Some days you wake up and there is feeling of promise. Today was one of those days. We had been weathered in at Dog River Marina a few extra days due to wind and waves on Mobile Bay. Today we awoke to clear skies and calm seas which is a definite powerboat day. We castoff at 8:45 saying good-bye to fellow Loopers who have a mixture of other plans.
We pulled into the Dog River channel on our way to Mobile Ship channel being careful to stay within the narrow lanes marked by the red and green markers. This is not as easy as it looks as there is tide and current wanting to grab your wheel and push you into the shallows. We remarked to each other how wonderful it was to be back on the water and seeing all the birds propped on markers, the shrimp boats harvesting, cranes literally building Gailland Island with dredging fill and seeing Mobile Bay Lighthouse looking like a hovering spaceship on the water. We were feeling pretty confident going outside the Ship Channel and into the unbuoyed Spoil Channel which you navigate with your charts and GPS alone. You knock 5 miles off your trip to get to the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (GIWW) and have a feeling of accomplishment. So far, so good.
We hooked right into the narrow GIWW and were greeted with a large barge coming towards us. We hugged the red buoys and passed ok but I did hold my breath. So far, so good. Once in the GIWW, the shores are lined with vacation homes and burgeoning condos and private docks. We noticed a number of these were in receivership and were to be auctioned which is a testament to our current economic woes and overbuilding.
We needed diesel and a pumpout and had called a number of marinas and Homeport Marina in Gulf Shores had the best price at $2.87 (Valvtech) with a free pumpout. So far, very good. Not only that but we had seen our first dolphins right off the marina but I was not quick enough to get a picture. Homeport has Lulu’s Restaurant which is run by Jimmy Buffet’s sister, Lucy, and it has a definite “parrothead” ambience. We almost stayed at the marina but it was only 1:30 and we felt we could push on further. Can you tell we probably made a mistake right here?
We are pretty planful people and had called Bear Point Marina 10 miles further east to get a slip for the night. With winds forecast for tomorrow, we wanted to be tucked into a marina. We passed a number of great-looking anchorages like Ingram Bayou as we thought we would get blown around too much. So far, ok.
We got to Bear Point Marina but they did not answer on the radio or cell phone. The marina looks nothing like the picture because what we saw were rickety high wooden docks and the entrance was extremely narrow. We did not want to take the chance and go aground or not be able to turn in the narrow entrance. So far, ok.
We decided to push on to Orange Beach Marina only another 5 miles further. It is now 3:45 and the sun is right in our eyes as we proceed west to get there through very narrow channels marked with buoys of all shapes, sizes and colors. You guessed it—we went slightly aground when I misread a buoy that I thought was a sign on someone’s boathouse. You have to hug the boathouse to make the proper turn.
We draw 3’9” and were aground in 3’6” but aground is aground, slight or not. We provided the entertainment for local fishing boats as they watched us struggle. Luckily, we are a single engine boat with full keel so most everything was protected as we powered through the sludge—it is not sand here. We got off—so far, ok.
We proceed to Orange Beach Marina which is a marina for multi-million dollar plastic boats of all descriptions. Our little classic teak trawler definitely stood out. We were assigned a slip for a 60 foot boat and that’s where it got interesting. We docked ok and I got all the docklines wrapped while a man on an 80 foot Hatteras intensely watched me. This is very unusual as boaters usually offer to help other boaters with their lines. I was redoing one rear line and did not see a protrusion on a pole and went full throttle into it with my chest, got knocked backwards, and struggled not to go in the water by doing some sort of Irish step dance move which bruised my shin. The Hatteras man continued to watch and did nothing. So far, not so good.
I am a little sore but no ER trip was needed. We learned a lot—stop earlier in the day, watch every marker even if they are on a boat garage, follow the dolphins and always be helpful to other boaters.
We pulled into the Dog River channel on our way to Mobile Ship channel being careful to stay within the narrow lanes marked by the red and green markers. This is not as easy as it looks as there is tide and current wanting to grab your wheel and push you into the shallows. We remarked to each other how wonderful it was to be back on the water and seeing all the birds propped on markers, the shrimp boats harvesting, cranes literally building Gailland Island with dredging fill and seeing Mobile Bay Lighthouse looking like a hovering spaceship on the water. We were feeling pretty confident going outside the Ship Channel and into the unbuoyed Spoil Channel which you navigate with your charts and GPS alone. You knock 5 miles off your trip to get to the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (GIWW) and have a feeling of accomplishment. So far, so good.
We hooked right into the narrow GIWW and were greeted with a large barge coming towards us. We hugged the red buoys and passed ok but I did hold my breath. So far, so good. Once in the GIWW, the shores are lined with vacation homes and burgeoning condos and private docks. We noticed a number of these were in receivership and were to be auctioned which is a testament to our current economic woes and overbuilding.
We needed diesel and a pumpout and had called a number of marinas and Homeport Marina in Gulf Shores had the best price at $2.87 (Valvtech) with a free pumpout. So far, very good. Not only that but we had seen our first dolphins right off the marina but I was not quick enough to get a picture. Homeport has Lulu’s Restaurant which is run by Jimmy Buffet’s sister, Lucy, and it has a definite “parrothead” ambience. We almost stayed at the marina but it was only 1:30 and we felt we could push on further. Can you tell we probably made a mistake right here?
We are pretty planful people and had called Bear Point Marina 10 miles further east to get a slip for the night. With winds forecast for tomorrow, we wanted to be tucked into a marina. We passed a number of great-looking anchorages like Ingram Bayou as we thought we would get blown around too much. So far, ok.
We got to Bear Point Marina but they did not answer on the radio or cell phone. The marina looks nothing like the picture because what we saw were rickety high wooden docks and the entrance was extremely narrow. We did not want to take the chance and go aground or not be able to turn in the narrow entrance. So far, ok.
We decided to push on to Orange Beach Marina only another 5 miles further. It is now 3:45 and the sun is right in our eyes as we proceed west to get there through very narrow channels marked with buoys of all shapes, sizes and colors. You guessed it—we went slightly aground when I misread a buoy that I thought was a sign on someone’s boathouse. You have to hug the boathouse to make the proper turn.
We draw 3’9” and were aground in 3’6” but aground is aground, slight or not. We provided the entertainment for local fishing boats as they watched us struggle. Luckily, we are a single engine boat with full keel so most everything was protected as we powered through the sludge—it is not sand here. We got off—so far, ok.
We proceed to Orange Beach Marina which is a marina for multi-million dollar plastic boats of all descriptions. Our little classic teak trawler definitely stood out. We were assigned a slip for a 60 foot boat and that’s where it got interesting. We docked ok and I got all the docklines wrapped while a man on an 80 foot Hatteras intensely watched me. This is very unusual as boaters usually offer to help other boaters with their lines. I was redoing one rear line and did not see a protrusion on a pole and went full throttle into it with my chest, got knocked backwards, and struggled not to go in the water by doing some sort of Irish step dance move which bruised my shin. The Hatteras man continued to watch and did nothing. So far, not so good.
I am a little sore but no ER trip was needed. We learned a lot—stop earlier in the day, watch every marker even if they are on a boat garage, follow the dolphins and always be helpful to other boaters.
