Sept. 26-Oct. 3
Days 319-326
These last few days have been slightly melancholy for us. My usual posts contain pictures of the places we have encountered as we travel from one place to another, not so this one. Green Turtle Bay Marina has provided us with the opportunity to visit one more time with many of our fellow Loopers that we have met along the way. Some we have not seen in quite some time, others we have shared many wonderful moments with along the way, and still others are new Loopers who are just beginning their great adventure. We have actually extended our stop here so that we would be here when our friends on Seahorse arrived, in order to celebrate with them as they complete their Loop. Then we discovered that Aunt Aggie would arrive here just after our scheduled departure, so what is a couple more days added to our trip. In case you can't tell we are just a little reluctant to bring our Loop trip to a close. We are excited about seeing our family and friends at home, but not necessarily ready to swap our white burgee for a gold one.
Green Turtle Bay Marina has been swamped with transient Loopers, as we all continue our trip south. They have done an amazing job finding every nook and cranny they have in order to provide dockage for us. We have felt right at home on the sale dock, enjoying the many wannabe boat owners who have checked Bama Dream out. Sorry, she is not for sale just yet!
Our timing was perfect. The yacht club sponsored a Seafood Boil on Saturday night and it sure didn't take much convincing to get many of the Loopers to join in the fun. I certainly am not going to turn down the chance to attend an event that includes all you can eat crab and shrimp.
Our view of the lunar eclipse was hindered by a partly cloudy sky, but we did manage a glimpse every now and then. Oh well, Jess and I have decided we don't mind waiting another 18 years for the next one.
Dan and Angie from Seahorse arrive to an improvised song, and plenty of cheers, as we help them celebrate crossing their wake.
What better excuse than a "Cross Your Wake" party to cover the table with some scrumptious snacks. Cruisers always keep a few items in their cabinets just for these special occasions.
After all of the planning, then the excitement of each moment of the journey, it all comes down to the big moment when the white burgee is replaced with the coveted gold one. Dan and Angie can be proud that they have accomplished this goal, and are now ready to seek new adventures.
Even in the marina we were treated to an amazing sunset.
Jess and I enjoyed visiting with Don Britton and his wife, Janice. Don is my cousin's wife's brother. If you read that slowly you will get the relationship. After a nice visit with them, their cats, and a number of hummingbirds at their beautiful home on Kentucky Lake, we ended the evening with supper at their marina.
As a thank you to Loopers for visiting the Green Turtle Bay Marina, they graciously provided us with a Bar-B-Que meal with all of the fixings. We were even entertained by a quite talented musician who did a pretty good job adapting songs to meet the Looper lifestyle.
Free food brings out the smiles at our table full of Loopers.
Sampling a little of each of the cobblers, Jess makes his way down the dessert table.
The newest Gold Loopers, Dan and Angie from Seahorse. We began our journeys at the Rendezvous last October. Our paths have crossed many times and many different places over the last year. We will miss these moments, but have promised to keep in touch and meet again somewhere along the way.
Our fellow Alabamians from Mobile, Donnadee and Wayne from Always Home. We first met at Half Moon Bay on the Hudson River. There have been several docktails since at many stops along the way. I am sure our paths will cross again as they continue their journey, and then move back onto dry land with an RV.
New friends, Clark and Evelyn on Sea Moss. We only just met at Grafton, Il, but we are already planning a cruise up the Tennessee River at least as far as Chattanooga.
We really feel like we are close to home with all of the deer that wander the resort grounds.
We have had cloudy, rainy days, but hopefully this means we can expect some sunshine soon. We are also reminded that fall is here to stay, as the temperature has really started dropping.
The small town of Grand Rivers has a nice little grocery store, a dairy bar that has very large small dip cones, antique stores, gift shops, and this awesome restaurant. Patti's is famous for their 2 inch pork chops that are absolutely out of this world. After two trips to Patti's we can vouch for the fact that they have many other tasty items on the menu.
It didn't take long after our arrival at GTB for the crews from Always Home, Fryedaze and Bama Dream to make our way to Patti's. We were not disappointed in the fare or the amounts. All of us had plenty for supper and leftovers for lunch.
What better excuse to return to Patti's than welcoming our friends, George and Martha from Aunt Aggie. We were so happy that we could have one more short visit with them before we each complete our loop just east of Pickwick. We began this journey together at Joe Wheeler last October. We have met at many different spots along the route, but it always seemed that as we arrived they were leaving or vice versa. Never the less we have shared some great memories and look forward to visiting them at their new home in Atlanta.
One reason to take home half of your meal for the next day, is that that way you can save room for dessert. After listening to the very long list of scrumptious concoctions Jess settled on Coconut Cake and I have to admit the other chocolatey thing is mine and I don't even remember what it was called.
After a thrilling Crimson Tide win over Georgia, there was still time for a couple more very competitive marble games before bringing our final evening at GTB to a close.
