Brown Eyed Girl: Going South and it is still Cold

In the last post we were at Goose Pond heading back down the Tennessee River so we could then head south at Aqua Harbor. We got to Aqua Harbor Yacht Club on Sunday. This is where the Tombigbee Waterway will start. We took the courtesy car and to a great restaurant called Broken Spoke. They had a very wide selection - a little pricey, but very good.

On Monday we finally started heading South and traveled 56 miles to Midway Marina. We had cocktails, ate on the boat and went to bed. The next day we planned to go to Columbus, MS but we decided to stop in Aberdeen, MS for cheap fuel first. By the time we fueled up it was getting late so we stayed in Aberdeen for the night. The girls got a courtesy car (a '97 Lincoln Towncar) and went to - you guessed it another WalMart. Since Columbus Marina was close we left a little late in the morning and arrived in Columbus early in the afternoon. Columbus Marina is in Columbus, MS (I didn't see one buckeye and when I said O H they looked at me like I was crazy) and is a nice marina with good people running it. We stayed two nights and ate out both nights.

The first night was Ginny and Gene's 48th anniversary so we went to eat barbeque (not Ginny's first choice) at Hanks BBQ. There was nobody inside eating but the food was fantastic. We got to talking to Hank after dinner and he had just come back from a BBQ competition in Georgia. We said we liked his ribs and he gave us three full racks that he had left over from the competition for free. They made a great lunch the next day for the guys while the girls were shopping and having lunch in town. In the afternoon Sid, Gene and I traveled to Aliceville to a WWII German prisoner of war camp museum. It was hard to imagine that there would have been such a place in the middle of Alabama. That night we went to Hucks with four other couples and it was very good also. One of the couples was Billy and Pam on "Godspeed". They just completed the Loop which is a big deal. I had the biggest cheeseburger I ever had.

The next day we had to go 64 miles and two locks so we left at 7 in the cold and some slight fog. We made very good time and got to the anchorage Sumpter Recreation Area by 3:00. We rafted with "Free to B" and "Something Special" and had a very nice group dinner and peaceful night. Sid and Evelyn have a Jenn-Air grill on their boat so we cooked a pork loin, pork chops, chicken and bratwurst. Gene made a great risotto and Evelyn baked a cake. It really doesn't get much better then that.

The next day we all left early again (there was frost on the bow - very slippery) and we are now in Demopolis, AL at a brand new part of the Demopolis Yacht Basin with great docks and facilities. We are staying two nights and then making a long trip to another anchorage called Bashi Creek with is about 71 miles and one lock from here. While I have enjoyed the rivers it is time to get to Florida and we expect to be in Mobile by Thursday. We have traveled 2,400 miles but we are only 592 miles from our home in Columbus, OH. I wonder why some people think we are nuts?

Here are some other blogs of boats that we have met and or traveled with.

Free To B
Something Special
Once Around
Salt 'n Sand