The Route - Segment #3 - Kentucky Lake to Mobile

Segment #3 Tennessee Tombigbee 

The third segment of the trip passes through a few distinct bodies of water. The first is the Tennessee River. I enter it from the Ohio at Paducah, KY and at about 25 miles upstream I pass through Kentucky Dam. On the other side of the dam is Kentucky Lake and once here the change is just like magic, I’m back in recreational waters with more marinas, resorts, and parks then I’d be able to take in.  Kentucky Lake is really the Tennessee River and it is wide and about 100 miles long. Most of the eastern shore is the Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area so I expect to see a lot of scenery and I do plan to spend a few days in the area enjoying a resort or two. It does cause me a slight worry though because the north-south alignment of the lake could cause some rough waters if the prevailing winds kick up. The deep V of the Blue Fin could handle it but it would be a hellish 100 or more mile ride along the full length of this lake in rough waters.

Kentucky Lake eventually returns to the character of the Tennessee River that it is, and to my liking recreation is still a big part of its theme. The natural course of the river becomes apparent here and it starts to wind more naturally and is less altered by man. I'm still heading south and moving upstream.

The next key milestone on this route is Pickwick Dam and Lake. It is the first dam I’ll approach since passing through the Kentucky dam 180 miles behind me.  There are some interesting things in this area so again; I will try to spend some time to enjoy them.

 In just a short distance upstream from the dam the route changes and I'll be leaving the Tennessee River.  With a hard right turn we'll enter the Tenn-Tom waterway and in a few miles be constrained inside a man-made channel.  Immediately the feel of a canal will be upon us with closely spaced dams and high banks on either side.  Reports I've read fortunately say the canal atmosphere is not unpleasant and things quickly return to a scenic flavor.  The Corp of Engineers has also put effort into placing many parks and recreation facilities along this route and I plan to stop at a few. There are number of nice towns along the way too so it will be fun to stop and check things out. I believe I’ll find this part of the trip interesting since it is so much different than what I’m used to.

A Canal Section of the Tenn-Tom Waterway

Barge Tow plying  the darkened Tenn-Tom Waterway

Purple Highlight Shows the
Man-Made Tenn-Tom Waterway

The Tenn-Tom waterway was built to connect the Tennessee River to the Tombigbee River. It is 230 miles in length and has 10 dams and locks to lift you up and over the passage between the two rivers. The waterway eventually becomes one in the same with the original course of the Tombigbee river. The man made alterations disappear and we return once again to a natural winding river.  When I entered the Tenn-Tom on the northern end I was going upstream and when I exit it on the southern end I’ll be heading downstream. It’s like going over a hill of water.

Sunset on the Tombigbee River

As we continue on the Tombigbee the towns and services that were plentiful all the way back to Kentucky Lake will now have disappeared and we’ll have to more carefully gauge our fuel and time.

A Necessary Stop

We'll pass Bobby’s Fish Camp which is another famous (it’s all relative) and necessary stopping point. Necessary in that it is the only fuel stop in approximately 150 miles of this segment of our trip and there is food available too. Mary will like that. If you check a map you’ll see we need to leave Demopolis and travel all the way to Mobile in one day.  That’s about 150 miles which, while not impossible, might force me to get started earlier than I like on this day of our journey.

Moss in the Trees.  Now it's Really the South

As we continue southward we’ll begin to sense the river changing to the feel of the south with the flat bayou's backwaters replacing the embankments that extended along much of our travels. Somewhere around here Mary will start to look anxiously for an alligator to pet. Soon the scene will become tidal in that the river will level out and the water will spread wide into the grassy marshes. In not too much more distance the smell of the ocean might be sensed. The river will begin to wind through the marshes and meander through the low tidal plane.  We will quickly emerge into Mobile bay and now are only one hour's travel time from the full Gulf.

Matt in 2008 entering Mobile Bay

We pass through the commercial dock area of Mobile where the seagoing ships are busy loading and unloading.  I’m anxious to pull the Blue Fin up next to one of these big gals but I’m sure I’ll chicken out. It’s probably illegal anyway.  The bay area is about 10 miles wide and 25 miles long.  This is a bit intimidating to a freshwater guy like myself so I’ll need to pay close attention to the marker buoys and the weather.

 One predicament I don’t want to be caught in is to emerge into the bay area to find rough seas.  This leaves me in a pickle since, as I mentioned above, I will have traveled about 150 miles down the Tombigbee with no real services or much in the way of a town to stop at. If the seas in the bay are bad then I have no other choice but to back up to Bobbies Fish Camp or risk going ahead into the rough bay. With a little planning though I should be able to mitigate this problem.  The sea conditions and forecasts are readily available and I do have the normally calm weather conditions of mid summer in my favor.  Worst case I’ll be hold up in Demopolis or Bobbies Fish Camp waiting out weather to make a safe passage across Mobile Bay.

Thanks Matt and Friends for the photos.