Destinations
Fontana Lake: A Blue Ridge Oasis
“Fontana” in Italian means fountain. What an appropriate name for a living monument of water, mountains, forest and a village resort. The Fontana Lake area in the western corner of North Carolina is a fountain of beauty, whose mists trap the water and whose mountains hold back the sun. The region has attracted visitors since […] Read More
The Complete Listing of Marinas and Locks on the Inland and Gulf Intracoastal Waterways
Top Boating Towns 2016
America’s Heartland is home to dozens of towns with truly authentic character as well as access to inviting lakes and rivers. Last year we asked you to help crown the top boating destinations in the region (see the sidebar), and this year we started with a blank slate and took your nominations again — setting […] Read More
Colorado’s Lake Dillon: In a League of Its Own
Experienced cross-country road-trippers nod knowingly when someone brings up Interstate 70 in Colorado. Oh yes, they’ve all traveled this celebrated stretch of the U.S. Interstate Highway System, with engineering marvels such as the Eisenhower Tunnel at 11,158 feet, Vail Pass and, well, all of Glenwood Canyon. They might not know that I-70 also takes them […] Read More
Profile: Three Forks Harbor in Fort Gibson, Oklahoma
Located at Mile 392.2 of the McClellan-Kerr Arkansas River Navigation System (MKARNS) near the confluence of the Arkansas, Verdigris and Grand rivers, Three Forks Harbor is a mixed-use port development run by the Port of Muskogee City-County Port Authority. The harbor and its 10,000-square-foot multipurpose River Center appeal widely to both fishermen and boating enthusiasts. […] Read More
Door County Charm
A place with towns called Fish Creek, Egg Harbor, Sister Bay and Gills Rock has to have character. Such a place is Door County, Wisconsin, a finger of land that sticks 75 miles out into Lake Michigan from the city of Green Bay, forming a huge natural harbor in the only Great Lake entirely within […] Read More
The Illinois Chain O’ Lakes
Yeah, sure, Chicago has its famous lakefront. But there’s another water wonderland in Illinois, just about an hour’s drive from the Windy City, where boaters can enjoy 15 lakefronts that are all connected. The Chain O’ Lakes, sometimes called the Northern Illinois Chain O’ Lakes or the Fox Chain O’ Lakes, stretches 45 miles from […] Read More
Summer Breeze: Lake Lanier, Georgia
Nestled in Georgia’s northeastern countryside, Lake Lanier (a.k.a. Lake Sidney Lanier) is the state’s largest lake, boasting some 38,000 acres of water and 692 miles of shoreline spanning five counties. This splendid retreat, which gets its name from favorite son/poet Sidney Lanier, offers an idyllic locale that lures enthusiasts to what is considered a mega-boating […] Read More
The Complete Listing of Marinas and Locks on the Inland and Gulf Intracoastal Waterways
Secrets of the Great Lakes
Why do they call them the Great Lakes and not the Good Lakes? Because they’re Great! Indeed, glacier-carved Superior, Huron, Michigan, Ontario and Erie make up the largest interconnected body of fresh water on the planet — accounting for 20 percent of the world’s surface fresh water. The lakes are surrounded by 4,530 miles of […] Read More