Skylarking

Four miles from our anchorage is the next lock. We had agreed on a 7am departure. Lauren and I got up around 5:30am, took Frank to shore and had the coffee going when we heard over the VHF the lockmaster would be ready and waiting for us at 7am. OK. we’re on schedule. Then I hear Trolly Molar pulling his anchor, and it’s only 6:20. Hmmm. We are ready, so we start our engine and prepare to follow along. A few minutes later, I hear Onward, who had anchored a few miles upstream, coming by and giving greetings to Molar. Now I feel like we have to go now. I ask Lauren to prepare, and we pull anchor. Lauren is awesome at steering the boat while we weigh anchor as I direct and secure the anchor from the bow. It is now 630am and we are on our way. I can see and hear Trinity getting going too as we pull out. We all arrive at the lock: Howell Heflin Lock and Dam. The four of us enter, and we are locked through. Now we are all heading to Kingfisher Marina in Demopolis, Alabama. Shortly after the lock is quite the view: The White Cliffs of Epes. “These white cliffs are located on the Tombigbee River at Epes, AL. They are part of the Selma Chalk formations which were deposited at about the same time as England’s famous White Cliffs of Dover. The cliffs at Epes are stunning in their own way.” We took turns getting pictures of our boats by them, and we slowed down so we could admire them a bit longer.

We are past the White Cliffs and I realize the steering is feeling funny. I add some fluid and it is good for a short time, then it feels loose again. WTF? Lauren has taken over the helm for me, and she comments on the loose steering. I run down to the rudder room and see a steady leak of steering fluid coming from the same piece I replaced this spring. As a refresher: upon launch this spring I had no steering- the fluid had leaked out of a copper tubing that had split a hole in it. It was refurbished by a plumbing supply store for six dollars. I never thought this would happen so quickly. The trip the rest of the way was intertwined with me pouring my backup steering fluid in it until I was out, then it was just trying to keep on down the middle of the river by over steering until the boat went one way, then over steering back the other way, creating a zig-zag down the river, which probably looked pretty strange to the fast boats that came past us later on in the day.

Eventually we came close to our destination, Kingfisher Marina, and we radioed in to the marina asking for instructions. They directed us to a slip and said someone will be on the dock to assist us. We were met by the harbormaster who runs a tight ship. She was in charge and let everyone know about it. Not by bragging she was the boss, but by her direction toward people and no mincing of words, and things WILL be done her way. We get tied up and secure and I head to the office for check in as directed. I am given the facilities information and take all of my information back to Lauren. At this point our friends on Trinity are pulling in after stopping at the fuel dock and waiting there for an hour, to a slip across from us on the same dock. I laugh as she admonished our friend for changing his mind from a port tie up to starboard, as that is where the power pedestal is. “You said port!” cried the dockmaster as Duane is tossing me a starboard line. “Move! I got this!” she told me, taking the line from me-“off the dock!” OK. I moved back to Klondike and finished tidying up our lines. I had advise them of our steering situation and Duane was more than happy to take a look at it with me. We huddle in the small rudder room and he sees the leak too. He gives me some advice, then has to leave to get ready for dinner to celebrate Sonja’s birthday, which is tomorrow, but they will be at anchor so they want to celebrate at a restaurant tonight. They have the courtesy car with another couple and are going to a Mexican restaurant in town.

Lauren and I take the bikes and ride over to the fuel dock, which is not easy to get to by land from our marina. We make it there as the shop is closing at 4pm and I find the steering fluid I need. This is going to be necessary once I get the leak fixed, but at $32 a quart, I am not going to pour it in and watch it leak out. I bought two just to be safe. We weren’t planning on going anywhere else, but Lauren suggested we ride a bit into town and see whats around. I agree, and think maybe we should stop at a Napa store for oil too since we’re here, as I need to do an oil change too. We biked around and saw the old, small square and tour through some of the downtown area. We then head over to Napa and I consult with them while buying the oil about my steering situation. They make hydraulic hoses for steering and could possibly help me tomorrow if I want to bring the piece in and they can look at it. I relay this info to Lauren and I am prepared to bike back here by 8am tomorrow morning to get this steering taken care of. We head back with our oil and steering fluid in Lauren’s basket on her bike; I can’t tell you enough how this basket has been handy! As we return, I get a call from Duane- they are back and he thinks we can fix it with hydraulic hose and an adapter from a tractor supply store. While on their way to dinner they passed such a store. All I have to do is get the courtesy car to get there. I call the harbormaster and inquire if the car would be available first thing in the morning? She tells me yes- then Duane says he will go with me tonight if we can get the car tonight? I call her back and inquire about tonight? “yes- it’s available tonight at 8pm.” Great! I disassemble the defective piece and all components. I get the car keys and let Duane know we’re in business. He meets me at the car and gives directions to the store. He knows what we are looking for and once in the correct aisle, he pieces together a replacement. All I have to do is install it. I can’ t wait to get back and get to work on this. We return the car, which requires me to ‘top it off’ and it only takes eighty nine cents worth of gas! We didn’t have to go far! Once the keys were dropped off, I went to work on the replacement. It didn’t take too long for me to install everything and then came the moment of truth: pour in the hydraulic steering fluid. I did and went downstairs to watch while Lauren turned the rudder. No leak! What a relief! I report back to Duane and thank him profusely for assisting me with this. They are leaving tomorrow morning and we will be staying one more night.

Day 2: Since we fixed the steering last night, today all I had to focus on was the oil change. This isn’t too hard but it can be a bit messy. There were some other small maintenance items I wanted to attend to as well, and by mid morning we went to work on our list. Lauren did a lot of cleaning while I tended to the engine. Later we finished up and decided we should make a last minute Walmart stop to add to our pantry as we will be anchoring out for three to four days on our way to Mobile. We got the car and went shopping. We again had to top off the fuel tank and this time it only took seventy eight cents, and gas was spilling down the side of the car! Lauren made fun of me for only putting that much in, but I couldn’t fit any more! We returned the car, had dinner and scoped out our next stop. We have to go through the Demopolis Lock and Dam first, and I tried to find out who was going and when. I was unsuccessful on finding anyone, so we decided we should be prepared for another 7am departure as that seems to be the time everyone else likes to leave. We also have a list of anchorages for the next 213 miles and only one marina in between, so we have some options…

Today we plan on traveling about sixty miles and two locks. The first lock we encounter right outside of Columbus Marina is the John C. Stennis Lock and Dam. A caravan of about ten boats left this morning and we gathered at the entrance, again waiting for the go ahead from the lockmaster. The wait wasn’t long and we locked through. The caravan then proceeded to the next lock a few miles down river: Tom Bevill Lock and Dam. At this point everyone was going about the same speeds as the slowest (us) as it does them no good to get there too much faster because the lockmaster will wait for everyone to arrive before locking them through. After the second lock, the group separated. The fast boats went faster and the others fell into a line in order of speed. We were the last boat. We now have a current flowing with us, but we don’t feel the need to push the throttle and sacrifice fuel mileage. We can actually save fuel and still go about 6.5-7 knots. Our friends were only going a little faster than us as they also liked the fuel economy going a bit lighter on the throttle. This left four boats- Klondike, Trinity, Onward and Trolling Molar at the back of the pack

The rest of the afternoon was just traveling down the river enjoying the nature surrounding us; the wildlife above and below, on land and in the sea. We were getting close to our destination when I received a message from Onward that they were going to stop at an anchorage a little short of where we were planning on going. They informed us that they had been here before and there was plenty of room if we wanted to join. We considered the offer, because we were all going to go through more locks tomorrow together, but declined and kept going a little farther with Trinity and Molar- this also let us sleep a little longer. We pulled into the anchorage last as the others were there just before us. This is kind of good, as they can tell us depths as they enter. Sonja told us as we approached there was eight feet of depth at the entrance then a little more shallow, but we could stop and anchor in front of the boat ramp. Perfect! Easy access for getting Frank to shore.

We dropped anchor and explored the park we were in front of. There were restrooms and picnic tables, grills, fire pits and primitive camping available. The setting was cool, tucked into a little protected channel off of the river and we all fired up the generators to make dinner and warm up a bit. After awhile we researched tomorrows destination and confirmed our departure: 7am. Ughh. That’s an early start, but we didn’t want to cause a problem, so 7am it is.

We woke up early to more ice covered boats. Lauren boiled some water while I walked Frank, so we could pour over our lines to get them loose from the dock! We listened to the VHF radio while the lock was contacted. We were told to be ready around 8am, and we started the engine, which needed a couple of attempts due to the cold. I would be driving from inside today!

We got through the first lock: Glover Wilkins Lock & Dam. There were a couple of boats that had joined us from other marinas or anchorages, and about five boats locked through. Five miles downstream was the Amory Lock and Dam which we proceeded through with no issues. The next lock after this one is about forty miles, with lots of anchorages as a back up if we didn’t make it through the locks as quickly as we did. Since we made it through rather efficiently, we decided to go as far as we could today. I alternated driving from inside downstairs and the flybridge later in the afternoon when the sun came out for a bit.

The Columbus Marina is listed in our guide books as a great place to stop. They have a courtesy car and the staff is very hospitable and welcoming. We were getting close and contacted them on the VHF and they directed us in. We stopped at the fuel dock to top off our tanks as we know it is the a last good fill up stop for a while according to our guide books. Once done with the fuel, we went to the dock. A dock hand was there to assist, and we got secured to the dock. Once settled, I plugged in the power cord and…no power. huh? I checked the breaker and noticed there was no resistance. The only other way fro me to plug in is to either move to a new slip, or turn the boat around so our cord has more length to run to another power pedestal. We opted to turn the boat by hand, whch had us pushing it out of the slip and pulling on the forward lines to turn it, then pulling it in by hand backwards. This worked and we could now reach another pedestal. We plugged in and… power! Yay! Once this was done, I had to fill our water tanks as we were empty now after this morning; While I was doing this I saw our friends Sonja and Duane on Trinity pulling into the marina. They travel faster than us, and they made some distance in the last few days- we haven’t seen them since Florence, when we left and they were arriving.

Now that we were settled in, Lauren did some laundry and I took Frank for a walk. Our friends invited us for a beer on their boat, which we accepted. Sonja made some jalapeno poppers in the oven and we all sat around and chatted a bit. We made plans for tomorrows departure and where we would anchor. Eventually Lauren and I called it a night and retired to the boat. We had the heater running so we were able to sleep comfortably, even though we still are in multiple layers of long underwear, clothes and sweatshirts!

We left Florence around 8am and since we were now heading with the current, the trip was a little faster. We had passed this stop on our way to Florence so we knew kind of about where it was. Our plan was to leave in the morning and make it there by 3pm.

We were getting close and was on the lookout for our opening. The waterfall is in a small cove that is only big enough to hold a couple of larger boats, so we were hoping no one else was there. We found the turn off and pulled in to an empty cove. The waterfall was in the back, and we inched in slowly, not knowing how deep it was. We had seen pictures of other Loopers back there with larger boats, so we knew it was possible. Once in, we turned the boat around, with only twenty feet on either side to the banks. We dropped our anchor and backed down closer to the falls. I then took a smaller anchor in the dinghy and dropped it farther behind the boat as a stern anchor. We now have two anchors deployed, one in front and one in the rear holding us from swinging into land and we were in about 12 feet of water. Lauren joined me in the dinghy with Frank and we went to shore. There was a large beach area we could walk around which we enjoyed the beautiful scenery- one side was the open lake, and the other was our boat anchored in front of a waterfall- how awesome was this! We noticed there was remnants of a campfire on the beach, so I started gathering firewood as we walked Frank and Lauren knew there was no stopping me now. She was quite amenable to the idea of a campfire, so she started collecting wood too. As we were dragging a log to the collection, a smaller boat was pulling into the cove. I went to the shore to tell the approaching boat about our stern anchor, and he said he was going to pull up to shore ‘over there’, which is where our dinghy was sitting. I offered to move it and he said that would be great. I jumped in and ended up going to our boat for beverages, while I watched him pull his boat right onto the sandy shore. The shoreline is deep enough that he could do this and still keep his propellers off of land. Once his boat was on the sand, he hopped off and tied a line to a tree to keep them from moving backwards. We introduced ourselves and met Mike and Theresa. They were unloading fishing gear and I asked if they wouldn’t mind if we had a fire? They were quite happy to assist with some wood gathering and we soon had a fire blazing on the shoreline. We all hung out and talked for a while and they cast their reels. I went back for some more beverages and we sat around the fire for a bit to keep warm as it was getting chilly when the sun went down. There was a bite on the line, so Mike gave me the reel and told me to bring it in. I had to fight it a bit, but eventually got it to shore where Mike could grab the line and haul it in. It was an eight to ten pound catfish, which he removed the hook and tossed back. Eventually Lauren and I went back to the boat for dinner. We ate and relaxed a bit, and I went back to the shore as I had seen the fire still going. Mike, Theresa and I sat around and told stories some more and roasted marshmallow she happened to have, and too soon it was time to me to go back and retire for the night.

Tomorrow we will start heading down the Tenn-Tom River, which also has ten locks we will have to navigate through on our way south.

We got an early start, as we had a lot of miles to put under our keel. We left the anchorage with no sign of movement from Mike and Theresa’s boat. We left as quietly as we could, then turned north to get to the cut, back toward Aqua Yacht where we had the propeller fixed, and then turned south. We plan on anchoring out for a bit of a stretch because there is no other options.

Our desired anchorage was Bay Springs, which is right before the first lock on the Tenn-Tom Waterway. As we were making our way, we were passed by a few boats heading in the same direction. We were hooping they weren’t all going to the same anchorage, but knew they would more than likely be anchoring close by as we all have to get through the lock, and no one travels at night, in the dark, if avoidable. We had a backup plan just in case. There are several places to anchor around there, so we weren’t too worried about it.

We eventually came to the lock and saw the channel off to the left where we wanted to go. Sure enough, one of the boats that had passed us was anchored in a little creek off the channel. We moved slowly past them and looked down the next creek. It was empty! We cautiously moved in and dropped anchor. We were in a secluded little area by ourselves and noticed a park across the bay. We took Frank in the dinghy over there and walked the grounds a bit. While we were there, we noticed a sailboat pull in looking to anchor. Since both creeks were occupied, he ended up dropping anchor in the middle of the small bay. Boaters usually like to give people the privacy if they can and not anchor on top of each other, especially the ‘heading south/ Loopers’- it is a different story for the weekend boater who are out to party with a crowd. We all had a sufficient walk, so we headed back to the boat for dinner. On the way I stopped by the sailboat as they were out on the deck and introduced ourselves. They are from Chicago, heading to Florida, and his son had just joined him as an extra hand. It’s nice to meet people since we will be traveling together down the river and locks.

Once back at the boat, we relaxed a bit then had dinner. Our nightly routine is to plot out the course/ destination for the next day, so we did that too. Tomorrow we will go through a few locks, three to be exact if the time allows. We are at the mercy of the lockmaster and commercial barge traffic. There is a ‘rule’ that says pleasure craft have to be locked through every third commercial boat, but there are always exceptions. We have learned the earlier start we can get, the better for locking through…

We woke up and were ready to go around 7am. The other boats anchored by were also moving and we were all assembling in a group outside the first lock, the Jamie Whitten Lock . We were listening on the radio as one of the boats was communicating with the lockmaster. He was instructing the pleasure craft to be ready for a 7:30am opening. We all prepared our bumpers and waited for the green light to enter. Since we are the slowest, we usually hang back and enter close to last so everyone else can get out and get going without having to maneuver around us. The green light was given and we all made our way to the lock. We were second to last and tied up on the starboard side. Lauren has become an expert at this and secured us quickly. This lock was a large drop of over eighty feet down, and is the fourth largest lock drop in the United States. There were about nine boats locking through this morning as some others came from other anchorages close by.

Once we were dropped down, the doors opened and we all pulled out heading toward the next lock: G.V. Montgomery Lock and Dam which is only around five miles downstream. It is quite a sight to see as all nine boats went single file down the river. It doesn’t matter if the first boat gets there fast as the lockmaster will wait for everyone to arrive before opening. We were also aware the locks call each other and let them know that ‘pleasure craft’- which is what every non-commercial boat is called- is on the way. This actually was nice, since when we arrived the lock was open and ready for us to enter. We all pulled in, in about the same order and tied off. The lockmaster dropped us down and we went on to lock #3.

Eight miles downstream we came to the John Rankin Lock and Dam. The process was the same, with all of us coming to the lock and the lockmaster was ready for us. I can’t stress how nice this is as we’ve had experiences where we’ve had to wait for hours for a lock to open, usually because of commercial traffic which has priority over pleasure craft. A lot of the boats traveling together today were polanning on going to Midway Marina, which was a few miles past this lock. We had decided to stay at a different marina which was a little farther down stream, and would take us through one more lock.

The fourth lock we came to was only another seven miles. Most of the other boats had pulled off to the Midway Marina, and a few of us had continued on. We got to the Fulton Lock & Dam and he again was ready for us. We locked through and had to go about fourteen miles to the Smithville Marina which we were going to stay at. The weather forecast tonight and tomorrow was going to be cold- in the 40’s during the day and teens overnight! We would have tried to anchor, but the wind was also starting to pick up and we felt better about being at a marina.

The Smithville Marina in located right in front of another lock, so we were instructed to get to the lock, then call the marina on the phone so they could guide us in. The water gets really shallow when you get out of the channel, and they know where the shallow areas are. We got close and called, then followed the instructions on getting in to the dock. On arrival, the docks were old, run down, and there were so many sunken and half submerged boats we lost count. The harbor master who helped us dock was nice enough, but Lauren was looking around and we both had some serious concerns. The positive side was we had power. They had turned the water off due to the freeze that was coming, so we could not fill our tanks. We were running low, but not at a critical point yet, so that was a negative. I secured the ship and walked up to the office to check in. I had read online that they had a courtesy car for use and I inquired about this, only to be told that the car was broken down and not available, however the manager told me I could use his truck, if I could drive stick and promised to be very careful. I promised and took the keys and went back to the boat to let Lauren know we could go to the store. We noticed a large catamaran that had come through the locks with us had anchored just a few hundred yards from the marina. They were brave, as the wind continued to pick up and the temperature really started to fall. We took the truck to Walmart and bought some supplies and an electric heater. We have a small propane heater, but with the winter storm bearing down on us, we felt we needed a better heat source. We came back to the marina and the storm had really started to pick up- now there were large waves beating us into the dock, and the rolling motion was non-stop; at least we were warm! I watched the catamaran bob up and down out in the bay and was hoping they were prepared and that their anchor would hold them! The wind and waves continued to build and we just hunkered down as best we could with all of the rolling around. I had to go out and make sure the bumpers were set well, and added more to help protect us from destroying the dock or the boat. At one point I had to move the dinghy from the rear to the side of the boat to keep it from hitting the dock we were tied to, and tried to secure it as best I could. A neighboring boat owner had noticed me outside and came over offering to help, but there wasn’t anything he could do to help me. The night was cold but tolerable since we had the heater running on high and moved it to the bedroom to keep us warm, in addition to the many layers of blankets and clothes we had on!

The next morning we awoke to ice covering the docks, the dinghy and the boat. We had to be careful taking Frank for his walk so we didn’t slip on the ice. The sun came out for a bit, but it never got much over forty degrees! The catamaran had pulled anchor and left to who knows where. There was no one around the docks excepts the one neighbor who I had met the night before, as it was too cold! One of the lines keeping the dinghy secured had broken overnight, but it was still secure by three other lines. I took Frank for a long walk and there is nothing around the marina; it was surrounded by cleared farm fields which gave him plenty of room to run and I could keep an eye on him for at least a mile. He has been known to ‘wander off’ and not come when called, so we rarely let him run free, but I knew there was nowhere for him to hide. The rest of the day we just stayed inside and watched TV and movies bundled up. Just around dusk I heard some noises outside, and a large yacht had pulled in for the night right behind us. By the time I was outside, they had the boat secured and were plugging in their power. I inquired about leaving tomorrow morning with them to get through the next lock or two and was told they plan on leaving around 7am, so that was our plan. Since I was outside I decided to check our lines again and realized they were all frozen solid and some were frozen to the dock!

Since we planned on leaving at 7am, we were in bed early, as well to just warm up! We have had at least three layers of clothes on for a couple of days now and it is still needed. We did this trip hoping to not have to deal with cold weather, but here it is!

So we had left Aqua Yacht around 12:45 and turned east on the Tennessee River. We had to go about 47 miles to our destination. We ended up arriving in the dark, and that is never fun for us, trying to enter a marina at night with no idea of the layout, depths or even the entrance.

The trip was beautiful, and we were able to open up the throttle to see how the new prop feels. Everything is good, and we were making good timing, then we started to drop in speed. We were going east and the river flows west. Sometimes it feels like we’re going up hill both ways! We continued along and the sun started to set. We were closer, but it was clear we would be arriving in the dark. When we got close enough, I called them on the telephone. I was instructed to follow the buoys, and their entrance would be marked just after a channel buoy, and to favor the green side. Once inside the harbor, there is six feet of water all around. We were met at the dock by the harbor master and he assisted with lines. Once we were secure, I went into the office to pay and get the information. They have a courtesy car available 24/7 and a clipboard hanging by the door to sign out the car on a first come, first serve basis. This is nice to have available, and many marinas have this for transient boaters to use, either for runs to the store or sightseeing, although there is usually a two hour limit and you have to replace fuel, which is fair. We were able to grab the car later and go to a store for some provisions. We came back and hunkered down for the night as it was cold. We have the Mr. Heater which runs on propane and heats the cabin nicely. We also tend to stay in and cook which also helps with warming up the inside.

Day 2- The next day we were able to grab the car and do some sightseeing. We went to Muscle Shoals Recording Studio at 3614 Jackson Highway which was built around 1946 and was previously a coffin show room and took the guided tour. Over the years, artists who recorded at Muscle Shoals Sound Studio included The Rolling Stones, Aretha Franklin, George Michael, Wilson Pickett, Willie Nelson, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Joe Cocker, Levon Helm, Paul Simon, Bob Seger, Rod Stewart, Tamiko Jones, and Cat Stevens. Cher’s first solo album was titled 3614 Jackson Highway (1969) and this became the informal name for the studio in 1969. The studio at this location closed in 1979, and the recording facility was moved to new premises, however they have restored the studio with the original instruments and furniture and it is still used as a recording studio today- the interior is reminiscent of the 1970s, with relevant recording equipment and paraphernalia including a hidden bar for when the county was dry. There was a documentary made about the place- follow this link for a preview> Muscle Shoals on YouTube. We then went to Helen Keller Home to see the grounds and memorials there. This is where ‘the pump-well’ is located and her childhood home. At this point we were pushing our two hour time limit, so we had to return the car. When we turned in the car keys, I was talking to the dockmaster and he pulled out the documentary I linked above on DVD. We went back to the boat and watched the movie which was pretty cool to watch- I highly recommend it- you will be surprised at how many hits were recorded there due to the ‘confluence of energy and the Tennessee mud’.

Day 3- We were hoping to get the car to go to a local breakfast place- Big Bad Breakfast, however the car was taken. We decided to take Frank for a long walk and wait. We walked around a park and were returning when we saw the car being parked in the lot. We hurried up and locked up Frank and grabbed the car. First stop was the aforementioned B.B.B., which we found and had a good lunch. The next stop was a memorial: Tom’s Wall or also called Wichahpi Commemorative Stone Wall: In the late 1830’s, a young teenage Yuchi girl was living near the Singing (Tennessee) River. Unfortunately, this was also during the Trail of Tears, a dark time in American history when Native Americans were forcibly removed from the Eastern portion of the United States and moved west. This young girl, along with her sister, were discovered by Army personnel and forced to walk to Oklahoma. She listened for singing waters in her new surroundings and found none. Convinced she would die if she stayed, she escaped and spent five years walking back to Alabama. The journey was extremely difficult with many trials and tribulations along the way, however she returned to her singing river. In the 1980’s, Tom Hendrix, her great great grandson, visited the Yuchi people and had her journals translated. He had heard her stories many times and after the trip vowed to honor the great Native American woman. A wall of stones was going to be the memorial and over 30 years later, the monument is truly something to behold. It is the largest un-mortared rock wall in the United States and the largest memorial to a Native American woman. Each stone represents one step of her journey. Also, the shape, height, and width of the wall changes to represent the various obstacles she encountered. There are stones from over 120 countries that come in every size, shape, texture and unique geologic features you can imagine. A trip to Tom’s Wall is emotional, inspiring and you will leave touched by the dedication of one man to honor his ancestors. Along the way back we stopped and picked some cotton from a field, then had to hightail it back so as to get the car back in the allotted two hours.

The rest of the day we hung out and enjoyed the sun for a bit while waiting on our friends we have been travelling with on and off. Trinity is the boat, and Sonja and Duane are the couple we have connected with. They were planning on arrival around 4pm, and they were right on time. They tied up and we agreed to meet for cocktails at the restaurant on site a bit later. We prepared for tomorrows departure by filling our water tanks and making sure everything else is ready and secured. By 6pm we met them at the bar and shared stories and adventures. We had some appetizers and a few beers, then made our way back to our boats. Lauren made dinner and we retired for the night, bundling up to keep warm.

Tomorrow we are heading back west on the Tenessee River to get to the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway, the Tenn-Tom Waterway is a 234-mile system of canals, locks, and dams that connect the Tennessee and Tombigbee rivers. We will be anchoring a few days as marinas are far and few as we move further south.

Monday came and went, and we spent time doing some deep cleaning. Tuesday came and we had heard that the prop might be ready later today, but no promises. We did some more boat stuff and were hopeful. The end of the work day came and I saw the guys at the marina wrapping up for the day- it looks like we’re here another night. I took Frank for a walk and was told that tomorrow they should have it. They can’t be sure when, but we should get it tomorrow. We planned where we will go if we get back in the water early, and a back up plan if later in the day. We just want to get out of here since we now feel like residents of the marina, watching people come and go, some getting hauled out and worked on, some getting fixed quickly and others moving south to try to get where it’s warm. It has been amazing the amount of boats coming in for work. At least half or more come in and go straight to the office to start a work order for something- props, bottom paint, steering, engines, etc. Some are major, most minor; we fall in the mid-minor category and are thankful for that. The use of the car is nice and we’re not suffering by any means, and we have reflected how blessed we are to even be able to be doing this trip and should never lose sight of that.

Wednesday morning I was up and out of bed by 7am. Work at the yard starts around 8am, and I wanted to be present and available should they be ready for us. I took Frank for a walk and was watching the employees arrive one by one. I wasn’t stalking them, but I was making my presence known. They all have gotten to know Frank as well, so they knew who I was. Eventually I took Frank back to the boat and enjoyed the morning coffee before heading back up to the facilities. As I was walking up to the ramp, I could see the foreman, Tony, at the top speaking to another customer. As I approached, he looked down and said “Hey! I want to talk to you about your prop; can you come over here so we could talk?”. Oh boy. When people start a conversation like that, I wasn’t too sure what would be following. “You don’t have anything to do now, do you?”. My mind was thinking WTF? “Mm…waiting for you?” was my response. “I was hoping to…” He cut me off with “Could you go pick up your prop? I’ll give you a truck and directions.” “Hell yes!” I responded- I was excited because I knew they would take care of this today. Tony and crew have been awesome. The docks are by the work yard so I have seen everyone working every day, and like I said every day boats pull in and we all have the ‘most important project to be attended to now’. The yard crew had juggled everyone as best they can and lift many boats a day and either diagnosing problems or fixing them and sometimes both on the spot. Then they move on to the next. It is truly impressive and they all have great attitudes whenever we cross paths. Tony gives me the directions and tells me to get the keys from the office. It is around 9am at this point. The ride there and back took about thirty minutes.

I went and picked up the prop and deliver it back to Tony. They have another boat lifted in the sling when I return, so I know we have a little bit of time. I killed some of that time by washing the boat down again, as the dirt and grime just seems to collect about the decks from the daily use and tracking on of dirt. This took about an hour, and once finished I could see the neighbor boat that was just in the sling heading back to the dock. My mind was hopeful we would be next. Tony came by in the boat he used to push us back to the slip, and said he would be back shortly, he had to take care of something first, and then would be back for us. We watched him pull off, and we prepared for our turn. All we really had to do was makes sure everything was back on board the boat, as I take a bunch of stuff off so I could clean under and around. Tony came back by and we attached his work boat to Klondike by several lines. He then pulled us out of the slip and around to the lift. Once Klondike was positioned for the sling, we detached and he took the boat to a dock close by. They lifted Klondike and pulled forward just enough for them to get to the shaft and re-install the prop. This took about thirty minutes, then they lowered it back in the water and told me to hop on. I was ready, and Lauren and Frank walked to the dock to meet me. I pulled out of the slip and turned around- it felt great! I wanted to throttle up to really feel how it is, but with so many boats around I couldn’t, I don’t want to wake them and have them start banging around. I pulled around to our slip and tied off. Lauren was getting us ready for departure and I walked up to the office to settle up. Turns out they didn’t have a total yet, so they just took my information and will be in contact with me sometime soon. I walked back to the boat, checked in with Lauren and prepared to depart for another marina or anchorage. Since we have been here this long, we really wanted to be on the move again. We had discussed our next stop, and in talking to some Loopers that came through, Florence, Alabama has a nice marina and cool sightseeing. We decided on this as our next destination as a little side trip. It is a bit out of the way, as it is on the route toward Chattanooga and Knoxville, Tennessee which is east and we want to go south. Looking at the weather we have some cold weather predicted for the weekend and into next week.

By the time we left Aqua Yacht, it was around 12:45pm. We had hoped to get an earlier start, but decided to go toward Florence anyway…

When we pulled anchor, we figured we could make the last twenty miles in about five hours. We were wrong. The current I’ve spoken about just keeps increasing. We raised the anchor and came out around the island and turned directly into the current. Since we cannot go over 1500 RPM’s we were only making about 3.5 knots. This would take us almost seven hours to get where we needed, and we have a lock to go through.

We made our way south and were coming close to the lock, When I say close, we were within five miles, but at our speed, this was still almost two hours away. We got closer- within two miles, and our speed had dropped to just over three knots, so still and hour away. No need to contact the lock until you can see the lock. I was getting nervous that if the current increased any more, we wouldn’t be able to make headway! We eventually were getting within a mile or so, and I noticed a catamaran coming up from the rear. I contacted them via the radio and told them we were having issues, so we could not move any faster. I also asked if they had contacted the lock yet, and he said they had not. I told them I would continue on and they could initiate contact with the lock, which will let me get closer before we request the lock through. I listened as they contacted the lock master and he informed us a barge was coming down and we should wait off to the side for about 30-45 minutes so he can get out once the lock doors open. Now this meant we had to basically stay pointed into the current and try to hold steady in position. The catamaran was behind us, so I couldn’t slide backwards too much as I didn’t want to get too close to them. We did this for about thirty minutes, then I turned and let the current carry us back past the catamaran. Now we were in the rear, but it was more comfortable than trying to stay up front. Eventually the lock master came on the radio and told us the barge was exiting, and if we stayed close but off to the side, we could enter once the barge had cleared the lock. We inched forward and were off to the side, but the wake of the barge was a force to be reckoned with. Both boats were getting tossed around by the waves, but we made it past him and into the lock. In the mean time a third pleasure boat had come up and was locking through with us as well. We pulled into the lock and Lauren got us secure to the bollard and we waited for the lock to take us up about fifty feet. Once we were to the top, the doors opened and we all departed at the direction of the lock master. We pulled out and moved over to the side so the faster boat behind us could go on. Once they passed, we throttled up to get to our destination.

Now that we were past the lock, the current was not pushing against us anymore and we were making five knots again! Yay! We made our way to the marina and called in on the VHF once we were close. There is an island in front of the bay and I wanted to know if it was deep enough to come straight in, or needed to go around and enter from the other side? “Come on straight in to the fuel dock” was the directions given to us. We motored forward, watching the depths, but not having any issues or scares. We got to the fuel dock and here is where we had to check in, and I requested a pump out. Once all of this was done, we made our way to our assigned slip and tied off. There were about a half dozen other Loopers there waiting to assist with lines when we arrived. We got ourselves settled in and I walked up to the maintenance yard office to inquire about the haul out. They had me fill out some paperwork and said they would be in contact the next day.

Now that we were here and the yard knew our situation, there was nothing else to do but wait. I mentioned the other Loopers, and they were almost all hanging out on the docks around the boats. The marina seems to put the Loopers in the same areas, and we all were socializing, exchanging boat cards, and chatting with each other sharing stories and insights as well. We hung out for awhile and got to know our neighbors. Eventually it was time for dinner, so we retired to the boat to eat and call it a night. It had been a long couple of days and we were happy we finally made it here.

Day 2: The morning was uneventful until I got the phone call to bring the boat around to the lift. They had already had one boat up and down and were ready for us. We got the boat untied and came over to the lifting area. They had the straps in the water already, so all I had to do was pull in and hold it steady while they tightened everything and started lifting us. The rain had started today and was expected to be on and off all day. Once the boat was off of the water, they had me step off. In the haste, I forgot to close the door all the way and the flybridge window was open too. Oh well, nothing I could do about it now. Lauren had Frank and were sitting on the closed on site restaurant patio out of the rain while this was going on. Once the boat was out of the water completely we had our first good look at the damage to the boat.

I was expecting the worst. Between the sound of the grounding, the vibration at higher RPM’s, and the overactive mind, I was not expecting what I saw. There were a couple of scratches along the bottom, but only on the solid steel keel underneath. The propeller blades were bent, all three, which I had expected. The bottom paint was in good shape and not in need of any repair or repainting. The last piece was the shaft: this could be major, both in cost and repair, but it seemed okay. I couldn’t be 100% sure, but to my untrained eye it looked good. The mechanic took the propeller nut off and tried to remove the prop. It wouldn’t budge. He was trying everything, but nothing was working. He worked on it about twenty minutes, then they all took a lunch break. During this time the rain started to fall harder, and Lauren, Frank and I took cover back on the covered patio. It was getting cold and we were a bit wet now too, so that didn’t help. Eventually the crew returned and they had a blowtorch! I walked over and they now had the propeller off of the boat. I watched as they used a precision tool to measure the shaft as it spins; they would turn it by hand and the tool would measure if a bend would make it go up and down. There was a little, very slight wiggle, but it was diagnosed as good to go. No need to replace/repair this. That was a huge relief. Someone took the propeller to a local prop shop so they could see if they could repair it. We would have to wait to find out about this. They eventually put the boat back in the water and used a work boat to push us back to our slip, so we could have power and water for the next few days as it is supposed to get very cold. As they were pulling us into the slip, they got the call from the prop shop- it is repairable. This was great news! At this point all we can do is wait for the prop to get fixed, then we will get hauled once more, prop installed, and off we go.

Now that we were back to our slip, I washed the boat down. I figure it could rain on a clean boat, but she definitely needed a scrub down. While I was doing this, Lauren did some laundry. We also were chatting with our neighbors and was told of ‘dock-tails’ being held on another Loopers boat tonight at 5:30pm. This sounded like fun, as we’ve not really had the opportunity to experience this per se. We’ve certainly hung out with others on the dock, but not an organized get together. We cleaned up and walked over to the dock and boat hosting the party. There were at least twenty two other people there, and it was a duel celebration of someone’s birthday. Everyone brings their own beverages and food if you want to contribute. We passed out our boat cards and received so many. There were snacks and cake, and many laughs and stories. Everyone left around 7:30pm, and we made our way back to our boat for dinner. After dinner I found myself hanging out with the neighbors in a small lounge that is set up in the middle of our dock. We hung out for a while, watched the World Series, and eventually called it a night. All in all I was pleased with the diagnosis.

Day 3-6: We took the courtesy car and explored Shiloh National Military Park, the sites of the most epic struggle in the Western Theater of the Civil War. Nearly 110,000 American troops clashed in a bloody contest that resulted in 23,746 casualties; more casualties than in all of America’s previous wars combined. From the website: “Shiloh is one of the best preserved Civil War battlefields anywhere. Within the nearly 4,000-acre Shiloh National Military Park you can visit historic sites like the Bloody Pond, Hornet’s Nest, Pittsburg (spelled correctly- no ‘h’) Landing and the General Albert Sidney Johnston death site. Shiloh National Cemetery holds 3,584 Civil War dead from battles in the area, 2,359 of them are unknown. “The two-day battle, April 6 and April 7, 1862, involved about 65,000 Union troops under Ulysses S. Grant and Don Carlos Buell and 44,000 Confederates under Albert Sidney Johnston (killed in the battle) and P.G.T. Beauregard. The battle resulted in nearly 24,000 killed, wounded, and missing. The two days of fighting did not end in a decisive tactical victory for either side—the Union held the battlefield but failed to pursue the withdrawing Confederate forces. However, it was a decisive strategic defeat for the Confederate forces that had massed to oppose Grant’s and Buell’s invasion through Tennessee. After the Battle of Shiloh, the Union forces proceeded to capture Corinth and the critical railroad junction there.” We toured the visitor center which is filled with interesting artifacts, visited the cemetery and drove around the battlefields and memorials. During the drive there were an unbelievable amount of up rooted and destroyed trees from the storm we had a few days ago when we were in Birdsong Marina. The damage was unbelievable to see, with massive tree after tree toppled with giant clumps of dirt still around the roots, not to mention the debris scattered about as well- it truly looked like a war zone. We completed the tour and headed back to the marina.

The next few days have been spent doing some cleaning, maintenance, shopping and waiting. We were told we should expect to be here until mid week next week. This morning I was told maybe we will have the prop back tomorrow (Monday), so I am being optimistic, but not sure if that could happen. I spent a Saturday hanging out with the locals who have their boats around us, and we took the car again to Walmart to stock up. We want to be ready to go once we complete the repairs. The Browns suck and I wasted an evening watching that. Ughh. I should also mention it has been unseasonably cold here, as it has been in the 30’s at night and mid 50’s during the day. Good thing we have many blankets and comforters, and we have used a few bottles of propane in our heater to take the chill off.

I’ll update again once the prop is on and we are at the next stop, but until then we will be hanging out here at Aqua Yachts in good ol’ Iuka, Mississippi.

We woke up and did leave fairly early. A couple of other boats left before us, but we were close behind. We also wanted to get out because they were planning on doing pump outs of a boat or two, and the smell from this is gross, so we want to be far away. Our destination today is the last spot to drop the hook before reaching Pickwick Lock and Dam. We would anchor just inside the islands northern tip as directed by Waterway Guide. We have been using the Waterway Guide to find anchorages and marinas along the way in addition to the books we have showing the Great Loop route and suggested stops.

When we left we were making less than five knots. The currents have really picked up the closer to the dam we get. The promising part is we are making good timing overall, so hopefully we will get to Aqua Yachts on Tuesday instead of Wednesday which we had originally thought. I called Aqua Yachts and made sure we were good for Tuesday arrival- they said yes. The trip was uneventful again, just moving along slower than we thought, but still making headway.

We came upon the island around 5pm. Since we are worried about depths, we slowly entered from the north like the guide book says. We dropped anchor and paid out the rode. Once this was done, we realized we are too far out in the channel, so we pulled the anchor up and slowly moved forward, deeper in behind the island. Our eyes were on the depth finder as we moved forward, watching it go from twenty eight feet and falling. Once we were in far enough, we dropped anchor again in about eighteen feet of water. Anchoring rule of thumb is five to one scope. So in eighteen feet of water, we have to let out about ninety feet of line. We carry three hundred feet of line on both anchors, so we do have plenty of line. Once we had backed down the anchor, the current was pulling us tight and you could see and hear the current rushing past the boat, but the anchor was holding tight. This was a bit unnerving as if the anchor loses grip, we would be swept away back upstream. We spent about an hour making sure we weren’t going anywhere, and I let out some more line just to make sure. The more line out, usually the better holding as the angle of the line decreases and allows the anchor to really dig in. Once we felt secure we weren’t dragging, I took Frank in the dinghy for a shore visit. We walked around the island a bit along the shore and he was happy. We made our way back to the boat and hung out for a while before starting the generator to make dinner. Dinner complete and batteries topped off, we shut down the generator and listened to the wildlife come alive in the area. Coyotes and other animals could be heard around, but we were in the middle of the river with a swift current, so our animals were safe.

Tomorrow we go through the Pickwick Lock and Dam which is only ten miles away, then on to the marina which is another ten miles after that. Today we were doing a little over four knots, so it will take us a while to traverse the last twenty miles.