wandered into...
Lots of Locks
We'd originally planned to start the Trent Severn at Lock #1 and go through Lock #6 to Frankford and stay overnight on the lock wall. We locked through the locks rafted to a bigger boat called Next Chapter who was traveling with a boat called Stress Release. We were locked through with them in the f...
A Lovely Surprise
Trent Port Marina was such a lovely surprise that we decided to stay two nights instead of one. The marina offered hotel-like showers, free laundry, a friendly staff, and a welcoming transient dock. We were invited to the marina pub for $5 cocktails and drinks the evening we arrived. We met a nice c...
Peaceful Picton
We made a short sweet stop in Picton on our way to Trenton. We found a yacht club run by members to stay at for the night. We also found a vibrant downtown with shops and restaurants and people milling about. We were invited to join the dinner after the sailing races that night back at the yacht clu...
Pitstop in Peterborough
We arrived in Peterborough on a Wednesday afternoon and spent time exploring the city. We found a bakery and a terrific visitor's center with free postcards featuring the Peterborough Lift Lock. We returned to the boat to cook and then joined Tinn for dinner on their boat. By evening, there were lot...
Stopover in Kingston
We arrived in Kingston on a rainy Monday afternoon after a rainy passage through the last locks on the Rideau Canal. We promptly turned the air conditioning on to dry things out and then started laundry and showers. We cooked up some potatoes and chicken and took the dishes over to Lisbeth and Huber...
Small Town Charm
We're still on the Rideau Canal going up through the locks. We traveled to Westport today and found a vibrant active marina full of people enjoying the sunshine on their boats! Lisbeth and I set off to go shopping and see the town. Later that afternoon, we went back and picked up the boys and walked...
Happy 100th Voyage to Us!
It was our 100th voyage yesterday! Our 100th time moving the boat on the Loop! It was perhaps one of the most tiring days and one of the most beautiful days! We were on the part of the Rideau Canal that is considered the most beautiful with canals entering into beautiful blue lakes surrounded by gre...
Windy Shallow Waters
We set off at 9:15 with the first passing through of the locks at Merrickville. We went up in the 3 locks with Tinn and another boat. We continued on the shallow and winding path that took us through Smith Falls where we saw Beth and Mike from Amy Marie watching us lock through. Then we passed throu...
Rideau Canal
The Rideau Canal continued today with locks, winding waterways, birds, and other boaters, mostly people in kayaks. We stopped at Pirate's Cove to have a Yamaha technician look at the 9.9. He was able to diagnose the problem, share a solution, sell us a part, but not put it on. We'll have that done a...
Down the Canal
After three nights in Ottawa, we decided to start our journey on the Rideau Canal. Along the way, we waited for a lift bridge, passed through four locks, and enjoyed the scenery of homes, wilderness, and blue skies. We saw other boats tied up on the lock walls for the night, but decided to go onto H...
We Love Ottawa!
What a beautiful city and what a great way to enter it through the Staircase Lock at the start of the Rideau Canal! We had an amazing day with Lisbeth and Hubert. We invited Allie and Matt, two Canadians observing at the second staircase lock, to come aboard and ride through the rest of the staircas...
A Spot to Miss
Our cruising day to Ottawa was lovely, despite the waters being full of weekend boaters. We stopped short of Ottawa at Hull Marina for the night. Tinn tried to get into a slip but the wind and current with his damaged props wouldn't allow it. He went on to the lock wall to spend the night.
Remember to Expect the Unexpected
As Karen woke the next morning, she continued to wonder if we would ever see the crew of Tinn again on the loop, convinced that their damage from going aground would delay them considerably. A little after 9am, we entered the lock as planned with 8 other boats! It was a party in there with boats raf...
Expect the Unexpected
We'd planned to go through Carillon Lock and keep cruising to Montebello. As we cruised through Saint Ann Lock, several miles north of the Carillon Lock, we found a vibrant town with municipal docks full of boaters. It might have been a fun stop. But we continued on, following Tinn. Once through the...
Montreal, Old Town
As we turned down the Saint Lawerence Seaway, we encountered large ships and industrial scenery. As we arrived closer to Montreal, we could see the skyline through the overcast skies. As we got closer and closer to the city, we also saw the current increase, going against us as speeds ranging from 1...
A Day of Locking on the Chambly Canal
Like in Saint Jean, we found pedestrians and bikers all along the way, using the bike path along the canal and watching us lock through on bridges at the locks. It was a great day of meeting friendly people, sharing popsicles with Canada park staff, and meandering up the canal. We tied up to a wall...
Welcome to Canada!
We left early in the morning from Colchester and headed north into Canada with Lisbeth and Hubert on Tinn! We arrived to the boarder ahead of Tinn. At the boarder station, two officers asked us about our intentions in Canada, the contents on board, like how much alcohol and whether we had weapons an...
Wandering Around Whitehall
We arrived at the municipal wall in Whitehall, tied up, flushed the motor, and set out to explore Whitehall. We walked into town and got a tip on a restaurant called the Rail Yard. We walked there and had an ok dinner. Not great, just ok. We walked back towards the boat in search of the restrooms an...
Danny's Turn at First Mate & Meeting Old Friends from Home
We set off from Vergennes with Danny in the first mate seat. We kept the doors and windows closed or screened to keep the horseflies out as we moved down Otter Creek to Lake Champlain. Danny did a great job searching for birds and other wildlife along the way. He enjoyed his travel treat, Peanut M&M...
A Picture Like a Postcard
Danny set out for Vergennes in the car as we set out in the boat. Danny arrived first and told us that it looks like a postcard! He wasn't wrong! The public dock adjacent to the waterfalls at Otter Creek was beautiful! It was worth the 7 mile winding ride down the creek with the horseflies! Kathy ro...
Treasure on Lake Champlain
We left Whitehall late morning after the rain and headed to Chipman Point Marina, a recommended stop by a man named Frank at Coeymans Marina on the fuel dock when we stopped for gas. What we found was a historical treasurer with cha and everything that we needed and more, including self-serve scoope...
Buddy Boating through the Locks
Captain Tony led the way with See Level and Inconceivable right behind. We moved through Locks 2-6 on this warm sunny day. We all arrived in Fort Edwards around 5pm at the municipal wall. We had time to explore the town and find a place to eat that was recommended by a local person observing the loc...
Turning Point
We headed through the Troy Federal Lock and onto Waterford where boats were lined up along the municipal wall preparing for a trip up the Erie Canal or a trip up the Champlain Canal. We spent some time exploring the town and walking along the first lock of the Erie Canal. Later we enjoyed docktails...
Ready! Set! Go!
After 3 weeks off the boat for a trip to Europe with friends, we spent a few days in Croton-on-Hudson provisioning. A few days after being back on the boat, we were feeling sick and decided to take COVID tests that we had on the boat. Tony tested positive, and Karen assumed the same. We telephoned h...
The Beginning of the Hudson Valley
This place, Croton-on-Hudson, is magically beautiful. Rolling hills along the river with the soft accent of a train whistle in the distance. I'm anticipating that much of the Hudson will be like this. We enjoyed the Greek restaurant, Bagels on Hudson, and time spent with other Loopers - Compass Rose...
New York, New York
What an amazing experience it was to cruise by the Statue of Liberty in our boat! We cruised with Currently, Bruce and Maggie from Delaware City through New York City. We cruised into New York Harbor with the Naval Fleet Week parade. We were approached by the police boats letting us know that we wer...
Inside and Outside Passage
We woke up the next morning and took our time with french toast for breakfast. We left around 9am and headed up the inside New Jersey ICW from the Atlantic City to Great Kills, NY. We traveled through the shallow waters of the NJ ICW careful to stay in the channel and away from less than 3 feet of w...
Morning Run on the Atlantic Ocean
We woke up at 3:45am to check weather and changed our mind about departing and decided not to run on the Atlantic Ocean that morning with the boat Tricia Ann. We went back to bed and woke up around 7:30 and checked the weather again and checked in with Currently. Together we decided to make a run at...
One Night in Cape May
We arrived in Cape May in the late morning. Getting into the slip was a bit of a challenge due to poor dock maintenance. There was a nice dockhand there who gave us some assistance. Once we were tied up, we headed to meet Maggie and Bruce from Currently for a bite to eat. We also met Loren, from Das...
Waiting for the Winds to Lay Down
We arrived in Delaware City Marina on Wednesday with plans to stay one night. Forever Young was docked with us at the marina. We were the only ones who attended the weather briefing at 4pm at the marina and realized that we'd be staying another night. The winds were reported to be pretty unpredictab...
Historical Annapolis
We had a great long weekend in Annapolis, after we navigated the fog through the Chesapeake Bay. We delayed leaving Oxford, giving the fog time to move off the Bay. We must not have waited long enough! Thankfully our radar was working and we could see the huge ships in the Bay as we approached them....
Overnight in Oxford
We arrived in Oxford early afternoon and secured the boat and hopped on bikes to explore the town. Despite getting caught in the rain, we had a delightful time. Oxford is a quaint town with beautiful old homes with picket fences. The Strand is a road that parallels the Tred Avon River. The marina th...
We're Headed into the Chesapeake Bay!
Ready! Set! Go! And we're off! We set out at first light to stick our bow into the Chesapeake. The captain gets nervous upon entering new bodies of water, especially big ones like the Chesapeake Bay. There were some slight rollers as we got started, and then it turned into calm seas, like glass as w...
AGLCA Spring Rendezvous
We returned to the boat at the Atlantic Yacht Basin on Sunday after a slightly delayed flight. We provisioned at the Kroger the next morning before moving the boat to Waterside Marina for the AGLCA Spring Rendezvous. To get to Waterside, we needed to have the Great Bridge lifted for us to get to the...
The Great Dismal Swamp Aint' that Dismal!
We woke up early and left Sojourn for the first time since starting out with them in Jacksonville. We needed to get to Norfolk earlier than them in order to catch a flight home. We headed toward the Dismal Swamp cutting across the Albemarle Sound. Like the previous day, it was a pleasant ride! We ar...
Feels Like Family
We scooted along the Alligator River early in the morning and poked the bow out onto the Albemarle Sound. We'd anticipated a rough ride, but found the sound calm. We passed by the Fort Raleigh and tooted the horn at Pat and Donna Dickriede who were waving on the shore as we passed their home. They m...
Belhaven Didn't Disappoint
First impressions aren't always accurate! That's how it was with Belhaven! The first afternoon/evening that we walked around the town, we weren't sure what we were going to do for the next few days! We went to dinner with Sojourn, and the crew of Maggie Jo, Angie and Tom. The town appeared to be des...
Beautiful Beaufort, North Carolina
It was a short walk into town from the marina on a sunny Easter afternoon. But instead, Tom, another boater dropped us off in town on his way to run errands in the marina's courtesy car. We wandered around the town for a bit and then had an early dinner at the Front Street Grill and Rhum Bar. Then i...
Friendly Hampstead
We stayed one night in Hampstead on our way from Southport to Beaufort, North Carolina. It was a friendly marina surrounded by neighborhood. We grilled chicken and pork tenderloin for dinner and shared a picnic meal with Jack and Vickie. Jackie and Karen enjoyed a cocktail while Tony and Jack added...
Southport, Home of Robert and Kay Creech
We arrived in Southport with time to explore the town, a short car ride away. We wandered the town looking for a good local eatery. We landed in Provisions for the day's special, a crabcake and boiled shrimp with a side of onion rings. It wasn't hard to find Flava's, the local creamery just down the...
Myrtle Beach
We arrived in Myrtle Beach with plenty of time to explore Barefoot Landing, across the ICW from the marina. We wandered through shops, enjoyed a few drinks before dining at a fabulous Italian restaurant out of Pittsburgh, Umberton's. The next day, we played a round of golf at Azalea Sands and then h...
A Walk Through Georgetown
We enjoyed an afternoon and evening stroll through Georgetown. What a quaint town with a great vibe and several great restaurants, a maritime museum and a rice museum, and a few coffee shops and ice cream parlors. We enjoyed dinner with the crew of Jackpot and Sojourn. There's a steel mill in town t...
Charleston Weekend
We spent a lovely weekend in Charleston, albeit windy and a bit chilly on Saturday. When we got into town on Friday afternoon, we tidied up the boats before heading off into town to grab a bite to eat and do a bit of exploring. We walked up and down King Street and settled on a recommendation from K...
Strolls, Storms and Shrimp in Beaufort
We arrived in Beaufort around noon and were able to get out and explore right away. We enjoyed a late lunch at Plums right downtown. Karen had a great shrimp role sandwich. It didn't take us long to find the ice cream shops! We continued to stroll the streets of town while reading about the historic...
Harbor Town Adventures
We pulled into Harbour Town Yacht Basin and were greeted by a young female dockhand with a bottle of wine! We promptly got ourselves secured to the dock, rinsed down and set off to explore on bikes. We rented bikes for 24 hours and were able to use them for the rest of the day to explore the bike tr...
Savannah & Tybee Island Adventures
We arrived at our slip outside of Savannah late in the afternoon on Friday. We were greeted by Toledo friends on Nauti Tradition, Nelson and Felicia! Once we were fueled up, we headed to our slip. Becca, the very competent young dockhand, maneuvered the boat with a mid-ship line in the wind and curr...
Blythe Island Paradise
We continued to travel with Sojourn up the east coast and arrived on the Bumgardner docks of Blythe Island early afternoon. Chuck was there to greet us and help us with our lines. He soon left for a funeral, after giving us a tour of the house and providing us with a car key to what would become our...
Leaving the St. John's River
Today we headed back to the ICW from the St. John's River. The ICW in this area of northern Florida into southern Georgia was narrow, less populated, and dotted with shallow areas, grassy swamp land, low tides with muddy banks, and flying gulls with black caps for diving in our wake for the small fi...
Day 5 on the St. John's River
We left early in the morning for Ortega Landing in order to make it to a service appointment at Sadler Point. After stopping for gas at Trout Fish Camp along the way, we made it into Ortega Landing a little later than planned. We spent most of the day waiting for the repair to be completed, eating l...
Days 3 & 4 on the St. John's River
We decided to turn back and head north on the St. John's River due to the forecast of bad/severe weather that could include strong winds, thunderstorms, and even tornados. We would spend the next two days in Palatka to weather the storm. We arrived around 11am with high winds. Right after securing t...
Day 2 on the St. John's River
We left in the morning and cruised an hour to the small town of Green Cove Springs. The whole town has been built around the natural spring that flows down the small hill in town. Today, the spring fills the public swimming pool before emptying out into the St. John's River. We returned to the boat...
Palm Coast Weekend
We spent most of the weekend provisioning with Jack and Vickie. They still had their truck so we really got around - West Marine, Ace Hardware, Publix, CVS, and anywhere that we really wanted to go...including McDonald's for Tony's iced tea, and Circle K for Jack's soda with crushed ice. We also got...
St. Augustine Visit
We stayed at the St. Augustine Municipal Marina. We made sure to come in at slack tide due to the current. It was a rainy day when we arrived and met four other looper boats - Sabot, Adventure Awaits, New Adventure, and Bonita. They invited us to join them across the bridge for dinner so we did. Wit...
Day 1 on the St. John's River
We set off with the crew of Sojourn, Jack and Vickie, around 8am. It would be our first day buddy boating with them and their first day on their Loop! We were headed to the St. John's River, one of the few rivers that flows from south to north! Just outside the marina we found birds enjoying treats...
Hammock Beach Marina and Resort
We arrived and promptly took a walk to European Village. On a Sunday night, it was pretty quiet. We had access to the pool in the nearby condos connected to the marina, as well as transportation to the Hammock Beach Resort. During our stay, we enjoyed relaxing by the pool while doing laundry. Later...
New Smyrna
When we arrived late morning on Friday, we had time to wash the boat and rest a bit before friends from home picked us up for lunch and an afternoon of visiting and provisioning. We enjoyed lunch with Bob and Peggy Morgan, the Long's insurance provider for many years. We ate at Jason's Corner, a loc...
Cape Crossing at Cocoa Village
We definitely aren't in south Florida anymore! Proof by the landscape of today's trek up the ICW - the lack of high rises and big fancy homes and boats one right after another and the presence of more mangroves and more wildlife. It was a nice quiet ride. The past few days has brought us sun most of...
Vero Beach City Marina
We left from windy North Palm Beach and headed to Jupiter for a lunch stop at The Woods in Jupiter, Tiger Woods' restaurant. Despite the fact that Tiger stood us up, we enjoyed a wagu burger and a bison burger and some truffle fries, topped off by ice cream and macadamia nut cookies. We got back on...
North Palm Beach to Jupiter and then to Vero Beach
We left from windy North Palm Beach and headed to Jupiter for a lunch stop at The Woods in Jupiter, Tiger Woods' restaurant. Despite the fact that Tiger stood us up, we enjoyed a wagu burger and a bison burger and some truffle fries, topped off by ice cream and macadamia nut cookies. We got back on...
Boca Chita Key
We made a stop to Boca Chita for lunch on our way to Miami. We toured the outside of the historical and iconic lighthouse on the island, as well as the shoreline around the island, dipping our toes in the sand and water. The water was so clear, it was easy to see all the way to the bottom. We enjoye...
Fort Lauderdale @ Cooley's Landing
As we cruised down the New River in Fort Lauderdale, we continued to pass by beautiful homes with equally beautiful boats, just as we'd seen headed up the ICW. With permission from the City of Fort Lauderdale, we pulled up along a kayak dock in the Las Olas district. This provided us a great spot to...
Old Port Cove Safe Harbor Marina at North Palm Beach
We cruised through West Palm Beach on Thursday and ended up in North Palm Beach at Safe Harbor Old Port Cove Marina. We were greeted with a bottle of wine and a passcode to free wifi, nice showers, and great workout and laundry facilities. We'd never been given a free bottle of wine before at a mari...
Dinner Key Marina in South Miami
We left John Pennekamp early in the morning. We traveled through narrow passageways through the ICW as well as across larger bays most of the day before entering Biscayne Bay. At times, the current was surprisingly swift along the way. We saw dolphins swimming along with us early in the morning. Thr...
John Pennekamp State Park in Key Largo
After meandering through the mangroves, we arrived at John Pennekamp State Park in the afternoon. As we approached our assigned slip, with some assistance from other boaters, we attempted to stern in and then bow in and still found no way to be able to get off the boat in that slip. We negotiated a...
Cudjoe Garden Marina
We didn't plan to stop at Cudjoe Key, and we didn't plan on the waves and wind being so rough on Saturday as we headed out from our month layover at Stock Island for Marathon. The short journey involved crab pots and high seas. After about two hours of waves over the bow and sometimes over the top o...
Stock Island at Key West
As we crossed the gulf from Marco Island to Key West, we followed along behind a boat called Hallelujah. We dodged many crabpots, even out 30 miles off the coast in 50 foot deep waters. The captain of Hallelujah would use the VHF radio to let us know where the crabpots were so that we would be bette...
Fort Myers Beach to Marco Island
We were delayed a bit on the morning of our departure by fog. It gave us time to get a pumpout and go over the route to Marco Island. As we left Pink Shell, the fog was clearing with sun and clouds remaining at a warm 67 degrees. It was pretty hazy and foggy throughout most of the day, warming to 72...
Fort Myers Beach
When we arrived at Fort Myers Beach at Pink Shell Marina, it felt like we were on the beach vacation that we have never taken! The white sandy beach and the upper 70s temperatures are perfect for walks anytime during the day. Estero Island is 7 miles long and easy to walk. We've enjoyed the beach an...
Fort Meyers
We took a roundabout way to get to Legacy Village Marina in Fort Myers! It included a little canal in St. James City, a ride on a trailer on Pine Island through Cape Coral and into Fort Myers, a small canal along Rosen Park and onto the Caloosahatchee River. The marina is situated right near downtow...
Christmas Break
We have left the boat with new friends, Jim and Arlene, at their backyard dock along the canals of St. James City on Pine Island. We were then picked up by Karen's friends from Canton, Sandy and Bill Adams and taken to their home in Fort Myers for the night. After a delicious Mexican dinner, a restf...
Boca Grande
We seemed to have really stirred up the dolphins on this day! Lots of them swimming in our wakes, our boat and other boaters traveling with us. We traveled with SLO Dancer from Sarasot to Boca (Annie and Gary) and met Blue Thunder (Elise and Dave, aunt and uncle to SnowWolf, TikTok icon) along the w...
Sanibel Island
On our way from Boca Grande to Sanibel, we decided to pull over and stop and celebrate 2,000 miles on the trip! We stopped at Cabbage Key and reminisced about our first time there with our friends Greg Hawk and Ruth Styles Hawk and wished they were there with us again! Legend has it that Jimmy Buffe...
Sarasota
We love Sarasota! It's a pretty big city, but feels like a town. There's so much are decorating the town along the streets and in shop and restaurant windows. The streets are clean and adorned with flower planters that are in full bloom in the middle of December, as well as beautiful white lights ci...
Innovation Marine Wall
We spent our first night on a wall, tied up with no electricity. We were awaiting a generator repair in the morning. We went out for dinner to the local Elks Club and met the nicest people. It was fun connecting with the local community. In the morning, the technician was right on time and fixed the...
Tarpon Springs Municipal Marina
We left early in the morning on the 2nd with Jim and Nancy from Our Nauti Time to navigate one last day in the open gulf waters as we headed for Tarpon Springs. It was a warmer 52 degree morning. The sun was shining bright as the dolphins began to swim in our wake again, this time putting on a show....
Twin Rivers Marina at Crystal River
We made the 2nd leg of the crossing with Nancy and Jim on Our Nauti Time early in the morning on the 30th. Waves were forecasted to be less than 1 foot with a NNW 2mph wind. It was 38 degrees as we departed. The sun was shining bright and the seas were even calmer than the previous day. It was a per...
Carrabelle
We left in the morning thinking that we would stop in Appalachiacola for the night. However, we saw a good weather window to cross the next day, so we tucked in behind a Cutwater headed to Carrabelle and followed them in. We arrived at the marina near dark and had just enough time to fill up with ga...
Sea Hag Marina
We have crossed the Gulf of Mexico! We have completed the first leg of three in our journey from the Gulf Intracoastal Waterways to the west coast of Florida's Intracoastal Waterway. It was a nice crossing, with near perfect weather conditions. The seas calmed more and more the further we went out....
Panama City Beach
Happy Thanksgiving! We arrived at Bristol Marina on Tuesday afternoon and got a lesson in tying lines to pilings during low tide in anticipation of high tide from a very helpful Cory, another resident at the marina. Once we lassoed the pilings at the bow and made sure that the boat was secure from a...
Bluewater Bay Marina
We left early from Pensacola with another looper boat, Out of the Blue, from Michigan. The temperature was 58 with 11 mph ENE winds. It was a rockin and rollin ride in the Pensacola Bay with seas on our beam and 1-2 foot rollers. Once we turned into the GICW, the seas were on our stern and the ride...
Palafox Marina
We arrived at Palafox Marina mid-afternoon. We were greeted by the long bridge connecting Pensacola, big ships in the yard, and the Pensacola skyline. We promptly tied up, hooked up our electric, and set out to explore Pensacola. We promptly found a beautiful sunset right at our marina slip. Then we...
Fort McRee Afternoon Anchorage
Karen woke up early to see the sunrise before leaving Orange Beach Marina. When we left Orange Beach Marina, Ray, a looper on the Ranger Tug C.A.L.M. took our picture as we left. We headed to Pensacola for the next leg of the journey. We decided to practice setting the anchor at Fort McRee. We chose...
Mobile Bay to Orange Beach
The night before, we set a time with Third Swan to leave in the morning around 9am for Orange Beach. The forecast of 1-3mph winds from the NNW made it an easy decision to leave a day early from Mobile Bay, that and the hope of less commercial traffic on a Sunday. Indeed it was a lovely day to cross...
Tensaw River to Mobile Bay
We woke to a crisp clear morning on the Tensaw River, rafted to Soulmate. It was a perfect day to cruise into Mobile Bay. We left early in the morning and continued to cruise at our 11mph pace with Soulmate. Again, the changing landscape gave us some hints of what was to come in the next chapter of...
Okatuppa Creek to the Tensaw River
It was a very foggy morning when we woke early at the mouth of the Okatuppa Creek. We were just 4 miles from the famous Bobby's Fish Camp where we knew a group of Looper boats would be tied up, rafted and rising early to go through the last lock on the river journey, the Coffeyville Lock. We wanted...
Demopolis to Okatuppa Creek
We returned to Demopolis after a quick trip home to celebrate Patty and Truman's 50 years of service to the Owensville Easter Star! The day back in Demopolis included boat organization, cleaning, lunch at a good ole southern BBQ joint called Smokin' Jack's, grocery shopping, making sure to get a pum...
Tombigbee Oxbow Anchorage
We left Columbus Marina not realizing what an exciting day we'd have! First, the sun came up and was shining bright and warm! A welcomed blessing after several days of cold and rain. It turned out to be a day of firsts! We topped 1,000 miles in the trip. We saw our first random phone booth along the...
Demopolis, Alabama
We woke up from our overnight rafting on the river with Now or Never, made a cup of instant coffee with boiling water on the propane stove, had a cold breakfast of yogurt and fruit with, and started on our way. Along the way, we encountered the Cliffs of Epes along the TennTombigbee Waterway. These...
Columbus, Mississippi
Today we left before dawn in the wet cold to get to the Fulton Lock before barge traffic started. By the time we reached the lock, just a few miles away, the first light of day had started to break through the clouds. We were joined by 5 other boats in the lock, some of which had traveled with us fr...
Fulton, Mississippi
It was our first day on the Tennessee Tombigbee Waterway! We left early, after the morning rain, from Iuka, Mississippi to travel 59.2 miles in 7.1 hours using 25.5 gallons of gas to get through 3 locks to Fulton, Mississippi. We wound our way through the skinny waters of the northern Tennessee Tomb...
Iuka, Mississippi
We left Florence in the morning around 9:20, trailing behind Now or Never. There were LOTS of fishing boats on the river rolling by us on this Sunday. We passed by a baptism going on in the river. The wind picked up midway through the trip. We eventually passed Now or Never, and then they followed u...
The Return to Florence
Today we awoke early to leave Joe Wheeler State Park with eleven other boats to travel twenty miles together through two locks, Joe Wheeler Lock and Dam and Wilson Lock and Dam. Since we weren't sure how difficult it would be to get through the second lock, we called the lock master at each lock and...
Joe Wheeler State Park
We crossed the river from our anchorage and backed the boat into a slip for the next 10 days. We're spending the first 4 days doing some boat work, exploring the state park and the town of Rogersville. On Monday, the Looper Fall Rendezvous will commence. There will be 50+ boats in the marina, nearly...
Joe Wheeler Anchorage
WOW! What a great day! It was a day of firsts! First time to travel before daylight in order to avoid delays due to barge traffic getting through two locks, Wilson Lock and Joe Wheeler Lock. First time to set the anchor in a cove with plans to anchor out overnight tonight with another looper couple,...
Florence, Alabama
As we traveled from Pickwick to Florence, we crossed into Alabama and then traveled along the Tennessee River that makes up part of the boarder of Alabama and Mississippi. Instead of turning down the TennTom Waterway into Mississippi, we continued down the Tennessee River into Alabama to get to Joe...
Pickwick Landing State Park Marina
Wow! What a Day! That's the name of one of the boats that we cruised with today. The other boats were Uno Mas (One More) and Sole Mate. Sole Mate and What a Day are nearing the end of their loop. And Uno Mas is just starting out like us. We all left from Clifton Marina early this morning and all of...
Clifton Marina
The trip up the river from Pebble Isle to Clifton did not disappoint! We were up early after a wet night of rain to get a jump on the weather. With the prediction of better weather in the morning. We did go through some short rain showers but found sunny skies on the other side of each one. The land...
Pebble Isle Marina
After 4 nights at Green Turtle Bay, we were up early to make our way to our next stop, Pebble Isle Marina. Right away we realized that we needed to head back, that the repair to our digital display on the Yamaha motor had not been taken care of. After just a 2 hour delay back at the marina boat yard...
Green Turtle Bay
Today was an exciting day for Long Recess and her crew! We turned onto the Cumberland River at 9:30, our first piece of the actual Loop and then we hit 500 miles in our journey at 10:03 and then we went through our biggest lock yet, at Barkely Lock and Dam at 12:45 dumping us into the Grand River! W...
Golconda
The sunrise this morning was beautiful as we left the dock in Cannelton to head to Golconda. We promptly saw an eagle soaring overhead and later a young eagle and later still two more eagles flying over the boat and landing on adjacent tree branches. The landscape became more and more beautiful as w...
Evansville
On our way from Cannelton, Indiana to Evansville, Indiana, we went through 2 locks, saw several blue heron, spied a flock of turkey, peeked through the binoculars at a young eagle perched in a tree, and spotted several monarch butterflies flittering in the September sun. We continued our buddy boati...
Cannelton
It was a long day's journey on the Ohio River today. 119 miles from Louisville, Kentucky to Cannelton, Indiana. When it's a long day on the river, the Best Mate gets a turn running the boat! Along the way, we saw 3 eagles, several heron, and lots of monarch butterflies flittering around the river an...
Louisville
We had a slight rain delay this morning in Madison, Indiana. It gave us time to do a few things in the cabin before getting underway. We left about 9:20. Along the route to Louisville, we noticed that the leaves are only just beginning to change into their autumn colors. We'll keep an eye out for mo...
Madison, Indiana
We left Lighthouse Point Marina in Aurora, Indiana at 8:30, just as the fog began to lift off the Ohio River. The sun poked through the 42 degree morning air, greeting us on our second day as Loopers. There was a bit more debris floating in the water, calling the first mate to be on the lookout for...
Aurora
We were up before the sun! After breakfast on the boat, even though everything was wet, the sun was shining through the clouds, and we were excited to be on the boat and ready to get started! We pulled away from the dock at 9am, 55 degrees and 10 mph westerly wind, creating some whitecaps on the riv...
Ready to Start the Loop!
We arrived at Straight Creek Marina on Wednesday evening in the rain. We loaded the boat in the rain. Did I mention it was raining? We were wet! We went to sleep at "looper midnight" - at dark! We were eager to get to sleep and then wake up to start our loop!