Sunday, November 01, 2009
Fall Cruise on the Tennesee River
September 4 - 14, 2009. I'm writing this after the fact, but I didn't want to skip our relaxing, fun, beautiful cruise up the Tennessee River with Bob and Ann Levine on Sandpiper. Having planned the trip months in advance, it was hard to believe that we actually made it happen. Both couples had been scurrying around all summer, and it was finally our time to chill on the River. When we started out, we didn't know how far we would actually get before we had to turn around and come home for other commitments.
As we cruised along, Bob and I again marveled at the rolling green hills, the colorful cliffs, and the views of the Smokey Mountains from a waterway perspective. As many times as we have driven to Chattanooga in a car, going by boat is an entirely different experience. And what a joy to be with Bob and Ann Levine again. We ate fine food, sipped fine wine, and did a lot of laughing and reminiscing about our adventures on the Great Loop. But mainly we just took it easy and enjoyed every second of the beautiful scenery along the river in the company of good friends.
Surprise of surprises, we made it all the way to Fort Louden, Tennessee, which is just outside of Knoxville. We were thrilled to find Ron and Eva Stob at the marina, ready to catch our lines. They are especially dear to our hearts for being the inspiration for our Great Loop adventure. Ron and Eva wrote the book that opened up this new world. They invited us all to dinner at their lovely house on a beautiful cove just off the Little Tennessee River. Heaven must include a place just like this. After a lively, delicious dinner, the Stobs entertained us with music -- Ron on the guitar and Eva on an assortment of dulcimers. What a night!
The trip was full of surprises. Little did we realize that Fort Louden marina is just outside of Knoxville. We hadn't bothered to look it up on a map because we didn't think we would make it that far. When I called cousins Janet and Bob Upchurch to tell them we were somewhere in Tennessee, they said, "You are only 20 minutes from our house!" So the next night was another perfectly delightful event in the company of people we love dearly. Dinner at the Upchurches' house was fun and absolutely delicious, and Janet and Bob got to meet the Levines. We also got to meet the Levines granddaughter Rachel, who is a sophomore at UT. Loopers really do feel like family.
We left Bob and Ann at Fort Lounden to head back toward Huntsville, and we had yet another surprise. At Shady Grove Marina in Tennessee, we ran into Harold and Elizabeth DeHart, who now live there but whom we knew from the Huntsville Power Squadron. We hadn't seen them in quite a while, and we didn't really know where they had moved.
The weather was great most of the time, but as we got closer to Guntersville, dark clouds were gathering. We stopped at Alred's Marina, and Russ loaned us the courtesy car so we could drive home to make a meeting the next day. After the trip was over, Bob and I asked ourselves again, "Why don't we do this more often!" It was a wonderful fall interlude! We are happy to be back on the boat again. I'll post pictures later.
As we cruised along, Bob and I again marveled at the rolling green hills, the colorful cliffs, and the views of the Smokey Mountains from a waterway perspective. As many times as we have driven to Chattanooga in a car, going by boat is an entirely different experience. And what a joy to be with Bob and Ann Levine again. We ate fine food, sipped fine wine, and did a lot of laughing and reminiscing about our adventures on the Great Loop. But mainly we just took it easy and enjoyed every second of the beautiful scenery along the river in the company of good friends.
Surprise of surprises, we made it all the way to Fort Louden, Tennessee, which is just outside of Knoxville. We were thrilled to find Ron and Eva Stob at the marina, ready to catch our lines. They are especially dear to our hearts for being the inspiration for our Great Loop adventure. Ron and Eva wrote the book that opened up this new world. They invited us all to dinner at their lovely house on a beautiful cove just off the Little Tennessee River. Heaven must include a place just like this. After a lively, delicious dinner, the Stobs entertained us with music -- Ron on the guitar and Eva on an assortment of dulcimers. What a night!
The trip was full of surprises. Little did we realize that Fort Louden marina is just outside of Knoxville. We hadn't bothered to look it up on a map because we didn't think we would make it that far. When I called cousins Janet and Bob Upchurch to tell them we were somewhere in Tennessee, they said, "You are only 20 minutes from our house!" So the next night was another perfectly delightful event in the company of people we love dearly. Dinner at the Upchurches' house was fun and absolutely delicious, and Janet and Bob got to meet the Levines. We also got to meet the Levines granddaughter Rachel, who is a sophomore at UT. Loopers really do feel like family.
We left Bob and Ann at Fort Lounden to head back toward Huntsville, and we had yet another surprise. At Shady Grove Marina in Tennessee, we ran into Harold and Elizabeth DeHart, who now live there but whom we knew from the Huntsville Power Squadron. We hadn't seen them in quite a while, and we didn't really know where they had moved.
The weather was great most of the time, but as we got closer to Guntersville, dark clouds were gathering. We stopped at Alred's Marina, and Russ loaned us the courtesy car so we could drive home to make a meeting the next day. After the trip was over, Bob and I asked ourselves again, "Why don't we do this more often!" It was a wonderful fall interlude! We are happy to be back on the boat again. I'll post pictures later.
