Onward to Pensacola 11-19-08 (26 miles)

We could hardly wait to leave Orange Beach Marina and head back out to the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (GIWW) channel on this 38 degree sunny morning. Our efforts were rewarded as a school of fast moving, camera shy dolphins joined us and led us forward and dove through our bow wave. We passed a number of Ono Islands, short for “Oh no don’t land here” as they are private islands. It seems so much of paradise is going that way.

We were heartened to see the “Welcome to Florida” sign, and almost at that instant, the water changed to a greener shade and barrier islands appeared. I was steering and navigating this section and am pleased to report that I redeemed myself after yesterday’s slight miscalculation. No engine problems or leaks after our “little” grounding. The air has a definite salt water smell and, as much as I like this, I am already thinking that I will have to wash down the varnished teak, but the natural teak decks will love a sea water rinse. Boat work is never really done.

As we near Pensacola, we observed a Navy water rescue practice mission with sailors poised to deploy into 56 degree temp waters. Brrrrrrrr.

We docked in the early afternoon at Palofox Marina in Pensacola and had time to explore the city. We toured the Wentworth Museum which explained how Pensacola is the “City of Five Flags” as it has been occupied by the Spanish, French, British, American and Confederate troops since 1519 and the Seminoles before that.

On our walking tour today, we spotted an office for the Department of Leisure Services. That sounds like our kind of place. Bob does not recall such a department in the MN State government. If we have to go back to work, we would like to apply there. Can you see Bob in the rear cockpit getting ready for this interview?

Hatteras Guy 11-18-08

We are stranded here at Orange Beach Marina due to a small craft advisory. This is not a typical Looper stop and there is no courtesy car. Darn. It is just us and the Hatteras guy and his entourage of guys wearing hooded sweatshirts. Being typical Minnesotans, we tried to be friendly and were greeted back by lack of eye contact and grunts.

Our imagination may be getting the best of us and we probably have way too much time today but we are wondering maybe they are travelling incognito and do not want anybody to notice them. What do they have to hide? Enquiring minds need to know. I’ll get back to you on this. Bob does not want me to publish this now as he thinks there may be reprisals. Think cement. If you don’t hear from us tomorrow, this may provide some clues.

The Good, The Bad, The Ugly (Mobile Bay to Orange Beach) 11-17-08

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.

Jeff Janacek Was Here—really 11-16-08

We were pulling into the parking lot at Dog River Marina on Friday night when our headlights caught 2 boaters with the deer-in-the-headlights look. It turns out that they were Jeff Janacek and Jim Rohrman from Stillwater MN delivering Jim’s 43’Silverton to Fort Meyers for chartering. They left MN on 10-20 and are here already. We left 6 weeks earlier—does that tell you how fast they are or how slow we are?

We know Jeff from the Apostle Islands area of Lake Superior. He, his wife, Sally and their 2 teenage sons, David and Adam, did the Loop in ’06-’07. They have been our inspiration to do the Loop and we were delighted to see him and Jim. Jeff and Sally gave us so many tips for this trip and even lent us their charts and cruising books. I was a little afraid that we were overdue with these and that Jeff was here personally to pick them up.

Jeff is one of those special people who is so knowledgeable and generous with his time and talents. I can say that knowing full well that it will really embarrass the hell out of him. In his brief 24 hour visit to Dog River Marina, he went to several West Marine stores to pick up orders for fellow boaters and even personally delivered them to Fairhope. He gives a whole new meaning to West Marine Express.

I wish that I could post a picture of Jeff and Jim but these pictures are now mysteriously missing. Faithful followers of their blog, http://www.jimsbigadventure.blogspot.com/ know that they have been bedeviled by a stowaway, Westin. I was going over to their boat,”Tricia Ann”, this morning to invite them for pancakes and found that their boatline had been cut and the boat was missing. Did Westin get back on board, cut the line and take over their boat?

Tourist Time in Mobile pictures

Tourist Time in Mobile 11-11 to 11-16-08

After spending 6 hours cleaning off the river grunge from the boat on 11-11, it was time to see the town. We are staying at Dog River Marina but it is only a dinghy ride over to Grand Mariner Marina to their restaurant which serves pretty good seafood.

Here’s a picture of the shrimp boat which provided the fare for the Shrimp Boil at Dog River Marina on 11-12. Lots of Loopers were here for the feast. It was fun to meet up again and share stories of our adventures. Many Loopers are leaving their boats here for 1-2 months to return home for the holiday but we “homeless” Loopers will stay on.

Bellingrath Gardens and Home is a definite must for your tour of the Mobile area. It is located about 20 minutes from the marina and is doable in the marina courtesy car. The Bellingraths’ built their exquisite antique-filled home in 1935 and surrounded it with acres of gardens, lakes and lighted trails. They made their fortune by bottling Coca Cola in this area—Mobile must drink a lot of Coke!

We had a rental car for 2 days and toured Battleship Memorial Park which houses the “USS Alabama”, the submarine, “USS Drum” and an aircraft pavilion of vintage planes. Allow 6 hours for all of this but it is only fair as Bob had to do all the garden and plantation tours with me. However, the Admiral did use the opportunity to put Captain Bob in the brig. We made a full day of it by going into Mobile, taking their trolley bus around the city, touring the replica of the French fort at Fort Conte which contrasts with modern Mobile, going to the top of the Holiday Inn for a dramatic view of the harbor at night, and eating at Wintzell’s Oyster House where they proudly serve oysters—“fried, stewed or nude.”

We took the rental car for a 2nd day to get down to Dauphin Island and see the beach. It was great to finally smell the salt air and feel the warm sand in our toes. We toured the Estuarium which highlights the special relationship amongst the barrier islands, Mobile Bay and the Gulf of Mexico.

The Civil War Trail continues here and you can tour Fort Morgan and Fort Gaines. We took the ferry across Mobile Bay to Mobile Point and continued on the peninsula stopping to hike along various trails and birding areas along the way to Gulf State Park. We probably will not get to Fairhope by boat as the wind and seas are high but we did tour this charming shop-filled town by car.