Our FIRST floating bollard MALFUNCTIONED S1:E40

[@buckpowers4837]

A day filled with experiences that you shall never forget. Enjoy

[@gothatawaychrisandsandra]

It was definitely a day to remember! So many of them are.

[@carpediemwithLesli]

"I am just thinking aloud" !!! Great communications and calm voice!! I know how nerve wrecking it is when going to a new place! Good job and I am jealous!!

[@gothatawaychrisandsandra]

I think out loud so often! Yes, new places and new experiences can be a bit stressful. I thought I saw Carpe Diem at Green Turtle Bay?

[@carpediemwithLesli]

@@gothatawaychrisandsandra not our Carpe Diem, unfortunately!😩

[@drlarcey]

you have a another fan I'm gonna be watching you guys the whole way down we have a really nice egg Harbor I gave my parents and sadly they just got too old to do this they're 81 now but they always wanted to do it so I'm gonna ride along with you guys nice to meet you guys

[@gothatawaychrisandsandra]

That's too bad. My father is in his 80s and gave up his sailboat a few years ago. He sure loved it though! Thanks for watching @drlarcey!

[@randyclason6606]

Thank you for sharing your adventure.

[@gothatawaychrisandsandra]

Thanks for watching! We appreciate it.

[@marymahar8446]

Okay, now I'm hanging with you in Ottawa, waiting for you to get to my hometown area of Starved Rock State Park and Locks. Quite an adventure to see the trip from Chicago from your perspective on the water. I came across your most recent vlog a few hours ago, while in the storms in the gulf. Safe travels and Thanks for sharing.

[@gothatawaychrisandsandra]

Thanks for following along. I wish we felt we could have spent more time near Ottawa. It was crazy coming down the rivers with 299 other boats! We were asked to keep moving every day until we dispersed more further down. The three locks south of Chicago re-opened Oct 1 so it felt very rushed.

[@marymahar8446]

@gothatawaychrisandsandra I'm glad you made it through safely after enjoying time in Chicago, especially with your daughter. Also, good you found friendly folks at the Ottawa Marina and were able to get your glasses repaired.

[@TraciWright-clips22]

Thank you for sharing your adventure. Always looking to see if you have posted a new video. We plan to do as a 60ish couple in a few years.

[@gothatawaychrisandsandra]

I'm glad you are getting something out of the videos. Having a few years to plan is a good idea. We talked about it for a few months and the next thing I knew we were boat shopping. Four months later we had signed a contract on Thataway. The last few years have flown by, and the last four months have seemed like triple speed! Have you got your looper boat yet?

[@TraciWright-clips22]

@@gothatawaychrisandsandra 😄well, that's a fun way to just jump right into it! We have only been talking about it for a few months. Casually looking at boats and it's likely going to be a trawler. We have only had smaller fishing boats/ski boats etc so we are trying to figure out how it all works with insurance etc. Thought it would be a fun thing to do for the start of retirement.

[@Livelarge86]

Rhode Island in early May. Fingers crossed. Then up the Hudson. Planning on the Mississippi in September we have friends in Greenville

[@gothatawaychrisandsandra]

I'm sure it's going to be a great trip for you!

[@rl8992]

I thought you never tie off on a cleat in a lock?

[@gothatawaychrisandsandra]

No, for sure not on ones where you are dropping with a line at the top. When we got to our first floating pin I asked and he said "sure" but I didn't walk away from it. It's why I was able to release it so quickly. Now, we don't cleat it off at all.

[@rogerharrison7609]

When I came through the Electric Fish Control Area I didn’t have any problems with my electronics. Others sure did, but not me. I’m think my LAN system is better shielded. I’m on Mist Opportunities, a 2022 Fleming 58.

[@gothatawaychrisandsandra]

It was a bit anti-climatic for us, but we really don't have anything too fancy. And we just shut everything down when we went through.

[@MarkGannon-l5o]

How did you get the car?

[@gothatawaychrisandsandra]

Courtesy car from Heritage Harbor Marina. They are great!

[@Livelarge86]

Love the videos, we started our negotiations about doing the loop (also not so young) which headsets are you using? thanks and safe travels!

[@gothatawaychrisandsandra]

We have the SENA headsets, which seem to be popular with Loopers. Having said that, we had one fail in the first month. Sena replaced it but we had to pay the freight to the US to send the faulty one back. More recently, we've had connection issues. One of the little boom mics doesn't seat properly all the time, and on occasion they just "fail to pair". We have to shut them both off, wait a few moments and try again. Not fun when you need them NOW. They are game changers for us. To be heard on a boat when you are at stern and the captain is at the helm, you tend to raise your voice...and it can sound angry, when it's not. Now we whisper expletives at each other! ;)

[@ChrisNewton-gi9gk]

Adding to Sandra's comment ... we really value having the headsets. having said that we have had some frustration getting the headsets paired every time we use them. I would be tempted to try a different brand if we were replacing these ones.

[@Livelarge86]

To be honest I found when SENA was mentioned it wasn’t even our radar. BUT we have used SENA for years in our motorcycle helmets and love them. No issues ever. SMH-10. We also saw the ultralites and could go either way. We do have Sena Cameras so we might try that for ease of editing. (Count down to loop T - 7months)

[@gothatawaychrisandsandra]

@@Livelarge86 Exciting! Where will your "start" be?