Friday, October 8, 2021
Temp: 84/61, Humidity: 48/100%, Top Wind: N6 mph, Precip: FOG, cloudy, sunny, Miles Traveled: 97, Number of Locks: 1, which should have been a 40’ drop, but was really only about 25?!
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The most exciting thing that happened today was that we were the only two boats that stopped at Bobby’s Fish Camp, so we both got to be plugged in to power. YAY! But first, we we had a lock and some fog to go through. I was up at 5:45 to look outside. There was a bit of fog, but it didn’t look terrible. David texted at 6:00 to let us know that the lock was good for us to proceed for a 7:00 transit through. Alrighty then – let’s get with it! We untied and cast off at 6:40 to tootle our way the 2.5 miles down to the lock.
There was a little bit of fog, and just outside the marina basin there was a tow pulled over. The one good thing we’ve learned about fog is that the tows don’t run in it. They park and wait, which is good for us crazy pleasure boaters!
We got right into the lock and I expected it to be a 40’ drop. Boy was I surprised when the doors opened after just 25’! I guess it all has to do with the current high water levels. There was fog billowing up from the dam spillway, which gave us this really cool picture looking back east at the lock and sunrise. The water was really turbulent here, so we had to gun it a bit to stay straight.
Here’s another foggy sunrise picture. She’s’ the One left in front of us and will likely run just a little bit faster than us today. Our goal was to go all the way to Bobby’s Fish Camp, which is 97 miles. It’s a long day, but why not?! The weather is great, and we’re ready to get back to salt water! If we can get to Mobile in two days rather than three or four, let’s do it!!
We thought the fog wasn’t going to be bad, but as usual, when the sun warmed it a bit it thickened up…. like cornstarch in gravy. We lost sight of our buddies a few times, but we just followed the charts and our 2018 rabbit trail, and watched for logs in the water, and all was fine.
We averaged nearly 12 mph today! The current was really running, so we were getting some really great fuel economy!
Apparently the captain was doing some Tokyo Drift here around this horseshoe because we were above 13.5 for awhile! This was at our normal cruise rpm, which without river current equates to about 9mph. 😮 Engage afterburners!!🚀
There were just a few local establishments along the waterway to liven up the scenery.
There were even some hills!
We left the marina at 6:36, went through the lock, and arrived at Bobby’s Fish Camp 97 miles later at 3:16. We were excited to see that we were the only two boats here, because there’s really only power available for two boats our size due to where the power pedestals are located. When we were here in 2018, there were three boats on the dock, each with three boats rafted (tied to them), and one boat on the fuel dock. We were the fourth boat out on the raft! It costs $1.50/ft to stay here, regardless if you have power or not. Everybody pays, even if you’re rafted four deep. They’ve had 17 boats on this poor little dock!
We turned around and pulled in behind STO, and they helped catch our lines. I went scouting to find somebody to see if it was OK where we were docked. It’s a fish camp with several RVs and people lounging around outside. Someone pointed me to a fella in a hat, and he said “you fine, but if somebody come for fuel, y‘all migh’ haffa move up. We had sebnteen boats on der afore, aint no two boats gonna worry us none.” OK- deal! We got all plugged in, power turned on, and air conditioning running. It got warm today so the a/c felt really good!! Then I went to see if I could find Mr. Fish Camp Host to see if I could pay, but he was noplace to be found. A nice lady said she’d come open the office and help me. She said she fills in once in awhile “when they aren’t around”. OK. 💁♀️. Fine with me!
The restaurant used to serve the best catfish in the world. It was delicious! But the restaurant has closed permanently, which is really a bummer. The nice lady helped me pay for our night and she was so pleasant and southern she made me smile. 😉
Here’s we are! What a beautiful day!!
Here’s a bit more scenery of the area. They do have cabins and a boat launch that is pretty much a four-wheel drive kind of experience.
Here was our squiggly route today! We went every direction on the compass today. OH! And I almost forgot to tell you, because I didn’t get a picture. At one point, Captain says, – that’s really a weird eddy or current in the river up there. It looks like that log is drifting sideways from one side of the river to the other. 🤔 We kept watching it, and it didn’t swirl at all, it just kept going from right to left across the river, and it was really spikey pokey like the one that got caught in our anchor chain. Finally as we were going past it, I got out my trusty binocs, and by golly, it was a WallyGator!! No – I’m not kidding!! 🐊. I saw his little beedy eyeballs and snout and everything clear as could be in the binocs! Dude! I didn’t think those critters lived up here this far north, but there you go! Don’t swim in the Tombigbee River!! Soon after that, we saw a little day boat pulled up on a sandy beach, sitting out with their umbrella, and we wanted to shout out – DON’T GO IN THE WATER! But we didn’t. They already know, I’m sure.
Lisa and David joined us on the dock for some docktails. We introduced them to “Little Beers”. They will cross their wake in St Petersburg Florida, and didn’t know anything about Little Beers! Unimaginable! They agreed that they are yummy in the tummy! (Licor 43 and heavy cream in a shot glass. That’s it – like a dessert shot.)
We discussed tomorrow, and decided that if we can see across the river (meaning there isn’t a big fluffy comforter of fog on the water), and the lock isn’t busy, we’ll skeedaddle outta here at 6:30 and go all the way to Mobile Bay. That’s 119 miles. 😳 We can run fast if we want to part of the way, or if the current slacks off and we don’t get the 2.5-3mph benefit. We are all ready to be done with the rivers and would prefer not to anchor again if we don’t have to. We are at mile 119 of the Tombigbee River. If we can get to Mile 0, there is a dock at the Mobile Convention Center that we can tie up to. It is a flat rate of $50, with a maximum stay of two nights. There are no utilities, it’s just a place to tie up for people traveling down the river. Deal! David will call the lock at 6:00 and get a report. It’s just about two miles down stream from here. That will be our last lock – maybe FOREVER! 😮