Great Loop Date: 10.08.2010 (Tuesday): Pebble Passage Through Water…

Day #57: 1457.5 total miles (30.7 miles)
Locks: 12 total (today: 0)
Port #27 – Pebble Isle Marina; New Johnsonville, TN

Pebble Passage Through Water
by Terence George Craddock

pebble rough pebble
smooth seen
vein colour adored

which makes
most beautiful ripples
on dark water?

behold beauty
of ripples
forget not
sound of entry

We have had the most beautiful weather since we entered Kentucky Lake. The sun has shown in a cloudless sky every single day. The temperatures gradually climbed each day from the mid-80s to 90. The humidity remained low so the conditions were very tolerable. Nights cooled with the sunset and eventually went to the lower 50s.

In Panther Bay, I pulled OBs anchor and Todd washed the mud off the chain as it came up. I fought with the mushroom anchor on the chain. It didn’t want to cooperate and come off. Ed and Jerry had come up with a solution to make the task easier but I needed to get an extra line in our next port to put the new idea to work. We were finally underway at 8:45AM.

The trip from Panther Bay to our next planned stop at Pebble Isle Marina in New Johnsonville, TN was 30 miles. The cruise took us past more beautiful scenery. We passed a railroad bridge and remnants of an old dock that had been flooded when Kentucky Lake and Barkley Lake were formed. Fishing boats around the abandoned dock made me think it might also serve as a great habitat.

Now we were seeing more and more beautiful big homes built high on the hills, secluded by forests and long cart paths down to docks on the water. As we moved further upstream, the houses were closer together and closer to the water. We were also into red clay country…lots of iron ore in that stuff and a mother’s nightmare in white socks! Yes, I grew up in red clay. It seemed no matter where we moved, there it was…and I always had white socks.

We only passed one barge heading downstream on the way to Pebble Isle. Luckily OB caught him on the straight a way. The captain would not acknowledge any of the Looper’s calls that preceded us. Todd saw the tow’s name on the AIS and directed a call using that name. The tow captain wouldn’t acknowledge Todd’s call either. Todd finally told the tow captain we would pass him on the ‘two whistle’…and under his breath said, ”…whether you like it or not, (expletive)!”. Ninety nine percent of the tow captains have been very courteous, but there are those one or two that are a concern, especially if we meet them in a narrow passage.

Sea Estate and Blue Angel had left the anchorage about an hour and a half ahead of us. They reached Pebble Isle first and were able to take on fuel, pumpout their holding tanks and get settled on the transient dock before we made our way in. Pebble Isle is in a nice little cove off Kentucky Lake nestled in the Tennessee hill country.

Back to the little poem at the beginning of this blog. I had to find something that identified this wonderful little marina, it’s most courteous staff and the wonderful Harbor Hosts for the AGLCA, Judy and Randy. This little marina is nothing spectacular to look at…just another marina. However, all these folks made this stop one we will remember…and hope to revisit someday. Their personality made this little nugget a gem!

Ed met us as the fuel dock and helped us in along with one of the owner’s of the marina. After we took on fuel and had our holding tank pumped out, the owner carefully looked at his long transient finger dock and mentally placed everyone that was coming in that day. We moved to our spot and he met us to help us tie up.

After our little Looper group was settled, three more Looper boats came in. Saturday, another Looper and a transient showed up. Sunday, one more. And Monday, four more came in! Tuesday morning (today), most of us left and Pebble Isle went back to waiting for the next group of transient boaters and Loopers.

During our three day stay, we were able to take the Courtesy Car to restock our groceries. It was a good stop to recharge our batteries, meet more Loopers and get some housekeeping and maintenance items checked off our to do list.  Todd, Ed and Jerry completed the 'door project' so all three doors are now opening and closing smoothly.  Todd cleaned the Mississippi mud out of the bilge and it's as close to white as it will ever get.  I gave Charlie a bath and he's all soft and sweet.

Our last night (Monday) after I got back from a second trip to the grocery store with four other Loopers, I joined Looper Happy Hour which had grown to fill the whole finger dock. I was so excited to see Judy and Dan from Quest, I didn’t see who was standing to my right. I felt a tap on my shoulder, looked over and there was Gary and his wife from S/V Tess. So what you say? Well, they are from the Pt. Clinton area. Gary works part time at West Marine. He helped us put together our bridle to lift our new BRIG onto OB back in August. His wife works at the Put in Bay Winery. We knew they were bringing Tess to Florida for the winter but didn’t expect to see them until maybe the Bahamas in the early spring. Small world…and we are loving it!!

Louisville and Nashville RR Bridge...no longer functioning.  Someone built a beautiful home on the approach to the bridge.  If you click on the picture, there's what looked like an eagle's nest on the telephone pole closest to the channel.

This was the abandoned dock we passed just after the RR Bridge...all taken by the TVA in the creation of Kentucky Lake.  It must have been a grain loader at one time.

The barge that wouldn't talk !  And he's kind of big to not work with us on passing.

The first of many large houses we saw along this part of Land Between the Lakes on Kentucky Lake.  Notice the cart path that zigzags down to the dock.

Another beautiful home.

And, of course, there were coves all along the way.

This house was on the water with a road down to it.  I noticed the erosion under their road bed.

And yet another group of beautiful homes on the water.

You guessed it...what a beautiful little spot it was!

Their sign out on the roadway.

This is the transient finger dock.

We loved their weather station...the rock was hot the whole time we were there (except at night when it was cold).

We had probably our best ever omelet in their little restaurant...the Grey Heron Grill.  This was their Shipwreck Omelet...huge pieces of sausage, bacon, ham, tomatoes, bell peppers and onions in Todd's.