The confluence of the Ohio and Tennessee Rivers 
At anchor in the Cumberland Tow Head.
Again we lifted anchor at 6:30 a.m., but when we approached Lock 52 on the Ohio River at 7:45 a.m., we noticed many tows and barges tied up on the shore before the lock. When George called the locktender and asked him when we could come through, we were told in about 3 to 4 hours! George then asked if there was any place that we could tie up while we waited, and he told us to anchor in the river near a particular buoy, and then wait for him to call us.
We used the time to have a wonderful breakfast, and at about 10:15 a.m. we were told that the locktender would fit our two boats in the lock with a tow with several small barges. The Army Corps had closed down the larger lock chamber for repairs, thus causing a major back-up on the Ohio, and we were lucky to be allowed through. This, however, became a very long process, since this lock was quite old and took VERY LONG to empty and fill.
We finally got through about 11:15 a.m. and because of the lock delay, and the current against us, we decided to continue our 26 mile trip to Cumberland Island Towhead on the Ohio, instead of trying to proceed on to the Cumberland River which could have resulted in our being on that river in the dark. On the way our boats passed the confluence of the Tennessee and Ohio Rivers at Paducah, and we continued on the Ohio until we reached the Cumberland River, which we were taking to bypass a lock on the Tennessee which is notorious for huge commercial back-ups.
Again, this anchorage which had been visited before by Al and Gayle proved to be a terrific one. We were anchored by 2 p.m., saw some small deer on the island near sunset, and had a quiet evening planning future stops on Kentucky Lake and the Tennessee River.
We used the time to have a wonderful breakfast, and at about 10:15 a.m. we were told that the locktender would fit our two boats in the lock with a tow with several small barges. The Army Corps had closed down the larger lock chamber for repairs, thus causing a major back-up on the Ohio, and we were lucky to be allowed through. This, however, became a very long process, since this lock was quite old and took VERY LONG to empty and fill.
We finally got through about 11:15 a.m. and because of the lock delay, and the current against us, we decided to continue our 26 mile trip to Cumberland Island Towhead on the Ohio, instead of trying to proceed on to the Cumberland River which could have resulted in our being on that river in the dark. On the way our boats passed the confluence of the Tennessee and Ohio Rivers at Paducah, and we continued on the Ohio until we reached the Cumberland River, which we were taking to bypass a lock on the Tennessee which is notorious for huge commercial back-ups.
Again, this anchorage which had been visited before by Al and Gayle proved to be a terrific one. We were anchored by 2 p.m., saw some small deer on the island near sunset, and had a quiet evening planning future stops on Kentucky Lake and the Tennessee River.
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