The prediction was 70% chance of rain, high in the 60s, and winds 12 mph for today. We left Fort Walton Beach at our customary 6:30 and headed for Panama City. We had 3 to 6 foot waves in the Choctawhatchee Bay and had to make certain everything was secure so that things weren't flying around and getting broken. It took us about 4 hours to get through the Choctawhatchee Bay. The clouds were extremely dark. One time we had a little drizzle, but that was all. Pensacola had heavy rain after we were past there. Sunglasses and hats weren't necessary items today. We arrived in Panama City around 2:00 P.M. at the Panama City Marina. We rinsed the salt off the boat and headed for the ship store. All of us were impressed by the merchandise in their store (Christmas shopping?).
Later, we walked into town and had a delicious dinner at "The Place". Still no rain. Tomorrow there is a 100% chance of rain. We shall see. Our plan is to stay here until our guests arrive and then make our way to Carabelle and wait for the weather window to make the Gulf crossing. In the meantime, this seems like a nice place to hang out and do a little exploring.
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Friday was spent doing chores. We had Happy Hour on "Trusty III" and were treated to a viewing of a video of Claude and Yvette's first trip around the loop. We all brought our Thanksgiving dinners (we had bought a turkey breast not knowing we would be invited out) to "Trusty III" and ate together. After dinner, we assembled on "Runaround Sue" and played Farkle.
We stayed put on Saturday as well. The weather was chilly and windy. There doesn't seem to be a weather window to do the crossing for several days, so we stayed. Lunch was at Calypso Joe's at the marina. Then we borrowed the courtesy car and investigated the surrounding area. Orange Beach is a big fishing destination and known for its beaches, although right now it's much too cold to swim. We saw a big jelly fish right next to our boats in the harbor.
Today we left Orange Beach at our usual 630 A.M. There may be a crossing window on Thursday night. We are making our way to Panama City where we hope to pick up John's Aunt and Uncle, who are planning on doing the crossing with us. We are looking forward to seeing them and are excited that they want to cross the Gulf with us. Time will tell exactly when that will happen. We don't want to take unnecessary risks.
We stayed put on Saturday as well. The weather was chilly and windy. There doesn't seem to be a weather window to do the crossing for several days, so we stayed. Lunch was at Calypso Joe's at the marina. Then we borrowed the courtesy car and investigated the surrounding area. Orange Beach is a big fishing destination and known for its beaches, although right now it's much too cold to swim. We saw a big jelly fish right next to our boats in the harbor.
Today we left Orange Beach at our usual 630 A.M. There may be a crossing window on Thursday night. We are making our way to Panama City where we hope to pick up John's Aunt and Uncle, who are planning on doing the crossing with us. We are looking forward to seeing them and are excited that they want to cross the Gulf with us. Time will tell exactly when that will happen. We don't want to take unnecessary risks.
Thursday, November 25, 2010
Thanksgiving
Well, we had a change of plans. Instead of leaving this morning, we decided to stay here and have our Thanksgiving dinner. Byron and Donna who both work at the marina and live across the street, invited all of us on the dock to their house for "lunch". The six of us, 2 other couples who have finished the loop, and a man who lives here all of the time, walked over to their house around noon. They fed us all and their family a complete Thanksgiving dinner with all of the trimmings. It was delicious! They treated us like kings. Later, we spoke to our family via Skype. That made us feel like part of their celebration as well.
The marina is closed today and tomorrow. So, we are planning to stay here until at least Saturday morning because we have to pay for tonight and tomorrow night and because it's supposed to storm tonight and all day tomorrow. Tomorrow night we are teaching Yvette and Claude how to play Farkle. Happy Thanksgiving!
The marina is closed today and tomorrow. So, we are planning to stay here until at least Saturday morning because we have to pay for tonight and tomorrow night and because it's supposed to storm tonight and all day tomorrow. Tomorrow night we are teaching Yvette and Claude how to play Farkle. Happy Thanksgiving!
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
Thanksgiving Eve
This morning we had fog again and did not leave the harbor until 8:00 A.M. We cruised across Mobile Bay and into the ICW (Inter Coastal Waterway). We stopped at Orange Beach Marina in Orange Beach, Alabama, only about 8 miles from Pensacola, FL. It was a perfect cruising day, 76 degrees and the sun was shining, plus a little air moving. We are hoping to make Destin, FL tomorrow.
Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! We all have so much to be thankful for.
Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! We all have so much to be thankful for.
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Weekend Traveling Frenzy
We have not had Internet or cell service for a couple of days. So, it's time to catch up.
Saturday morning we left Demopolis Yacht Basin a little earlier than planned. We were up at our usual 5:30 and about 15 minutes later, we heard a boat from Demopolis talking to the lockmaster. The lockmaster said he was turning the lock around and to bring it on. So, we hurried and left the harbor at 6:10. There were nine boats in the lock together. We spent the night at Bashi Creek, anchored out with "Runaround Sue", "Trusty III", "Surprise", and "Livin the Dream". We had Happy Hour on the back of our boat. They all came by dinghy.
It was so quiet and peaceful back in that creek until 3:00 A.M. Ann and John on "Livin the Dream" had an intruder on their boat. They woke up and there was a man on their boat. He swam/waded across the water to the boat. They think he was looking to steal gas. They yelled at him to get off the boat and he did leave. How scary is that?
On Sunday morning, we tried to leave at 6:30, but there was too much fog. We pulled up anchor at 7:15, but once we got out on the river, it was foggy again. Once we got through the fog, it was smooth sailing until we reached our anchorage at Three Rivers Lake. We had passed through the final lock (Coffeeville) along the way. We had cruised 81 miles and it was just getting dark when we arrived at Three Rivers Lake. The 81 miles was too far for the 2 sailboats to make before dark, so it was just "Runaround Sue", "Trusty III", and us. We were ready to call it a day. We had a wonderful, peaceful night's sleep here with no surprises.
On Monday morning, we left at our usual time. It was beautiful out for most of the day. Once we reached Mobile Harbor, the AIS was driving Captain John crazy. There were so many tows that the alarm kept going off and the screen looked like a mine field. Mobile was not as deserted as in the spring, but it's not as active as last year when we made our way down river.
We saw our first crab pot. Yikes! We must be ever vigilant, keeping our eyes peeled for the pesky little devils.
We reached Dog River at 3:00P.M. after doing 85 miles today. As we were pulling up to the fuel dock, our boat became grounded. When we made our way along the 7 mile channel to the harbor, the water depth beneath our boat was only 3 to 4 feet. We had spoken to the fuel dock attendant on the radio as we entered Dog River and he was standing on the dock watching us and failed to mention that the route we were on was too shallow. We were going very slowly and it was a soft grounding. After being pulled off (Thank you, "Dollar Boat"), we tested to make sure there were no vibrations. Of course, during all of this, it decided to rain. By the time we were fueled up and tied to a slip, every one of us was soaked to the bone. It felt so good to tie up and go to Happy Hour on "Trusty III". Yvette and Claude are gracious hosts and we enjoyed ourselves yet again.
We plan on stayng here Tuesday to reprovision and get caught up on some maintenance chores. Hopefully, we'll be back on the water on Wednesday.
Saturday morning we left Demopolis Yacht Basin a little earlier than planned. We were up at our usual 5:30 and about 15 minutes later, we heard a boat from Demopolis talking to the lockmaster. The lockmaster said he was turning the lock around and to bring it on. So, we hurried and left the harbor at 6:10. There were nine boats in the lock together. We spent the night at Bashi Creek, anchored out with "Runaround Sue", "Trusty III", "Surprise", and "Livin the Dream". We had Happy Hour on the back of our boat. They all came by dinghy.
It was so quiet and peaceful back in that creek until 3:00 A.M. Ann and John on "Livin the Dream" had an intruder on their boat. They woke up and there was a man on their boat. He swam/waded across the water to the boat. They think he was looking to steal gas. They yelled at him to get off the boat and he did leave. How scary is that?
On Sunday morning, we tried to leave at 6:30, but there was too much fog. We pulled up anchor at 7:15, but once we got out on the river, it was foggy again. Once we got through the fog, it was smooth sailing until we reached our anchorage at Three Rivers Lake. We had passed through the final lock (Coffeeville) along the way. We had cruised 81 miles and it was just getting dark when we arrived at Three Rivers Lake. The 81 miles was too far for the 2 sailboats to make before dark, so it was just "Runaround Sue", "Trusty III", and us. We were ready to call it a day. We had a wonderful, peaceful night's sleep here with no surprises.
On Monday morning, we left at our usual time. It was beautiful out for most of the day. Once we reached Mobile Harbor, the AIS was driving Captain John crazy. There were so many tows that the alarm kept going off and the screen looked like a mine field. Mobile was not as deserted as in the spring, but it's not as active as last year when we made our way down river.
We saw our first crab pot. Yikes! We must be ever vigilant, keeping our eyes peeled for the pesky little devils.
We reached Dog River at 3:00P.M. after doing 85 miles today. As we were pulling up to the fuel dock, our boat became grounded. When we made our way along the 7 mile channel to the harbor, the water depth beneath our boat was only 3 to 4 feet. We had spoken to the fuel dock attendant on the radio as we entered Dog River and he was standing on the dock watching us and failed to mention that the route we were on was too shallow. We were going very slowly and it was a soft grounding. After being pulled off (Thank you, "Dollar Boat"), we tested to make sure there were no vibrations. Of course, during all of this, it decided to rain. By the time we were fueled up and tied to a slip, every one of us was soaked to the bone. It felt so good to tie up and go to Happy Hour on "Trusty III". Yvette and Claude are gracious hosts and we enjoyed ourselves yet again.
We plan on stayng here Tuesday to reprovision and get caught up on some maintenance chores. Hopefully, we'll be back on the water on Wednesday.
Friday, November 19, 2010
Friday, November 19, 2010
Yesterday we cruised from Columbus Marina to an anchorage called Tombigbee Ox Bow just below the Howell Heflin Lock. We passed through four locks John Stennis, Glover Montgomery, Amory, and Howell Heflin. Whew! Dropping from one level to the next is a lot easier than being lifted from one level to the next. We had clouds and drizzle all day long.
Today we had a short day. We left our anchorage at 6:30 A.M., as per usual. It was foggy early on, but it burned off within an hour. We had no Locks today. Demopolis Lock is very near this harbor, so we'll have to do that one first thing tomorrow morning. By 1:00 P.M. we reached Demopolis Yacht Basin. We are doing chores and then we shall eat dinner in the restaurant here at the marina. Tomorrow should be another long day.
Today we had a short day. We left our anchorage at 6:30 A.M., as per usual. It was foggy early on, but it burned off within an hour. We had no Locks today. Demopolis Lock is very near this harbor, so we'll have to do that one first thing tomorrow morning. By 1:00 P.M. we reached Demopolis Yacht Basin. We are doing chores and then we shall eat dinner in the restaurant here at the marina. Tomorrow should be another long day.
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Sunshine
We left Midway Marina this morning at 6:40 A.M. in the fog. Thank goodness for radar. We didn't have far to go to the first lock and by the time we pulled out of the lock, the fog was considerably less. From that poin t on, the day kept getting better. The sun came out and felt sooooooo good. We traveled through 4 locks today: Fulton, Grover Wilson, Amory, and Aberdeen. We traveled with "Runaround Sue" and "Surprise". We all ended up at Columbus Marina in Columbus, Mississippi. We were cruising for 9 1/4 hours and covered 60 miles. Today was the way cruising is supposed to be (not like yesterday).
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