Blood on the Deck – Terror in the Bay

12/4/2013

Don’t ya just love that title. Well it has been eventful since leaving Bobby’s Fish camp. First day out I put the pedal to metal and logged 56.2 miles in one day. This was a record for me for the whole trip. I stopped at Three Rivers about MM 63. I was in a tidal zone and had to reset the anchor.

Sunrise at Bobby’s and as I left I realized I will spent 25 days out and just 5 days at dock from 11/3 to 12/3

Getting back to resetting the anchor. I always thought I would fall out of the boat. I actually fell onto the spar deck and an open spar deck hatch cover from the top of the aft cabin. I have stepped down from the top of that cabin dozens of times. This time I had inadvertently set the U.S. Flag where I step. Thank god there was a sharp edged hatch cover to slow the fall by ripping the crap out of my arm. I had that momentary “ I have broken my arm and I have no cell service.” thing going . but grabbing a bar towel and some masking tape that was handy I wrapped her up and reset the anchor.

The last lock Coffeyville. Look just below the first set of windows and you can see a line where the flood of 1979 came up to

Leaving Three Rivers Heading to Big Bayou Canot at mile 9.9. I logged 55.24 miles

What has a bunch of knees but no legs? Cypress trees of course

My stuff on the Mobile River

First look at Mobile

I really like this. This is the business end of a Tow boat

Stealth Destroyer. It’s hard to get a good picture

I have no idea what this building is I am just snapping pictures like a fool

More of that stealth stuff

A memorial to shrink wrap

Into the bay

This is out in the bay about five miles where things began to go wrong. First of all the wind which was forecast at 10 to 15 mph became 15 to 24 mph.

This is the last picture I took on the bay because stuff was flying around like those slow motion movie scenes where the bus turns over and all the luggage and stuff goes flying.

Now here is the point where I got upset. I am too far to turn back and my depth sounder goes down. It will do this on occasion because something sticks to sensor for a few minutes. This was bad enough but the engine governor or throttle linkage ( I am still collating data) was acting up which caused the engine to race up about 200 rpms and then back down. So I cut back on the throttle which minimized it to a point. The problem was lack of speed in high chop. And finally my second chart plotter with the channel to Dog River goes down.  Now it’s dead reckoning and waves on the beam. I actually used my compass for the first time in a long time. I really used it!! And I also broke my third glass coffee pot. Was I going to complete my mission of three years to get to Mobile?

But there ahead is the Dog River. I made it.

I did maintenance on the boat today and feel after that beating yesterday that I was playing tackle football.

So I went to the bar and had a couple of  glasses of wine. Signed up for three nights here, ate some really good fish tacos, and I will do some work on the boat and take a test drive tomorrow.

I was at the bar and a termite came in and ask me where was the bar tender.

by the way it was 77 degrees today

This is Dr Brad standing by on 16

out

Slow Boat to Mobile

11/15/2013

The lesson today kids is that if you have 250 dollars until December third you anchor out a lot. After I left Florence I took three days to go 50 miles. I had a doctors appointment in Corinth which meant two days in a marina and a few gallons of fuel.

I stopped and spent a night at Bear Creek.

Sunrise at Bear Creek

I spent two night at Wetstone

I left Grand harbor for the last look at the Ohio River watershed on 11/12. I hit Bay Springs Lake 38 miles down the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway. I am 412 miles from Mobile Alabama.

I am still here at Bay Springs and it is a beautiful place to spend a few days. This a pretty place but alas no cell service in most of the anchorages. What a great opportunity to learn some important things about yourself.

My anchor got hung up when I had to reset it and as usual there was 30 minutes of  @#$%#@%&% and then relief. After three years on the water I decided to make a trip line. This is a line tied to the front of the anchor and attached to a float so that if the anchor gets hung up you can grab it with a boat hook pull it up and use the line to pull the anchor out backwards.

The last few days have also been record low temperatures. Got the long handles out known up north as long under wear or long johns. Ran the the old Honda and the electric heater but it has to go off at night so carbon monoxide doesn’t get you. Temps went down to 22 degrees and the cabin to 38 degrees. This was like old times coming down the river. The condensation freezes on the inside of the windows. God I love it so. The challenge, the risk, the chance to look at yourself face to face under crappy conditions.

I decided to spend yesterday looking for a Wi-Fi Hot Spot. I found one at an anchorage I used two years ago. The lake and the anchorage have that Michigan look with sand and hardwood.

I spotted a Common Loon probably migrating from the Great Lakes to the coast. They will get there a few days ahead of me.

Not bad huh….

Front comes in tomorrow and rain is following. Midway Marina with great hot showers is 20 miles and three locks down. Winds will come up 15 mph out of the south so a decision will be made early in the A.M.

That’s the skinny. Now for a late breakfast.

This is Dr Brad standing by on 16.

This blog is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.