Using good judgment and staying an extra day at Demopolis Yacht Basin proved to be kind of a waste of time. I was on the phone to the boatyard there at 8:00 AM, but the foreman was out and about and I was told would call me back. When I hadn’t heard from him by 10:00, I took a run over there in one of the golf carts the marina provides for transients. The gal got him on a cell phone and he assured her he would stop by the dock and see me “in a bit”.
When I returned to the boat, I found my First Mate had already gotten out the hose, boat soap, brushes, etc. and had started washing the boat! She had already done the fly bridge and most of the deck. I helped her complete the deck wash hoping that might be it, but the Admiral decided the blue hull looked a bit drab, so we spent another couple of hours washing that as well. Boaters are funny. Once we got started washing our boat, hoses started appearing all over the dock as it seemed all of a sudden everyone felt guilty or something.
Once we were done with that, we continued down the Admiral’s chore list. We finally got a chance to mark our anchor chain with paint so we can be sure exactly how much we have let out when we anchor. That is something we have been putting off for, oh…six months. Then off to the laundry where my First Mate got a marriage proposal from one of the boaters who had seen her out washing the deck by herself; I told him I saw her first. Another complimented me (in front of her) about what a great First Mate I had. I told him to quiet down or she’d ask me for a raise (or a bobble!).
Meanwhile the boatyard foreman never did show up. By noon I decided they didn’t need my business anyway. So, if we need a depth sounder in shallow conditions in the anchorages between here and Mobile, we will have to launch the dinghy. Yes, I have a depth sounder in it, too. It is another of those “silly expenses” the Admiral gave me hell about when I bought it that now makes me brilliant. Ok, maybe not brilliant…
After dinner at the marina restaurant Monday night, we had a Looper gathering of about sixteen folks to surprise Pat from Glory Days for her birthday. Her husband Joe had somehow managed to sneak off to Walmart for a birthday cake without her knowing it and had arranged for all of us to be there at 7:30 to celebrate. Pat was totally surprised and beamed at Joe. Bet Glory Days was rockin’ later that night!
On the way to dinner the Admiral noticed this guy
Tuesday we all left Demopolis together (eight of us I think), and headed down what, at Demopolis, becomes the Lower Black Warrior River – Tombigbee Waterway (BWTB), but only a few of us made it all the way to Bobby’s Fish Camp (20 Buck$, cbay and Once Around). That was a long 97 mile run. There we joined Joysea, Bavarian Crème and Irony who had left Demopolis a day earlier. Along the way, however, we again passed Lolligag. I swear, these folks must be running 24/7, because they go only about 4 or 5 knots, yet I have passed them five times since first meeting them in New York! Maybe this is another turtle, as in tortoise and hare?
Lolligag...again!
Bobby’s Fish Camp should probably be a blog post all its’ own. Suffice it to say, it is a bit rustic. Everything from the docks, the signage, the boat ramp and the alligator heads for sale in the office/restaurant, screamed back woods Alabama. Also, to fit all the boats we had there, we had to raft cbay and 20 Buck$ outside of Once Around. The restaurant at Bobby’s was closed, although the lady there said she would open it if there were enough takers. Most, like us, had already made other plans to eat in as we had been pre-warned they would not be open. Too bad, I understand the catfish there is excellent. But, I whipped out a chicken cacciatore over rice for the Admiral and I and all regrets at missing the catfish were soon forgotten. The Cabernet Franc might have helped, too. We were lights out by 8:30!
Huh?
The Office, Ship Store, and Restaurant at Bobby's Fish Camp
But, what the heck, where else can you pay $1.50 per foot to raft up?
Wednesday we made another 66 miles down the BWTB to a nice safe anchorage at the Alabama River Cutoff. Carrie and I were the first to arrive, and we dropped the hook and a stern anchor to keep the channel clear for the remaining boats to come. Boy, did I make that sound easy! I have never had more trouble getting an anchor to hold in my life. And, my First Mate and I have not worked together on the whole stern anchor thing very often. Glad nobody was there to witness it. By the time the other four Looper boats that had left Bobby’s with us arrived, we were lookin’ good and sippin’ cocktails. The Admiral has informed me that stern anchoring drills will be practiced at the next possible opportunity. Oh goody.
Some Black Warrior river bluffs along the way...
Now, after some 400 plus miles of Tenn-Tom, I'm not going to say we were getting bored...but, Carrie and I began to notice the herons more often. They seemed pretty evenly spaced, as if somehow each had been assigned his particular mile of river to patrol. I began to notice (or imagine?) they often appeared right at a mile marker on my chart. A year or two ago in Ventura with our friends on Poseidon, Linda's brother had remarked that he noticed the homeless folks were strategically placed around town (with the same signs he had seen in another homeless guy's hands on a different corner the day before). He theorized that maybe there was a hobo pimp who nightly gave out corner assignments and distributed signs. Carrie and I began to wonder if there was a heron pimp out there who assigned mile markers...I told you, we've been on this river one or two days too long. We're starting to lose it!
The "mile marker" heron at mile 45
My Galley Slave had prepared a crock pot meal early that day, and when we were ready to eat dinner, we enjoyed pork ribs in sauerkraut (with lots of garlic and drizzled with olive oil) served over potatoes. It proved to be comfort food on this cold rainy night. After dinner, we enjoyed one of our favorite old movies (redone in Blue Ray that I had purchased). Tied up here in the trees on the Alabama River, Carrie and I felt a bit of kinship with Bogie and Kathryn Hepburn on the “African Queen”. But, we’re a lot dryer, a lot warmer on Once Around, and nobody has dumped all our booze in the river!
We had originally planned on leaving the anchorage this morning (Thursday), and go all the way to Dog River Marina on Mobile Bay, a distance of about 70 miles. But, there is a small craft advisory and very rough sea conditions on the bay, which is the last 17 miles or so of the run. The small craft advisory is predicted to last through Friday morning. There are a couple of anchorages just prior to Mobile Bay on the BWTB, but we think there may be plenty of boats holed up there due to the rough conditions on the bay. Once Around decided to sit tight today and see what the weather gods do. 20 Buck$ and cbay moved out, but it looks like Bavarian Crème and Joysea are staying here as well. I imagine we’ll see some of the others who left Demopolis with us pull in here this afternoon as well.
Cocktails at 5:00 anyone?
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