Demopolis, Al to Mobile via Bobby's Fish Camp and two anchorages

We called the lock from the marina at about 7:00 this morning and he said he had a tow coming up right then and there was a downbound tow in the area but he did not know when he would move. He said come on and he would get us down as soon as possible. Just as we approached the lock the down bound tow called the lock and said he was starting down so we had to wait. It was 10:00 am before we got through the lock. We had planned a 71 mile day to one of the only anchorages for miles on the river. After we got below the lock we estimated that if we made good time we could get to the anchorage just at dark. The Bashi Creek anchorage is at mile 145. There is an anchorage which can be used in emergencies just below a highway bridge at mile 164. We decided we would make the final decision on which anchorage to use when we got to mile 164. At about mile 170 Blue Max got something caught it their prop which was causing severe vibrations. He tried to reverse it off which reduced the vibration but was still experiencing heavy vibrations. We decided he could limp along to the anchorage at the bridge and once there Guy from Southern Comfort would get into his SCUBA gear and investigate. We rafted up just below the bridge and along the river’s edge. The cruising guides say that if you use one of these anchorages in the river to call the first tow which comes along and tell him you are on the side for the night and ask him to tell any tows he encounters.
When Guy got under Blue Max it was impossible to see much because of the color of the river water. He could tell there was something near the prop so he grabbed it and shook it and it came off easily. He surfaced with it in his hand and a big smile on his face. It was a huge jumble of nylon rope which the tows use to tie to the bank and to tie up the boat. This piece had probably been about 18 inches long and two inches in diameter but now it was just a wad of small strands all jumbled together. Rarely does something like this come off so easily. Often it takes a lot of cutting with a sharp knife to get it off. We decided that Bill was unlucky that he picked it up but very luck that it came off so easily.
The weather today was much more like we would have expected for this time of year. It was cool this morning but with the flybridge closed up we were in tee shirts this afternoon. It was just cool this evening. We all ate together on Blue Max to celebrate our good fortune to have gotten the thing off so easily without damage to Blue Max and that we had any place close to anchor. Thank goodness for Guy’s SCUBA gear and ability. We will get started about 8:00 in the morning and go about 48 miles to Bobby’s Fish Camp. This is not a marina, just a fuel stop and a place to tie-up for the night without having to anchor, no electricity or other facilities.
We left the radio on channel 16 all night just in case a tow tried to contact us. We were amazed at the amount of chatter between tows all night. We heard a couple of tows talking about being aground on sand bars and struggling to free themselves. We were both awake at 2:30 am due to the turbulence from two tows passing us. In the morning Bill said he was up and watched them. They were traveling in opposite directions and passed just up stream of the bridge we were below. No wander there was so much turbulence.
In the morning when I took Carlie ashore I noticed Southern Comfort’s stern anchor was not there. I worried that it had come loose and lost. But Guy said he had already pulled it. When we broke up the raft-up I was unable to pull in the rope portion of our rode by hand so we untied from the other two boats. I was then able to get the rode in easily but the other two boats drifted back and swung into the bank. They were able to apply power and get away from the bank without their props getting anything. We had not tested Blue Max’s vibration last night so we were all relieved when Bill reported that everything was performing well without vibration. We had a fairly uneventful cruise today to Bobby’s Fish Camp. We are now tied to the small floating dock in the side of the river. This can not be much better than were we anchored last night when tows pass. We plan to eat catfish here tonight for dinner just because we are here and will never be back here. We plan to run about 60 miles and one lock tomorrow and then we can probably make Mobile the next day.
This was the coldest night yet, 22 degrees outside and 47 degrees in the boat. It only takes a few minutes for the heat to warm the boat back to 72 degrees inside. The windows on the fly bridge were covered with heavy frost, as were the decks and the docks. We were getting ready to get under way when Peggy came to the boat and said Guy had a problem and needed help. He had broken a bolt which holds the coolant tank on top the engine. By the time we had evaluated the rate of leaking and determined he could run with it by keeping a check on it and refilling as required we called the lock and the lockmaster told us it would be past noon before he could get us in the lock. Decision time again. We decided to that there were no anchorages we would be able to reach before dark if we did not get into the lock before noon. We decided to stay put at Bobby’s Fish Camp and leave as early in the morning as possible. This will be determined by the traffic at the lock and the fog on the river. We can still make Mobile by Monday evening. This will be fine. We plan to rent a car and drive to Laurel, Ms. Where we lived 30 years ago and have Thanksgiving with old friends there. Guy and Peggy plan to drive to Jackson, Ms. To have Thanksgiving with Peggy’s son. Bill and Eileen from Blue Max will be left on their boat and we hate that but I guess it is what it is.
Muriel made a cake for Shelly’s birthday which is tomorrow but we hope to be at anchor and it may be awkward for us to get together so we will celebrate her birthday to night on our boat with the crews from Southern Comfort and Blue Max. Actually we kind of enjoyed the day spent here. We went for a walk out to the highway which is probably about a mile on a dirt road. We saw a man working on a bulldozer near the highway and asked where we were and what was close. He said we were in the middle of now where and there was no town close. The weather was cool but nice for a walk, Carlie enjoyed the opportunity to run free in the woods. Two brothers came in late today on a 62 foot sport fishing boat. They are on the way from Knoxville to Key West. This is their tenth time to stop here at Bobby’s. The rest of the boats we have traveled with lately made it to Mobile today. We got to see several tows we had met and passed along the trip down the river pass here today.
On Sunday, November 23, 2008, it is Shelly’s 35th birthday. We got up before 6:00 and began trying to contact the lock, two miles down stream. We could not get a response on the radio or the cell phone so as soon as I walked Carlie we got underway and headed to the lock. It was open with a tow just leaving so we went right in and locked down our last lock! It was not as cold as the past couple of mornings but it was overcast so it felt quite cold. We got to witness something we had not seen before. Two tows were headed downstream in front of us and the front tow kept going aground, he has been struggling since we left Demopolis, so he offered to let the rear tow pass in some very tight bends in the river. We had already idled along behind them for a while so as the rear tow passed we followed him. They were coming into another bend and the passing tow could not make the bend without shoving his rear starboard corner against the side of the other tow. This shoved the tow being passed into the bank. He was backing off as we went on past. The river has become a southern looking river, with swampy looking banks and Spanish Moss hanging in the trees. Tomorrow will probably be even more swampy and then become quite industrial as we enter Mobile. We anchored rafted with the other two boats tonight because the small stream we pulled off into is quite narrow so we would have had to set bow and stern anchors so it was easier to raft and let one boat set it’s bow anchor behind us so we cannot swing. We have rain in the forecast for tonight and tomorrow, at least we do not have any locks to contend with in the rain.
The morning dawned overcast but pleasantly warmer than previous mornings and very pretty in the anchorage. The weather forecast called for “rain likely in the afternoon with increasing winds reaching 30 to 40 mph near rain storms.” As we motored down the river each time we got into a portion of the river which ran due south we encountered strong southerly winds and white caps. This made us concerned over the conditions we might encounter in Mobile Bay. We saw several of the tow boats we had seen repeatedly coming down the river when we got to Mobile. The river was very industrial, with a lot of cargo shipping and a surprising amount of ship building and repairs. When we headed out onto the bay the water could not have been better but there were rain storms starting to move out onto the bay from the west. We hoped we could beat them to Fair Hope but it looked doubtful. We started to get into light rain about a mile out from Fair Hope. The marina, Eastern Shore Marina, is quite small and very tight. We arrived and got into a slip just before heavy rains began. We have arranged a rental car for tomorrow and we will drive to Laurel, Ms. on Wednesday to spend Thanksgiving with Bill Wallace and his wife Ginger.