Cruising on Omega: 2013 CRUISE TO THE TENNESSEE RIVER

June 8 - We finally left our home dock on Summerland Key headed to Goose Pond Marina in Scottsboro, AL for the fourth time. Inclement weather delayed our departure for about ten days, so we were anxious to move along quickly. Since we have made this cruise three times already, we didn't take very many photos, but we'll share those that we did take.

LEAVING SUMMERLAND KEY

SUNRISE AT SHARK RIVER IN THE EVERGLADES

JUNE 9

We spent June 10th at our friends' dock in Cape Coral (Jim and Shirley Chapman). Enjoyed visiting with our friends, Ed and Sara Dennerline and Bob and Holly Duncan in addition to taking care of some business. We are grateful to Jim and Shirley for letting us tie up at their dock again and for letting us leave our truck in their driveway until Bill returns from Scottsboro to drive it up. On June 11th, we headed north up the West Coast Intracoastal Waterway to Sarasota.

LOTS OF FISHERMEN NEAR BOCA GRANDE INLET

BILL, BARBIE AND DALE CRAFT

After anchoring in the mooring field at Sarasota, we enjoyed getting together with Dale and Barbie Craft. Dale was a Math professor at South Florida Community College in Avon Park when Bill was Dean of Students there. They now reside in Venice. We hadn't seen them in about six years, so it was a great reunion.

LONGBOAT KEY PASS

June 12th - We're heading toward Longboat Key Pass and out into the Gulf for the long trek across to Carrabelle in the Panhandle. Beautiful day and smooth waters throughout the day.

SUNSET ON THE GULF OF MEXICO

Wind picked up during the night and seas became choppy, but not bad. Our radar decided to go on vacation when we needed it the most, but we made it across without it.

SUNRISE ON THE GULF OF MEXICO

About 23 1/2 hours later we reached Dog Island across from Carrabelle. Then we decided to continue on to Appalachicola which was about 36 miles further. Docked at Appalachicola Marina and caught up on our sleep that afternoon. Crossing was 252 miles in 28 hours. Glad it's behind us!!! Enjoyed Fried Oysters at Boss Oyster that evening!

On the 14th we headed up the across the Panhandle on the Gulf Coast Intracoastal Waterway. Our first stop was east of Panama City where we refuled at Pier 98 and anchored at Pearl Bayou, one of our favorite anchorages.

ALWAYS FUN TO SEE THE DOLPHINS CAVORTING IN OUR WAKE

On Saturday, June 15th, as we continued on west toward Destin, we were overtaken by a big SeaRay without warning. We were crossing Choctawhatchee Bay, which is probably five miles across, but the Captain chose to pass us within three feet or so to our port. Unfortunately, we had a small porthole open in the aft stateroom, and a wall of water came through, soaking everything. It went completely across the queen-size bed and even drenched the carpet and pad on the starboard side. We were so busy surveying the damage that we didn't have a chance to contact him on the radio. What a mess!!

PARASAILORS AT DESTIN

We anchored at Santa Rosa Island for the night. Had a number of other boats anchored nearby as it was Father's Day Weekend. On Father's Day we continued on across Pensacola Bay and anchored at Wolf Bay. Many folks were out enjoying the water with their family.

On the 17th, we arrived at Dog River Marina off Mobile Bay. Our friend, Diesel Don and all of his family, were there to greet us. They planned to cruise up the Tenn-Tom with us in their newly acquired Defever, Free Will. Our time at Dog River was spent washing everything in the Master Stateroom that had been soaked with salt water east of Destin. Bill took the carpets out on the bow and scrubbed them. That inconsiderate SeaRay jerk sure created a tremendous amount of work and cost as our comforter was damaged and has to be replaced.

June 19th - We left Dog River and headed up Mobile Bay to the Tenn-Tom. Free Will was following us towing their jetski. Don and his wife Connie and their two grandsons (Bailey - 14 and Kaden - 11 were aboard Free Will.

FREE WILL ON MOBILE BAY

PELICANS READY FOR A HANDOUT

APPROACHING MOBILE HARBOR

We anchored at Three Rivers Lake the first night and at Bobby's Fish Camp the second. Don received a call from Aqua Yacht Harbor up at Pickwick requesting him to come asap to work on a boat. He is widely recognized for his outstanding diesel engine work and is always in demand. He had his son-in-law Kevin drive his work van down to Bobby's from Scottsboro, and he and Connie headed to Pickwick in the van. Kevin took over as Captain and he and his two sons continued upstream with us the next day. The older son (Bailey) has been working with his Granddad learning all about diesel engines and how to repair them. He has an amazing amount of knowledge at his young age. Kaden, the younger son, was at the helm a good bit of the time and loved talking on the VHF radio, so we had a good time chatting back and forth. They have AIS aboard Free Will, which electronically gives information about other vessels with AIS who are in the area. All of the tows have AIS so Kaden informed us whenever one was nearby, which was helpful.

FREE WILL ANCHORED AT THREE RIVERS LAKE

A TOW WITH A LOAD OF COAL HEADED DOWNSTREAM

FREE WILL AT A PICTURESQUE SPOT ON THE WATERWAY

June 22 - After anchoring at Foscue Creek just below Demopolis for the night, we continued upstream to Cochrane Creek. We always have to make a photo op as we pass the White Cliffs of Epes

CAPT. BILL ENJOYING THE VIEW AT THE WHITE CLIFFS OF EPES

KEVIN AND SONS PASSING THE WHITE CLIFFS

MOONRISE AT COCHRANE CREEK

June 23 - We got an early start so we could get to Columbus Marina around midday. Locked through two more locks (Beville and Stennis) with no delay and tied up at Columbus Marina before 1 PM. We were welcomed by Dockmaster "T" whom we have gotten to know over the past five years of cruising the Tenn-Tom. We were also happy to see our good boating friends, Don and Rosie Peck from Spring, TX (Houston area), whom we met at Goose Pond in 2009. They keep their boat, Just Rosie, at Columbus Marina. Had a great visit with them and went to dinner together.

DON AND ROSIE PECK

June 24 - We left Columbus Marina at 6 AM as we had seven locks to go through to reach our favorite anchorage on the Tenn-Tom at Bay Springs Lake. Fortunately we didn't have to wait for any tows, and we made it in 11 hours and 48 minutes (78.3 miles and 7 locks). The last one (James Whitten) is the biggest of the 12 locks on the Tenn-Tom with a lift of 84 feet.

GATES CLOSING AT JAMES WHITTEN LOCK WITH FREE WILL SECURED FOR THE LIFT

WE'RE READY TO BE LIFTED UP!!!

We anchored in Bay Springs Lake and enjoyed swimming in the clear waters. A couple we met there in 2009 (Valt and Sandy Melbardis) from Ft. Louden, Tenn came by in their tender to say hi. Their boat is Amber Isle. They were returning home after spending the winter in the Bahamas. We had a nice visit with them.

OMEGA ANCHORED AT BAY SPRINGS LAKE

June 25 - We relaxed during the morning, went swimming and took a little dinghy ride. After lunch we moved upstream to Yellow Creek in the Pickwick area where we anchored in Zippy Branch, a beautiful anchorage across from Grand Harbor Marina. Since it was a weekday, we had the cove all to ourselves. Went ashore in the dinghy and went to dinner with Diesel Don and grandson Bailey. They are working on a boat there at Aqua Yacht Harbor at Pickwick.

We decided to stay another day at Zippy Branch as the weather was so beautiful, and it is such a nice anchorage. Nearby is the junction of the Tenn-Tom and the Tennessee River (Mile 449 north of Mobile). We couldn't pass up taking a nice dinghy ride along the shoreline of the Tennessee River viewing the lovely homes. What a nice place to be!!!

June 27 - It was time to move on toward Goose Pond, so we hauled the anchor and headed upstream on the Tennessee River. Ahead of us just east of Florence, Al was Wilson lock, the 3rd highest in the world (93 feet). As we approached, we learned from the lockmaster that there would be a lengthy delay as they had divers in the water doing some repairs, and there were three tows waiting to lock through - two upbound and one downbound. The lockmaster indicated it could be a three-hour wait or more. We anchored under the shade of a bridge and waited. Much to our surprise, the lockmaster asked the first of the upbound tows (Joe Cain) if he would mind if they locked us up ahead of him. He agreed, which was very nice of him, so we got through much sooner than we expected.

We anchored at Wheeler State Park Marina where me met David and Joyce Duke from Rome, GA. They were on their first cruise on their small C-Dory (about 20 feet) with a single outboard. They planned to go all the way down to the west coast of Florida this summer. We shared some information from our experiences. Due to an approaching cold front with predicted thunderstorms and wind, we decided to remain at Wheeler for another night.

June 29 - We continued on upstream toward Huntsville. It was a beautiful Saturday, and tons of small pleasure craft were out on the river.

PAINTED ROCK EAST OF HUNTSVILLE, AL

Our cruise wouldn't be complete if we didn't take a photo as we passed Painted Rock east of Huntsville. It is a significant landmark.

When we got to Guntersville Lock, our 15th and last lock, we had to wait quite a while. It seemed like the lockmaster just enjoyed his position of power and control. He was the only lockmaster like that, thank goodness. Once he leisurely decided to open the lock gates and lift us up, we continued on to the anchorage adjacent to Guntersville State Park, where we anchored for the last time.

June 30 - Only 19 miles to our final destination at Goose Pond Marina in Scottsboro, Al. It was another beautiful morning on the river, and we enjoyed taking in all the natural beauty of the area.

OMEGA arrived at Goose Pond Marina at noon. We were so excited about having a covered slip for the first time. Much to our surprise and dismay, as we slowly made our way toward the slip, we realized OMEGA was too tall to get under the roof. We understood it was 24 feet tall, but in reality, it was only 19 1/2 feet. We moved over to the transient dock for the rest of the day and night while seeking a solution.

Our friends, Ray and Patsy Whitney, were at the slip to welcome us. They and other friends at the marina told us about possible alternatives. One of the alternatives was to lower our radar arch, and that's the one Bill chose.

July 1st - Our friend Plyler, who lives aboard at the marina with his wife Penny, gave Bill some lumber to make a cradle for the radar arch. He had it made in short order and prepared everything for lowering it. Then with the help of three young adults and several older guys, the arch was lowered to rest on the cradle.

Our friend, Richard Walker aboard Holiday VII, stopped by just to say hi. He was on his way from Pickwick to Chickamauga Marina in Chattanooga. Richard and his wife Carol spend the winter months in Marathon.

Our height problem was solved, and we made it into the covered slip with about an inch to spare.

RADAR ARCH IN LOWERED POSITION

We settled in and enjoyed relaxing on our aft deck and up on the flybridge for the rest of the day. We are so happy to be under cover for the first time. We cruised 1390 miles from Summerland to Goose Pond in 23 days. Overall, a great trip!