Memorial Weekend

We sure had a lot of fun this weekend.  The weather was hot, so we did a lot of soaking in the Hiwassee River.  At one point on Saturday we had seven of us rafted together by the time "Throttle Back" and "Triple Bogey" joined us, although "LivEZ" departed from in between us and "Doug Out" before night fall.
Sunday morning "Triple Bogey" needed my battery charger to get going.
This morning we sadly had to depart so lines were thrown over our bow from "Conched Out Too" to "Doug Out" so they could tighten up the hole I left in the raft up.  After some sad see-you-laters it took us a little over four hours of travel time to get back to Gold Point Marina. It sure was busy on the lake.
I finally got the outside of the boat cleaned up pretty well this afternoon and then did a little fishing just for entertainment.  The big catfish got away before being landed in the net.

Chickamauga

We departed downtown Chattanooga just after seven o'clock this morning.  We remembered last night that it would be light a little later now that we were in the Eastern Time Zone again.  At 8:20 there were three of us in Chickamauga Lock for a 48 foot lift that took about 20 minutes.  Another 20 minutes later and we were docked at Chickamauga Marina to fuel up and pump out.  I filled up with water while there also.  An hour later we were headed 20 minutes across the lake to Gold Point Marina.  I pulled into slip BL09 while "Conched Out Too" pulled on the outside of B Dock.
After some hellos I got the Caprice started and pulled over to the top of the ramp to pick everyone up with their shopping bags and core batteries.
It wasn't until 2:00 p.m. that I was all set after loading groceries and eating lunch to head to the Hiwassee River.  "Conched Out Too" departed shortly thereafter waiting for their water tanks to get filled.
After 29.2 miles of up river travel, we found "Doug Out" and "LivEZ" anchored and rafted together as planned.  The rest of us questioned as to the plan of being anchored so close to shore.  Some wind kicked up and they were not swung the way that was intended.  The idea was for me to set my anchor out away from them then raft to them so that my anchor would pull us around in a better direction. That was semi-completed after the second attempt, but the wind direction was not going to change which way we were going to swing.  The wind got worse as "Conched Out Too" attempted to raft to me in the same manner.  It took a few attempts, one we had to abort because once we did get a line from them, my stern line came unattached from "LivEZ" and there was no way I could swing us both into position.  The successful landing did not include "Conched Out Too" getting their anchor down. Bill Livezey and Doug ended up taking it out via Bill's dinghy "Little EZ".  All of that was finally accomplished at about 7:00 p.m.
"Makin Memories" came to join the raft up a short time later.  By then the water was almost as flat as glass.  Go figure.

Fast Hour

Our usual six o'clock departure time stayed true for this morning.  All we had to do was untie from "Conched Out Too" though.  No anchor lifting.
I pretty much let Bill and Patty enjoy the amazing scenery for this part of the Tennessee River known as the Grand Canyon of the Tennessee.  I figured the guide book pointed out most points of interest.  I did see one bald eagle land in a tree, but could not find it after that.
At 9:35 Central Daylight Time we entered into the Eastern Time Zone.  Man that hour flew by.
The Guntersville Yacht Club boats once again overtook us near Moccasin Bend.  I went ahead and called Erwin Riverfront to see if we could get on the floating Olgiatti Dock instead of the hard Aquarium Dock.  I let Bill and Patty get tied on the outside of the dock first so they could help grab my lines as I tied to the inside for my favored port side tie.  By around 12:30 p.m. we were settled in.
I rode Ray's bicycle to our friend Doug's who so graciously offered the use of his truck.  We decided to do some needed provisioning this afternoon.  It took all afternoon to get house batteries, oil, filters, a UPS package and liquor for "Conched Out Too".  We were way late for our 5:30 p.m. dinner date by time we got unloaded and Doug's truck back.
Once we were in Chattanooga, Bill realized why the Coca-Cola stage was not across from Hales Bar as the guide book said.  It's already down here for the Riverbend Festival.

Long Trip

Another six o’clock departure this morning from Honeycomb Creek.  It sure was a peaceful place to rest for the night.  Not a lot of excitement traveling today, which is good.  I tried pointing out the points of interest I knew about to Bill and Patty for on their way back down.  It seems Guntersville Lake has plenty to explore, we’ve just never taken the time.  One bald eagle was spotted today.

When we went under the Jackson railroad bridge between Stevenson and South Pittsburg a train went overhead.  About that same time five boats from the Guntersville Yacht Club overtook us.  They are all headed up to Chattanooga for tomorrow night I know because when we called for reservations ourselves, there was no floating dock space available.

Just after three o’clock we were in the state of Tennessee.  The other five boats got out of Nickajack Lock just in time for it to be turned around for us.  We were in there at 4:30 p.m. and out of there in 15 minutes for a 39 foot lift.

Shortly thereafter we were pulling into Little Cedar Mountain anchorage where six of the Guntersville boats were already rafted up.  I continued on back into the anchorage where we normally anchor to show Bill.  He went ahead and got secure at anchor.  I rafted to his port side.  Yes, we finally rafted.  Reason being, at lunch time I intended to heat up some leftovers, but after three attempts, the generator would not start.  I gave up as I could not hear what the generator was doing while underway.  So I wanted Bill to help me with why it wouldn’t start.  As soon as we were settled in around 5:30 p.m. I decided to try the generator.  It started right up.  I didn’t need it right then, so I turned it right back off.  Now however, I need to go make dinner, so I am going to attempt it again.

Batty

A short delay this morning and we were off the dock at Decatur by 6:15 a.m.  A little more than an hour later and we were transiting under the I-65 bridge.  Our second north bound time under it.
A very quiet and uneventful day on the water.  Just the way we like it.  The scenery getting more mountainous as we traveled.
By 1:00 p.m. we were in Guntersville Lock for a 39 foot lift that took only about 15 minutes.  An hour later we picked our spot in Honeycomb Creek.  We anchored on the east side to get the little bit of wind protection, but also to get a more broad view.  It was a 49 mile travel day.

Peek a boo (third from left)

After a while Bill and Patty came to pick us up in their dinghy.  We rode to every forked end of Honeycomb Creek.  We stopped on the way back under one of the low bridges to capture a couple of pictures of the barn swallow nests.  These are on most bridges.  We went around Goat Island which we are anchored behind, and tried to find a General Andrew Jackson name carving in the stone up river without success.
We enjoyed left-overs from Stan and Shirley the other night aboard "Conched Out Too" for dinner before heading down river via their dinghy to watch the tens of thousands of endangered gray bats emerge from their cave at dusk.

Mellow

It was a glorious cruise today.  The water was close to glass all morning.  We were out of Joe Wheeler State Park around eight o'clock and in Ingall's Harbor at Decatur before noon.  Pretty non-eventful. Just the way we like it. A whole 26 miles.
We got all four bicycles down and rode to town for a late lunch.  We first stopped at the post office.  I dropped off some mail, but Bill didn't bother to wait in line to send his.  A lot of restaurants were closed on Monday so we opted for Moe's Original BBQ even though we had BBQ last night on the dock.
After lunch we rode our bicycles through the Old Decatur neighborhood looking at the nicely maintained late 1800's to early 1900's homes.  We read a couple of the historical plaques to get our culture, then went back to Moe's for happy hour.
Carlton and Becky from "Seamoore" came over to the boats around five o'clock for some cocktails before showing us their home outside of town.  Unfortunately Shirley and Stan from "Joint Venture" had a long day and did not make it to join us at Mellow Mushroom for dinner.  We thank them all for their gracious hospitality the past two nights.

Joe Wheeler

We got out of Little Bear Creek at about eight o'clock this morning.  The temperature was about 57 degrees, but the sun was shining with little clouds.  By 9:30 a.m. we were in Wilson Lock for a 93 foot lift.  The lock master was very nice and informative coming out to talk to us as the lockage was just about done.  He started out by saying "I've got to tell you something."  I said "Uh-oh!"  He said "No, it's a good thing."  He said in all his 20 years at that lock no one had ever asked him which bollards were the least turbulent for locking up.  He said he used to tell boaters all the time not to take the center bollard for that reason, but they would inevitably never listen and brag that they had been locking for 12 years.  I explained that we had been on the wrong bollard before and learned.  As he explained the valves that open up to fill that chamber could potentially fill it in 12 seconds, but there is a control that he cannot override to keep it slower.  With that knowledge and a couple anchorages to pass on to Bill and Patty for Wilson Lake, we were on our way.

This cute little bird took a ride up on the bollard in front of us.

We took a detour into the second cove on port side to show Bill and Patty a small anchorage that Ray and I call The Cow Pasture, where we have ridden out a couple storms over the years.  They said they liked it and would keep it in mind for future reference.
Then it was on through the 15 miles of Wilson Lake and into Wheeler Lock at 12:15 p.m.  We timed both locks just right.  There was a tow going into Wilson when we came out and one coming out of Wheeler when we went in.  Wheeler was a 48 foot lift that took about 20 minutes.
A couple more coves to port and we were in First Creek, where we had originally intended to anchor, but just prior to our arrival, Shirley on "Joint Venture" called and said we could tie on the outside of the last set of covered slips.  Stan and Shirley were there to grab our lines and we were tied off by 1:15 p.m. right next to their slip.  "Conched Out Too" tied in front of me.
After our 28 mile trip, we enjoyed hanging out on the dock and catching up with old friends and new. The spread they served for dinner was a fabulous bonus.  They plan to meet us again tomorrow in Decatur where they live.

Relaxing

Thursday morning Bill and Patty immediately said they understood why this was my favorite anchorage now that they had a comfortable night here.  I realized we should probably get Bill's lines out of the way in case any of the locals did show up, even though there is barely enough room left for maybe three other small boats, compared to a time when you could probably fit twenty.  I threw his port stern line up on the rock at the tree it was tied to so he could attach it back to the boat in the evening.

Mom and I headed out in "Dear Abbie" to collect more fire wood while they got their dinghy down. After a couple loads we all went on up to the next cove for another load.  After that we all jumped in Bill and Patty's dinghy and went across the river to check out Panther Creek.  It was pretty and typical of most coves on Pickwick Lake.

Three of us attempted to walk to the top of the waterfall, but four wheelers and run off made it practically impossible for these old timers, though we did make it to the peak with a beautiful view of the Tennessee River below.  Dinner on Thursday night was Conecuh Sausage and sauerkraut in the pie iron.  We covered everything with a tarp, especially the firewood we worked so hard to collect before retiring for the night as Friday was supposed to be a rainy day.

It didn't turn out that bad.  By 2:00 p.m. we were back out on the peninsula enjoying the rest of the day.

Another campfire, all of these lit from the original on Thursday.  We had s'mores first as Patty made a

Mexican chicken dinner in the Crock Pot in case it was raining at dinner time.  We gathered everything up from shore.  Bill even went without tying or anchoring the stern on our last night.

It was nice to have a couple relaxing days after traveling so much.  Today was to be a short travel day, so we didn't get going very early.  Bill and I carried the bow anchors back towards their respective boats as the First Mate's reeled them in.  Then he had to get his dinghy put away.  I put mine away Thursday night before the rain.  That gave us a departure shortly after eight o'clock.  Fifteen minutes later we were in Alabama.  We encountered one down bound tow near Eastport without incident.  Two hours after that we were going under Natchez Trace for our second time heading up river.

There was little else to mention about our five hour trip today.  Plenty of bass boats, and river gages show Pickwick just a little low.  I presume they might have dropped the lake a little bit in anticipation of the originally predicted one to two inches of rain for Friday.

After 32 miles of travel, I pulled into Little Bear Creek, a place we had only anchored for the first time on the way south.  I pointed out to Bill that we anchored in front of the first house in the cove, but that I would continue in as far as I felt comfortable in enough water.  I didn't get much past that first house and it went from nine feet to nothing quick.  I hit something that killed the starboard engine.  I cranked it up again and tried to back out.  I was on the bottom, stirring up mud, but barely making progress until I hit presumably the same thing and could not move.  I turned around as tight as I could and got out.  No noticeable damage.  I am now anchored in front of the first house and Bill is closer to the river.

They took us in their dinghy and we rode all the way up to the end of the creek going under the railroad and Lee Highway bridges for our afternoon entertainment.

Waterfall Favorite

This morning the girls loaded up in one of the courtesy vans from Aqua Yacht Harbor and went to the Pickwick Supermarket.  It's a convenience store on steroids.  We figured it would have everything we needed without having to drive so far.  I think the four of us overwhelmed the store having so many customers at one time.  That chore was done among others and then we were just waiting for Bill's medicine to get delivered via Priority Mail.  To pass the time the six of us played Left, Center, Right, calling the ship store every hour to see if mail had come yet.  Once it finally did, we all walked up there for some exercise.
At 4:00 p.m. there were teary good-byes to Bob and Barbara before they shoved us off.  "Conched Out Too" pumped out first, so I took advantage of going slow and actually noticed some of the houses around there.  I guess I was usually putting lines and fenders away.  It didn't take long for them to catch up.
After a few miles we were turning right onto the Tennessee River.  Two more and I was leading them into Cooper Hollow, home of the Pickwick Waterfall. A whole hour trip. My favorite anchorage. Where I spent my 40th birthday.
The peninsula has washed away even more and was quite small.  I beached "Second Noelle" right away and then spoke to Bill on the VHF.  He wasn't real sure about this.  We talked about going on up to Panther Creek instead with the north winds.  Once Bill felt he might be okay as long as he could tie a line to a tree at the port stern and throw out an anchor at the starboard stern to make sure he didn't swing, I backed off the peninsula and landed a little harder moving over just a little bit more.  Bill also put out a large round fender in case we swung into each other.  I acknowledged his concerns as we had the same concerns at times, but had never moved.
I got "Dear Abbie" down right away after that so Bill and I could carry our anchors out onto the peninsula for security as we always do.  I hooked mine on the fallen tree that has now fallen even more.  No more swinging from it in the swings or hammock.  Our name carving has disappeared too with the rotting.  We also tied a line to a tree from Bill's port stern.  After he go a starboard stern anchor secured, we all gathered enough wood from the peninsula to have a campfire with hobo pie roast beef sandwiches and s'mores for dessert again.

Sad Goodbyes?

Not an early start again, so we were preparing everything for eight o'clock take off.  Drying the windows from the rain that started at about 4:30 a.m.  Engine room check.  What the?  I did exactly what I told myself not to do yesterday when putting a little oil in the port engine.  "Don't forget to put the cap back on when you're done like Ray did that time."  Oil everywhere.  Especially all over the washing machine.  Glad we only traveled for an hour like that yesterday.  Glad I took a shower this morning only to get up to my elbows in motor oil.
A little later start than planned with all of that mess, but only by about ten minutes. Just as we were approaching the Divide Cut we encountered a tow but with only one barge.  A few miles later we easily got around a small dredge.  After that, nothing exciting except birds; eagles and barn swallows being the most entertaining.
By 1:30 p.m. we were docked at the transient dock at Aqua Yacht Harbor after pumping out first.  I wasn't about to have a repeat of Demopolis, so I got it done right away.  Chores have made the afternoon fly by.  We all plan on jumping in the courtesy car to Freddy T's for dinner soon. Unfortunately it will soon be time to say goodbye to "The Bar-B", assuming they will be heading down stream as usual form here.

Finally saw a deer

Got to have a lazy day!  Around ten or eleven o’clock this morning we piled in Bill and Patty’s dinghy and took a slow ride over to the Bay Springs Resource and Visitors Center.  The slow ride was due to the cool temperatures as even I had a sweater on.  The cloudy/overcast skies were not helping.  I was hoping I would have cell phone service over there, but not much.

Upon our return we stopped at “Conched Out Too” for a couple cans of mushrooms.  I said I would make dinner if they had mushrooms.  Back aboard “The Second Noelle” I got beef stroganoff prepared and placed in the Crock Pot.  Mom picked up some Tenn-Tom trivia information at the Visitors Center.  That is going to be our entertainment for Mr. Univac tonight with dinner.

Once that was done we lifted anchor out of Cotton Springs at 1:00 p.m.  Since Bill had service last night, he researched which other coves on Bay Springs Lake had Verizon Service via Active Captain.  I have always thought that was kind of a dumb rating item for them to have.  Now I completely understand!  We went a whole six miles to McDougal Branch in an hour’s time.  I have enough service to make phone calls but not computer internet access.  Better than before!

Top of the world

It was a long, much needed, peaceful night’s sleep thank goodness.  Even though I was up a little after six o’clock this morning, we didn’t pick up anchor until just after eight.  Mom and I enjoyed scrambled eggs with ham, onions, green peppers and cheese first.

A little more than an hour later we were in Rankin Lock and at 10:45 we were in Montgomery lock each with a 30 foot lift and taking 15 minutes per lock.  At 12:30 it was Whitten Lock after a short delay waiting for a tow to finish locking up and then a pontoon boat locked down.  That pontoon boat sure looked small in a lock with an 84 foot lift.  Even though this one is about three times the lift of the others on the Tombigbee, it still takes about the same amount of time.  They sure do pump the water.

Once we exited our last lock before the Tennessee River, we finally discovered where the dock is for the Bay Springs Resource and Visitor Center.  Been looking for it all these years on the wrong side of the cove.  It is actually on the river side.  We took a ride through the cove wondering if cell phone service would be any better than where we usually anchor.  We found no better cell service and the water was too deep and narrow for the amount of anchor scope we would have to put out.  Therefore we went with our old reliable anchorage at Cotton Springs around 1:30 p.m.  For some reason the GPS malfunctioned and recorded that we traveled double our 21 miles today.  It seems I remember this happening one time before.

Once we were secure mom and I had a sandwich for lunch, then played a game of Triple Yahtzee.  Soon after Bill and Patty picked us up in their dinghy.  Our intention was to ride around the Bay Springs area and see if there was a better cove with cell phone service.  Not much was to be found with our Verizon phones, but everyone else’s ATT seems to be better.  We stopped by “The Bar-B” on the way back for some evening refreshments.  Now that dinner, dishes and blogging is done, it is time for a shower and book reading in bed.  With no cell service, what else is there to do?

“The Bar-B” plans to continue to Aqua Yacht Harbor tomorrow.  The rest of us are going to check out the visitors’ center in the morning.  Some phone calls need to be made, so we’ll try to get that figured out.  We might move north into another cove for that reason and just to get that much closer to Iuka, Mississippi where we will probably spend a few days taking care of things needing to be done, but playing too.  Tuesday night is planned to stay at the marina with “The Bar-B” as storms are predicted.  We’re hoping we can get there before they start.

Sleepless in Columbus

I did not even get three hours of sleep last night, but we wanted to get out of Columbus before the bass tournament started. I had no idea it started as early as we did.  Six o'clock.  Come to find out they had a scheduled lockage at 6:45 a.m. which delayed one up bound tow.  I got underway first as "The Bar-B" and "Conched Out Too" (or should I say Cunched Out Too like the lock master did repeatedly yesterday, no matter how many times Bill said it correctly) still had to put their dinghies up.  It was slightly foggy with the steam rolling off the water being warmer than the cool air this morning.
At 8:50 a.m. we were in Aberdeen Lock for a 27 foot lift, 11:10 brought us into Amory Lock for a 30 foot lift, 12:15 we entered Wilkins Lock for a 25 foot lift, and the same amount of lift in Fulton Lock at 2:45, all taking 15 minutes each.  In the first lock there wasn't a breath of wind, but that all changed for the other three.  We have been locking starboard side, but the winds dictated port side thereafter.
There were three down bound tows we encountered today and never did catch the up bound so there were no incidents or delays for us.
"The Bar-B" traveled on another mile and a half or so to Midway Marina.  We anchored near Cummings Creek along with "Conched Out Too".  The winds gave us a little trouble, but I swear they died off once the hook was set.  It was a nine and a half hour travel day to go 53 miles.
"The Bar-B" offered to come pick us up with the marina courtesy car to take us to the new Mexican Restaurant in Fulton, Mississippi.  We both declined.  I already had ribs in the crock pot, and they were delicious.  It is going to be an early night for this girl.

Friction Wash

We were in no hurry this morning knowing it was going to be an extremely short travel day.  "The Bar-B" left around eight o'clock, going back out the way we came into the anchorage.  Twenty minutes later "Conched Out Too" and "Second Noelle" pulled up anchor with intentions of continuing on around and exiting the northern end.  We didn't get far when a neighbor hollered to us that we could not get out that way because the water was too shallow.  We're pretty sure it was Art, the gentleman that gave us a lift in his golf cart yesterday.  I forgot to mention that he said he lived on his boat in Miami for ten years.  Therefore we trusted his boating experience and turned around.
At 9:45 a.m. we were in Stennis Lock for a 27 foot lift that took about 15 minutes.  The lockmaster informed us that there would be a bass tournament on the upper pool tomorrow.
By 11:00 a.m. we had our anchors back down near the Dewayne Hayes Recreation Area with a whole 14 miles traveled.  After lunch we all dinghied to the boat ramp.  I wanted to wash the mud out from last night.  Bob and Barbara walked up to get ice.  Upon returning the ice to coolers mom and I rode with Bill and Patty in their dinghy while Bob and Barbara took theirs, but we tied together and took a trip around the island here.
Next mom and I went up to the campground laundry to do a load each.  In the mean time we gathered firewood with Bill.  The evening was spent making a campfire in the charcoal grill again.  When we went up to get ice we inquired about using a fire pit at one of the campsites, but were told we would have to pay for a campsite to do that.  This time we made pizza pies with garlic bread.  They were pretty crunchy and yummy.  A few s'mores were had before ending the evening.
With the bass tournament tomorrow, we are assuming we will be up early anyway to continue to our next destination.

Always an adventure

It was a mostly peaceful anchorage last night.  Other than at about 1:30 a.m. there was a loud noise. In this particular spot the trains sound about the same as a tow.  Mom took the screen out of the port hole hatch, stood on the bed and popped her head out to make sure a tow was not coming.  It sounded like the train must have hooked up to the railroad cars at that same industrial building the tow hooked up to the empty barge last evening.
We knew it was going to be a short day so we didn't get in any hurry this morning.  I made western scrambled eggs with some of the left over pizza ingredients from last night.  After the engine room check and raising the dinghy, we were underway at eight o'clock.  From about 8:30 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. we were skirting back and forth over the Alabama and Mississippi state lines until finally staying in Mississippi.  By noon we were dropping anchor in the original river that runs along side Columbus, Mississippi.  The plan was to dinghy to shore and explore the town as we have never done that before except one time a few years ago when we had run out of beer and stopped here to get some.  It was nice and convenient with the floating dock.
This winter that floating dock got a lot of large debris lodged up against it and washed it up on shore. Bob thought it would be best if the guys unloaded the ladies onto the boat ramp while they tied the dinghies to the "floating dock".  I ended up taking my dinghy with mom, Bill and Patty aboard as it would be more indestructible.  It worked out fairly well unloading, although I dropped Bill off with the other ladies.  About the time we were getting everything situated as best we could under the circumstances, Art pulled up in a golf cart to inquire as to what we were trying to do.  He was nice enough to shuttle us into town in two loads.
Our first stop was Zachary's where we had a couple beers.  We decided to find what else there was in Columbus.  We were on the opposite side of the street and didn't notice until on our way back that people were sitting in front of the old theater drinking beer.  Come to find out some young man bought it back in 2010 and turned it into a bar/night club/pool hall.  The bartender was as friendly as she could be and even showed us the actual theater that they do open on Friday and Saturday nights. It was very interesting and nice to see such a historical building not just sit empty.
We had been watching the radar and decided we better get closer to the boats.  We made our way to Harveys for a good dinner.  About the time our food arrived it was pouring rain.  We just hoped it wasn't blowing too much.

Here is the boat ramp when it was dry.

Here is the "floating" dock that should be in the water.

When after dinner cocktails were finished along with the rain we headed back towards the dinghies.  I was hoping mine was still afloat. Thankfully yes, but getting back down the cockeyed "floating" dock was treacherous now that it and our shoes were slippery.  Bob, Barbara, Bill and I slid on our butts to get down there safely.  After some bailing we headed to the boat ramp to pick up mom and Patty.  The rain made it a muddy mess. Bob and Bill walked up to help the ladies down, but Patty ended up falling in the mud anyway. Somehow we did all manage to make it safely back to our boats, however muddy.
We had originally planned to stay here for two nights to explore the town, but this adventure has made us decide that Columbus obviously is not concerned with boaters accessing and spending their money in town.  We did our share.  As Art pointed out, it sure would have been easier and cheaper for the city to have just removed the logs/debris when it was against the dock as to the expense it will now be to fix it.

Learning

It was a very peaceful nights sleep in our newly discovered Cooks Bend Cut Off anchorage.  Upon exiting at six o'clock this morning a beaver crossed in front of us.  I ended up exiting the same way I entered, on the northern end after reading reviews on Active Captain last night.  I had a little more water staying farther off the green can buoy.  Upon exiting into the river I called Bill to let him know I had more than five feet of water, so he opted to exit that way also.

We were able to see several bald eagles, both adult and juvenile today. These pictures are of the same one, just different angles.  I learned today that it must be the time of year for the juveniles to learn how to fly and survive.
This sighting was as we slowed down for our arrival to Bevill Lock.  The tow "Crimson White" was coming down in the lock.  We timed it pretty well as we only waited about 20 minutes for our turn.
After the lock "The Bar-B" decided to go on ahead and anchor near Columbus, Mississippi in hopes of getting the Cummins dealer near there to come see what the error message means on his engine.
"Conched Out Too" followed us into the anchorage near the Pickensville Recreation Area. We came all the way around it to anchor where we usually do even though it is closer to the highway, but they said the noise wouldn't bother them. It was nice to have a short five and a half hour travel day.  That left us plenty of time to go tour the Montgomery snag boat and Tom Bevill Visitors Center after lunch.  We learned a lot but not exactly how they got the snag boat up on land.  More research needs to be done on that.
Next was a dinghy tour of Pirates Marina Cove. Bill and Patty easily decided that won't be a necessary stop on the way back down.  We went around the Pickens Ferry Island and along the shoreline checking out the homes and industrial area commenting on how we hoped a tow wasn't going to come and pick up that empty barge tonight.

See the industry building in the background.
The tow and barge coming from it.

Upon returning to our anchorage area we decided to go collect wood for campfire grilling tonight. That didn't take long as the stack of wood Ray and I left in the fall was still there.  We gathered a little bit more, but felt we had plenty.  We went back to our respective boats to prepare and soak up some air conditioning for a while.  About the time I got all the blinds closed, Patty text to comment on that boat that went by.  I had no idea what she was talking about.  I felt a wake, but just assumed it was a bass boat.  No, it was a tow that went between our boats over to get that empty barge.  We went up to the helm to watch it come back out.

Notice how small a 44' DeFever looks next to it.

It came back between us.  Bill hailed the captain after he got by on how impressive of a great job he did maneuvering around us with little to no wake.  Bill also apologized saying had we known we would not have anchored here.  The captain was nice as he could be, appreciative of the compliment, and said it was no problem that we looked like we were having a lot more fun than he was.  From that we learned maybe we should anchor in a different spot back here out of the pathway for that
industries tows.

Notice the DeFever disappear.

After that excitement we dinghied back to shore to get a campfire going in the grill.  Pizza hobo pies and s'mores were on the menu.  We learned that tortilla shells make better crust for those as the pizza sauce kind of made bread soggy.

Pooped

It was a productive time in Demopolis.  Got boat washed, did laundry, reprovisioned.   For Mother's Day we grilled steaks, had baked potatoes, corn and salad on top of the boaters lounge deck.  Miracle worker Bill fixed Bob's auto pilot just by walking on board. Then I teased him that he broke the pump out at Kingfisher Bay Marina on Monday morning.  I swear that thing is broken every time we are there. Bill ended up having their boat pulled out of the water on Monday afternoon.  The only thing they found was one blade slightly out on the port side.  Bill is going to investigate more on his alignment when he put the transmission back in at Ft. Myers Beach.  Monday evening we had Patty's delicious spaghetti down in the boaters lounge to escape the bugs this time.
With the pump out broken, that meant I had to pull back over to the fuel dock at Demopolis Yacht Basin to do the duty.  When I got over there around 6:00 a.m., there was a large wooden boat named "Lady J" there. Come to find out it was formerly Alan Jackson's boat.  I thought I wouldn't be able to get to the pump out because I did not realize there was a second pump out on the same fuel dock I was at Saturday when we pulled in and the fuel pump wouldn't work.  If I had known that, I would have pumped out while I was waiting for Bill to finish fueling so I could fill up.  Obviously I should have seen it, but in the heat and my exhaustion, I didn't notice.  As we got closer to the fuel dock I realized the may flies had hatched at Demopolis Yacht Basin, but not right next door at Kingfisher Bay Marina.  So I got them stirred up and all over the boat.  So glad I washed it yesterday.
It didn't take long and we were underway heading north, shewing the may flies off because they make such a mess when they pump out, if you know what I mean.  I heard a couple of tows behind us and hoped they would not catch us.  The remainder of travel stayed uneventful.  We were transiting under I-20/I-59 at 11:30 a.m.  Two hours later we were in Heflin Lock which was all ready upon our arrival for a 35 foot lift.
A few miles later I pulled into Sumter Recreation Area, one of my favorites.  The plan was to have hobo pies and s'mores for dinner.  About the time mom got the anchor down "Conched Out Too" was out of water at the entrance.  "Bar-B" drafts even more and was not about to come in.  "Conched Out Too" decide they better not stay either.  If the water dropped even half a foot they would be stuck. They continued north and I followed after we got the anchor back up.  It was a debate of where to go instead.  We picked Cooks Bend Cut Off at Mile 277.  They took the first/southern entrance and all I could hear them talking about was how deep the water was.  I decided to continue on to the second/northern entrance.  The entrance was extremely shallow, then it was deep water at this end too.  "Conched Out Too" found some shallower water all the way at the back of the oxbow so I continued on around and dropped the anchor near them at about 4:00 p.m.  I will be exiting the southern route though.

Hurry up and wait

A few tows went by during the night, but very quiet otherwise.  Until 2:30 a.m.  I heard what I thought was the snubber line squeaking on the rub rail as it does when we are swinging.  I wondered why we were swinging so much if there was no wind.  Then it sounded like something was rubbing up against the port stern.  My first thought was that we had drug anchor and were rubbing up against "Conched Out Too" behind us.  I walked up the steps far enough to see that their anchor light was still far away.  Then I wondered if a fisherman or police were pulled up alongside the boat.  I debated for a second about whether to grab the shotgun or the flashlight.  I don't know why I opted for the flashlight, but as soon as I turned it on to look down at the stern I saw a tree branch float away. I guess it was just scraping up against the boat.  Whew!
We were up early, but with the cool air temperature and warm water temperature, there was fog on the river.  Might as well make breakfast as to stare at the fog.  After breakfast and some book reading, we got to pull up anchor at 7:25 a.m.  "The Bar-B" and "Priorities" went on ahead at a faster speed that way they could get through Demopolis Lock and to the Yacht Basin to fuel up and pump out so as to not be in our way when we arrived later.  The fuel dock is barely large enough for three of our boats.  "Priorities" ended up not stopping at Demopolis as fuel was surprisingly cheaper at Columbus Marina, which is their temporary destination.  During travel however, "The Bar-B"s auto pilot quit working.
"Hattitude" overtook us at one point.  We told them the other two boats were up ahead.  We figured they would catch them.  We passed only one tow all day.  Three miles prior to our arrival at Demopolis Lock I hailed the lock master on the VHF radio.  He informed me that "Hattitude" was going up (they never did catch the other two), and then a tow would be coming down.  Then it would be our turn.  We arrived at 4:00 p.m. and the lock master hailed us to instruct us to hover around the pocket of water near the boat ramp to wait our turn and be out of the way of the exiting tow.  A half our later we were in the lock.
Upon entering the lock I noticed the river gauge showed that the Coffeeville pool was four feet higher than normal.  When we exited 15 minutes later I noticed the upper gauge indicated that Demopolis pool was two feet higher than normal.  I got up some speed with the current decreasing for the whole three miles to Demopolis Yacht Basin.  I pulled into the forward pump and "Conched Out Too" pulled up to the pump behind me.  The pump I was at would not work, so I had to wait for them to finish fueling, pay, then pull back where they were.  They were nice enough to skip pumping out since we were informed that the pump out at Kingfisher Bay (the new marina at Demopolis Yacht Basin) was working.
An hour and a half later I was finally sterning into slip B3 with everyone watching and waiting to grab lines.  All went perfectly well except Bob's yelling.  I had to inform him of the rule against that. The reason being for exactly what happened.  Nothing.  No reason to yell.
I was exhausted after these three long travel days.  It will be nice to sit still for a couple of days, although there are plenty of chores to get done.  Bill is concerned about a vibration on port side and Bob's auto pilot might negate us to stay through Monday for them to get repairs.

Turtles on a log

It was a peaceful night’s sleep again even with the folks that decided to come to the park at 3:00 a.m. and blast some music for a short while.  It was too cool to want to get out of bed though.  Barely 50 degrees this morning.  The anchor was plenty muddy, so we didn’t get rolling out of Old Lock 1 until about six o’clock.  Speed was a little better than yesterday though, so we were to Coffeeville Lock before nine.  “Priorities” had gone ahead, but it didn’t do any good.  There was maintenance being done on the lock and they didn’t get to get though until we did.  The water below the dam was 15 feet higher than normal, so our lift was only about 18 feet in the lock instead of the usual 33.  We were out of there around 9:30 a.m.

Only two down bound tows to pass today.  It took about a half hour less than yesterday to go the same distance, but we also had the lockage.  “Priorities” was way ahead after exiting the lock, but they had never anchored here at Pearson’s Shoal before.  When “Bar-B” arrived, Bob got up in our usual spot despite the red buoys missing.  “Priorities” moved on up behind Bob, we anchored behind but closer to shore than “Priorities”, with “Conched Out Too” behind us.

Everyone stayed aboard their boats since we are just off the channel at anchor in a little current.  We had some fun babbling on the VHF back and forth, watched the sun set, blew the conch shells, and witness the first tow to go by us before we all ducked inside to avoid the bugs.  We’ll see how many more tows disturb us overnight.  Tomorrow will be another early start with Demopolis our planned destination.

Cinco de Mayo

Everyone commented on what a peaceful night’s sleep it was on David Lake last night.  I did hear a tow or two go by, but no wake to go with it.  Plus it was nice, cool sleeping weather.  I have been getting up early to take care of all of the Captains chores.  I was still ready to go earlier than planned so I let Bill know, and we lifted anchor before 6:00 a.m.  There was a lot more debris in the water than yesterday, although most of it small.  Thankfully that diminished significantly once we were above the Alabama River.  It was slow going although it did get slightly better as the day progressed.  The current is strong, but the water level did drop about three feet during the day according to the Jackson Railroad Bridge when I hailed him to find out the vertical clearance.

Today we passed a total of four tows heading down river, most of them the usual suspects.  The last one informed us that the river is about 10-12 feet above normal.  There was one tow behind us, but never did catch up by the time we pulled into Old Lock 1 to anchor after 12 and a half hours of travel to go 62 miles.  We are anchored in the shallow lake that is normally two to three feet deep.  Tonight we are in 14 feet of water.  “Conched Out Too” and “The Bar-B” followed in right away after finally catching me around Jackson.  Then “Priorities” pulled in after going about 30 more miles today than we did to catch up.

Bill and Patty came over via dinghy to pick me up.  I couldn’t get the plug for the dinghy to work properly to get ours down.  I showed them around on shore a little bit.  Hopefully they will get to explore more in the fall on the way down.  There were a few mosquitos this evening, but nothing like last fall.  Maybe they’ll have better luck.  We each had a few May Flies on our boats this morning.  We’re hoping that’s not a sign of things to come.

After that we all (except “Priorities”) dinghied over to “The Bar-B” for a delicious Cinco de Mayo dinner.  A smorgasbord of make-your-own nachos with contributions from us all.

Story Time

We spent two days docked in Mobile.  On Monday mom was going to come so Ray could go back to Murphy.  She was driving his truck when it broke down about half way.  Thankfully she had AAA and got towed to a garage in Auburn.  Not knowing what would happen, Ray got in a rental car and drove to the shop in Auburn.  Mom dropped him off via the rental car at a hotel 3.5 miles away as the shop was now closed and the truck was not fixed yet.  Mom continued toward Mobile, but gave up about a hundred miles away.  I couldn't blame her.  It had been a long day for all of us.
Tuesday morning Ray walked to the shop.  They had the truck fixed by 11:00 a.m. and he headed on home successfully.  Mom took her time and arrived in Mobile around lunch time.  We took the rental car to Mellow Mushroom, then returned it.
It was a busy night in the port of Mobile last night.  It seemed traffic went by all night.  Those that looked at the clock said it died down around 1:30 a.m.  Despite all that we were up early and I was the first to pull away from the dock at 6:15 a.m. with assistance from Bob and Bill. I think "The Bar-B" was next, then the Hatteras trawler that was docked behind us, "Hattitude", and "Conched Out Too" got off on their own.  We all pretty much caught up to each other at the 14 Mile Railroad Bridge where we had to wait for a fuel truck to get off the track for an opening.
"Hattitude" went on after that which helped in hearing the tows coming down the river.  "The Bar-B" was preparing me with the names via his AIS.  We passed a total of five today.  The last one was in a tight curve where we all had to hold back and wait for it to slide around.  It was a great experience for Bill to see why they use that term.  Those tows had the current and the wind pushing them today.  So you know what that means.  It was the opposite for us.
We interrupt this blog to bring you story time.  There was an additional used sailboat at Mobile while we were there.  Come to find out they just purchased it in Pensacola, Florida and are taking it to Knoxville.  They had absolutely no charts.  The Coast Guard spent four hours on that boat come to find out because the new owner didn't know anything about what was required.  He ended up having to take a taxi to get an additional fire extinguisher.  Roger on "Hattitude" was nice enough to give him some charts (and let me borrow a round fender).  So today Bob tells us that last night around ten o'clock he notices that the sailboat (which is behind "The Bar-B") is perpendicular to the river.  Bob goes out and sees that his two forward lines have come undone.  He is now tied to the dock by only one stern line.  Thank goodness Bob noticed.  He would have been out floating down the river in all that traffic, or would have run into us.  Another thankful note is that he'll never be able to catch up to us.  What a danger.  Back to the regularly scheduled blog.
After all the tows the last of the excitement was spotting a large alligator on the right descending bank.  We all got to see it.  We said it was so big it was not intimidated by anything.  Not even the fishing boat that went flying by close to it.
"The Bar-B" pulled off at the Tensas River about two miles before "Conched Out Too" pulled into David Lake with us.  We dropped anchor around 3:00 p.m., making it almost a nine hour day to go 42.6 miles.  Bill & Patty came over for a short visit before mom and I had leftover pizza and chuck roast for dinner.
Tomorrow will most likely be a long day, so we're looking forward to a peaceful night's sleep to begin real soon.

Rainy days are here again

It was a fun weekend in Gulf Shores, Alabama.  Saturday morning Ray and I dinghied to Homeport Marina to get dinghy gas and ice.  That's when I noticed "Lolita" was on the hard at Saunders.  If I had noticed that upon our arrival, I would have given someone and ear full.  When I mentioned it to Bill, he said he thought the same thing when he noticed them upon pulling in on Friday but did not see anyone around.
We both dinghied up to The Wharf Saturday to walk around the car show.  Bill's family met us up there too.  By evening we were all ready to head to Acme Oyster for dinner, including "The Bar-B". After Bob & Barbara got their dinghy down, we realized via radar and other boaters telling us (including friends up in Chattanooga), that there was a pretty good storm coming.  Dejeauvu from last spring.  "The Bar-B" decided they better not go.  We went for it.  About the time we arrived I had the thought that Bill's family was dropping a vehicle off for us to use Sunday for grocery shopping. Wouldn't it be smarter to take it instead, and then we could also pick up "The Bar-B".  So we did.  It ended up we were all back safe and sound in plenty of time and then it just turned out to be a 20-30 minute rain, with a little bit of lighting beforehand.
Sunday morning Patty and I did our last Publix trip for a while.  In the afternoon we walked the yard (should have left "Lolita" a note) and we dinghied around a little bit in Bill and Patty's dinghy.  The chuck roast that was on sale at Publix was enjoyed by the four of us for dinner.
This morning we did not leave until about 7:45 as we were all stopping at Homeport Marina.  All of us to pump out.  Ray and I to put a little diesel in also.  Running harder than usual, we weren't sure if we could make it all the way to Demopolis so we splashed 150 gallons in just to make sure.  We were there just before eight and gone 15 minutes later.
It was all pretty uneventful until we arrived at the free docks at the Convention Center in downtown Mobile around 2:00 p.m.  That's about the time it started raining.  That's also the time the Coast Guard decided to board our boat.  We're barely tied up, Ray is helping "The Bar-B" and "Conched Out Too" get tied as these docks are really not made for recreational boats, I'm trying to get enclosures shut, and these two guys want me to show them everything for a safety check.  All was good and they finally left when it started lightening.
It rained on and off all afternoon and evening, but we still managed to walk into town to Loda Bier Garten for dinner without getting too much wetter.