We had some wonderful travels on the rivers during the past couple of weeks that were culminated by a rendezvous of "loopers" in Joe Wheeler State Park in Rogersville, Alabama. The changes in scenery as we moved down the Tennessee River were spectacular as the rock cliffs became steeper and the homes on the cliffs more elaborate. It reminded us of the homes along the rivers that flow into the Chesapeake Bay, although they are probably a lot less expensive because they are located in the mid-south area of the country. We entered the highest lock of our trip on the Tennessee River near Florence, AL that lifted our boat over 90 feet. The lockmaster added water to the lock at a high rate which caused significant turbulation in the lock, but we were able to fend our boat off the wall so that we didn't sustain too many scrapes to the railing, but it was a pretty wild ride.
We thoroughly enjoyed the rendezvous with about 180 loopers and "wanabe" loopers attending the seminars and social events. There were about 65 boats docked at Joe Wheeler State Park and it was wonderful to be reunited with many loopers that we had traveled with during the 4 1/2 months we have been on our trip. We met many new people who were excited about planning their trip and we were reminded of the time when we were "wanabes". We have loved every aspect of our trip thus far and we find it hard to believe that we have really done all these wonderful things.
While we were at the rendezvous we had a call from a close relative who informed us that her husband was ill and would need a long-term hospitalization. We were devastated by the news and made plans to go to their home that day to help them in any way we could. We are going to need to stop our trip at this time to spend time with their family as they work their way through this critical time. Flint has returned to Alabama today to pick up the remaining items we need and to prepare the boat to winter at Joe Wheeler. We are hoping to resume the trip in a couple of months, but we need to take this a day at a time and trust the Lord to lead.
We would covet your prayers as we deal with the daily challenges that arise as we assist our family with the details of life. We will let you know when we are ready to resume our loop trip.
2 comments:
Leslie and Flint, I was so saddened when I read the news in your blog this morning. Our prayers go out to you and your family. Please let us know if there is anything at all we can do to help you through this difficult time. Your friends from MYC, Andrea and Kevin Coleman
So sorry to learn of this. Home Group has already begun praying. We send our love. Please give Karl and I a call if their is anything further that we can do. Much Love, Mary and Karl.
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