LOG 32     10/3-10/7

Our 1st LOOP is complete!  We begin our second LOOP.

Back to the Big Muddy and boiling, riled water.

How our prayers were answered.

Sardine canning in Alton.            An ugly locking docking.

MONDAY, 10/3

Today is the first day of our second LOOP.  We slept in, relaxed, pulled anchor at 0923, and motored over to the Loading Dock Bar in Grafton.  We needed to mail letters, get bread and the Mate wanted a memento of Grafton for the LOOP’s closure.  Kismet was approaching the harbor as we were leaving, so we gave them directions to the post office where a mail drop was waiting for them.

Grafton has spectacular limestone palisades for 15 miles downriver.  Long ago, a number of spots on the bluffs had been worn away by eddies forming columns and abutments sticking into the river away from the bluff.  It was a beautiful sight.

Across the river on the Missouri side, at mm212.4, stands the shrine to Our Lady of the Rivers, a 50’ tall Madonna on a 17’ high pedestal.  She is the patron and protector of boaters.  As we motored by her last year, I sought Our Lady's intercession for the WE BE BLEST in all her voyages, praying for safe passages for her crew and passengers, for wisdom for the Captain in all his decisions, for protection in storms.  I asked that we continue to bring the Lord’s blessings to all those we meet along the waterways.  This year, I thanked Our Lady for her constant protection, wisdom and safe travels.  How she answered our prayers!  May she continue to watch over us and help us spread her Son’s message of love, peace, and forgiveness.

            We took a slip at Alton Marina, one of the finest on the rivers.  Seven other LOOPERS were here.  At 1630, we gathered at the end of C dock for a LOOPER happy hour, and then we practiced sardine canning in a rental car going to Fast Eddie’s for supper.  This is a notable Alton stop with 29 cent boiled shrimp – big and delicious.  They can seat 420 at a time and average over eleven ½-barrels of beer served a day!  What a time we had as we made new friends and celebrated with CAYSEA on the closure of our LOOPS at Grafton.

            Earlier, on the marina’s internet connection the Captain paid the VISA bill and the Mate updated the websites.  On the Xlibris site, she found out her first book was ordered by someone in Albuquerque, NM.  Is this my cousin perchance?  Another cause for celebration!

17.9 milles today

TUESDAY, 10/4

            Cast off at 0620.  Lock 26 (Mel Price) was busy but using the auxiliary lock as well.  We motored right in with two fishing boats.  All three of us floated through the lockage.  At 0820, we motored right in at Lock 27 (Chain of Rocks), a solo lockage in the main lock.  At 0845, we cruised into the free running Mississippi River.  This certainly was a different scene than on our pontoon trip in 1997.  The main lock was down then for repairs.  There was heavy barge traffic and they were backed up all along the entrance canal to the lock.  We passed tow after tow as we motored our way to the lock.  When the Captain called and asked what the lockmaster wanted us to do, he responded, “Turn around and go North!”  “It’s hard to get to Mobile that way!”  We locked through with the Penny Eckstein, one of the largest line boats we have ever seen.  It was an awesome lockage – turbulent as well.  Today’s drop was like being in a bathtub – so smooth.  This was our last down lock until midway on the Tenn-Tom Waterway.  We’ll be back into the turbulence of up-lockages now.

Our usual speed of 8.0 mph got a boost to 11.5 mph, and then settled in around 10.5 mph with the chop from the tows.  Our average for today’s leg of 84 miles was bumped up from the trip average of 4.5 miles per gallon to 6 mpg.  Quite a boost with the help of the current.

            Today was a beautiful cruising day, pleasant, nice breezes.  We passed the St. Louis Arch, a striking landmark.  The river is not very turbulent, although we did hit a few spots where the water was boiling.  The boils at mm 130 were still active, trying to push the WE BE BLEST III this way and that.

            We cruised by a number of bluffs, so this was a very scenic trip today.  Docked at the Kaskaskia Lock wall at 1545.  LOOPER TOM KAT, a 32’ PDQ sail cat was already there.  We visited with them, had supper and crashed early at 2030 – even before cruiser’s midnight of 2100.  84 miles today, 2 locks.

WEDNESDAY, 10/5

            Up at 0638.  We about had a “head” catastrophe this morning.  When the Captain flushed, he knocked a 3” suction cup-hook off the wall.  Since things were hanging on it, the Mate noticed they were down, so she looked, but could not find the hook.  He looked but could not find the hook.  Well, guess where it was! 

We had visions of our “head” – that’s boat-speak for toilet -- trying to digest this large suction cup and hook – not a pretty thought!  Peeking in, there it was – within reach – of the Mate’s hand.  Of course, not the Captain’s, since his was too large, he gratefully thought!  The hook and suction cup had caught just above the hose entrance.  Thank goodness it was larger than the diameter of the hose.  Disaster averted.  Now bring out the Clorox clean-up!

            On a more pleasant note, today was a beautiful cruising day again.  With the throttle set at 1800 rpm for our normal speed of 7.5 mph, we cruised along at an average of 10.5 mph thanks to the river’s kick.  We even sailed along at 12.9 mph for a bit.  The river is quite scenic with more bluffs along the way.  However, the boiling current, debris, and numerous logs make it a stretch that we just want to get through.  Since we stop for the night, but the river keeps right on flowing, we have the privilege of getting a second look at the debris and logs that we passed yesterday!  Captain’s report:  “They haven’t changed much!”

            Dogtooth Bend, mm27 was very calm but muddy – not the experience as last year when Jan wrote the story, Diamonds on Big Muddy, for her brother Bob.  However, there was a fire nearby with clouds of smoke billowing upwards.  At one brief point, the sun and smoke intersected, the diamonds were a beautiful sparkling gold.  What a treat!  This gold color usually appears only right before sunset when the sun is very low in the sky.

            At 1730, we anchored at the lower end of Boston Bar, mm 7.5.  The water is about five feet lower than last year when we anchored in this spot, so we dropped three hooks (two bow and one stern) and anchored in the mouth, just outside of the main river channel.  The LENA, a German registered boat was already anchored when we pulled in here.  We last saw her late May in Mile Hammock Bay, North Carolina.  Amazing how our wakes intersect again!

This was our last night on the Mississippi River and a noisy one since we were anchored by the I-57 bridge from Illinois to Missouri.  When several trucks were on the bridge at the same time, it sounded like a freight train coming toward us.  Often the truckers honked their horns at us – even late at night and early in the morning! 

11 hours of motoring   112 miles traveled.  A long day!

THURSDAY, 10/6

            Anchors up at 0650.  It was cool with our north wind as predicted.  Motored by the anchorage at Angelo Towhead, mm1.  It had silted in with the low water.  There were snags close to the center of the channel.  We may have been able to get out of the main river channel into here if we favored the island side of the deeper water.  Since the Mississippi is down five feet from last year, some of the anchorages are silted in. 

            0735    Good-Bye Big Muddy              Hello Ohio River.

                        Good-Bye mud                                    Hello clearer water.

                        Good-Bye 11.6 mph                            Hello 6.7 mph.  Opps! We’re going upstream now!

            Lock 53 was not in use.  The wickets were down on the dam, so we passed over them, sailing by the lock.  The 1200’ chamber at Lock 52 on the Ohio was built as a temporary lock in 1969.  The new Olmstead Lock has been under construction for many, many years.  It will replace the two current ones on the Ohio.  Last year it was due to be opened in 2011, now the schedule says 2013, although the lockmaster heard not until 2022!  Already the computer system in the powerhouse is outdated.  Duh!  That’s a no-brainer!  “Should I put in computers ten or more years before we begin operation?”  Evidently, the construction of the dam is causing the hold-up.

            We used two 40’ lines to hand up to the lockmaster.  This was our first lock up since Balsam Lake on the Trent-Severn.  It was slow, but smooth and we motored out at 1415.  We decided it would be too late to head to the Kentucky Lock on the Tennessee River, since it would be dark when we arrived and often there is a long delay waiting for barges locking through it. 

Therefore, we decided to take the Cumberland River toward Barkley Lock, and we found an anchorage at mm 924 on the Ohio River at the south end of Cumberland Towhead.  What a relief to be out of the wind.  Dropped two bow anchors in 7 feet of water.  Had good sets with both.  We were secure in the current.  

Last year this was a three-river day:  the Mississippi, Ohio, and Tennessee.  We thought we might be able to make it a four-river day by motoring into the Cumberland after going through Kentucky Lock.  However, our speed was less than last year.  It is later in the year, and with shorter days, we did not want to motor in the dark.  Perhaps another time!

65 miles today   2 locks

FRIDAY, 10/7

            Slept in, and had a relaxing morning.  There was no need to take off early with only 40 miles to Barkley Lock and Kentucky Lake.  Anchors up at 0800.  It was windy and cold this morning.  The Mate had chilled hands by the time the anchors were up, stored and the lines and deck washed.  BRR!  The Captain had socks and sweats on to keep warm.  The Mate layered with double pants and windbreakers.  The sun was warm however and it was pleasant later in the morning.

            The Cumberland narrows as we motored up toward the lock.  As we meandered back and forth, we had the river almost exclusively to ourselves along with the deer, wild turkeys, vultures, and bald eagle.  Faint hints of orange and yellow with a rare bit of red peeked through the fading green leaves.  Tall river-worn sand banks and shores littered with exposed stumps and downed trees were reminders of past high water surges.

            We locked through 57’ Barkley Lock, our 93^rd lock this year, with a bit of difficulty due to the wind.  When the Mate tossed the line around the bollard, it got caught and would not pull in to snug the WE BE BLEST III nearer to the lock wall.  The wind was blowing into the lock, shoving the bow of the boat and the anchor into the lock wall.  OPPS!  It took quite a bit of maneuvering and fighting the wind to finally cinch up the line and secure the WE BE BLEST III for locking.  That was NOT pretty!

            Motored into Green Turtle Bay Marina to pick up some supplies we had ordered.  Several LOOPERS were docked there:  ETC, LENA, CANYON HOBO, SUMMERTIME, all boats we had seen along the way.  We will take a slip here tomorrow.  Today we motored into the Tennessee River and anchored just downstream around the bend from the Barkley Canal.  During happy hour, we watched an osprey catch two different fish and have a feast on a high branch of a dead tree.  He did not gulp down the fish as a seagull or pelican would do.  Instead, he picked at it very carefully, spitting out some things, perhaps skin and some bones.  We had our own wildlife show.

37 miles today    1 lock

* * *

LOG 33     10/8-10/15

Greetings from the WE BE BLEST III,

LOOPERS, bras and panties ... sounds a bit risqué to me.

A great surprise.

Tree-watching, story-writing and wildlife shows

SATURDAY-SUNDAY, 10/8-10/9

Anchors up at 0829 and we motored back the 3.3 miles to Green Turtle Bay Marina.  Took a slip for two nights.  The marina owner presented a seminar for LOOPERS giving cruising tips and anchorages on the Tennessee River and Tenn-Tom Waterway.  Good information.  We visited with LOOPERs, more had come in, and washed the boat.  Rode our bikes into Grand Rivers for the Harvest Moon Festival, watched the local parade, and shopped the crafts booths.  Attended church Sunday and had dinner with a group of LOOPERS.

Now for a couple underwear stories – Yes, you read that correctly:  Notice NOT to be placed on the marina bulletin board:  Lost – 1 bra.  If found contact the WE BE BLEST III.  Saturday, the Mate took her shower, washed her nylon jogging pants and bra, as she usually did, wrapped them in her towel and walked back the short distance to the boat, stopping at two LOOPER boats to chat.  Back on the WE BE BLEST III, the bra was not in the towel.  With visions of the missing bra draping on a boat or laying on the dock, she retraced her steps wondering, “How does one casually and confidently pick up a stray bra lieing in a public place?”  Well, there was no bra to be found on the docks, at the boats, in the shower.  Back to the boat – search some more -- nope, no bra.  Back to the shower, retrace steps again.  Nope.  Back to the boat search some more.  Perhaps it fell in the wastebasket near the shower.  Back to the shower.  The wastebasket had just been emptied!  The down side of this incident – that was her newest bra!  The upside – no need to act “cool” picking up a runaway bra!

The other underwear story:   One Canadian Captain, whom I will refrain from identifying, “discovered” late one day that he had been wearing his wife’s panties all day.  They evidently were put in the wrong drawer after being washed.  “I thought they were a little tight and fit funny!” he confessed.  We all laughed and laughed over this one.  Sometimes we get a little slap-happy traveling on a boat for so long.  Simple amusements!

MONDAY-TUESDAY, 10/10-10/11

            The weather has been quite cool and windy.  Cast off from Green Turtle at 1128 heading to Lake Barkley State Park Marina.  Up the Cumberland 29.4 miles, we were bundled up with long pants, sweats and jackets.  Where’s our warm Florida weather?  88 degrees with 88% humidity.  We need a blend of the two extremes.  Took a slip at the marina for two nights.  Jack and Joyce Kotarek from ALMOST PURFICT live nearby.  What a nice surprise!  They left their car for us to use with maps to the Super Wally World, Lowes, Office Max and their house.  We spent Tuesday morning and afternoon reprovisioning, getting supplies, printing bookmarks announcing Jan’s book, and doing laundry.  Supper and a delightful evening visiting with Jack and Joyce capped the day as we swapped LOOPER stories.

WEDNESDAY –SATURDAY, 10/12-10/15

            Back to Green Turtle Bay to pick up a repair kit for our leaking water pump.  We have a new one on order, under warranty, to be delivered to Midway Marina in Fulton, MS.  We will use the repair kit only if we need to before getting the new replacement.  

Wednesday we anchored in O’Brien Creek at mm 26 on the Tennessee River.  This is a beautiful wooded anchorage on the LBL (Land Between the Lakes) on Kentucky Lake.  The Mate finally got her wish to just sit and look at trees so words could flow from her pen.  We stayed there until Friday morning.  It was a good stop with two stories added to the journal book. 

The first afternoon the wildlife show resumed.  An osprey swooped and dove completely under water.  He came up with a fish in its talons.  The osprey rose from the surface, shaking the water from its wings, and then circled our little bay three times before it finally landed in a dead tree to enjoy his meal.  We surmise the osprey was waiting for the fish to die before he began the feast.

Friday, anchors up at 1050 and we moved a whole 8 miles to mm 34, Duncan Bay on the LBL of the Tennessee River.  It was time for more tree-watching and story-writing.  The Mate feels like she is on vacation.  The Captain watched while boats from Green Turtle Bay motored past our anchorage.  We even recognized some of then, “They’re getting our place in line!” he moaned.  To this the Mate responded, “Today we learn patience, Captain!”

* * *

LOG 34     10/16-10/23

Greetings from the WE BE BLEST III,

Six days of fantastic anchorages.  Just us and the woods. Read all about it. 

Lots of trees to look at, so lots of words came out of the Mate's pen for her next book.

Pray WILMA will fizzle out!  She's headed for our territory.

Be sure to check out the last page on the website. 

Our son Neal and wife Becky have a new site for families called SIMPLE SMILES. 

Lots of great resources and help for families.

Here's the link for SIMPLE SMILES    www.simplesmiles4u.com

SUNDAY-MONDAY, 10/16-10/17

            Anchors up at 0730.  We started out today heading toward our anchorage about 50 miles away.  However, after calling Daron and Kayla in the morning and arranging to go to their home Friday, we showed the pace, and stopped at 1350 for two days in an anchorage, again in the LBL in Clay Bay, mm54.

These last three anchorages have been beautiful stops -- narrow finger, tree-lined bays with wooded ridges, and no structures whatsoever.  Just us and the woods – with an occasional fisherman trolling through our bays.  We can see the leaves changing each day as more yellows, oranges, and reds begin to appear. 

In the late afternoon, small fish, 3-4 inches long, jump out of the water in silvery streaks.  Seagulls cruise innumerable laps around the bay, diving and splashing in the water, enjoying their seafood buffet.  Squawking herons glide from shore to shore.  “They never will be mistaken for a songbird,” the Captain declared.  Sunset comes with its vibrant oranges and reds in the west while simultaneously the full moon begins its ascent in the eastern sky, surrounded by lavender wispy clouds.  A band of moon diamonds stretches from the shore to the WE BE BLEST III.  A faint call of a loon repeats several times – a delightful surprise on the Tennessee River.  Six days of anchoring, writing, reading, enjoying God’s special gifts and blessings.  LIFE IS GOOD!  We’ve had ideal weather, pleasant temperatures – 70’s in the day, very little wind, 40’s-50’s at night, good bundling weather.

TUESDAY-WEDNESDAY, 10/18-10/19

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO GREG!  35 years ago, God blessed us with our middle son, a doctor, born on the feast of St. Luke, the great physician.  How appropriate!

The Mate jumped out of bed at 0630, as the setting full moon was shining into the cabin window, directly in her eyes.  Camera and coffee cup in hand, up the flybridge she climbed to enjoy a rare (for her) sunrise.  Does that time of day even exist?!  What a beautiful display of reds, oranges and bright yellows (the opposite order of the sunset colors) as now the sun rose over the eastern ridge of trees, while a slight fog floated over the water.  A bright glowing sphere splashed golden diamonds from the shore to the WE BE BLEST III.  Behind her, the moon was setting in a sky of feathery faint red clouds.  It was a quiet, reverent, prayerful time.

Anchors up at 0833.  We decided to head to Pebble Isle Marina today instead of tomorrow.  We are taking a slip for a week, only $70, so this will have us in the marina for the entire week, if we leave next Tuesday after our trip to Ft. Smith.  This was a fantastic morning for cruising.  Glistening diamonds were scattered everywhere in the water in front of us.  Kentucky Lake is certainly a beautiful body of water.  In the past, we cruised through it on our way up the Tennessee system.  This year, we have savored its many spectacular anchorages.

At 1215, we passed a 60’ Hatteras, FAMILY MATTERS, which appeared to be anchored just out of the channel.  We had seen them in Canada on the Trent-Severn Canal – and once again, boats come together.  This is a young family, with 9 and 11-year old boys.  The parents are home schooling them as they travel. 

The Mate hailed them on the radio to say hello and found out they were aground waiting 1½ hours for Sea Tow.  We had been the first cruiser to call them.  We offered to help, but they said Sea Tow should be there soon.  About 15 minutes later, Sea Tow did come – a pontoon!  Shortly after, we turned around and headed back with extra towing lines, but surprisingly, with a tow from the pontoon, and waves from WATER GREMLIN, another large Hatteras, FAMILY MATTERS was soon floating.  Fortunately, she had no prop damage.  We all docked at Pebble Isle Marina that night.  mm 96 Tenn River, 46.5 miles

This is a great marina, very friendly, reasonable dockage, $2.75/foot for a week.  Only $1 for a pumpout.  Boat US discount on the fuel.  A number of LOOPERS stop here for a week or more.  Enterprise is nearby for car rentals to Memphis and Nashville, or in our case to Ft. Smith.  There even is a Super Wally World nearby in Waverly, TN. 

We’ve had happy hours on the docks in the evening -- a good time to meet and visit with other boaters and LOOPERS.  A number of boaters are waiting out the hurricane season here, since they can’t be in Florida too soon, or their boat insurance is not valid.  Speaking of hurricanes, we wait to see what kind of dance Wilma will be doing.  Today her predicted path shows it hitting Florida between Tampa and Naples, including Fort Myers.  Saturday, at Daron and Kayla’s we will watch and see if we still have a home.  Many of our friends from our park, Old Bridge Village, are evacuating, beginning tomorrow.  We wait and pray she will fizzle out.

The Captain picked up the rental car this afternoon.  Tomorrow morning, Thursday, we will drive to Ft. Smith and return to the WE BE BLEST III on Monday.

THURSDAY-SUNDAY, OCT 20-23

            What a good visit we are having with Daron and Kayla in their new home.  Kayla teaches water aerobics, so we worked out in two of her back-to-back classes.  Our “salon potato” (couch potato) bodies know they had a workout!  Then we toured Daron’s plant where he is operations manager for Graphic Packaging.  They print the cartons for many of the food products and beer that end up on your tables.  What a fascinating operation.

            We’ve been checking the progress of Hurricane Wilma all weekend as she has battered Cancun.  Tomorrow, Monday, she’ll be over our area in Ft. Myers.  We continue to pray for an easy pass as Wilma scoots over Florida.

* * *

LOG 35     10/24-10/29

Greetings from the WE BE BLEST III,
Good news  about Wilma.       Anchoring, hawks, and coyotes.
Frost on the Flybridge??        Are we ready for role reversal?

MONDAY, 10/24

            Thank You, God!  Thank You, God!  At 1500, we returned to the marina from our trip to Ft. Smith.  Our neighbors, Betty and Bob, had called to report we still had a house, and so did they.  Bob walked through of our home and indicated we had no wind or water damage or leaks.  THANK YOU, GOD!  Several homes in our park had broken windows, roof and lanai damage.  However, the park as a whole had much less damage than after Charlie flew by us last year.  Ft. Myers was on the backside of Hurricane Wilma, so winds were not as strong as the leading edge; although Betty heard we had 110 mph winds.

            It’s always so difficult to pray for the safety of our property, knowing that means someone else gets hit.  Our hearts go out to Naples, Marco Island, and the east coast cities ravaged by Wilma’s wrath.  We have Camano friends who live in Naples, Power and Light friends with a condo there, and the parents of one of the Captain’s high school buddies winters in Bonita Springs.  We do hope they were not hit too hard.

            We had considered keeping the rental car and driving down to Florida to help in the clean-up of our park.  However, several of our neighbors recommended we continue with the boat trip since the damage was not that severe.  Therefore, while the Captain returned the rental car, the Mate stowed our provisions, unpacked from the trip and made ready to leave in the morning.

            The weather has certainly changed from the 90 degrees we had last week when we pulled into Pebble Isle Marina.  We do not mind the cool a bit, since that Canadian front kept Wilma south of us.

Since it was so chilly, the marina graciously offered the office/ships store for our happy hour gathering place.  More boaters had come in while we were gone and some were still there from last week.  All were waiting for the end of hurricane season to head south.  Many non-Florida boaters cannot be below the 35^th parallel (off the Tennessee River), some cannot be below Demopolis (on the Tenn-Tom Waterway), before November 1 or 15, or their insurance is VOID.  Not a good thing.  Instead, they find comfortable marinas and wait.

TUESDAY, 10/25

Two months to Christmas.  Two months until we fly to San Antonio to Greg and Priya’s new home where the whole family will be getting together.  Two months until Grandma gets more hugs!  Alright! 

Cast of at 0850.  A very cold morning.  We bundled up in layers as we headed upriver.  Occasionally on the flybridge, we mainly motored from down below to keep warm.  The Mate fought back a headache with a couple naps, curled up in the cozy v-berth.

            We wanted to make about 60 miles today to arrive at Midway Marina in Fulton, MS as soon as we could.  Our water pump leak is much worse and fills a five-quart ice cream pail quickly.  To stop the water leak, we keep the tanks closed unless we are using water.  A new pump should be at Midway Marina by now.  It is a three-day trip from Pebble Isle Marina, so we hope to nurse the pump until Fulton.

At 1800, after a long cold day traveling 67.4 miles, we anchored in Hardin Creek, mm 165.  This is a narrow finger bay and a sailboat had already anchored inside, so we dropped our hooks, bow and stern, in the mouth of the bay.

WEDNESDAY, 10/26

            FROST ON THE FLYBRIDGE!  Who would have thought frost on the flybridge.  Never thought we’d live to see that on the WE BE BLEST III.  “Why are we still up here?  The Captain asked.  “Hurricanes,” the Mate answered.  It’s time to head south – hurricanes or no hurricanes.  We’re bundled up in multilayers – needing gloves and ear muffs.  Why did I leave them in Florida?! 

This morning when we got up, the cabin was 47 degrees.  BRRR!  The Captain bundled up in his chamois shirt and down winter coat.  The Mate wore two pair of pants, and two fleece pullovers on top of two other layers.  Our hands, feet and ears were frozen.  Where’s that warm Florida weather?  Patchy frost -- that was the forecast for the next several days.  It’s bundling weather, honey!

            We pulled anchors at 0746 as the fog poured out of Hardin Creek into the Tennessee River.  Slowly motoring into the river, a thick fog bank engulfed the WE BE BLEST III.  For almost ninety minutes, almost blinded by the fog, we felt our way upstream with our radar indicating our position in relation to the riverbanks.  Often the fog completely blocked any view of the banks and trees.  At one point, the radar picked up an object off to our port.  The Captain veered toward the starboard shore.  Checking the chart, the object was a green can (navigation aid) not a boat or barge. 

We used our radio to issue an automatic fog signal for a vessel underway – a 5-second blast at 2-minute intervals.  Any oncoming vessels should be able to hear that.  We met none.  After the fog lifted, the Captain remarked, “That gave us almost a two hour earlier start today, thanks to the radar.”  Radar is indispensable in the fog.  This was a good refresher for our potential foggy open water crossings in Florida’s Big Bend.

By 1230, we were peeling our layers as the sun warmed the day and us.  It was beautiful on the flybridge – gentle winds, sun shining, puffy clouds, diamonds dancing.  The Mate fixed the Captain hickory smoked ribs, potato salad, and baked beans for lunch.  What a feast!  The ribs were compliments of Daron and Kayla and the role reversal that took place.  We brought our laundry to wash at their home and they sent us off with hickory smoked ribs, chickens, and loin, as well as homemade pumpkin bread.  This was shades of college, when Daron would come home with his laundry and carry off multiple doggy bags of home-cooked goodies.  “Am I ready for role reversal?” the Captain mused.  “You bet I am!” the Mate declared.  After lunch today, the Captain agreed!

            We locked through Pickwick Lock, our last one on the Tennessee River with very little waiting.  No barges were in the area.  This was a 55’ lift and our 94^th lock on this trip.  Because of the turbulence as the lock filled, first the Captain, then the Mate had a hard time keeping the stern and then the bow off the lock wall.  Even with the bow thruster, the turbulence kept forcing us into the wall.  That’s why we use fenders – to save the boat!

            As we approached the entrance to Yellow Creek and the Tenn-Tom Waterway, we had a decision -- where to anchor for the night.  We had three possibilities.  Our favorite anchorage is on the left descending bank at mm 218.8, in Whetstone Branch.  We anchored there twice on our pontoon trip in ’97 and three nights last year.  In the bay, one small cove to port has a waterfall at the end of it.  We enjoyed listening to the water and dinked over to see it last year.  Our second choice was a bay on Yellow Creek, past Grand Harbor Marina, about mm 449.2 in Zippy Branch.  We overnighted in this lovely, protected anchorage last year as our starting point for the Tenn-Tom. 

We picked our third choice – a new anchorage across the river from Whetstone Branch.  Panther Creek, mm 218.5, is a very popular anchorage on summer weekends.  Today we had it to ourselves.  All wooded, since it is a state wildlife management area, there are no structures at all.  We chose the starboard fork.  Enjoying happy hour on the flybridge, we watched two birds make innumerable passes over the water’s surface.  At first, we though they might be immature eagles, but decided they were probably hawks.  Herons flew from bank to bank looking for their supper.  Later, in the evening a pack of coyotes tore through the woods howling and shrieking.  They were very close to shore.  This was a good night not to be camping there.  We listened to them several times in the evening and the Captain even heard them during the night.  Another cool night, we bundled up with the down comforter.

1607 Anchored at mm 218.5, Panther Creek, 53.5 miles traveled, 1 lock

THURSDAY, 10/27

            Anchor up at 0710.  We headed across the Tennessee River back down the three miles to Yellow Creek, the entrance to the Tenn-Tom Waterway, mm 450.  We said good-bye to the Tennessee, knowing there were still more anchorages to explore on another trip.  The Tenn-Tom will take us the 450 miles down to Mobile Bay.  This could be a 10-14 day trip through the backwaters of Mississippi and Alabama.  Remembering last year, we will often be without good cell phone reception – this is Deliverance territory.  Log updates could be sporadic as well.

The upper part of the Tenn-Tom is a 39-mile long divide cut, followed by a 46-mile canal section, then a 149-mile river section – 234 miles total.  To create this waterway, it took 1400 men and women working two 10-hour shifts a day to move more than 150 million yards of earth.  Completed in 1984, this was the largest civil works projects the Army Corps of Engineers ever completed.  It is five times longer than the Panama Canal.  Twelve locks and dams drop boaters a total of 341 feet from the Tennessee River to Mobile Bay. The Tenn-Tom Waterway, ending at Demopolis, Alabama, the eleventh lock, then connects with a 217-mile section of the Tombigbee River, which flows into Mobile Bay.

            The first time we cruised through the divide cut, with riprap on each side, there was not too much vegetation.  Over the last 7 years, a number of trees and shrubs have grown up along the shore and it is not nearly the barren canal of the past.  Mother Nature heals the scars man can make.

            We transited the first three locks on the Tenn-Tom today.  The lockmasters seemed to enjoy waiting for straggling boaters to come into the locks.  The first boats into lock #1 must have waited over 30-45 minutes for all the boats to arrive.  We all sailed into and down lock #2 with little waiting.

However, the five of us from the first two locks then waited over 40 minutes for two more boats to come into lock #3.  They were in the lockages after us through Locks 1 and 2.  Evidently Lockmaster #3 decided we should wait for them.  And the lockmasters are in charge since it is THEIR lock!  Oh well, we were stopping just past the third lock anyway, so it put us into the marina a little later than we thought.

            Midway Marina in Fulton is where we ended our pontoon trip in 1997.  One of the Captain’s cousins lives here in Fulton as well.  So we contacted Shirley and Don and will be getting together with them tomorrow.  In the meantime, the Captain replaced the water pump with the new one that was sent here, while the Mate began to go through our mail that our neighbor shipped here.

Mm394            61.4 miles         3 locks

FRIDAY-SATURDAY,   10/28-10/29

            Friday, we worked on our mail and the Captain took care of some boat maintenance tasks.  Shirley, the Captain’s cousin, and her husband Don came over to the marina in the afternoon.  We had a good visit, catching up on family activities, enjoyed supper with them and provisioned at … where else, but Wally World.

            We decided to stay an extra day to finish some more maintenance tasks and get the boat washed in the short-lived heat of the day … before the ch-ch-chilly late afternoon temperatures came.  The marina sponsored a Halloween pot-luck, so we joined the fun.  Prizes were even handed out to everyone.  Then the evening concluded with a karaoke contest.  The Mate decided to try it for the very first time.  She chose Unchained Melody and sang it to the Captain … and won 1^st prize!  A marina sweatshirt … a good item to have in this weather!  The Captain said it was rigged, since the Mate was the only non-relative who was singing.  It was fun anyway!

            Now for kudos to the Captain.  As we were cruising the last bit on the Tennessee River a couple days ago, the Captain noticed a big cruiser behind us throwing a fairly large wake.  My Captain slowed down as it approached.  When both vessels are at reduced speed it allows the faster boat to pass the slower one easier and with less wake.  Captain Gene called the other cruiser to thank him for the slow pass and the other captain indicated he was about to call us.  He thanked us for slowing down and making his passing easier.  He said my Captain was the first one today to do that – the first one he has passed who knew what he was doing!  Way to go!  That’s my Captain!  I knew I hired on to a great ship!

            Speaking of my Captain.  There seems to have been a slight misunderstanding of the log entry from Sunday 10/9.  In the underwear story, the log specifically stated it was an unnamed Canadian Captain who ended up wearing his wife’s panties.  This unnamed captain was NOT the Captain of the WE BE BLEST III!  There … that should set the record straight!

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LOG 36     10/30-11/5

Greetings from the WE BE BLEST III,

"Let's set the log straight," the Captain remarked.  "It was NOT me!"

A special church service...

Touring a historic snagboat ... What's a snagboat?, you ask ...

Another wonderful anchorage enjoying Indian summer days.

SUNDAY, 10/30

In a marina on a Sunday – that meant we were able to attend church.  The Catholic Church in Fulton is a small priest-less parish, but has a mission coordinator, Jerry Woods, who leads the congregation in a Word and Communion Service.  The bonus in the service was Jerry baptizing his granddaughter Maggie.  He asked each member of the congregation to trace a cross on Maggie’s forehead to bless her.  How special that was.

Cast off from Midway marina at 1030.  Transited three locks and anchored at Blue Bluff Rec Area, a nice anchorage just north of Aberdeen Lock.

Mm358            37 miles traveled           3 locks

MONDAY, 10/31

            Happy Birthday to Naleah -- our Wisconsin two year old.  Due around Thanksgiving, she tricked then treated us on Halloween!

            Still in our anchorage, we saw a boat approaching the lock.  We quickly pulled our anchor and called the lock.  The lockmaster waited for us to arrive.  We had planned to stop at Columbus Marina, but heard fuel was cheaper at Waverly Marina.  So we followed SILVER BOOTS to the fuel dock.  After they took a big drink – 450 gallons, we added our 60 and decided to stay the night – only 50 cents per foot.  

This is a very laid back marina.  Suzie the owner was extremely friendly.  We used the courtesy truck to go to Columbus for a few provisions.  Back on the boat, the Mate worked on her stories up on the flybridge – enjoying the nearby woods and flowers.  However, around the bend, Tom-Soya started loading grain into a barge and soon the WE BE BLEST III was covered with grain dust.  No longer a light cream color, she was a dark tan.  We moved the boat back along the transient dock (we were the only boat).  It helped somewhat.  Then the Captain hosed off the boat.  Perhaps this is why dockage is so reasonable!

Mm338            20 miles today              1 lock

TUESDAY, 11/1

            After our early morning rain, the Captain hosed off the rest of the grain dust and we cast off at 0805.  While the Mate cleaned up the grain dust inside the cabin, we slowly followed a tow into Stennis Lock by Columbus, AL.  He was only a single wide with two barges of wood chips, so we secured to the opposite side of the lock, and a LOOPER power cat, ARIEL motored in behind us. 

            Around 1400 we tied up to the small dock at the Tom Bevill Visitors Center, mm 307.  Built like a southern mansion, the visitors center incorporates the key design features of three Alabama mansions, including reproductions of the furniture and other furnishings.  Interesting displays and exhibits described the Tenn-Tom Waterway, local wildlife, and the sternwheelers that plied the southern rivers.

            The USS Montgomery, a retired snagboat, is in dry dock here, as a National Historic Landmark.  For almost 60 years, she worked to keep seven major rivers navigable.  Built in 1926, the 108’ long Montgomery had steam driven paddlewheels.  A 45-ton crane with a claw lifted snags (trees and debris) from the river – sometimes piling them on shore to stop erosion, other times in barges to haul away.  Snags were not the only things dragged up by the boom and claw.  The crew retrieved sunken boats, even a Confederate gunboat, and seven dead bodies during her nearly six decades of service.

            The Montgomery also had a huge clamshell on the boom that scooped mud and sand from shoaling areas.  Keeping the river channels open and at designated depths was, and still is today, a constant task.  Bank erosion continually occurs, especially during times of heavy rain and flooding, washing trees, shrubs, snags and other debris into the river.  This in turn creates shoaled areas as sand and mud pile up along the snags.  Today, the Army Corps of Engineers continues to maintain the waterways with snagboats and dredges.

            The crew from ARIEL came to the visitor center in a courtesy car from the nearby marina.  We visited with them and the guide from the visitor center who was intrigued with traveling on a boat.  We described our two boats noting the similarities to her rig in the nearby campground.  We invited her aboard the WE BE BLEST III for a “nickel” tour.  She enjoyed that.

            After leaving the MONTGOMERY, we attempted to anchor at mm 308.1 near the Pickensville Recreation Area.  The wide channel was 40’ deep so the Captain slowly headed over toward the port looking for the underwater bank to come up – 30’ … 25’ ... 15’ … Looks like a good  spot.  Opps!  We were aground, just that quickly.  The breeze must have blown us into the mud.  It took a bit of maneuvering to wiggle us free and back into the deeper water. 

We scrapped that anchorage, headed back up river another mile to 309.3, and anchored near the boat ramp for the Bigbee Valley Access Area.  It was adjacent to a very nice riverside campground – probably the one where our visitor center guide was camping.

Mm 309.3        35.1 miles         1 lock

WEDNESDAY-FRIDAY, 11/2-11/4

            Awoke at 0600 to a brisk 57 degrees in the v-berth.  It was 61 degrees when we hit the sack last night.  BRRR!  We need to keep heading south.  Hope we are about done with hurricanes.

 Just about the time the pot of coffee finished dripping, the generator died.  Uh-oh!  Not a good sign.  The Captain checked the sea strainer.  It was OK.  He had cleaned the engine sea strainer last night after being stuck on the bottom.  Perhaps the raw water inlet is plugged with mud.  He’ll check into it tonight at anchor.

            Anchor up at 0700 and solo transited Tom Bevill Lock with no waiting.  This was our 103^rd lock this trip.  Only three more on the Tenn-Tom, and we’re done with locks for this trip!  Yippee!  We reflected on our many lockages in the WE BE BLEST I, II, and III … probably 350-400 in all.  We have locked through the entire Upper Mississippi River system (some locks several times).  We also transited all the locks on the Tennessee River several times, Trent-Severn Canal, Oswego Canal, Champlain Canal, Dismal Swamp, Tenn-Tom Waterway, Illinois River, Caloosahatchee River, and St. Lucie River.  We have gone thru 3 of the 4 locks on the Cumberland, 2 on the Ohio, and 23 locks on the Erie Canal. 

We approached our first ones with apprehension, unsure of our locking technique.  Gaining confidence, they became easier as we learned tricks and picked up tips from others.  Each of our boats necessitated developing new procedures.  Hundreds of lockages does make the procedure easier, but each one is still unique because of wind, weather and other boats in the lock.  Every now and then we are humbled by an UGLY lockage – blowing around in the lock, having difficulty with lines, rubbng the lock wall.  Oh well, we’re not perfect, so we try to laugh at ourselves.  Anyway, that’s what fenders are for!

            We slowly motored into Sumter Landing Rec Area, mm270, at 1215, crossing the bar at the entrance to the bay with about 1 foot under us.  The center does seem to be the deepest.  After dropping two anchors, the Captain troubleshot the generator and found nothing wrong.  The intake was not plugged.  He checked several things and it worked fine. 

This is a very scenic spot, all wooded with a bay within the bay.  There is a boat ramp and an Army Corps rustic campground with flush johns.  We decided to stay three days so the Mate could look at trees and work on her writing.  These were beautiful Indian Summer days – fish jumping, schools of minnows darting as they evaded predator fish, herons patrolling the shore, an eagle soaring overhead, even an armadillo rustling in the underbrush along shore.  We walked around the campground to get some exercise and visited with the campground hosts.  The sight of pinecones and pine needles, the sound of crunching leaves, the smell of the pines, the colors in the leaves – memories of living in Wisconsin and deer hunting came flooding back.  What a beautiful day!

            Wednesday afternoon, two LOOPERS anchored here – ARIEL and OTHERWISE.  We enjoyed happy hour on ARIEL.  Thursday we had the anchorage to ourselves except for a couple small fishing boats during the day.  Friday, RIVER QUEST came in (we visited on their boat), followed later by LORIEL and KINDRED SPIRIT.  LORIEL was the only non-LOOPER.  They are from Minnesota and will be staying the winter at Centennial Marina in Ft. Myers.  Perhaps we will see them down there.

Mm270            38.7 miles traveled        1 lock

SATURDAY, 11/5

            We pulled anchors at 0655 heading to Heflin Lock.  TOM CAT joined the four of us in the lock.  Then we all motored to Demopolis 52 miles away.

            1400 arrived at Demopolis Yacht Basin.  Fueled up and took a slip.  Since many boats had come up because of hurricanes, the marina is usually full to overflowing every night.  They have room for many boats (a hundred or so) on the hard (on land), so quite a few boats are stored here for extended periods of time.  We had the choice of a very short slip or rafting off at the fuel dock to another trawler.  We chose the former, nosing just up to the bow of a huge 90’ cruiser.  Her anchor would probably sink our dinghy!  We only had about 20’ of pier, so it was a bit awkward getting on and off our boat.  We mused, “Since we only got 20’ of dock space, do we only pay for 20’?  Alas No – we still paid on our 28’ of length.

            We had a whirlwind 22 hours here – doing laundry, internet work, showers, provisioning, church and visiting with other boaters.  A short stay in a marina is not necessarily relaxing with all the chores to do.

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LOG 37    11/6-11/11