November 23, 2009

We anchored in Sumter Landing last Sunday night, thinking we’d ease into Demopolis, AL on Monday.  The four boats in the anchorage all locked through the Heflin Lock together, and  by 1;30 we were actually leaving Demopolis, as there were still so many boats backed up from the high water south of us, that the slips were full.  So we anchored in Fuscue Creek, a couple of miles away.  

We tied a stern line to a tree and swung enough on it to wear the line almost through!  That was a shocker!  Some boats left Demopolis in the morning and we headed in, got fuel and a pumpout, and moved to a slip .   Used their courtesy car to do a bit of replenishing,  and smiled at the alligators who guard the restaurant.

Tuesday 15 boats left.  The lock that is immediately downstream has 10 floating bollards, and so can move  10 boats at a time.  We’d decided to stay another day so we could get an earlier start.   The best laid plans.  On Wed. a.m. the fog was so thick that our 7 a.m. departure turned into  8:45!  Our 10 baots moved out as soon as the Demopolis lockmaster, Mike, let us know the visibility was ok.  Mike was a marvel of professsionalism as he organized  everyone and got us in and out (he even asked a tow to wait for us, and the captain agreed) We were locked through and underway by 9:45! 

The group of 10 separated by speed, and after a day of variety on the Tenn-Tom--rock, then clay, then mud, then rock again along the shore, hairpin turns and tows, 4 of us, QUEEN ANN’S REVENGE, GRATEFUL, GRYPHON and YA anchored nose to tail in Bashi Creek.  Just before dusk,  MILLENIUM SEA joined us and rafted to our port side.  Ken and Cheryl are a Canadian couple who began the Loop 2 years ago, returned to Canada, and now have picked up where they left off, in KY.  They’re heading back to Canada via New York--the long way.   

Friday dawned with thick fog and we waited until 8:15 to get underway. There was more activity on the water today.  We sow pleasure craft (go-fast boats) and fishermen--even a few cows along the shore!  At noon we locked through at Coffeeville, AL--our last lock of the loop.  We’re back at sea level now, and by 1:30 we four boats (GRYPHON had to hurry on to keep a schedule) were tied up at an abandoned lock at mile 100--that is how far away Mobile is.  At four in the afternoon we eight folks gathered on YA to raise a toast to the last lock, to sea level and salt water, and to good traveling companions and new friends.

The guide books say not to try to go into old Lock #1 as the water is too shallow.  The Coffeeville Lockmaster had told us that the water is 15” above the normal level, and because of this we were able to tie to the lock wall.  Great for boat visiting, and for walking dogs! (Sorry I don’t have a photo of Porter, GRATEFUL’s Portugese Water Dog.)

Saturday morning was clear and we were again parading along by 7:15 a.m.  We made it an easy day and stopped in Bates Lake where we were anchored by 1:30--just in time to get in out of the rain!  It poured all afternoon and evening.  When the rain stopped at exactly 11 p.m., all was incredibly still.  This was so despite the many small houses along the shore of the lake.

Sunday at 6 a.m. we heard the AIS signal beep on the navigation system, telling us that a tow was passing in the River.  If the tows are moving, there is no fog, so we’re up and at ‘em.  Anchors aweigh,  and we are in the River (no more Waterway--it’s the Mobile River now) at 7:07!  The water is streaming along--almost 3 kn. of current have us going 10 kn, or 11.5 mph!  At 11:05 we passed under the Cochrane Bridge, and into Mobile Bay!

Mobile is a major seaport and harbor with lots of ships, activity, and a free wall to tie up at the Convention Center  Our little parade enjoyed a running commentary from Cdr. Hank on QUEEN ANN’S REVENGE, as we moved through the Harbour, across the Bay and turned into the Dog River.  This is salt water and it spreads as far as the eye can see, but once again, shallow is the operative word.  Staying in the channel with it’s 7 foot depth is important.

We tied up at Turner’s Marina, then untied and moved to a different slip where the electric power matched the boat’s needs.   The Marina has a courtesy car and Hank, Ann, Mark, Carol, Fred and I piled aboard to have dinner at the Mariner’s Harbor Restaurant.

We are having a hard time getting our brains around the fact that we’re actually in Mobile.  For over a thousand miles when someone asked “where are you heading?”  we’ve answered ‘Mobile’.  And here we are!  And here we’ll be for a few days.

So enjoy Thanksgiving, and continue to note all those wonderful blessings.  See you next week!

November 16, 2009

We are South.  Mornings are chilly--typically in the 40’s, but the afternoons are gorgeous!  Sunny, very little breeze and temps in the low to mid 70’s.  No bugs and no humidity.  Does it get better than this???

We left Cuba Landing, TN with my new coffee mug in hand, at 7:35 a.m.  Early for us.  The water was calm--there was a lot of debris afloat, and soon we passed an Army Corps of Engineers Dredge Boat.  After that the water wasn’t nearly so stirred up.  It is important to the tow boats that the channel be kept deep by dredging.  The bottom of the River is in constant motion with weather and traffic, in addition to the current, moving things around.  The rule that says “the deepest water is on the outside of the curve” has certainly proved to be true here.  And if one meets a tow on a curve, guess who gets to decide which side to take?  The pleasure craft (us) ALWAYS asks “How would you like me to pass you, sir?”  Even the ‘small’ tows we’re seeing here--typically no more than will fit in a lock chamber, so that is 3 deep and 3 across--have mimnimal maneuvering ability.  We get out of their way!   By the way, that is an inclusive ‘we’.  I now have driven YA past tow boats all by myself--with Fred not even in the room!  Like anything else one learns, the only way to do it is to do it.  Yikes.   I did surrender the helm when we came around a corner, knowing there was a tow there, and discovered an anchored barge in our path.  As Fred noted, that way neither of us was so nervous!

By 2:00 p.m. we were tied up at the Clifton, TN Marina--which, by the way, is for sale.  It’s a nice little spot-- about 90 yearly boats and space for a lot more transients than were there with us.  Matter of fact, there was one other.  We’re a tad behind the Looper Crush--last week Cynthia  at Clifton said there were 20 baots here nearly every day!  Cynthia makes burgers, but we opted to take the courtesy car to the local truck stop and get a pizza.  Yum.  

Again we were underway bu 7 am.  The Temmessee’s current is trying to push us back to the Ohio River, so we’re only moving along at about 5.5-6.3kn. (that’s  only 6-7 mph) so it’s slow going. Gave us lots of time to enjoy the unusual houses along the way, and by 3 pm,  we reached Pickwick (a tricky lock--the wind blew us all over the place!) where the Tennessee River turns north (the section we are in) and the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway continues south.  We opted not to follow the Tennessee east to Chattanooga and Knoxville, even though that is a wonderful area to cruise.  There is always  next year! So we’re continuing to move south in the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway, which Fred Myers (author of guidebooks for this area) calls “The Waterway that almost never was”.

Connecting the shallow, winding Tombigbee River with the Tennessee would give commercial traffic an option other than the lower Mississippi to move goods to and from the Gulf of Mexico.  The idea was first proposed in the late 1700’s, and was debated and discussed for nearly 150 years before Congress gave the go-ahead in 1946.  Work began in May of 1971.  It would be June of 1985 before the twelve locks and dams were operational and the  ribbon was cut to officially open the Tenn-Tom Waterway. The project involved moving more earth than digging the Panama Canal!  When it was done, the total cost was over 2 billion dollars.  

Both the Black Warrier and the Alabama Rivers flow into the waterway as it moves along the 450 miles from Pickwick to the Gulf Port of Mobile, AL.   Lots to look forward to!

Our first stop was at Aqua Harbor where we celebrated entering a new leg of the journey with a dee-lish shrimp scampi dinner.  The other best thing here was that the exhange library in the Marina Office had two Stuart Woods novels that we’d not read!  Add those to the Sunday NYTimes Crossword that isn’t done yet, and we’re set!

The first 24 miles of the waterway is the 200’ wide, arrow straight Divide Cut.  As we looked at map of the squiggly lines of the Tombigbee running alongside, we were happy for the Cut.

The end of the cut is the widest and deepest spot on the whole project.  150 million cu. yds of dirt were moved out of this 175 foot deep and 1300 foot wide hill-y section, and then the terrain changed as we entered Bay Springs Lake.  Lake equals dam, and after spending the night in our first covered slip at Bay Springs Marina, we headed for Whitten Dam.  

The vertical drop between here and Mobile is over 400 feet.   Whitten Lock is the first major step in that drop.  At  85 feet, this is the 9th highest single lift lock in the U.S.  The rest of the locks will be identical--to each other, not Whitten--and will take us down a mere 30’ at a time.  Three of these locks later, (a total of four for the day) we turned into the Smithville Marina.   Here Jesse, a WWII vet who has a certificate commending his support of the WWII monument finally (he says) built in Washington DC, and his golden retriever hold the fort.  Neither moves too fast, but they are a great pair.  We know we’re in Mississippi now, as we went to Mel’s Diner for  dinner, and heard everyone refer to it as “My-els”.  

Friday, after two locks, we carefully followed the path into the Aberdeen Marina where we were met by my Central High School in Aberdeen, SD classmate Jan and her husband Dan. Jan and Dan moved to Aberdeen MS from Aberdeen WA, making Jan probably the only person on the planet to have lived in three cities named Aberdeen.    [Factoid:  Jan must live in Abdrdeens in ID, OH, MD, NC, and NJ to cover the US; then of course there is Scotland...) 

Our visit was delightful, including a driving tour of Antebellum (pre-Civil War) homes--of which many remain in Aberdeen, and dinner in nearby Columbus MS at Woody’s on the Water--the restaurant at the Columbus Marina.

Two more locks on Saturday brought us to the Pirate’s Cove Marina, where we parked, paid, ate, slept and left.  At 7:05 a.m. we were inside the lock with two other boats.  It was so foggy that one tied up below the lock to wait for some clearing..  The other boat disappeared ahead of us immediately, as we proceeded with great caution.  I stood on the bow where the visibility was slightly better, and with our headphones, Fred and I could ommunicate easily.

The fog burned away before 8 a.m. and we had a lovely run at 8.5 knots--that is nearly 10 mph, folks!  We decided to make it an easy day and by 1 p.m. we’d deployed Knute, our trusty anchor to grab the muddy botttom of a delightful cove in a State Recreational area.   There were fishermen as well as families picnicking on the shore. Around 4 o’clock 3 other boats came in and in the morning we made a parade to the next lock.

The waterway now has connected with the river, and we are about 1/2 way to Mobile.  There are twists and turns, tow boats with barges, and patches of debris in the water.  We crossed into, out of and back into Alabama--the Tombigbee is like a snake!    Monday’s destination is Demopolis, AL, significant for a couple of reasons.  First, it is the latitude marker for ‘south of’ in the hurricane season.  Our insurance company says that season ends Nov. 15--today.  So we can continue on.  Second, this is the last marina before Mobile, 234 miles to the south. Knute will be busy for the next few days.

Two more locks and we’ll be only 100 ft. above sea level, back in salt water and dealing with tides again.  The Great Loop is closing!   

November 9, 2009

Well, hello from Tennessee!  Yes, indeed, we’ve headed south, and are moving along at a pace that works very well with Hurricane Ida stirring things up on the Gulf Coast.

We actually stayed in Green Turtle Bay until Saturday morning.  But this time when the power cord came in, it stayed in, and the lines came off and we were underway!

The Tennessee Valley is a beautiful one.  We’ve missed the peak leaf season, as the rain beat many leaves off the trees, but there still is much color and the sights are interesting and varied.

As the map shows, for the first 75 or so miles south ot the dams--Kentucky Lake and Barcley Lake--the Tennessee and Cumberland run pretty much parallel.  The ‘Land Between the Lakes’ is a national park designated by President Kennedy.  This is a wonderful area for boating (we passed a sailboat race) fishing (boats are everywhere--crappie, catfish and sauger, a cousin to the walleye, are the most prevelant) camping (the shores are virtually littered with RV’s) and just general enjoyment. To quote Quimby’s Cruising Guide, the LBL “offer(s) a variety of cultural, educational and recreatioal opportunities for any lifestyle, age group or vacation budget”.

On Saturday night we stopped at the Paris Landing State Park Marina/Resort. Many of the Marinas along the River (80 on Kentucky Lake alone, according to Quimby’s) offer cabins as well as boaters facilities, and golf courses abound.  Here we noticed the signpost pictured, which was another graphic demonstration of the work of the Tennessee Valley Authority.  This agency was created by an Act of Congress in 1933 for the purpose of developing the water resources of the Tennessee River.  As the Tennessee flows west and southwest (and due north where we are now) from it’s headwaters in Knoxville, TN, it empties into the Ohio River back at Paducah.  The Ohio is running downstream (very fast) to the Mississippi, which is roaring along toward New Orleans.  Thus, the series of dams constructed on the Tennessee (and also the Cumberland, which also feeds into the Ohio just 12 miles further upstream) provide a means to mechanically restrict (or enhance) the amount of water flowing downstream.  Before the water gets too high at New Orleans, the volume, and height can be reduced  (or elevated) anywhere along the system.

That is the super simplified version of what happens, and would probably make any Army Corps of Engineers guy (they monitor the flow rate at the dams) twitch.  For our purposes, what matters is that we’re having to fight very little current right now as the water is above ‘summer pool’ level.  Therefore, very little water is being released to run against us. 

It is interesting that so many buildings, marinas, restaurants, etc. are built to float.  At GTB during the heavy rain, the walkway from the office to the shore went from about a 20 degree slope (away from land) to level as the water elevation increased by more than a foot per day.  In the spring, we’re told, the 20 degree slope goes the other way, and the bottom of the roadway is submerged. 

In any case, it is fascinating.  Add the man made wonders to the geological wonders and the history, and this is a pretty neat trip.

Speaking of history, between Paris Landing and Johnsonvville is the site of one of the biggest Confederate victories of the  Civil War.  To read about it, google Gen. Nathan B. Forrest, the hightest ranking officer to enter an American army as a private.  Apparently we cruised over the remains of 33 Union ships he was responsible for sinking in this stretch of the Tennessee.

Sunday night we tied up at the Cuba Landing Marina.  Small and quiet, the high point was my purchase of a new coffee mug in the ship’s store.

And so it is Monday.   We’re moving toward Mississippi--the state this time.  Fred’s back is co-operating--knock on wood--and he’s taking very good care of it.   So until next week, we’ll sign off, wishing you good health and lots of laughter!

Fred and Linda

November 2, 2009

Greetings from Green Turtle Bay Marina, in the Cumberland River, at Grand Rivers, near Paducah, KY..  Seems I’ve said that before, and I have.......We arrived on Monday, as planned, and then, well....

Here’s how the week  went.  Get up in the morning, unhook the power cord, check out the circumstances of the day--health and weather (and most days both were less than thrilling) chat for a minute or two, re-connect the power cord and relax for the day.

Well, relax is a  relative term, too. Coming thru the Cheatem lock on the Cumberland River on Monday, Fred’s back twisted, or popped, or did something that was painful.  He’s had issues with it for years, and except for minor ‘blips’ it has behaved well for a long time, so we expected a quick return to normal. It was not to be.

Tuesday the rain poured from the wee small hours to late in the day.  Don’t know about your back, but that cold, raw, bone-chilling kind of day does nothing for a back that is strained.   We met and visited with Liz and Steve, the crew of SHINGEBISS (the boat is named for a duck) from MN, but Fred was not anywhere near feeling  good. 

The decision to stay on Wed. was easy.  Cold, raw, and foggy, We have the use of a Courtesy vehicle here, so I went off to the grocery store and pharmacy.  After  dinner we visited for a bit with Dot and Dan from PRINCESS DOT, and then watched Game 1 of the World Series.  We turned the game on at the top of the 8th inning, thereby missing the 7th inning stretch when  Mary Kay Hollenbeck, a family friend of longstanding and soloist for the West Point Army Band had the honor of singing ‘God Bless America’!  Sorry to have missed it.  And the Yankees lost, also a bummer.

Better job next day, though, when we’d had a pretty quiet day (after the morning power cord shuffle) and were happy to see the Yanks come back to win.  Fred's back's improving, bot not 100%.

Friday we were ready to go!  Rest and meds seemed to have put the back back, so we actually moved to the fuel dock, added 100 gal. of diesel, and pumped out the holding tank.  But the weather turned to junk.  The radar verified what we could see on the horizon.  We ‘d just finished re-tying the dock lines when the squall hit.  And lasted well beyond squall length.  It rained and blew and gusted all day.  Could we have been underway in the rain?  Sure.  However, it just didn’t seem like a good idea to head out into a day that was just generally unpleasant.  We’re doing this because it is fun, right?  Slogging in the wind and rain isn’t much fun.

Saturday dawned blue-skied and gorgeous. Dilemma.  We’ve been here 5 days and now can go to the weekly rate and stay the weekend “for free”.   As the back seemed to be improving--in fact, nearly back to normal-- to give it two more days seemed like a good idea.

It most certainly was a good idea.  The improvement reversed itself and by Sunday night Fred was immobile and it was ER time.  Injectable meds did the trick and he got some relief.   

Monday--a day of rest.  See you next week, when we may no longer be held onto by the Green Turtle!