We made it to Demopolis, Alabama!

Yesterday (Thursday), we left our anchorage at 7 am with two other boats. This section of the waterway was a bit more interesting.  The temperature had dropped to 45 degrees overnight and there was a slight fog over the water when we departed.

 

Which got worse

 

 

And worse.

 

 

Fortunately, since the waterway is narrow, we could see the trees on the banks so it was fairly easy to stay within the channel. Also, the depth is pretty consistent from bank to bank.

 

It didn't take long to clear up and we made it fairly quickly through our final lock of the trip. We came across a large dredging operation. Dredging is the act of removing silt and other material from the bottom of bodies of water. As sand and silt washes downstream, sedimentation gradually fill channels. This has to be pumped out so the commercial tows have enough water depth.

 

 

A specialized piece of equipment called a dredge creates a vacuum that sucks up and pumps out the unwanted sediment and debris.

 

 

 The sediment travels through pipes and is deposited on nearby land.

 

 

Further along, we went by the White Cliffs of Epes. This group of historic cliffs stretch for over one mile. They were formed many years ago from layers of  limestone embedded with chalk (called Selma Chalk Formations).

 

 

 

Around 1:30, we arrived at Kingfisher marina in Demopolis where we fueled up before docking ($2.66/gal). The fuel dock is on the right with marina entrance to the left in the pic below.

 

Unfortunately, despite my best efforts, they put us in an uncovered slip. Sun is very hard on the boat so we want to keep it covered whenever possible. We had planned to go down in late November on the way to Houston but may need to make an earlier trip to move the boat to a covered slip.

 

Alan picked up the rental car and we went out to dinner at the Bistro restaurant with Wendy and Dave from "Hey Coach". We enjoyed spending time with them this past week. They are heading to Destin, Florida to spend the winter.

 

 

Friday, October 18 - Heading Home

I am writing the blog in the car as we head home on Friday. We left at 5 am this morning. Needless to say there wasn't much traffic that morning. Well, except for a fairly large deer that ran out in front of us.

 

 

So a little damage to the rental car and hopefully not too much to the deer (she left the scene of the accident).

 

So that's the skinny on our trip from Aurora, Indiana to Demopolis, Alabama. I'll restart the blog when we set out on our next adventure on the waterways. Thanks for coming along with us.

Making Progress on the Tenn-Tom

Yesterday (Wednesday), we got off to an early start. Seven boats left the marina at 7 am. We were able to get through the two locks (Stennis and Bevill) together. Only one more lock to get through tomorrow on the way to Demopolis.



It was a cloudy and cool day and the Tenn-Tom looked pretty much the same as yesterday. Alan said that it was 7 hours of his life he will never get back. Hehe. I could post another picture of an egret but how many pics does one really need to appreciate their beauty?

 

Due to lack of marinas and good anchorages below the Heflin lock, we ended up in a really nice anchorage at the Sumter Recreation area right before the lock. It was a shallow  (~5 feet) at the entrance but opened up with plenty of water. It was a little crowded with six boats but there was room for everyone. We  anchored around 2 pm.

 

 

 

It was a short day but there was no way could we could have made it to Demopolis. Looking forward to arriving there tomorrow!!

 

Weather or Not

Yesterday (Tuesday), we had to make a weather decision. Our route was showing a pretty steady rain all day with up to 2-3 inches falling. While the rain was well needed for the area which is experiencing a drought, it doesn't make for the best boating. The rain can reduce visibility and the idea of meeting tows in narrow channels with poor visibility influenced our decision to stay put in Columbus marina.

It was good just to relax. I did some laundry, inside cleaning and reading. Alan cleaned the boat. The marina had covered slips so we stayed very dry. There were quite a few water lilies in the marina. First I have seen of these.

 

The marina had a courtesy car that we used to go out to dinner at Huck's restaurant with a couple fellow boaters (Wendy and Dave). It was a really nice evening.

 

There are a number of boats heading out tomorrow. Looks like there will be seven of us in tomorrow's flotilla. It is that time of year when everyone wants to get their boat down south.



 

10 hours and 4 locks on the Tenn-Tom

Yesterday (Monday), we got off to an early start at 7 am. There were 3 other boats in the marina (BIG, Mimi and Me, and Head Coach) heading out so we were part of a flotilla. There were four locks to get through and the lockmasters like to group the pleasure boats when possible. 

I am finding the Tennessee Tombigbee to be a bit monotonous. It is a lot of the same - tows and birds. We did not see many pleasure boats. The one below is interesting and the pic really shows all the stumps along the way. It is really important to stay within the channel.

Staying in the channel means getting up close and personal with passing tows. Alan needed to keep the boat on the left side of the green can (buoy) to stay within the channel.

On one of the locks, we were able to lock through with a large tow. This was a real timesaver for us. Otherwise, we would have had a long wait to get through.

It was a great day for bird watching. There were egrets everywhere.



We got into Columbus marina in Columbus, Mississippi around 5 pm. There were a number of Loopers (people doing the Great Loop) at the dock and they invited us to their happy hour (nautically known as docktails). We met a number of really friendly people and picked up some great information. Early dinner and early bedtime. It was a long day.



The Tennessee Tombigbee Waterway

Yesterday (Sunday) we left Grand Harbor marina (mile marker 449.7) and began our journey on the Tennessee Tombigee Waterway (the Tenn-Tom).

 

We will have 10 locks to get through on the way to Demopolis, Alabama.

 

We had hoped to get off to an early start but Mother Nature had other ideas.

 

It looked clear at 9:30 am so off we went.

 

 

 But check out what awaits us.

 

 

We ended up in a fair amount of fog. At times, we really couldn't see anything and had to rely on our radar for navigation. At other times, it would clear up. Even the birds decided to wait it out!

 

 

Finally, the fog cleared for good. At mile marker 444, the waterway narrowed and we entered the man-made canal called the "divide cut". The divide cut portion of the

 Tenn-Tom is 29 miles long and connects Pickwick Lake to Bay Springs Lake.

 

 

It is quite narrow and we met a couple of tows. This was a time we wished we had AIS ( (Automatic identification system). It would allow us to see oncoming tows and them to see us. Especially important on bends in the waterways. The tow captains were very courteous and provided great directions on their desired passing side. AIS is definitely on the "wish list".

There were quite a few birds to see but I didn't spot any eagles. At mile marker 411.9, we arrived at the Jamie Whitten lock. This was the lock that shut down our first trip due to an oil spill of 117,000 gallons. We had to wait 1 1/2 hours to enter. It was a drop of 84 feet, our largest drop yet.

We went through two more locks and made it to Midway marina at mm 394 shortly before sunset. The days are getting shorter, sunset is 6:20 central time.

 WikiMiniAtlas

 

 

 It took over 8 hours to go 56 miles. It was a cool and cloudy day so was nice to get tucked in for the night. We have traveled 700 miles since we left our home port in Aurora, Indiana.

Demopolis or Bust

The oil spill clean up is finished at Whitten Lock. It took almost 3 weeks to complete the job. So now we can head to our final destination, Demopolis, Alabama.Yesterday (Saturday), we drove 6 1/2 hours back to Counce, Tennessee to Grand Harbor marina. On the way, we stopped at Hagy's Catfish Hotel, a popular restaurant in Shiloh, Tennessee.

The history of the restaurant:

In 1825, Henry Hagy and his wife Polly docked their flat boat, laid claim to several acres of bottom land, and began to build a farm and family. Later their son John built a rough log shack next to the river to store items that were to be shipped by steamboats. The shack was occupied by Union soldiers during the Battle of Shiloh.

 

The shack earned the name “Catfish Hotel” during the early thirties when Norvin Hagy entertained friends at cookouts. He became well known for the delicious catfish, hushpuppies, and hospitality he served up. Guests who had arrived by river were often forced to spend the night after becoming engrossed in yarns spun and darkness made it unsafe to travel the river, thus the nickname Catfish Hotel.

 

In 1938 Norvin held a political campaign gathering at the site for his old friend Gordon Browning, who was seeking his second term as governor. Upon tasting the catfish and hushpuppies, Gordon recommended Norvin open a restaurant. With the help of his wife, Dorothy, and sons Jack and Bob, the restaurant became a success. Several additions were made to the original shack to accommodate the growing business.

 

Below is the seafood platter. When it comes to fish, it is pretty much fried in most restaurants.

 

 

Took dessert home. Lemon rub pie and caramel pie.

 



 

The restaurant sits right on the Tennessee River. We anchored behind the island below on our way to Grand Harbor. There are steps that go down to the shore if you want to dinghy in. No dock.

 

 

 

When we arrived at Grand Harbor, the boat was covered with spider poop (no surprise in a covered slip) so the Alchemist got a good washing.

 

A couple sailboats passing by the dock on the Tennessee River. Off tomorrow to Midway marina in Fulton, Mississippi.

 

 

We've Landed

We left Grand Harbor marina in the morning.

We are now at our "dirt" home and will head back in October if the oil spill cleanup goes as planned. An estimated 117,000 gallons were pumped out the spill. The barge was removed and now the lock walls are being cleaned. The wall cleanup is estimated to take a couple of weeks but the timing will be better estimated as it progresses.

When we return (~October 12th), we will be traveling on the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway which is a 234-mile man-made waterway that will deliver us to Demopolis.  It was under construction for 12 years by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and was completed 1984. The total cost was nearly $2 billion and its construction was controversial at the time. We will go through 10 locks in this section.

 

We have had a great time on our trip and have met the nicest people. Special thanks to Jack and Jeanie for the transportation home and to you for following our journey to date. Hope to see you back when we return in October.