Following Our Bread Crumbs

Saturday, November 3- Wednesday, November 7, 2012

On our return trip to Grand Harbor from Chattanooga we 'followed our bread crumbs', or retraced our steps. We made better time since there were no weather worries or rendezvous to attend and the current was with us for a change!  Irish Attitude and Karma left Chattanooga early on the 3^rd before the river closed for the sculling races. Again we stayed at Goose Pond and Ditto Landing. Karma wanted to visit the Air and Space Museum in Huntsville. Mike and I headed for Grand Harbor to retrieve our mail and parts being shipped there. One more night and Florence and we would be there. We pulled into Florence just before dusk (which is happening earlier since the time change!).  A nice couple from Canada caught our lines and offered to share the courtesy car. We were exhausted and had dinner aboard the boat. Fresh air can wear you out!

Leaving Chattanooga's 'gorge'

Morning Haze

Bluffs

Once in Grand Harbor we caught up to the Canadians from the night before. Mundy and Michael had purchased Done Dreaming in Scottboro (Goose Pond) and were beginning their trip from there. They are not making a full loop but heading to the Bahamas and back up to Toronto. They will make trips up and down the east coast to the Bahamas yearly, skipping the river portions of the trip we had done so far.

 

(For our non-boating friends...)This is our road map, our Garmin GPS. It shows this section of river w/ a line down the middle. That is our sailing line or course. The red and green markers are the channel bouys. Outside of the channel, the curved lines mark water 9 ft. or less. If we zoom in, the water depth will be displayed, making it helpful when anchoring. The circle is a mile marker. "I" is information, in this  case a submerged pipeline. Below that are overhead cables from the power plant. Our 'boat' is pictured below the cables. On the righthand side of the GPS is information can choose to display. We also use charts and guide books to give us more detail and background as we travel.

 

In Grafton our mail was waiting but UPS could not find the marina, even though they deliver here daily! We used the courtesy car to pick it up ourselves in Booneville, MS. These raw water pumps were a revised version, probably to combat the same issue we were having, an annoying drip. Mike planned to install them at the next marina stop since we were anxious to move on to 'new' territory.