The cruise today was just 32 miles to the downtown dock at Clarksville, plus the Cheatham lock. We had to wait while one tow went down, and while a second 15 barge tow tied up to the lock wall. The lockmaster then let 3 of us go in front of the tow and took us down. It was about noon when we were finally clear of the lock. The river got very busy at Clarksville with tows and small boats everywhere. A few months ago a tow hit the railway bridge in Clarksville and it is now being repaired. The main channel is closed and the Coast Guard requires the long and wide tows to be broken up before they can pass under the bridge. On the downstream side they reassemble the tows. The 15 barge tow got to Clarksville late that afternoon and was still being reassembled the following morning, 12 hours later. The public dock is right beside the channel and at night a large tow came within 50 feet of our boat as it passed the other tow being reassembled. It was a scary sight.  We walked downtown and had a really good dinner at Bennes Piano Bar and Restaurant. I also checked out Kelly’s Big Burger Restaurant which is right beside the dock. It is a diner style little changed from the 60s when it was started.