Tennessee River Thru Paddle - Day 11 (4/21/21)

A Battle every Paddle stroke

Start: River Mile: 440

Finish: River Mile: 424

Day Total: 16

Trip Total: 228

My sister Julie has a saying to describe when she is having a bad day. She will say she is “riding the struggle bus”. Well, today was that kind of day for me. Not that anything I could control was going wrong, it was just a day filled with challenges. On a long trip like this, those challenges and how we overcome them are what makes for a epic adventure. 

This morning was our first on central time, so it got light by 6:00am. Of course right as I was getting ready to leave my tent, it started to rain. There was no rain in the forecast so this was unexpected. Packing up in the wet is always a bummer, but you just have to do it. As we paddled away from Sullivans landing it was 40 degrees with a 10-20mph head wind. Lovely.

40 degrees and 20 mph wind, yuck!

We faced this wicked wind for the first 5 miles, paddles north, straight into it. This is my least favorite condition for paddling. You are working 3 times as hard and going 1/4 the speed. When you can look at the shore and watch specific trees crawl past, you know the going is tough. In a 20 mph, each paddle stroke moves me forward 6 inches. I mean, it was SLOW going.

At mile 9 there was a marina on the map that looked like they would serve lunch and even have cabins for rent. Our initial goal was to make it this far and access how we felt. Well, turned out to be irrelevant since the marina and all the amenities were buttoned up tight. So, back out into the battle we paddled. From here all the way to Nickajack Lock & Dam, we delt with either head winds or cross winds, all the same wicked speed. 1-2 foot wind driven waves are a challenge. You have to constantly pay attention to what the next set of waves looks like. Are there any that could wash over your deck? As cold as it was, it was imperative that we stay dry to avoid hypothermia. 

Many big water crossings today

We shot for the TVA landing just 1 mile from the dam. From there we would call and see if we could lock through. Even though we called a dozen times, we never got an answer. So, we decided to take a chance and paddle to the lock, pull the signal cord and see if we could get the Lock Masters attention. After 20 minutes of calling, he finally filled the chamber and let us in. We could have set up camp upriver from the lock, we but learned long ago, if you have a chance to lock through, do it. 

We paddled into the TVA boat ramp and landed after 8.5 hours in our boats. Hauling our gear up the ramp and getting camp set up, diner and dishes and blogging before bed. Tonight is supposed to be the coldest night yet for us, with temps in the low 30s. So glad I have a nice warm sleeping bag to crawl into. 

Cold weather blogging 

Reflecting back on the day, I’m happy with the 16 miles we made today, all things considered. I felt like calling it quits after 2 miles. 16 miles is way better than a zero day. It took a lot of work, but we made it. Gonna be a cold pack up tomorrow, more adventure to come.