Category: Videos

BRACKISH WATER..LOVIN’ THE GULF!!

Mike & Pam

We finally made it to the GULF of Mexico!! Loving the sights, sounds and smells of the deep south. Big ships, salty waters, beautiful plantations with their grand double staircases, diving pelicans and graceful dolphins to name a few! The last few miles leading into Mobile Bay become brackish (in-between salt and fresh water) introducing us to alligator country! Pam has been studying tide tables and open water navigational aids to increase her comfort level as we navigate past ocean going vessels and huge fishing boats in shipping channels.

We spent a great 24 hours on the Mobile Bay Conference Center wall. Never knew that Mobile had so much to offer. We were able to walk to some great restaurants, catch a mass at the beautiful Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception, and visit the USS Alabama battleship. We learned that the first Mardis Gras was here in Mobile but with the number of French that moved to New Orleans that event seems to gain popular attention over this one.

  • Shrimpin’
  • Boat Upgrade?
  • The USS Alabama -WWII
  • Mobile Convention Center/Dock

We popped into Dog River Marina, a somewhat painful entrance-way outside the main shipping channel for a few days to do some routine maintenance. A quick twin oil/filter change and a nice discovery/repair of a fuel leak in the generator and we are off and running safely, once again!

Our next stop was a secluded anchorage on Dauphin Island. This little bay lies just to the south of the island and we have to navigate away from the main channel and strike out into the open waters of the gulf for a ways…hoping to avoid spoils and obstacles….and understanding these navigational aids and low vs. high tide helps to calm her nerves. Once anchored, we loaded the bikes onto the dingy (newly named “C minor”) and rode the length of the 3 mile island to the Estuary and Fort Gaines, returned in time to catch another lovely sunset and watch the fishermen finish their day and the ocean going vessels cruise by in the distance.

  • Dinghy the bikes to shore
  • First time we left the boat alone at anchor.

Sweet Home Alabama…..where the skies are blue!! We crossed Mobile Bay to Gulf Shores and were amazed to see dozens of Dolphins showing off their smooth, gliding, swimming skills. Seems that Sea C has turned from a river cruiser into an ocean condo with ferry service to the beach.

Brave Beautiful Dauphins
  • Our new mascot Sea D
  • Lunch at LULUs

TURTLES EVERYWHERE

Mike & Pam

Phew! After turning onto the Ohio River our paced changed dramatically. The Mississippi current was so swift that we traveled at 10 to 14 knots which is 3 to 5 knots faster than normal cruise speed at same RPMs. We even hit Sea C’s all time speed record of 21.5 knots (approx 25 mph…a brief carbon blow out) . Once we hit the Ohio River we started traveling up stream against the current and our cruise dropped to 6 to 8 knots as we seemed to crawl to Paducah, KY public wall. The outside temperature was a toasty 96 degrees with no wind and direct sun so it took its toll.

Paducah is an interesting town with a rich history including severe flooding. This town has seen many o’ floods and as a result, have built themselves a mighty cement wall. In order to make this monstrosity a tourist attraction it is adorned with amazing murals depicting the history along with bronze plaques describing the images in detail. Paducah had that quaint, southern feel with an artsy flare. By this time we have met quite a few wonderful people such as Mountain Wave and Nepidea who we dined with last night.

  • Flood retaining wall / Town history story board
  • Major rail activity
  • Historic downtown
  • Find Sea C?

We left the next day for the Land Between the Lakes in Kentucky with 3 other boats that included a three hour lock wait at the Kentucky Lock. Sounds like a long wait but it is very relaxing anchoring in front of the lock and enjoying the summer-like weather and a nice lunch.

We arrived at Green Turtle Bay Resort and Marina by 3:30 – with enough time to take a walk and enjoy some free chips and salsa at happy hour at the Thirsty Turtle. We spent 3 days relaxing, exercising, doing laundry, biking to town, provisioning and meeting many new people. There were over 28 looper boats in the marina and the only disturbing part about this was hearing how many people were laid up for several days waiting for parts or being pulled due to damage incurred on the crazy rivers.

It was super nice to slow down and smell the roses. It’s such a beautiful area around these parts and after feeling like we were moving at a fast pace and dealing with dangerous flood conditions/debris it was a welcome respite to get to know the people on the boats that you’ve been following, anchoring near or locking through with.

  • Fenders took a beating through the locks- Yay Magic Sponge!
Massive Dump Truck Loadin’ up

Winter Boat Check

Mike & Pam

Pam, Boomer and I enjoyed a chilly Spring Break hanging around beautiful Lake Charlevoix MI. The boat is in heated storage at Boyne Boat Yard in Boyne City, MI which is on the east end of Lake Charlevoix. We spent time on the boat getting familiar with the systems, measuring, adjusting a few things and doing some general planning with the boat yard. Looks like we will launch in early June and get to know her better for a couple weeks on Lake Charleviox. Can’t wait!

Found a Dinghy

Mike & Pam
We found a dinghy…. its the Highfield Classic 290 with a Tohatsu 9.8HP gas 4 stroke motor. This combo should be plenty to do all the motoring around towns that we need and it weighs less than 200lbs. The plan is to keep the Highfield on an extended Trick davit system mounted to the swim platform. There are many davit options but we think this will allow us to deploy and secure the dinghy quickly for maximum use.