Southbound and down!
20 November 2017 | Off 'Bout Time in Bay Springs, MS
Southbound and down...but first you have to go north!
Let's start with a quick geography lesson. The Tennessee River flows south from its source in Tennessee down into northern Alabama, then it makes a turn and begins flowing north, back into Tennessee and eventually Kentucky before joining the Ohio near Paducah. Check it out in an atlas... They do still publish those, don't they? So, when we leave our home port of Aurora, we must go upstream for 204 miles until we reach the lock that takes us into Pickwick Lake. This is where the Tennessee Tombigbee Waterway begins with a manmade canal connecting the two rivers. As the crow flies, it's about 300 miles from Pickwick Lake to mile 0 in Mobile, Alabama, but because of the winding way of the rivers, by boat we travel the 450 miles.
This year we actually headed out under sail and enjoyed several hours of good sailing, but for remainder of the trip we must use our little diesel. Our speed varies from 4 mph near Pickwick Dam where we run against a strong current, to 8 mph in places where we move with the downstream current. Most of the time we move at about 6 mph. You'd be surprised just how much you can observe at that gentle pace. This year we encountered numerous herons and egrets, several Bald Eagles, two alligators, and about six deer. We also enjoy the variety of dwellings along the way, everything from rustic hunting and fishing camps to huge mansions. This year our weather was on the cool side, with about an equal mix of sunshine and clouds, but we only had two days that kept us in our longjohns all day.
Having completed numerous trips up and down this route, we enjoy the contrast of familiar experiences with new ones. We choose some new anchorages to explore and continue to return to previous favorites. And meeting new people always adds to the uniqueness of each excursion. This year's trip included a stop at our two favorite marinas along the route, Clifton Marina in Cliftton, TN and Kingfisher Bay Marina at Demopolis, AL. Clifton is our favorite because of the friendly hospitality of the folks who own and operate it, and we enjoy the new, convenient facilities at KBM. When living on a boat, nice showers and laundry are always a welcome treat. We prepare most of our meals on board, but when our travel coincides with the schedule at Bobby's Fish Camp, we make a point of partaking of some of their delicious catfish, and this year we were lucky to be close enough on a Sunday afternoon to make a stop.
Little did we know that shortly after leaving Bobby's with satisfied appetites we would encounter the only significant delay of this trip. We eased through Coffeeville Lock, the last of thirteen locks that must be navigated on this route. With sundown coming on us, we began watching the river banks for a suitable anchorage. While we prefer to get off the river into a creek or behind an island to anchor, there are times when that isn't possible, and we have learned to look for straight stretches behind either the red or green buoys that are safely out of the way of the tows with barges that ply the river twenty-four hours a day. We found such a spot and inquired of an oncoming tow captain as to the suitability of the site we were considering. He said he thought we should be safe, so we dropped the main anchor and also put out a stern anchor just to keep us in the best position. As I dropped the main anchor off the bow and the boat drifted back, there was a decided stop as the anchor set. We looked at each other and commented that getting it up the following morning might be difficult, depending upon what it had caught. But as it was almost dark, we chose to stay put for the night and deal with it in due time, Little did we know how accurate our misgivings would prove!
Our routine on the river is to get up early,usually just before sunrise, and have our coffee and weigh anchor as soon as we have good light. On this particular morning, we were looking forward to putting lots of miles behind us since we had no locks to clear. I went forward and began to raise the anchor. The power windlass smoothly retrieved the chain until it suddenly stopped and the bow of the boat tipped down. I glanced back at JR and motioned for him to ease forward. When I tried the winch again, I got the same result. This began our efforts to maneuver the boat in such a way as to free the anchor from whatever lurked below in the murky river water. We even managed to back the boat and turn up the stern upstream against the current, no small feat with our little engine. All of this was to no avail. The captain was just before cutting the chain, which would have resulted in the loss of our main anchor and most of our seventy-five feet of chain - no small investment - when the first mate suggested calling our towing insurance company. Bingo! Although they do not cover the cost of a diver per se, they do cover the cost of getting a diver to us. We were put in touch with their service provider in Moblie and arrangements began. At first we thought they could get to us that same day, but turned out it would be the next morning. Who were we to argue?!! So, we did a few boat chores and basically had a lazy day reading and relaxing. Weather was beautiful, and there are worse ways to spend a day.
The next morning we were contacted by the diver saying they would bring the boat to a ramp above the lock and launch from there. Radio transmissions and our observations from aboard 'BT told us that locking through could take a while since the large commercial loads have priority. Finally at 11:15 Mark and Don arrived. They secured their boat to ours and immediately set about preparing for the dive. Just a very few minutes after entering the water, the diver gave instructions to slowly bring the chain up. There were alternating orders to "Bring it up" and "All stop!" And in just twelve minutes, Don had freed all,of the chain and the anchor from what we would later be told was a massive tree root ball wider than he was tall. No wonder we couldn't pull free!
We signed the necessary paperwork, thanked them profusely, and headed on our way, a bit wiser in the ways of river anchoring.
Folks always ask us how long the river trip takes, and we always answer, "As long as it takes." There are far too many variables to give an unqualified answer. This year we left our home marina on October 25 and arrived in Mobile on November 16, but along the way we spent six days off the boat visiting family in Mississippi. And as I type this, I'm sitting in the little public library in Bay Springs, MS, again here for a holiday visit and family reunion. The actual number of days spent traveling on the river this time was seventeen, at least five of which were essentially half days or less by choice. So we've calculated that if we traveled all day straight through, it would probably take twelve days downstream, but the likelihood of ever having a reason to do that is slim to none.
We plan to return to 'BT Sunday and resume in our journey. Our plans are a bit indefinite right now, so follow us on Facebook if you're interested. With a definite lack of access to Internet, it's much easier to do quick updates that way.