Wednesday, November 14 –
Monday, November 19, 2012
Rolling, Rolling…..You know I
had to say it eventually! I had Creedance
Clearwater Rival running through my head all day, even Tina Turner’s
rendition!
With gray skies overhead we
made our leave from Columbus. One of men at the marina said everyone should
have to take a load of ‘grass’ (water hyacinths) when leaving. Judging by
Columbus Lock, we filled our quota!
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| Water Hyacinths in Columbus Lock |
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| Luckily this vegetation does not get tangled in our props |
Twenty some miles later was
the Bevill Lock. The 108’ US Snagboat
Montgomery is displayed near the locks entrance. She was the last steam powered
stern wheel riverboat working to keep the river way clear. (Hence, the song in
my head…)
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| USS Montgomery |
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| Tom Bevill Lock and Dam Museum |
It’s an odd feeling not
knowing what state you are in (and I do not mean mental!). The last few days we have wandered in and out
of Mississippi and Alabama. We always know what our location is in relation to
the river but not which state in the union. The guide books don’t always mention it
unless it is a city of interest. Sometimes
when we dock for the night I have asked the harbormaster, “What state is this?”
I have been assured that I am not the first to ask. Time and space no longer
have the same significance on this trip. We only need time enough to travel to
a safe port for the night.
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| Eagles in a tree |
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| Rocky banks seem to leak rust |
Irish Attitude anchored out Wednesday night at m 287.3; Cochrane Cut-off. This ox bow was a good one. Done Dreaming went in first since they have forward scanning sonar to measure water depths. Everyone dropped a bow anchor and there was plenty of room to swing with the current and mild wind. Thursday morning our early start was hampered by fog but what’s the rush, we have no schedule!
Eventually we locked through Heflin Lock and Dam on mm 266.1. After this point the rocks lining the banks changed dramatically. We came upon White Cliffs of Epes. If you have never had an opportunity to see the famed White Cliffs of Dover….this is the next best thing. No passport is needed! It an Alabama secret! These chalk cliffs were formed at about the same time.
At mile 217 the Tenn-Tom Waterway
ends. We continue our route downstream on the Black Warrior-Tombigbee Waterway
(BWTW). That’s 217 miles to Mobile, AL and the Gulf of Mexico! Demopolis was
our next port.
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| See you soon! |
Our friends from Limelight
left their boat here and drove home (hopefully for a short time). Don’s hip had
been bothering him since just prior to leaving Wisconsin, the pain only
increasing. He and Anita went home to have it looked at, leaving their boat at Kingfisher Bay Marina. The significance
of this location is that it's above 32 degrees longitude. That puts us above the
hurricane zone. Passing this point prior to November 1st is an
insurance no-no. Therefore many loopers make this an extended stop.
Since
Columbus, Irish Attitude has been
traveling with Headquarters and Done Dreaming. Loopers flags were spotted on Godspeed and Emery el., gold loopers seeking warm weather for the winter months. Emery el was traveling with a sailboat attached to its side. While at Demopolis we got to know
the people off of Blue Grass. Tom and Margie own Blue Grass, a 39 ft. Mainship trawler. They are making the entire
loop with their friends Stephanie and Tony. I remember they introduced
themselves at Joe Wheeler. Everyone was astounded to hear that 4 people travel
on one boat. Some days it can be close enough quarters for two! Ten of us went
to dinner that night making two trips with the courtesy vehicle. (We would be
lost without these vehicles!) This marina was large and still under construction so they provided golf carts to travel from our slips to the office and restaurant. Kingfisher Bay wins the award for the nicest bathhouse/ laundry facility! I am talking flat screen T.V.! The
next night we ate at the marina restaurant. Plans were made for a dawn
departure. The next day would be a long one.
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| Tom/Margie, Tony/Stephanie, Shirley/Tony, Michael/Mundy and Mike |
As luck (or the time of year)
would have it, we were fogged in, heavy! The lockmaster would not consider our
entry so we readied our boats for departure and listened to the VHF radio for
the okay. An hour later we were on the move. The fog was patchy but clear by
the Demopolis Lock. We had been forewarned that boat documentation was required
at this lock. No problem. The lockmaster must have been a drill sergeant in a
former life. His temperament was unlike the typical southern lock tender that
we had seen up until now. Not friendly as most are or even showing their
distaste in dealing with pleasure crafts as very few have been. This man was
unique, barking the same orders at each of the 5 boats in our little flotilla. “Wear your life jackets! No wake when
approaching the chamber! Answer me when I talk to you!” Yikes! Everyone
complied with extreme politeness. These are not the people to rile or every
lock tender on the river will know your name!
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| Alabama Sand Dune? |
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| This barge is sprouting new life |
Bashi Creek is 75 miles downriver at mm 145. Done Dreaming ran ahead and dropped anchor. Headquarters, Irish Attitude and Blue Grass realized that we still had another slower boat behind us
and did not believe everyone would fit in this narrow creek. We moved on to mm
118.9, Bobby’s Fish Camp! Nearly a 100 mile day!!! Bobby's is a must stop for 2
reasons. It’s a river icon and it's the last fuel stop before Mobile! Done Dreaming
stayed at Bashi Creek, having already settled in. We picked up speed and made
it in just before dark. Emery el was
already docked having left Demopolis a day earlier. We filled the dock space
with barely enough room for our stern to reach the gas pump.
Now Bobby’s Fish Camp is just
what it sounds like. There are small cabins where fishermen stay, similar to
our deer camps. A restaurant is on site.
I had my first Catfish here. You can choose from fried, fried or deep
fried! The batter was light and it was not bad! The new bathroom was a
Rubbermaid shed with an enclosed shower, toilet, sink and mirror. What more
could you ask for? (I took my shower on the boat!) Most importantly, they have
fuel! I stood on the hill by the restaurant and called out gallons to Mike on
the boat. A phone call earlier that day told us supplies were limited. One
hundred gallons, call it good enough.
Okay.... New tune playing through my head. Ode to Billy Joe. We have been traveling through Choctaw County and have passed ridges and bridges that bring the song to mind. Like everyone, I wonder what did the couple throw off the bridge and why was her family so blasé about his death?
Our next and the last lock for a while is the
Coffeyville Lock at mm 116.6. Twenty-nine locks including our side trip to
Chattanooga. From this point south the waters would be tidal. Tides and
currents charts will now be an integral part of docking and anchoring. There
was only a slight fog but news from the lockmaster was not good. Three tows
were ahead of us and would need to be locked through first. That put our departure
time to around 11:00 a.m.! We hoped that Done
Dreaming would catch up but that was not to be. It turns out they developed
a problem with their starter and were running on one engine.
Around 10:30 a.m. we headed
toward the lock. The next 2 nights we planned to anchor out. Actually there is no
other option as there are no more marinas. Headquarters
took the lead. Not many pictures were snapped. It took all our eyes to navigate
the BWTW. This section of river did not receive the attention that the Tenn-Tom
did. The river meanders to and fro as a lazy river will. Remember the tows we
waited that earlier…. we caught up with them plus 3 others heading north! The
tows keep moving so it is not unusual to pass the same tows again and again in
both directions.
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| Switch back turns |
We pulled into Three Rivers Lake on the RDB at mm 63.8. There
was plenty of room. Irish Attitude
and Blue Grass rafted together using
bow anchors and pointing in opposite directions, in lieu of the use of a stern
anchor. Headquarters stayed closer to
the entrance where it was deeper. Mike launched the dinghy and with the aid of
Tony from Blue Grass assisted Headquarters in setting a stern
anchor. We all got
together on Blue Grass for hors d’oeuvers that lasted until looper midnight
(9:00 p.m.)! It was a great time with great people.
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| Blue Grass |
Burr… The next morning our
cabin temperature was 50 degrees. A downside of anchoring out is no
electricity. We cannot run our generator all night long. Sigh. Something is
lacking with our battery system that has just enough juice to run the
refrigerator and our anchor light. This has plagued us the entire trip and has
limited our ability to anchor out. So when our Siamese neighbors woke up both
boats turned on the generators for heat and breakfast! The upside of anchoring is disembarking. Pull
the anchor and you’re off. No lines or power cords!
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Can you see the two tows?
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| Curvy |
Irish Attitude took our turn
at the lead today. Before leaving the anchorage 2 tows passed us, heading north
luckily! It looked like another day of twists and turns on the river. There is
the Pascagoula and Thelma Parker again, one whistle or two? It became very
confusing as the day wore on. The river switched back and forth and we could
hear tow and boaters communicating from over 10 nautical miles away but only
two miles as the crow flies. It was difficult to decipher who the tows were
talking too. Once contacted, we had to negotiate a pass before the next curve.
Many times we followed along for miles awaiting a safe window. The tow captains
were great and more than patient with us.
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| Unusual Cargo |
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| Bullish! |
We could have made it to
Mobile Bay but decided to stay at Big Bayou Canot anchorage at mm 16.6,
considered to be one of the best on the BWTW. Again we rafted with Blue Grass. Everyone was ready for a
break. We sat on our boats and chatted with the last of the sun. Owls could be
heard in the woods but they sounded more like a strange laugh. (Maybe it was the locals teasing us.) Still no gators
but that’s okay with me! Stephanie, Margie and I thought a group dinner would
be fun and the guys were all in. They got short changed on last night’s light
fare. Headquarters brought their dinghy over to Blue Grass. It was another evening filled of tales and laughter.
Tomorrow the Irish Attitude
will finish the western river trek. A portion of the loop I was apprehensive
about and glad to have conquered. Mike said he has had enough of rivers for a
while. We are looking forward warm temperatures and the ICW!
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| First palm sighting |
Pelicans
