Cuba Landing Harbor

After departing Clifton Marina we continued to cruise down stream with a 1-2 mph current giving 0 Regrets a boost to 8.5 mph. WOW, we are moving! The day was somewhat dark and wet. We planned to cruise down to Pebble Isle Marina, our first over night stop on this cruise but due to a late sail time, 10/30 am. We opted to dock at Cuba Landing. We were somewhat delayed in sailing due to our last visit from our new friend Sonya. While we loved Sonya, her Boss, Gene is a real gentle soul.

As I mentioned in a previous post, Gene purchased the Clifton Marina by default, he does seem to relish the vists from boating characters. We are proud to count ourselves among the many legions of friends they embrace each year. Gene is a retired pharmacist who though he would buy the marina and work 2-3 days per week and fish the others. OOPS! That plan vanished quickly. He found that a marina requires many hours of attention to get slips rented, take care of all the patrons and of course find a manager like Sonya. While Gene is full of stories of the Clifton community the stories bet more berter as the whiskey is mixed with his coke. Now I promised Gene upon our return to Clifton going down river I would provide some Woodford Reserve bourbon which adds a classic taster. I planted 1/2 bottle on the restaurant table and a couple hours later Gene polished it off. Now it is a good thing Gene is the gentle soul because I usually object to mixing Woodford with coke. You might as well use the cheap stuff. But I could not chastise Gene and I did see him pull from the bottle a couple of sips. Gene, we will see you and Sonja next year.

Alas, we approached Cuba Landing in wind and rain. We called by VHF radio numerous times just outside the harbor with no response. Now I called the marina via phone just about an hour earlier and was told to come on in. As we approached the dock we did not see dockage except the fuel dock. But our luck held and we were greeted by a friendly boater guiding us into a slip next to her YACHT. Yes YACHT. We managed to tie up to the dock narrowly missing the YACHT. I am convenced YACHT LADY was protecting the YACHT. During this crash landing we were helped and met Heinrik. It seems this Germain sailor was resting prior to continuing his travels up river to Chattanooga to meet his girlfriend and fly to Switzerland. Heinrik sailed from Germany crossing the Atlantic to the Bahamms. Now that is a sail. I did manage to get his email and web site so I can follow his progress. Cuba Landing is a reasonable stop but not the best Tennessee offers. It seems a bit abandoned with the restaurant closed and working hours reducted to 8 am-4 pm daily. We did meet the "harbor master" after our landing who cruised by in his truck. "I live in the trailer up the hill" he informed us from the truck. Well, too late Mr. Harbor Master. They did want to get paid the next morning. I must say the "master" and clerk at the small store were nice enough but I would suggest passing this stop unless you are in need during bad weather or darkness. You can anchor behind the slip pier without charge and that may be the best amenity of the landing.

Cruising the Tennessee River provided many "sites". One of the most stunning homes was purched on the clift with access to a good fishing hole on the river. While we marveled at many homes, big and small, they all shared a great view of this stunning river. Frankly, I would have to search Google Maps to find how they reached these homes via land. I can certainly recommend a cruise along this river. We hoped to reach near Chattanooga but now know we would need 3 weeks to enjoy the cruise that far up river. We are already making plans to cruise the Tennessee next year. We hope you will come along with us then and share the journey. Happy Sailing, Adm. Denise, Capt. Barry, Sailors Bailey and Bella.