That’s right boys
and girls…The Lower Place is back in action & heading SOUTH. After we finished America’s Great Loop in
October 2017 we didn’t want to stop cruising.
But The Lower Place needed a little TLC (repairs, maintenance, cosmetic
touch-ups) so Aqua Yacht Marina was the place for 98 days “on the hard” and we
are so happy with the final results!
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Locking through...yes!!! It's C O L D!! |
Bright and early
Monday the 12th we headed to Columbus Marina, Columbus MS. Now this stop was really a homecoming!! Mother loaned her car to us for the entire
week! What a blessing! Where would we be without moms (or moms-in-law)?! We had several things to do before
we ventured further…taxes, medical, visits with friends and family AND making
new friends! It was a very busy week and
time just zipped by!!!
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Just a sample of Mama's road jam! Love her! |
At 0’dark thirty on
Sunday the 18th we departed Columbus Marina and officially felt like
we were headed “somewhere”! And this
early morning routine still isn’t routine…but at least we have coffee. Now, in this part of the country we have had
unusually heavy rainfall therefore flooding/debris is a concern. We aren’t in “danger” but we must be aware of
the current water levels AND additional rainfall to the north of us. By 2:40 we called it a day and anchored off
the river near Sumter Recreation Area, Aliceville AL.
Monday the 19th
brought ANOTHER early departure (6:40am) with a planned destination of
Kingfisher Marina, Demopolis AL. Charlie called the next lock (Heflin Lock and
Dam) to ask about barge traffic, water levels and fog. We were clear on everything, pulled up anchor
and headed back to the river channel…only to be greeted with light fog…turning
to dense fog…ending with radar navigation until we reached the lock (5 +/-
miles)!! The lockmaster hailed us and
apologized saying, “It really wasn’t this bad when you call earlier.” It was not a problem – just a reminder how
quickly conditions can change.
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Much better!! |
AND I had my first
sighting of Spanish moss too…I knew we were getting closer to Demopolis! Before 1:00 we were secured in our slip at
Kingfisher Marina. We are only staying 1 night in contrast to our last visit in
Oct 2016 – we stayed almost a week! Good
Times!!
So this post is very
narrative without a lot of details and I wasn’t sure I was going to resurrect
the blog for this journey because…
1.
I only know we are headed south – no concrete
destination
2.
This is
a “down and back” trip with our only (insurance) requirement to be north of
Demopolis AL by June 1 (beginning hurricane season).
3.
Our
summer goal is to play on Pickwick Lake with our new friends, neighbors &
family. Yep, bought a house while waiting for the boat to get finished.
But I will try to
splash a few pictures, share some funny stories and pay forward the many pearls
of wisdom I learn while cruising aboard The Lower Place.
God Bless!
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