As we clean, swab the decks, polish the bright work, fake the lines, and square away, it is time to reflect on our adventures.

The Tenn-Tom Waterway is a 234 mile long mighty engineering feat of the Corp of Engineers. It is a thoroughfare of serenity and bucolic views, coupled with heavy recreational and commercial traffic (tows and barges). There are ten locks to negotiate and a further two locks before Mobile is reached. It weaves in and out of the states of Alabama and Mississippi. Best fun was anchoring out in Bashi Creek and Three Rivers with newly made friends.

The city of Mobile is a fun stop. Mobile Bay is not a fun bay to traverse. It is long, shallow and has heavy commercial traffic. The combination of wind and waves ensures a lumpy crossing. 

Fairhope was a nice diversion. Unfortunately, we experienced foul weather and Bushranger had a few uncomfortable days and nights and sustained a little damage tied at the end of a pier. 

The Wharf and Orange Beach were fun, again with our newly made friends. Pensacola was enjoyable history-wise, but most things were closed on Monday. Passage to Panama City was very pretty, however  the closer we came, the more horrific destruction we saw in the aftermath of Hurricane Michael. So very sad to see. Apalachicola is a quaint town with gorgeous architecture, hit hard by the hurricane. Carabelle is the last frontier before the crossing and basically a holding point. The Gulf of Mexico crossing – glad we did it.

In brief:

• We travelled 928 statute miles in 35 days. 
• We negotiated 12 locks.
• We entered 3 states: Alabama, Mississippi and Florida.
• The value of my bionic eyes was justified by the savings in the avoidance of crab pots.
• The highs – mooring out and meeting friendly people

On a personal note:

During our time away a series of events occurred:
– my beautiful Aunt Ruth passed away;
– we became a great aunt and great uncle to Luna James Withers (Britt and Josh);
– our niece, Celeste, completed her HSC; and
– our gorgeous grandson, Ben, turned 5. 

Until next time…

Such is Life!