Day 21 - Bobbys Fish Camp to Mobile, AL

We left  Bobbys at 7:15 AM and just like yesterday, we had the dam at Coffeeville a few miles downstream to lock-through. Our luck was good again since a boat had been there already waiting and got the locks qued up in time for us to cruise right in behind them. In 20 minutes we were through and on our way to ticking off the 120 miles to Mobile. We faced the most remote stretch in our journey today but our confidence has improved since we figured out the motor problem and had a problem free day with it yesterday.

The river wasn't completely without human presence. This place looks like a fisherman camp and we saw at least a dozen boats along the way with folks fishing. They have to appreciate having an almost private river for their solitude.

This fellow on his 4 wheeler kept right up with us as we cruised along this nearly mile long beach. 

Look closely and you'll see a palm near the waterline in the left half of this pic. About 40 miles to Mobile and nice to see something tropical but disappointingly no gators have been spotted.

Approaching Mobile and we're now in tidal waters. The Blue Fin is soon to be introduced to saltwater. 

Cruising through the industrial canal near downtown Mobile

Here's where I can get some of those cargo containers to build a house like I saw a few days ago.

The Grand Mariner Marina at the Dog River inlet in Mobile, AL  We but the Blue Fin up here for the night and hitched a ride to the Holiday Inn about 4 miles away.

The fellow in the red shorts is named Troy and he offered to take us to the Holiday Inn. We first had to wait for him to unload the crab traps he had hidden all around the marina. The cooler was nearly half full by the time he emptied his 7 traps. On the way to the motel he toured us around his neighborhood to show us how things have been rebuilt since hurricane Katrina in 2006. His house sustained $62,000 in damage from flooding and the interior was gutted out to rebuild it.  

Tomorrow the motel shuttle will return us to the marina and we hope to once again get an early start. Today when we entered Mobile Bay we ran into 20 MPH winds and small craft advisories were out. To minimize our exposure we kept to the west shoreline and slipped into Dog River where there are many choices for marinas. We had originally planned to cross the bay to the east side and hang out at Fairhope but it was too rough and I didn't know the best route to get there. The plan tomorrow is to beat the wind by starting early to get across the bay to the Intercoastal with its protected waters. The trip across will entail a 25 mile trip if we stay in the marked channels. I'll ask some of the old guys at the marina tomorrow about the possibility of a shortcut and my reliance on the Humminbird LCD charts will be greater than ever. It will be a fun challenge to navigate in a body of water where the destination cannot be seen and the use of a chart is necessary to at least minimize hunting around to find your way.

We have no specific destination tomorrow except to gradually work our way east. Stopping somewhere around Orange City is a good possibility and we'll begin to look for a place tomorrow after lunch. With the weekend coming we'll probably do a little advanced planing to assure we have a place to stay then. 

I heard from Matt and he's made it to Louisville where he'll have a night over at Mary's aunt. Then he'll continue to head this way tomorrow with the Blue Fin's trailer. I expect to see him tomorrow night or Friday morning with his girlfriend Erin and they'll tour around with us until Sunday when we'll head home.  At this time we believe we'll get to Fort Walton Beach or thereabouts before we end this adventure.