Kentucky Lake blew us away with its beauty and abundance of anchorages. Right as we were starting to feel tired of the mundane river system, Kentucky Lake showed us yet another section of the Great Loop to soak in. 

Upon leaving Green Turtle Bay Marina in Grand Rivers, Kentucky, many Loopers will blast through Kentucky Lake in one or two jumps. With no upcoming deadlines and no reason to rush to hurricane territory, we decided to make small jumps coming down the lake. What could be completed in one to two days, we did in a full week. 

From Green Turtle Bay, we made our way through the Barkley Canal to hop from Lake Barkley over to Kentucky Lake. Our first anchorage was located in Sugar Bay, just off of what’s considered the “Land Between the Lakes.” With access to a boat ramp and a few sandy beach-like areas, it was easy to get Ripley to shore. We even let her go swimming here, which she hasn’t done since Canada! Hard to believe!

After two nights in Sugar Bay, we made a 24-mile move down to an anchorage near Fort Heiman, a Confederate Civil War fort in Kentucky, built to protect the Tennessee River and support Fort Henry. Again, we stayed here for two nights, soaking in the changing fall foliage and sandy shorefront. We’re definitely beginning to feel the temperatures drop, so morning fog over the water has been quite common.

We were happy to see that Paris Landing State Park had fuel for $3.49…the cheapest we’ve seen in a while. Every other Looper must have thought the same thing, because when we pulled in on Friday to refuel, they were out of diesel! Because of the low price, we waited six hours at the fuel dock for the fuel truck to show up. I guess time is money sometimes — or in this case, money is time? You be the judge! 

We opted to continue our time on anchor Friday night in Richland Creek, now officially in Tennessee, then another anchorage called Double Islands Saturday night. We spent the evenings lying low with Slacker (our buddy boat), sharing chili one night and a tortellini soup the other to stay warm. Fall is definitely here!

This upcoming week, we plan to cross into Mississippi, our 15th state on the Loop! In other news, our previous dinghy is for sale through Bourbon City Yacht Tenders if anyone is interested in a slightly used but well-taken care of tender. You can find the link below. 

Cheers to continuing the adventure!

Highfield for Sale: https://www.boattrader.com/boat/2024-highfield-classic-310-9984533/