The longest passage between fuel docks on the Great Loop is from Hoppies Marina on the Mississippi and Green Turtle Resort Marina on the Cumberland River, a distance of 234 miles.
I am totally out of my element here. Have never researched the loop to any extent, but I did "stay in a Holiday Inn Express recently". Just kidding; I did just finish a week long cruise on the American Cruise Lines riverboat, American Eagle, from "Nyawlins" to Memphis. What surprised me somewhat was the total lack of recreational boating south of Memphis. I literally saw only three fishing boats on the Lower Mississippi and those were between Vicksburg and Memphis. The only marina I saw was in Memphis. Everything was commercial, towboats and barges, and the odd "paddleboat" cruisers. The channel up to Baton Rouge is deep enough for ocean going tankers and cargo ships, and they are there in abundance! So, I was left with the impression that the Great Loopers must be taking the route through Alabama like you are planning, if I judge this correctly.
You are correct. Nearly all Loop cruisers take the Ohio River/Tennessee River/Tombigbee Waterway route to the Gulf Coast. The lower Mississippi River is primarily an industrial waterway, and very unfriendly for recreational boats. There are virtually no marinas or fuel docks between Hoppe's (just south of St. Louis) and New Orleans, a distance of well over 500 miles. The Mississippi is big and subject to major floods and water level changes. Most of the shoreline is lined with levies, making shoreline facilities extremely difficult to install or maintain, and the lack of recreational boating down there renders them economically unviable as well. I didn't bother studying charts of the lower river, but I expect that anchoring opportunities would also be extremely limited and problematic. Fortunately, the Tenn-Tom Waterway alternative enables cruisers to reach the Gulf Coast without having to go down the lower Mississippi.
The lower Mississippi River is primarily an industrial waterway, and very unfriendly for recreational boats. There are virtually no marinas or fuel docks between Hoppe's (just south of St. Louis) and New Orleans, a distance of well over 500 miles.
Definitely. Took this shot between Nyawlins and Baton Rouge:
But there are many interesting side channels that would be interesting to explore and even anchor in overnight in the stretch between Vicksburg and Memphis. Like this one:
But, like you, I'll leave that for "Huck and Jim" to explore!
If you follow your Civil War history, you'll know that Sherman got all tangled up in those side channels while trying to capture Vicksburg. The Yazoo bottomlands are supposed to be a real tangle of channels and backwaters.
Sherman got all tangled up in those side channels while trying to capture Vicksburg
Yes, we went to the battlefield and saw the recovered USS Cairo that was sunk in those channels.
This was especially interesting and poignant to me since I served in the "brown water" Navy in South Vietnam on the Mekong River. Our Mobile
Riverine Force (MRF) (http://www.mrfa.org/) was the direct descendant of the Civil War gunboats.
On our way back from the Bahamas in 2011 we stopped in Vicksburg and toured the battlefield, and saw the Cairo. What an amazing vessel, much larger than I ever imagined. Sunk by the Confederates, using an electrically detonated mine.
A good friend of mine also served in the brown water navy and now suffers from the effects of Agent Orange these many years afterward. That war casts a long shadow. Your service is both respected and appreciated.
Please tell your friend I will be thinking of him, too. I was able to avoid the Agent Orange myself, but I know many were not. Your kind words of appreciation feel good. This is a small world isn't it? I do wish you well on your loop. When you get to Central Florida, if there is anything I can do to be of assistance, let me know.
Ahoy Chinook.
I have a 40 foot dock on the ICW on Plash Island at the south east enterance of the canal at the base of Mobile Bay. There is fresh water and should be electrical power. Also a beautiful yacht club with pool, kitchen and office facilities. You are welcome to use it as it is available would be my guest for as long as you need it. Email me on the members board and I would be happy to give you particulars. The property is where I hope to build my dream home and as such no house is available to use but it would be a great resting place and will be available when you need it. Have a great trip! Cpt. Bob SS Slugbug
I'll send you a pm with more specific reply. What a kind and generous offer. I think it's highly likely that we will be taking you up on this, since it's definitely right on our route. Hopefully, we'll be able to meet up with you when we get down there. By way of update, our boat preparations are nearly complete, and now we have to focus on getting the house and other affairs ready, followed by packing and final prep. We just came off our shake down cruise, which consisted of a run from Oak Harbor to Anacortes, to attend the 25th and final BWY Rendezvous, followed by a 4 day cruise out in the San Juans. It was an ideal shake down cruise, helping to refresh us on basic boat operations, and enabling us to identify remaining problems and issues. Thankfully, they were minimal, with all critical systems performing well. I managed to get my new AIS successfully talking with the Garmin, so I now have a better idea of the big boys in my neighborhood. I generated a substantial punchlist of little things to attend to, and I should be able to take care of them in the next couple of weeks. Our August 15 departure date is just around the corner. Stay tuned.
Hi Chinook,
Keep us informed. I plan to either do the Bahamas or the Great Loop next year. I am curious which I should do 1st. At this point the Admiral does not have a desire to spend 6 or 8 months on the boat . So I may be doing much of it single handed.
Time for a quick status report and update on preparations for our Great Loop trip. We've written and completed a total of 3 checklists, and are halfway through our 4th. It's down to last minute items and details, mostly involving getting the house and yard ready for handing off to our house sitter. We have just one last week complete preparations and stow our gear, and on Saturday, August 15 we will roll down the driveway to start our 2000+ mile drive from Washington State to Michigan. I'll be posting on our website as we go along. The boat is as ready as I can make her. To the best of my knowledge, all systems are operating properly. We'll see how things hold up over the next 13 months. Stay tuned.
We will be reading your updates with a touch of jealousy. Have a wonderful trip. Hopefully we will see you somewhere on the Florida coast. Do you have your AGLCA burgee?
Chinook, when you come to the central Florida West Coast, I'd be more then happy to assist you with driving and shopping. Maybe accompany you with New love for a while.
We do have our white AGLCA burgee, and it will be hoisted to the top of our flag halyard when we leave our slip at Grand Haven, hopefully on August 22. We will reach the Port Richey area following completion of our Gulf crossing from Carrabelle. The timing of that arrival will be weather dependent. I'm hoping we can get there some time in the first two weeks of November, but early and frequent northers could impact those plans. We'll look forward to seeing Obelix and many others of you along the way.
We have a dock here on the intercostal as well ,we would love to buy you guys dinner .in Charleston south Carolina ,we live on a farm about 6 mikes from the house and dock .house is furnished but empty .
. So I may be doing much of it single handed. 
