Mike and Beth's Adventures

Amy Marie entering Pickwick Lock at the end of a full day of travel A single  goal guided the crew of Amy Marie as we departed Green Turtle Bay and pointed the bow south.  We had been resisting and trying to ignore it's siren call.  The attraction was becoming too strong.  We had to acknowledge it's presence. So we did so in a clear and forceful manner.  Our normal cruising mode was to amble and linger which allowed us to engage with and interact with the areas through which we travelled.  We were so close to crossing our wake, we discarded our leisurely style and instead single mindedly focused on "crossing our wake".  This is the goal for which all Loopers strive.  For 365 days our focus had been on the journey.  Thereby allowing us  to savor our interactions with the people, towns, and geographies through which we passed.  Intellectually, we did not want the experience to end.  We wanted to continue travelling with the Loope...

Amy Marie is going to ride this contraption from one drainage to another! This is the "Big Chute Railway", a one of a kind gadget to transport your vessel and keep two ecosystems separate. I should have known something unusual was up when we passed this waterside cabin. Here is the rail car ready to receive some boats If you look carefully, you will see the bow is on the wooden floor and the rear of the boat is suspended in a nylon strap cradle. Large boats are lifted with their running gear beyond the wooden floor.  Lifting straps are used to suspend the vessel as in a travel lift. Note that the front and rear follow different tracks.  The difference in height of the tracks is carefully set to allow the deck to remain horizontal as the car crosses the hill. Amy Marie is loaded into the rail car and just about ready to start it's journey. I am excited about this unusual experience, but I have to admit, the pucker factor was a bit high! Holy Smokes, what have we gotten our...

A Canadian Coast Guard Hovercraft on the St. Lawrence On this day we travelled to Cornwall Canada.  The day dawned clear and cool.  We would pass through Eisenhower and Snell Locks, for which we had to make reservations and pay a fee.  Little did we know how exciting the last few miles of the trip would be.  We travelled with our friends on Dog House and Mountain Mermaid.  As usual, we had earlier met to discuss the route for days travels.  By doing so we combined the knowledge of all members and fine tuned our navigation to achieve the best possible course.  This day Murphy, always lurking in the shadows, decided to throw us a surprise! Our travels took us down the St. Lawrence and closer to Montreal.  The plan was to make an extended stop there and enjoy all this 350 year old city had to offer.  We were two stops away.  This day’s travel would take us to Cornwall and the following day to Valleyfield, before reaching Montreal. ...

The Great Dismal Swamp May 5th, 2022 A journey through the Dismal Swamp is a voyage back in time.  The route traverses a very low population density portion of North Carolina and Virginia.  It is easy to imagine yourself back in Colonial times. The route was originally proposed by George Washington in 1763.  The concept was to dig a canal to connect the Chesapeake Bay, in Virginia, with the Albemarle Sound in North Carolina to move trade goods.  Doing so would bypass the treacherous coastal route.  The canal was completed in 1805 after 12 years of construction by mostly slaves. We had been anticipating our Dismal Canal Trip for a long time.  It did not disappoint.  The entire canal is a "No Wake" zone, so it is a relaxing transit.  Type A personalities would not be a happy with this route.  As the going is slow, we broke the trip into 2 days, with a stop at the Visitors Center located midway through the canal.   Once you enter the c...