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Molly’s Great American Loop
  • betty staugler

Molly’s Great American Loop

We’re Betty & James, along with Luna cat and Moki dog we are cruising America’s Great Loop aboard our boat the Molly Brown. She is a 24’ C-Dory TomCat. We expect it will take us 8 or so months to complete 😀. Read more
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  • betty stauglerMolly’s Great American LoopTraveler
    1Nice cliff
    Sightseeing2Black Vulture ConventionTonight's sunset2Life is good 😊

    Nashville

    October 25, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 59 °F

    We made it to Nashville today. We didn’t intend to get this far but our ‘let’s anchor out’ plans for tonight and tomorrow became ‘let’s just go to a Marina’ plans when we couldn’t find any good place to be on the hook. Our plan B was to add a couple days to our existing reservations starting Sunday downtown but the river is closed today and tomorrow for the Music City Head Race (rowing). So we are in West Nashville at Rock Harbor Marina. It has a restaurant which we are directly across from so get music all day. Not super busy which is good. Still working on the dog walking which is less than ideal here but we’re making it work.Read more

  • betty stauglerMolly’s Great American LoopTraveler
    Enjoying some peanut butter whiskey on the bow of Paradise Bound. Donna's photo
    MB on the transient dockThe restaurant across from us. We did not eat there but did enjoy their music.

    Nashville day 2

    October 26, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 70 °F

    I had a nice visit with Donna aboard Paradise Bound. We met her and her husband John back on the Dismal Swamp and have hooked up a couple times since. Beyond that I spent an inordinate amount of time today selecting and reformatting photos to submit for consideration in the 2025 C-Dory Calendar. I enjoyed going back thru the photos but the submitting process was a bit more work than I would have liked. All done though. We’ll see if any pass muster.Read more

  • betty stauglerMolly’s Great American LoopTraveler
    These antennas are from WWCF which broadcasts to a global audience
    Coming into NashvilleGhost Ballet for the East River Machineworks 2007. Right at the end of our dockMolly Brown from the pedestrian bridgeMe on the bridgeHard Rock CafeFort NashboroughHome of the TitansShermerhorn Symphony CenterThe smoke stacks bend to go under the bridgeOur EarthCam image. That's us walking.Prepping for things to comePretty as the sun was settingThis bridge is in front of the boat1

    Downtown Nashville

    October 27, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 55 °F

    Welcome to downtown Nashville! We had a nice cruise this morning with more great weather and arrived on the T-Dock right under the pedestrian bridge around 11am. Moki and I took advantage of today exploring downtown and the park adjacent to our dock. The pedestrian bridge is very nice and quite popular. Downtown was fun but far more of a party vibe than I’m interested in. We did go to the fort (Nashborough) and walked over to the walk of fame park and symphony center which was nice. The downtown dock is actually across the river from downtown. We are basically in front of the Titans Stadium with a view of downtown. This it’s a pretty long dock and tonight we are the only one here. Tomorrow morning I fly to Portland ME so you may not get another post until Thursday when I get back.Read more

  • betty stauglerMolly’s Great American LoopTraveler
    My plane arriving in Portland this morning
    My NY Sea Grant colleague Antoinette looking up scholarship info for a postdoc and his advisorArt along the park by our dockStatute from the symphony to the citizens of NashvilleFountain near the symphonyDock catMBJames's breakfast this morningMy breakfast this morning.

    Happy Holloween!!

    October 31, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 70 °F

    She’s back!! Yes that’s my plane. It arrived on time, we departed on time and we landed ahead of schedule!! Conference was full of good talks and the Meet the Funders panel I was on went really well. It was a quick few days and while it’s always nice to see work colleagues I’m also glad to be back. Random pics for you today. We leave Nashville in the morning.Read more

  • betty stauglerMolly’s Great American LoopTraveler
    Sweet tea! We're in the south!
    After the Union took Fort Donelson the Confederates used these shoals to intercept Union boatsHarpeth River exploring31 MPH 🙌🙌No room for the humansAnd now it's nap timeThat little boat sticking out on right of Marina is MBAnd there she is!!

    Clarksville 2.0

    November 1, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 63 °F

    Left Nashville this morning and stopped in Ashland City for lunch at the same restaurant where we stayed on the dock last week. Dropped off a card for our friend Melanie while there. She’s the 5 year old we met there. From the restaurant we headed over to the Harpeth River where we planned to anchor for the night. There are two USACE campgrounds along this river each with boat ramps and a small dock. Camping for the season just ended. While Moki and I were walking James got an email saying the Cheatham Lock would be closed during the day both tomorrow and Sunday. We had planned to go thru tomorrow but decided we best go thru today and continue on to Clarksville as there’s no good options for anchoring between the lock and this Marina. We were fortunate to get right thru the lock and then got up on plane to Clarksville. We think it made the engines happy 😃. 79 miles today.Read more

  • betty stauglerMolly’s Great American LoopTraveler
    2Scratching post
    Sun setting this afternoon.

    Commissary Hollow

    November 3, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 79 °F

    Today the Cumberland was choppy with some whitecaps on the river and winds 15-28. With the lock above us closed we only saw one boat and no barges over 40 miles. There’s some weather moving in and my head could tell all day today…. Much improved this evening. Tonight we are at anchor in North Cross Creek at Commissary Hollow. We initially went to an island and let Moki run but he came back a black dog so after his bath we anchored off the boat ramp where I’ll take him to shore this evening. Tennessee and Kentucky have some wicked sticky mud! Luna also got a trip to shore. She sharpened her nails on a tree and then headed back to the kayak. The time changed and the sun set at 4:50 this afternoon… I’m not going to like this!! Today’s high was 80 and the low overnight will be 66 degrees. Only two pics today.Read more

  • betty stauglerMolly’s Great American LoopTraveler
    2Red skies in the morning...
    Pretty 🤩Corn 🌽This is the broncing bull part of the corn equation.Cumberland River2Resting comfortably after all that hard workDeer swim really well !! Took him about three minutes to cross entire river.Looks like the NPS is working on the houseOld barnAnother barn. This one looked pretty good until we around to this sidePretty sunset despite being 4:45pm!

    Honker Bay 2.0 LBL

    November 4, 2024 in the United States ⋅ 🌙 68 °F

    Well it started off a nice day… Moki and I had a nice walk this morning. We discovered a corn 🌽 field … who’d of thought corn could be so fun !… first you’ve got to pull a stalk from the plant, then you have to pull the corn from the stalk, and then finally you have to hop around like a broncing bull throwing the corn in the air and catching it… rince and repeat ! Good morning for Moki ! After that we pulled anchor and headed up the Cumberland. It was really windy overnight, choppy today and everything stirred up. I was working.. all was good… until we ran aground ! Not a hard grounding and James got us off polling. Then right before we made the turned into Honker Bay we ran aground again ! This time James had to walk the anchor out and while I pulled the anchor up he pushed the boat. The boat was on a big branch under water. We got off without too much fuss but James did have to go in… and apparently fell in… although I missed that. Finally we made it to anchor in Honker Bay…. Back in the state of Kentucky ! While James relaxed, Moki and I hiked to Empire Point. Empire Point served as the head quarters for the NWR back in the 1930s and then was an agricultural education center from the 60s thru the 80s. Today cooperative farmers maintain the area gathering hay for livestock and keeping the area free from trees that would obstruct views. Tonight we are sitting on the back deck listening to what sounds like water going down a drain… we assume it’s fish… probably Asian Carp but it’s pretty mysterious 🤷🏼‍♀️. Winds are predicted to pick up overnight and rain is in our future. 53 miles today.Read more

  • betty stauglerMolly’s Great American LoopTraveler
    Lots of white pelicans in Honker Bay yesterday
    Blue slag from an iron furnace operation. Furnace is long gone.Off on an adventureRock on the road.School bus remains at Homers GarageAwe 🥰We had to run back in the rain but were rewarded With a rainbow 🌈Off to Explore again👋The Marlor House.. aka Hotel CaliforniaBoth levels have lots of graffitiNickel Bay paddleA meeting of the minds!Like an owl 🦉

    Nickell Branch 2.0 LBL

    November 6, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 68 °F

    The weather has changed! Yesterday it was really windy! Then it rained and the winds died down. Then it rained again and again and again. We did not move yesterday but Moki and I got out between drops and walked a short portion of the Honker Trail. We’ve walked this before but this time we noticed blue slag along a section of the trail, an indication an iron furnace used to be in the area. We got quite the rain overnight but it let up this morning so we headed north stopping twice to explore. Our first stop was in a tiny bay that provided access to a road leading to Homers Garage. Homer Ray owned Ray’s Garage and was a holdout not leaving the LBL until 1969. The only remains of his garage are an old school bus and the foundation of what was probably a house. After visiting the garage we pulled anchor going a few more miles to another small bay. Here Moki and I hiked to the Marlor house AKA Hotel California. Hotel California is the shell of the former home of Captain Grover Marler who was a riverboat captain. He’d built the house to be a retirement home for he and his wife. Our final destination today is Nickell Branch. We were here about a month ago and it will be our last 2.0. From here on we are back in virgin (well for this trip) territory. There’s a great trail here which Moki and I will hike weather permitting before we leave in the morning.Read more

  • betty stauglerMolly’s Great American LoopTraveler
    Morning walk. It was raining but the trail not bad. Lots of leaves. Fall in full force.
    Pretty much the view of today

    Panthers Creek LBL

    November 7, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 63 °F

    Today was another rainy gloomy day BUT we have rounded the corner and are now in the Tennessee River and headed south towards home! Busy work day for me so pics compliments of James. We went 48 miles today.Read more

  • betty stauglerMolly’s Great American LoopTraveler
    Lots of trees down make filling trail a challengeMushrooms 🍄‍🟫1Got off course for a bit but stumbled on this Civil War CemeteryMoki found his own private water hole1More mushrooms 🍄Trail goes over or under... we went overMore mushrooms 🍄Here comes our ride ❤️USCG with lots of nav buoysIt's now roads on both side but we think it was originally a railroad lineOld Danville grain elevator1Duck blind at the tip of our pup walk peninsula1Moki looking out towards MB tucked back in a coveThere she is!Closer!Don't know what these are for? Anyone??2

    Blackwell Bay

    November 8, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 63 °F

    I flaked out on posting last night but we had a good day! In the morning Moki and I hiked portions of the Fort Henry trails from one bay and then were picked up a few bays south. Fort Henry is actually underwater in Kentucky Lake. Its low elevation is why the Union was able to easily conquer it and take over Fort Donelson on the Cumberland River only days later. This area of LBL was hit by a tornado a couple years back and the trail was really hard to follow as lots of trees are down, undoubtedly some that once had trail markings on them. We did get off the trail for a bit but in doing so we stumbled on a Civil War cemetery. After our adventure we headed south and are now out of LBL… oh… and we’re also in Tennessee BTW… forgot to mention that last post. Our Anchorage for the evening was just beyond the old Danville bridge and the old Danville grain elevator. We tucked into a little bay with a long peninsula for the pup walk.Read more

  • betty stauglerMolly’s Great American LoopTraveler
    2Going around the grain elevator. Built in 1914 to transfer grain from barges to rail car
    Lots of artwork... was originally 6 stories with bottom 3 open for offloading grainI wanted to kayak this but opted just for pics from the boatTree at the boat dock. More 'art'In search of a churchNot sure what this was. There's an arch on the bottom connecting the two pillars and foundation4And here's the church... circa 1800s... not much info on it.Arched entry5This is so amazing!The Petrochem plant. All new from here till we reach FloridaRailroad bridge at Highway 70.He wasn't thrilled. The seat was wet and it slopes back pretty steep.A rose for my sister Rose 🌹Tournament weigh-inMarina guiding a boat in. They really do go above and beyond here.

    Birdsong

    November 9, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 64 °F

    Today we ventured further south on the Tennessee than we ever have and are in virgin territory! We both got a good night’s sleep and headed out early around the old grain elevator and south on the river. On the way we stopped at Harmon Boat Dock which is at the edge of the Harmon Creek Wildlife Mgmt Area and a short dirt road walk to the old Hall Valley Church. It’s only a shell now but such beautiful stonework. On the way to the church we also came across another ruin but I haven’t been able to determine what it was. I should mention there’s lots of islands on the way in to the boat ramp and a marked channel. Would be a good Anchorage. After leaving the ramp we headed south some more to Birdsong Marina. This is just beyond our turnaround last year at the petrochemical plant. This Marina has a freshwater pearl museum and farm. I’m going to visit the museum tomorrow. They also have three courtesy cars so we will use one to get groceries. Free laundry too!! There’s a bass tournament today and tomorrow. Oh and rain. So much rain 🌧️ !! 35 miles today.Read more

  • betty stauglerMolly’s Great American LoopTraveler
    They are standing because someone is singing the National Anthem. Really good too!
    2This looks like it's been here a very long time2James bought me a necklace ❤️Here's the pearl farm. They farm mussels in cages that a diver tends.Tonight after sunset. Or should I say today at 5pm!4Souvenirs from the Marina.

    Birdsong day two

    November 10, 2024 in the United States ⋅ 🌧 68 °F

    This morning we enjoyed our coffee on the back deck watching the start of day two of the fishing tournament. We also went to the pearl museum which is here at the resort. They farm freshwater pearls using mussels in cages. Each mussel is seeded with an irritant which encourages the mussel to make a pearl around it. The farm is in this bay and visible from shore. After our museum stop we took the courtesy car, actually a truck to Walmart for groceries. Pretty domestic kind of day. Headed south in the morning.Read more

  • betty stauglerMolly’s Great American LoopTraveler
    Ladies Bluff. Planned to hike it but entrance to bay was too shallow
    At anchor off Mousetail State ParkHiking some of the old roads and trails. Really prettyGotta cool offWe found a boat at the historic landing. Looks like Budweiser was involved..Molly Brown from the historic landingCooling off againDredge barge on the riverTonight's sunsetOne other boat behind this island at anchor

    Double Islands

    November 11, 2024 in the United States ⋅ 🌙 63 °F

    Another good day on the river. Left the Marina and first headed upstream (south) for about 30 miles. There’s a TVA preserve with a short trail and then just beyond a State Park with many miles of trails. It looked like the best access for MB was the bay between the two parcels and I planned to hike the TVA trail… but when we arrived getting into the bay looked pretty dicey so we figured we’d see if the other bay was better. On the way there however we saw picnic tables on shore along a wide section of the river so we just anchored up. Mousetail SP apparently got its name during the Civil War when a tannery burned and hundreds of mice ran from the fire. The park is really pretty. We hiked to the historic landing and found a boat! After our hike we continued on with an initial plan of anchoring for the night in a creek off the river but Moki and I couldn’t find any good shore access that wasn’t mud. Tennessee has some wicked sticky mud! We did get a nice kayak paddle in though. We made several attempts before throwing in the towel. Plan B was another 7 miles to Double Islands (where there’s only one island). We could see a sandy beach on Google Maps so knew it would work and it does. This island must be a weekend party place. There’s a beach volleyball net, two propane grills and a banner for a nearby restaurant. All total 53 miles today.Read more

  • betty stauglerMolly’s Great American LoopTraveler
    Stream leading to the falls
    And there it is!! It's called Eagle Bow Falls.What goes up must go down!MB at anchor this eveningPretty sunsetVenus and some random starsThat run tired someone out!

    Dry Creek Beach

    November 12, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 64 °F

    Today we did a long day, leaving anchor as soon as Moki and I returned from his morning walk and only stopping for a few minutes around lunchtime. We initially planned to stop at Wolf Island a popular Anchorage about 7 miles from the Pickwick lock but it’s supposed to rain all day tomorrow so decided to continue on and try to lock thru today. It was a beautiful sunny day today! On the way we were buzzed by an Air Force fighter jet… that sucker was screaming! Scared James and me…😱😱.. scared the cat..🙀!! All happened too quick for a pic but pretty cool. We made it to the lock just as boats were entering so lock thru was painless. Tonight we are at anchor off some TVA lands where a hilly and wet 1.4 mile hike led us to a waterfall. Because sunset is so early we only had an hour before last light so we ran… getting back just as the sunset was getting pretty. Not many pics … it was a busy day. 77 miles!Read more

  • betty stauglerMolly’s Great American LoopTraveler
    Great little Anchorage
    2First trip to the fallsGoing up!Going down to the falls after climbing up above itLook... it's Molly Brown!!And there we areJames taking a pic of me taking a selfie.

    Welcome to Mississippi !!

    November 13, 2024 in the United States ⋅ 🌧 61 °F

    We traveled 5 miles today in rather sporty seas to an anchorage in a cove with a waterfall! Yellow Creek Falls is just inside Mississippi on the Tennessee River and the cove is beautiful. It’s actually just beyond our cutoff for the Tenn-Tom but so worth an extra couple miles. We are mostly surrounded by cliffs with the waterfall in the back and a beach of shale rock fragments in front along the river. This afternoon Moki and I climbed to the top of the falls from the beach. We actually had to go way up above the falls and then back down to reach it and then reverse that back to the beach. It was short but quite a hike. After we rewarded ourselves with some play time at the falls. It was nice to have a mostly down day even though I had a pretty busy work day. We also didn’t get much of the rain predicted… most of it went north of us. It is pretty windy though (gusts to 28 atm)… and still may rain overnight. Secchi 1.7 in 5.2 MRead more

  • betty stauglerMolly’s Great American LoopTraveler
    Pretty ominous looking this morning but cleared quick
    Straddling three states 😎... turned left after into Tenn-TomTwin falls drive by. Would be a good anchorageGoats 🐐 🐐 on Goat 🐐 IslandThis was a big guy!!We saw several of these water control structures. This on Little Yellow CreekPretty railroad bridgeMB at anchorPrincess Luna got out for a stroll

    Bay Springs Lake

    November 14, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 57 °F

    We are in the Tenn-Tom! It rained A LOT last night but we both slept well. This morning James wanted to leave early to beat the other loopers but by the time we pulled anchor there was already a steady stream of them in the ditch. I had three goals for this morning and all were on our way. I wanted to cruise over where the states of Tennessee, Alabama and Mississippi meet ✅, I wanted to cruise into a bay that had Twin Falls ✅ and I wanted to slow cruise Goat Island and look for goats ✅. My wishlist added about 5 minutes to our day but I’m sure that’s why we saw no one in the ditch 😉. Around 11:30 we stopped for lunch in Bay Springs Lake. Our plan was to continue on but here we are several hours later. It’s pretty here and we’ve enjoyed listening to the wind blow thru the trees. 48 miles.Read more

  • betty stauglerMolly’s Great American LoopTraveler
    Whitten Lock doors closing
    Almost down. See James between the kayaks?This is the first lock we've done with doors. They leak allot...StagingX22The moon rising was pretty cool

    Wilkens Lock and Dam

    November 15, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 50 °F

    We are four of ten locks into the Tenn-Tom Waterway. We locked thru the first three with the same boats one of which coordinated lockage so there was no wait. Our first lock, the Whitten L/D was our biggest drop for the trip at 84 feet!! There’s doors in the lock wall that leak and depending on which bollard you pick it could be a waterfall… but we did well and stayed dry. After our third lock we stopped into Midway Marina for fuel and lunch. When we were leaving the Marina we met up with another looper and locked thru with them. Again no wait. They anchored right on the other side of the lock and we continued to the next lock where there’s a boat ramp in a cove. Easy access to shore for the pup and tomorrow morning we should be able to lock right thru… hopefully 🤞… temps are going down to 41 tonight. We were outside watching the moon rise but it got a bit too chilly for me…. Course I still have one more pup trip to shore. Almost forgot to mention at our last lock the lock tender gave us venison freshly packaged yesterday. They are all pretty nice so far but this was unexpected. Will be dinner tomorrow. 48 miles today.Read more

  • betty stauglerMolly’s Great American LoopTraveler
    Waiting on the fog to burn this morning
    Beautiful day on the Tenn Tom WaterwayI was trying to take a pic of the fog but the sun reflection was betterBarge leaving lock this morning.No windPretty railroad bridge right after the Wilkins lock this morning.Industry along the waterwayOur lunch stop at Blue Bluff Recreation Area. This was really niceWe had a good run in the open fieldI said stay but she said no. They were both laying togetherMB at the Blue Bluff RA boat dockAberdeen Lock. Waiting on another boat to arriveTonight's stop has a trailOnly the boat ramp and trail is open. Season ended November 1Pretty in PinkAbandoned railroad bridge by usSuper moon tonight

    Waverly Recreation Area

    November 16, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 45 °F

    This morning we woke to 40 degrees and fog which didn’t burn off until about 9am… just about the time we were going thru our first of three locks. After our second lock we decided to head over to the Blue Bluff Recreation Area. Because we are basically in a canal there’s limited options for anchoring. We’ve found the USACE Recreation Areas to be great here especially with a pup onboard. They are very nice and have great shore access. Blue Bluff at the Aberdeen lock actually has a boat dock which was donated by several local businesses. It was a bit tricky getting to the dock but we figured it out. Blue Bluff was a nice lunch break but then we continued for another couple hours doing one more lock before dropping anchor for the night. Waverly Recreation Area is right before the Stennis Lock. We are anchored off the boat ramp. There’s a trail here that leads to a large areas with picnic tables and pavilions but season is over and everything is closed… except the boat ramp and walking trail. We pretty much have the place to ourselves. 42 miles today.Read more

  • betty stauglerMolly’s Great American LoopTraveler
    Waverley Mansion. The octagon cupola is pretty unique. Lots of trees made picture taking a challenge
    Little foggy again this morningSomeone got the zoomies in the leaves.Bridge on our travelsThe crane has magnets and is loading scrap metalJust in case someone needs to phone home 🤣The Welcome Center at Bivell lock2The US Snagboat MontgomeryThe paddles are woodThe princess 👑MB at the dockQuite the sunset!2Lots of color tonight

    Welcome to Alabama !!

    November 17, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 48 °F

    Only one lock today but they are spread out much further apart now. We locked thru Stennis this morning after Moki and I did a quick walk up to the Waverley Mansion. It was a plantation built in the 1840s. According to Wikipedia it was named after the Sir Walter Scott novel Waverley. It is now a private residence. After locking thru Stennis with two other boats we slowed down and enjoyed a leisurely cruise making it to the Welcome Center dock by the Bivell lock (our next lock) around 1:30. The welcome center is a replica plantation built in the 1980s. It was closed but we enjoyed walking the grounds. Also at the welcome center is the U.S. snagboat Montgomery. Built in 1925-26 and retired in 1982 it was the last steam-powered work boat in the southern river system and one of two remaining steam-powered snagboats in the U.S. BTW did you know the Tennessee Tombigbee Waterway opened in 1986? It was started in 1971 under the Nixon administration and cuts the distance from the Tennessee River to the northern Gulf of Mexico by over 800 miles!! Also of note today James changed the oil on the motors and the venison last night was excellent. We are making chili with the leftovers tonight . 41 miles today.Read more

  • betty stauglerMolly’s Great American LoopTraveler
    Returning from our first wet trip to shore.
    White cliffs of Epes part of the Selma Chalk Formations. Trees colors are pretty too!I'm sure even more spectacular when dryRailroad bridge in EpesTwo deer 🦌 🦌 that swam across the river headed up the bluffNice trail with interpretive signsMolly Brown's Anchorage for the eveningGulf toad or so I thinkNicely done... duck is a nice touch too.The princess serving night duty at the helm

    Forkland

    November 19, 2024 in the United States ⋅ 🌧 68 °F

    Today’s theme was WET because it rained most of the day. I started my morning kayaking Moki to shore in the rain, then we went thru the Heflin lock in the rain. After that we cruised 57 miles in and out of the rain. Along the way we passed the White Cliffs of Epes. These cliff are part of the Salma Chalk formations and deposited about the same time as England’s famous white cliffs of Dover. A little further down river we watched two deer swim across the river. Amazing how well they swim! We came to rest this afternoon at the USACE Forkland Campground where I once again took Moki to shore in the rain. We’re in a bay with good water depth and the campground boat ramp is an easy paddle away. Near the ramp is a really nice trail with interpretive signs. It rained sporadically while we were on the trail but we dry and Moki had a great time so all good! The rain has stopped as I write and wind and cold weather are in our future.Read more

  • betty stauglerMolly’s Great American LoopTraveler
    2

    Demopolis

    November 20, 2024 in the United States ⋅ 🌙 50 °F

    We added another 12 miles to our trip today and are currently sitting at 5,996 miles for our trip!! Another milestone in four. But we didn’t do those four today and won’t tomorrow either. The cold front has moved in and it’s pretty windy so we are at the Kingfisher Marina. This place has 5… maybe 6 washers and dryers! Second load is done ✅. Today was busy busy for me so no sightseeing picture taking … but enjoy a pic I just took of James doing dishes … it’s all I got. Going down to 38 overnight! Brrr 🥶Read more

  • betty stauglerMolly’s Great American LoopTraveler
    She wore my buff for a full hour this morning. It was 37 degrees.
    Nobody puts Baby in a corner!Chillin 😎

    Demopolis day two

    November 21, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 54 °F

    Another day … today we stocked up on groceries and liquor 🥃. Moki got a good run with another looper dog and Luna was a princess.

  • betty stauglerMolly’s Great American LoopTraveler
    The old and the new
    The down side of the dam at DemopolisA visit with fellow looper Joseph on Gup B. We met him and crew back in Macinaw City.

    Bashi Creek

    November 22, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 48 °F

    We enjoyed a slow start this morning with a scheduled 10am lock thru at Demopolis. Shortly after we hit 6000 miles 🎉🙌. Lots of barge traffic today… the most we’ve encountered since leaving the Tennessee River. We are now on a section of the Tombigbee River where there’s few places to drop anchor off the river. As such we had an anchorage in mind when we left this morning. We chose Bashi Creek because it has a boat ramp that’s not directly on the river. We are in good company with four other boats…. One in the creek with us and three across the river… both spots known anchorages on Waterway Guide. Including Moki there’s at least three other dogs. Next to the ramp is a big open field for burning pup energy. 73 miles today… about half of that was on plane.Read more

  • betty stauglerMolly’s Great American LoopTraveler
    Great weather for an Aussie!!
    There's another boat right behind usPretty foggy and chilly4NEON station on the river. Measures ecological conditions and this site is called TOMBJohn H...this is for you !!Hanging with the crew of Gup B waiting to lock thru at CoffeevilleThey have a cat !!Last lock of the trip !!!Almost downMeeting a barge at the bridgeAnchored in a cozy creekWe climbed the mud bank. It wasn't bad.Found what looks like an old roadThen kayaked as far as we could go upstreamPretty!Retuning from our adventure2Until next time 💤

    Santa Bogue Creek

    November 23, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 39 °F

    Another fun filled day!! We woke to 33 degrees! Moki and I went to shore and had a nice run. We passed an open field and I may have seen frost. It was foggy when we left the boat but really rolled in while we were onshore. After breakfast we had a nice cruise downriver… stopped at Bobbi’s Fish Camp for fuel then headed to the lock… but we had to wait on a barge…. so we dropped anchor and had lunch. Our friends on Gup B rafted up with us as we waited. That was a fun visit. After about an hour and a half we were able to enter the lock. BUT our anchor was stuck!! We did all the maneuvering adding scope spinning and finally it broke free. We had snagged a steel cable. Fortunately the lock master was waiting on one more boat and we were able to get thru as two more barges were coming up river and it would have been quite the wait if not. This was our last lock of this trip and number 162!! We exited the lock around 3pm… we like to be anchored by 3pm… so we started looking hard at spots we would otherwise cruise on by. And that’s what led us to tonight’s anchorage… a tiny creek… cozy… with mud banks but off the river. 42 miles.Read more

  • betty stauglerMolly’s Great American LoopTraveler
    4Just not quite tall enough
    Took some squinting to figure out it says River OverlookOld dragline from the quarryThere's no structures remaining but it's an active archaeological siteSite of The old hotelWater in the quarry was really prettyDaphne and Declan from Gup BAnchored in the river by the park boat rampA berm between the river and the quarry2From quarrying days gone byAnother pretty rail bridge1Someone found a stick... imagine that!!We found an old structure on our afternoon walk at Three Rivers Lake1Lots to paddle in Three Rivers Lake.Trend setting lanterns. We learned two other boats bought torches after seeing ours.

    Three Rivers Lake

    November 24, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 57 °F

    This morning we woke to lots of fog that didn’t begin to burn off until 8:30. Once we could see we headed down to St. Stephens Historical Park (a State Park) where we met the crew from Gup B to go explore. St. Stephens is considered one of the greatest archaeological sites in Alabama because the town which was inhabited during the late 1700s to early 1800s was abandoned and left untouched for over 100 years. When Mississippi became a state in 1817, Alabama became a separate territory with St. Stephens as the seat of government (1817-19). When the seat moved people left and then Yellow fever further decimated the population. The park is also home to a 100 acre limestone quarry that provided cement for New Orleans and surrounding areas. It operated until the 1970s when opportunities of scale elsewhere eliminated the need for the St. Stephens quarry. The old dredge and crusher mill are still on site. The Ranger told Joseph from Gup B that we are only the second loopers to visit the park. It was totally worth the stop! Tonight we are anchored off the river again. Nice spot!! 49 miles.Read more

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