Monday, November 06, 2006
Post-Tenn-Tom Reflections
Now that Bob and I are at home and into the routine of paying bills and sorting through a mountain of paper left by the postman, I'm having "adventure withdrawal." Our conversation and even our dreams are still dominated by the excitement of it all and the delight of cruising with our friends, Jane and Paul Cowhig. We traveled the 450 miles of the unique Tenn-Tom waterway at an average of 10 miles per hour. In doing so, we experienced nature at its finest, the incredible hospitality of strangers, and the joys of "buddy boating." Most important, we proved that we can handle the rest of the Great Loop, even though I still need some gentle "coaching" about knots and docking in strange places. Our sincere thanks go to Fred Meyers and his book the Tenn-Tom Nitty-Gritty Cruise Guide. Without his advice, we would have been lost! And we are always grateful to Ron and Eve Stob who tickled our brains into undertaking this trip in their book, Honey Let's Get a Boat. They continue to inspire us. WooHoo! I can't wait til the next leg of the journey.
Fairhope, AL -- First Leg of the Journey Complete!
November 3, 2005: The folks at the Eastern Shore Marina said the weather was OK to cross the upper part of Mobile Bay in a boat our size, so off we went! Motoring through the Port of Mobile was a trip in itself! What an incredible experience it was to sail through this huge, busy harbor in our little boat, looking up at tremendous working ships, complete with cranes, derricks, barges, and huge crates on both sides. That was one sight I won't forget! Plus, this was a milestone; Mobile is at Mile zero of the 450-mile waterway.Then we found ourselves on Mobile Bay in rough water and confused seas, with 10 miles to go before we reached Fairhope. I'll have to admit that I got a little queazy with Second Wind rocking and rolling and dodging crab pots. It was really windy! The good news was that we made it! It was now time to celebrate a very successful first leg of the journey with seafood dinners and shopping in lovely, lovely Fairhope. Believe it or not, we arrived on the night of the annual Art Walk, so after dinner at Old Bay Steamer, the Cowhigs and Staggs strolled the festive streets for several hours, poking into various shops. This first cruising experience has been a complete success! We are now back home in Huntsville, getting ready for the second leg of the journey. If all goes as planned, we should move into Florida by mid-December.
Thursday, November 02, 2006
Black Warrior Tombigbee Waterway–Anchorage at Okatuppa Creek to Anchorage at Who-Knows-Where 16.6 Miles from Mobile
November 2, 2006: Glad to have Internet access again. We are almost there. If the weather improves, we will make it to Fairhope, AL, our first real destination. There we have a reservation at Eastern Shore Marina. Unfortunately, the weather is calling for small craft warnings, so we may be anchoring out a while. Today we locked through our last lock for a long, long time -- the Coffeeville Lock. We have passed even more barges, which is sometimes a a challenge if we meet in one of the hairpin turns, but it’s really not scary any more – old hat now. The terrain has changed. It’s flatter as we near the coast; and we are supposed to start seeing some tidal effects. Also, we saw a real serious-looking alligator lounging on the banks. This anchorage is again beautiful; a quiet bayou abounding in foliage (and mosquitos) at Mile 16.6. I keep expecting Godzilla to come bounding out of the dense foliage. Tonight dinner was spaghetti on Jane and Paul’s boat. You notice the emphasis on dinner – one of each day’s highlights is to eat supper with boating buddies and compare notes on the day’s travels. I thought I would be really bored by now, but it’s still exciting. We fall into bed early every night exhausted but pleased with ourselves for undertaking this adventure.
Black Warrior Tombigbee Waterway – Demopolis, AL, to Anchorage at Okatuppa Creek
November 1, 2006: This Tenn-Tom Waterway system was primarily designed for commercial traffic, and I’m happy to report that most barge captains and lockmasters are really courteous. This morning, for example, they let five or six boats squeeze into the Demopolis Lock (Mile 213.2) with a downbound barge. That easily saved us a two-hour wait, and they certainly don’t have to consider pleasure craft.
We are no longer on the
