Autumn on the Tennessee River

The Tennessee River is more a series of lakes than a river. We entered the Tennessee River at Kentucky Lake by way of the Barkley Canal which cuts through the “Land Between the Lakes” area of Kentucky.This is a National Recreation Area, very scenic with beautiful anchorages and State Parks along the shoreline. We spent several days exploring this area before proceeding through Pickwick Lock and entering Lake Pickwick. We chose a marina just off of Pickwick Lake called Grand Harbor from which we could tour the Shiloh National Military Park, site of one of the bloodiest battles of the Civil War and a turning point in the strategy of the Union Forces. The trees are in grand display this time of the year so we took a detour along the Tennessee River to Chattanooga where the slightly higher altitude increases the display. The colors didn’t disappoint us!We enjoyed Chattanooga very much, touring Ruby Falls a 145 foot waterfall which is 1,120 feet below the surface of Lookout Mountain and the Chickamauga National Military Park, site of another decisive battle in the “War Between the States”.

We enjoyed the wonderful restaurants and found Chattanooga to be a beautiful Riverfront City. We traveled a series of 4 Locks and Dams to reach Chattanooga. One of these, the Wilson Lock has a lift of 93 feet. Upon entering this cavernous chamber 110 feet wide by 600 feet long one feels very small indeed. We were told the lock displaces approximately 58 million gallons of water each time the chamber is emptied and that it was the tallest lift lock in the world when it was built. It now ranks third. As we returned down the river we had the opportunity to lock both directions through these 4 locks. Departing the Joe Wheeler Lock we encountered a tow with 14 barges tied just outside of the lock waiting to go in, he took up most of the available space. To date we have traveled 4,331miles and transited 130 locks. Our trip has been full of adventure and we are truly enjoying every day. We are currently at Grand Harbor once again and plan to depart tomorrow heading South toward the Gulf of Mexico on the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway.