Tuesday, October 31, 2006
Tenn-Tom Waterway – Columbus, MS to Demopolis, AL
October 30-31, 2006: Internet access hasn’t always been available, but we’re happy to be online in Demopolis, AL. We had a lock full of Loopers when we went through Heflin Lock right outside of Columbus. A mini-flotilla of six boats then rolled on down the river until around 2:30 p.m. when we all found anchorages for the evening. Because it’s getting a bit crowded, it’s best to claim a spot fairly early in the afternoon. We rafted up with Happy Destiny, took a dinghy ride, and enjoyed being in a beautiful, protected little nook called Sumter Landing (Mile 270.6)somewhere in South Alabama. That was yesterday (Monday). This morning we were up at the crack of dawn, were thrilled to see a gorgeous sunrise, then continued on down the Tenn-Tom. Somewhere along the way, it has become much more like a river than a ditch. One cool sight has been the tall white cliffs along the side. Don’t know what they are made of, but it’s an interesting sight. I’ve taken lots of pictures, but they require more time than I’ve had to upload. I’m waiting for a rainy day to do that.I did a lot of the driving today, and am feeling pretty comfortable with it. Maybe I’ll get my nerve up to dock eventually. Naaaaah! Now we are at the marina in Demopolis (Mile 216.1), rafted off to Happy Destiny, which is rafted to an old work boat at the end of a dock. Being the graceful person that I am, everyone is concerned that I will break my neck when getting off our boat and crawling over those others. I hope our insurance is good!
Tennessee Tombigbee Waterway – Aberdeen, MS, to Columbus, MS
October 29, 2006: After one more delicious cholesterol-laden breakfast at the marina, we said good-by to the good folks on Rangatira, then four boats headed out for Columbus. It was an easy trip, and we made it to the Columbus Marina at Mile 335 early in the afternoon. Buddy-boating with the Cowhigs has been great.
The marina was chock-to-block crowded. Boats are rafted up just to get everybody in. Bob has been troubleshooting the electronics problem, but no joy yet. We’ve heard that boats are backed up from here to the Gulf, as everyone is waiting for the November 1 insurance deadline before they reach the coast. We are still in the company of various Looper boats and friends, which adds a lot to the trip!
The marina was chock-to-block crowded. Boats are rafted up just to get everybody in. Bob has been troubleshooting the electronics problem, but no joy yet. We’ve heard that boats are backed up from here to the Gulf, as everyone is waiting for the November 1 insurance deadline before they reach the coast. We are still in the company of various Looper boats and friends, which adds a lot to the trip!
Saturday, October 28, 2006
Hospitality Abounds in Aberdeen, MS
October 28, 2006: The skies of
I should also mention that this afternoon we took the marina's courtesy car for a sightseeing ride and a grocery run in the town of Aberdeen. What a picturesque and lovely place. Music was piped for the entire downtown to hear. The shopkeepers were friendly and interesting, happy to have boaters and other tourists in town. Aberdeen is also an antique furniture mecca. I’d love to come back. Tomorrow we plan to be back on the water, with
Tenn-Tom Waterway, Midway Marina to Aberdeen, MS
October 27, 2006: Our original plan was to stay put at Midway Marina, now that we were warm and dry. However, the forecast called for clearing skies and warmer weather, so we swallowed some coffee and cranked up the engines. Because it was still drizzling rain, I even surprised myself for jumping at the chance to move again. Now I get it; the cruising life is addictive. After we had transited two locks with fellow Loopers Happy Destiny and Rangatira (from Tenn-Tom Waterway in NE Mississippi, Grand Mariner to Midway Marinas
October 26, 2006: C-o-l-d and w-e-t! Add some wind to the mix and that pretty well sums up this day. We have slogged through 55.7 miles of waterway and locked through three dams today: Whitten, Montgomery, and Rankin. By 4:30 we were extremely happy to dock at Midway Marina at Mile 394 in Fulton, Mississippi , shuck off our wet clothes, and turn on some heat. I can remember seeing cruising boats from bridges on cold, rainy days like this and thinking, “What are they doing on the water on a day like this?” I’ll have to admit I wondered that a couple of times today too! On the other hand, we’ve made our way further south and proven that we can handle less than perfect weather very well. We were really glad to be buddy boating, especially since the electronic chart plotter quit about an hour before we stopped for the day. Now after a delicious chili dinner on the Cowhigs’ boat, we are ready to hunker down for the evening.Wednesday, October 25, 2006
Departure -- At Last!
Wednesday, October 25, 2006: Departure Day finally arrived! We were up and at ‘em by 8:15 a.m., along with Jane and Paul Cowhig on Happy Destiny. We had been mentally prepared for a 3-hour wait at the crippled Wilson Lock in Florence, AL, but luck was with us. We zoomed right through the old double lock system. . . an auspicious beginning to our adventure. Of course, I was a bit rusty on my locking skills, but we made it anyway. I’ll have to admit that the clunky headsets that Bob insisted on buying came in handy. He was able to coach me in a calm, clear manner so I didn’t panic and bash us into the lock wall while tying the boat off. As we continued down the Tennessee River in the very cool wet weather, we were amazed to see a guy canoeing upriver, skirting various barges.A number of trawlers were also on the river; most were on their Loop trip, simply biding time until insurance companies allowed them to arrive in the Gulf Coast area. We are spending the night at Grand Mariner Marina, at the mouth of the Tenn-Tom waterway (Iuka, MS at Tenn-Tom mile marker 450). We went with the Cowhigs to a really good restaurant – Freddie T’s. Tomorrow is another day! Too bad the forecast is for more rain and cool weather. Thank goodness we added the flybridge enclosure and aft bimini; it has made driving from the flybridge very doable! WooHoo, we're officially on our way.
Preparation and Goodbyes
October 21 – 24: These few days were marked by more preparation and several good-byes. The Jacobs and Kuehlthaus had been out of town all summer, so we really wanted them to see the PDQ before we sailed away. The Kuehlthau’s dog Cloe recently had surgery and they couldn’t leave her, so they invited a group over for dinner and to see us off. They promised to fly down to see the boat as soon as Cloe has recovered. Peggy and Paul brought us back to the boat at Wheeler on Tuesday afternoon. We were mighty happy to see Looper Mike Scheuring(spelling?) walking around the docks only one day after he had emergency heart surgery in Huntsville. What a scare; we’re so happy it turned out OK. We loaded the boat, pumped out, took a short ride on the river, then went to eat at a local Mexican restaurant in Rogersville, AL, and then to bed.
Loopers Tour Huntsville
Friday, October 20, 2006: Bright and early this morning 53 Loopers joined us on a bus tour of Huntsville. With much help from the Huntsville Convention and Visitors Bureau, we had a full itinerary mapped out. But what is it with this weather? Sunny Alabama has turned rainy and cold. But happily the fall foliage is beautiful! The ambitious agenda included the Alabama Space & Rocket Center, the Huntsville Botanical Gardens with lunch catered by Clementine’s, the Huntsville Art Museum, a quick tour of Twickenham, ending with a bar-be-que at Ditto Landing (thanks to Christy Martin). In a nutshell, a day that could have been a washout due to weather, was a huge success!The turning point had to have been the serendipitous offer by one of the Garden docents, Leo Larkin, to provide after-lunch entertainment. She realized that everyone would have frozen solid if we had spent the allotted time walking the Gardens. Leo called her husband Bob, and pretty soon the crowd was enthralled with the unique sound of Bob Larkin, a world-class violinist making beautiful music with Leo, an international award-winning harmonica player. Who would have guessed that the crowd would continue standing and clapping until three encores had been played and countless CDs were purchased. They call themselves the Classical-Country Connection, and let me tell you, they warmed our hearts on a cold, dreary day! This was just a prelude to the beauty of the Gardens, which everyone loved. The rest of the afternoon came off beautifully, and we relished the warm hospitality offered by the Huntsville Visitor Center staff and the folks at Ditto. The day was so successful, in fact, that Bob received a call the next day asking for the name of a realtor. As it turns out, several Loopers want to move to Alabama!
Fall 2006 Great Loop Rendezvous
October 16-19, 2006: What a treat it was to gather with 200-plus other Loopers under the wings of Ron and Eva Stob, who inspired many of us to undertake the Great Loop adventure with their delightful book, Honey, Let’s Get a Boat. Again the Fall Rendezvous was held at Joe Wheeler State Park, near Rogersville, Alabama. We met new cruising friends and quickly became overloaded with vital information from cruising masters such as Claiborne Young (author of cruising guides for the southern coastal region), Fred Meyers (grand master of cruising guides for the Tenn-Tom Waterway and the Tennessee and Cumberland Rivers), and Skipper Bob Reib, (author of numerous respected guides to everything along the Great Loop and the Bahamas.) We were also happy to meet Tom and Patsy Conrad, who have lots of advice and knowledge about the Florida coast, especially getting around the Big Bend of Florida.Since we are actually ready to start our own grand adventure, this time we hung onto every word. Even though the weather was pretty awful (cold and rainy), we had fun. Bob ran kayak races and Vessel Safety Inspections with the help of the Florence Coast Guard Auxiliary and the Huntsville Power Squadron, we visited other boats, and we stayed really busy helping with various events. This was also the first time we were able to test the new back canvas bimini and Stratoglass enclosure on the flybridge. Lynn of Toucan Canvas did an excellent job!
