Thursday, April 08, 2010
Home for Easter. Happy Day!
Saturday-Sunday, April 3-4
I"LL ADD PHOTOS LATER!
After a very pleasant evening at Bay Springs Marina, we took a leisurely run to the mouth of the Tenn-Tom Waterway and found ourselves once again on our lovely, lovely Tennessee River. These are our home waters, and they made our spirits soar. After spending the night at Florence Harbor, we felt nostalgic as we passed the Muscle Shoals Sailing Club. The new clubhouse looks wonderful, and we are mighty proud to have been a part of making it happen.
Just as we entered Wheeler Lock, our last lock on this adventure, the cell phone rang. It was Peggy, telling us that we needed to come home and look at the beautiful wild flowers, redbuds, and dogwood trees in Huntsville. Joy of joys! We were almost home. Peggy and Paul offered to pick us up at Joe Wheeler State Park, where we are leaving the boat for a week. We were happy to take them up on their offer. Many pounds of luggage later, we were home in Huntsville in the company of dear friends.
My goodness, we feel blessed this Easter Sunday. Our Keys adventure was a delight. We will be reflecting on the laid-back lifestyle of the Keys, the joys of One Palm Court, our Gold Looper friends, visits with dear friends and family, dinghy rides, and sunsets for years to come. Those coastal birds in Florida will always hold a special place in my heart. We will go back! But it is also wonderful to be home -- nothing like it! New adventures are just around the corner.
I"LL ADD PHOTOS LATER!
After a very pleasant evening at Bay Springs Marina, we took a leisurely run to the mouth of the Tenn-Tom Waterway and found ourselves once again on our lovely, lovely Tennessee River. These are our home waters, and they made our spirits soar. After spending the night at Florence Harbor, we felt nostalgic as we passed the Muscle Shoals Sailing Club. The new clubhouse looks wonderful, and we are mighty proud to have been a part of making it happen.
Just as we entered Wheeler Lock, our last lock on this adventure, the cell phone rang. It was Peggy, telling us that we needed to come home and look at the beautiful wild flowers, redbuds, and dogwood trees in Huntsville. Joy of joys! We were almost home. Peggy and Paul offered to pick us up at Joe Wheeler State Park, where we are leaving the boat for a week. We were happy to take them up on their offer. Many pounds of luggage later, we were home in Huntsville in the company of dear friends.
My goodness, we feel blessed this Easter Sunday. Our Keys adventure was a delight. We will be reflecting on the laid-back lifestyle of the Keys, the joys of One Palm Court, our Gold Looper friends, visits with dear friends and family, dinghy rides, and sunsets for years to come. Those coastal birds in Florida will always hold a special place in my heart. We will go back! But it is also wonderful to be home -- nothing like it! New adventures are just around the corner.
Lotsa Locks! Getting Closer to the Mouth of the Tenn-Tom.
Thursday-Friday, April 1-2, 2010
We haven’t had reliable Internet access in days and days – I’m suffering from withdrawal. That’s why nothing has been posted recently.
I had forgotten the number of locks that occur on this section of the waterway. We’ve seen only a few tows, so we’ve been able to pass right through each lock. After a pleasant evening at the Aberdeen Marina last night, we pushed hard all day today, passing through SIX locks. That’s a lot of hauling fender boards! But we are making great progress. The Waterway dips in and out of Mississippi at this point, and the landscape looks more like the beautiful Tennessee Valley. The Bay Springs area, south of Pickwick Lake, is one of my favorite spots, and I want to come back here soon. The lake is huge, the water is clear, and the land is undeveloped because it is owned by the Corps of Engineers. Lots excellent anchorages beckon us around here, and the folks at the marina are warm and friendly. We hope to be home Sunday or Monday.
We haven’t had reliable Internet access in days and days – I’m suffering from withdrawal. That’s why nothing has been posted recently.
I had forgotten the number of locks that occur on this section of the waterway. We’ve seen only a few tows, so we’ve been able to pass right through each lock. After a pleasant evening at the Aberdeen Marina last night, we pushed hard all day today, passing through SIX locks. That’s a lot of hauling fender boards! But we are making great progress. The Waterway dips in and out of Mississippi at this point, and the landscape looks more like the beautiful Tennessee Valley. The Bay Springs area, south of Pickwick Lake, is one of my favorite spots, and I want to come back here soon. The lake is huge, the water is clear, and the land is undeveloped because it is owned by the Corps of Engineers. Lots excellent anchorages beckon us around here, and the folks at the marina are warm and friendly. We hope to be home Sunday or Monday.
On the Waterway To Demopolis and Aliceville, AL
Tuesday and Wednesday, March 30-31, 2010
Bob and I keep reminding ourselves that traveling alone, mile after mile on the lower Tenn-Tom may be mind-numbing, but it is a small price to pay for our great winter in Florida. We are now putting in long days of slogging along the Waterway so we can get on home as soon as possible. At this point in the journey, spotting a tow pushing a bunch of barges is a welcome distraction. “Awrightcaptainyoucanmeetusontheonewhistle” means “pass us to your right.” This jargon seemed novel when we made our first trip down the Tenn-Tom, but it is old hat now.
The landscape on the Tenn-Tom is still gradually changing. Now we see more hardwoods and much more contour along the banks. The river hasn’t decided where it wants to go, so there are an unbelievable number of hairpin turns and many areas where raw clay banks indicate serious erosion. We marvel at the number of people who have built homes along the edge of the Waterway, now a few feet from destruction.
On Tuesday we were really happy that Jim and Martha could meet us in Demopolis for the night. We enjoyed looking at several ante-bellum mansions on our way to an excellent restaurant downtown. Bob was also able to buy two new engine starting batteries. We were sorry to bid Jim and Martha farewell Wednesday morning, but we all had to keep moving. They brought us some excellent literature about our upcoming summer adventure out west.
Today we passed several fascinating white chalk cliffs, including the well-known Cliffs of Eppes. Spring is clearly here. The weather is sunny and warm, and it is nice to see some redbuds and dogwood trees in bloom. Between the two of us, though, I’m sure we’ve inhaled at least a pound of pollen. Today we made a long, tedious run. We had to transit two locks, with the goal of getting to Pirates Cove Marina in Aliceville by late afternoon. All went smoothly until around 3 p.m. when we arrived at Tom Bevill Lock. Wouldn’t you know . . . we had to wait on two tows to pass through. This meant we locked in the dark, then we had to grope our way to the marina in the pitch black. Fortunately we spotted the appropriate marks, the folks at Pirate’s Cove Marina were expecting us, and the staff helped guide us to the dock. Whew! We were exhausted by the time we made it, but we are now more than half-way up the Tenn-Tom. If the weather continues to be this clear, we could be home in four or five more days!
Bob and I keep reminding ourselves that traveling alone, mile after mile on the lower Tenn-Tom may be mind-numbing, but it is a small price to pay for our great winter in Florida. We are now putting in long days of slogging along the Waterway so we can get on home as soon as possible. At this point in the journey, spotting a tow pushing a bunch of barges is a welcome distraction. “Awrightcaptainyoucanmeetusontheonewhistle” means “pass us to your right.” This jargon seemed novel when we made our first trip down the Tenn-Tom, but it is old hat now.
The landscape on the Tenn-Tom is still gradually changing. Now we see more hardwoods and much more contour along the banks. The river hasn’t decided where it wants to go, so there are an unbelievable number of hairpin turns and many areas where raw clay banks indicate serious erosion. We marvel at the number of people who have built homes along the edge of the Waterway, now a few feet from destruction.
On Tuesday we were really happy that Jim and Martha could meet us in Demopolis for the night. We enjoyed looking at several ante-bellum mansions on our way to an excellent restaurant downtown. Bob was also able to buy two new engine starting batteries. We were sorry to bid Jim and Martha farewell Wednesday morning, but we all had to keep moving. They brought us some excellent literature about our upcoming summer adventure out west.
Today we passed several fascinating white chalk cliffs, including the well-known Cliffs of Eppes. Spring is clearly here. The weather is sunny and warm, and it is nice to see some redbuds and dogwood trees in bloom. Between the two of us, though, I’m sure we’ve inhaled at least a pound of pollen. Today we made a long, tedious run. We had to transit two locks, with the goal of getting to Pirates Cove Marina in Aliceville by late afternoon. All went smoothly until around 3 p.m. when we arrived at Tom Bevill Lock. Wouldn’t you know . . . we had to wait on two tows to pass through. This meant we locked in the dark, then we had to grope our way to the marina in the pitch black. Fortunately we spotted the appropriate marks, the folks at Pirate’s Cove Marina were expecting us, and the staff helped guide us to the dock. Whew! We were exhausted by the time we made it, but we are now more than half-way up the Tenn-Tom. If the weather continues to be this clear, we could be home in four or five more days!
Adventure on Bashi Creek Near Nowhere, Alabama
Monday, March 29
As we slogged 83 miles along the many hairpin turns/horseshoe bends in the Warrior/Tombigbee River part of the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway, I was thinking about what to write in today’s blog. It went something like this, “The wind blew very hard all day, Glad we aren’t on an open bay. River, river, river, river, river, river, river, pass through Coffee Lock, river, river, river, river, get fuel at Bobby’s Fish Camp, river, river, river, river, river, river. Stop for the night at Bashi Creek at 5:30 p.m.” You get the idea that the Tenn Tom at this point is pretty mind-numbing.
That would have been accurate until we did stop for the night. To be fair, the landscape has changed from yesterday. Instead of pancake flat shoreline, we now see some decent hills and a few bluffs. But there was truly very little scenery to brag about. Soooooooo when we arrived at Bashi Creek, located somewhere in Clarke County, Alabama (mile 145.2 on the Tenn Tom), we saw a large tow boat named “Biloxi” pulled up to the bank where we wanted to enter. They were having a problem, and maintenance workers were on the scene. The tug captain encouraged us to slip behind them, which we did. Then they left.
Unfortunately, significant wind was blowing hard right down the mouth of the creek. We had difficulty getting a bow and stern anchor set so that we were parallel to the shoreline. The wind kept blowing Second Wind catawampus. Then it happened. The stern anchor line got caught in the propeller—and it wrapped tight. No cell signal. No one was around--anywhere. Not a good prospect. After some strong profanity, Bob donned his wetsuit and jumped into the muddy creek. My hero! After Herculean effort, he eventually untangled the line from the prop, re-spliced the anchor line, and we were set for the night in this remote spot. Surprise of surprises, “Biloxi” came back. Their problems weren’t fixed after all. We were happy to have company here in The Boonies, even though they were off again by 9:30 p.m. Assuming our prop isn’t damaged too badly, we hope to get to Demopolis by Tuesday afternoon. Jim and Martha are joining us there for the night. It will be great to see them.
P.S. Bob did some limited tests that night, and our prop seemed fine. Now that the boat is running well, we can focus on the sulfur smell that Liz noticed before the anchor incident. Turned out to be a failed starting battery. Fortunately the boat configuration allows us to start both engines off one battery.
As we slogged 83 miles along the many hairpin turns/horseshoe bends in the Warrior/Tombigbee River part of the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway, I was thinking about what to write in today’s blog. It went something like this, “The wind blew very hard all day, Glad we aren’t on an open bay. River, river, river, river, river, river, river, pass through Coffee Lock, river, river, river, river, get fuel at Bobby’s Fish Camp, river, river, river, river, river, river. Stop for the night at Bashi Creek at 5:30 p.m.” You get the idea that the Tenn Tom at this point is pretty mind-numbing.
That would have been accurate until we did stop for the night. To be fair, the landscape has changed from yesterday. Instead of pancake flat shoreline, we now see some decent hills and a few bluffs. But there was truly very little scenery to brag about. Soooooooo when we arrived at Bashi Creek, located somewhere in Clarke County, Alabama (mile 145.2 on the Tenn Tom), we saw a large tow boat named “Biloxi” pulled up to the bank where we wanted to enter. They were having a problem, and maintenance workers were on the scene. The tug captain encouraged us to slip behind them, which we did. Then they left.
Unfortunately, significant wind was blowing hard right down the mouth of the creek. We had difficulty getting a bow and stern anchor set so that we were parallel to the shoreline. The wind kept blowing Second Wind catawampus. Then it happened. The stern anchor line got caught in the propeller—and it wrapped tight. No cell signal. No one was around--anywhere. Not a good prospect. After some strong profanity, Bob donned his wetsuit and jumped into the muddy creek. My hero! After Herculean effort, he eventually untangled the line from the prop, re-spliced the anchor line, and we were set for the night in this remote spot. Surprise of surprises, “Biloxi” came back. Their problems weren’t fixed after all. We were happy to have company here in The Boonies, even though they were off again by 9:30 p.m. Assuming our prop isn’t damaged too badly, we hope to get to Demopolis by Tuesday afternoon. Jim and Martha are joining us there for the night. It will be great to see them.
P.S. Bob did some limited tests that night, and our prop seemed fine. Now that the boat is running well, we can focus on the sulfur smell that Liz noticed before the anchor incident. Turned out to be a failed starting battery. Fortunately the boat configuration allows us to start both engines off one battery.
