Days 139

Green Turtle Bay, KY - Paris Landing TN

• Start 7:30 AM
• End 1:15 PM
• Underway 5:40 Hours
• Distance 38 miles
• Total Miles on Trip 2669
• Av Speed 6.7 knots
• Locks 0
• Weather Cloudy, 80 Degrees, Wind 10Kn SSW

This morning the weather did not like us. Everyone was leaving at 7:30, and as we were getting the boat ready to depart, it started raining heavily. Of course as soon as we got off the dock and back under cover the rain stopped. I guess that is better than it raining all day.

Today we travelled with four boats; Mark & Karen (Kay Dee), Wes & Luanne (Adventure Awaits), Rommel & Amy (Happiness Is) and Tom & Ceci (God Speed II). We will be traveling with them for the next two weeks as we make our way to Chattanooga.

We had all called the marina to make reservations, but they told us reservations were not needed they had plenty of slips. Once we arrived they told us which docks were the transient slips, and just pull into any slip that we wanted. Most marinas assign you a slip, and they get upset if you try to change it.

Once the boat was secured Angel & I went exploring on our bikes. We started our tour by stopping at the Paris Landing Aviary. The park staff rehabilitates injured birds of prey that are native to West Tennessee. Some of the birds are not able to be released because they would no longer survive in the wild. These birds become residents of the aviary.

Our next stop was the beach, I forgot to take picture of the "beach" but I wish I had. In the fall the water level of both Lake Barkley and Kentucky Lake are lower by about 8 feet. There is no water in the swimming area of the beach. In the summer there is no beach at all. There is a concrete wall with steps leading into the water.

When we left the beach we came across an Army 8 wheel drive HEMTT tow truck at the edge of the lake. There was also a HEMTT cargo truck covered in mud. Being the curious person I am, I stopped to ask what was up. The tow truck driver told me, he had no idea what the HEMTT cargo truck was doing, just that they were stuck in the exposed part of the lakebed and he was told to come tow them out. I wish we had gotten there sooner to see that. There is no doubt that the driver of the HEMTT cargo truck had several hours of cleaning his truck ahead of him.

After our bike ride, thee other loopers joined us in walking to a Carmelita's Comida Mexicana restaurant. Angel & I picked the restaurant as it was within walking distance and opened. Sometimes a very hard combination to come by on our trip. While we were getting ready, Angel looked at the Yelp reviews for the restaurant and they did not look good. We decided to give it a try anyways as they were the only option available. I am not sure who wrote the reviews but they could not have been more wrong. The service was great, and the food was even better.

Tomorrow we head to either Pebble Island or Cuba LAnding