Chapter 12 - Day 13: Demopolis Yacht Basin

5:25 am
Thursday, September 16, 1999
Day 13

Good Morning. I hope wherever, and whenever you get this you are in having half as good a day as I am.

We are now in Demopolis Yacht Basin, in Demopolis, Al. I just walked the long dock from our boat up to a restaurant that opens at 5 am, and I tool the computer to do some work, and jot this captain's log. You don't get much of a chance to get a full breakfast on a trip like this, so I thought I'd take advantage of it. It is 67 degrees out, and the sky is beautiful (although it's still dark) so I'm in my normal uniform--swim trunks and T-shirt. Which turns out to be a good thing, because, just 30 seconds ago, my waitress spilled a half of cup of coffee on me. The good news is the coffee didn't burn my bare legs, the bad news is my Cancun T-shirt is history. Oh well-I don't think you could get me mad this morning.

Yesterday started the way it ended, and the way it was all day long---perfect!
We left at about 6:45 from the slip, and I called from the slip to the lock, to let them know we were getting ready to head out, and they had it waiting for us when we arrived. (Illinois could take some lessons from these guys). In total we went through 4 locks and did 145 miles. We actually didn't get to the slip until dark. Before tying up at the slip we took on 350 gallons of fuel. $1.05 @ gallon. It was a long day, but it put us back on track time wise. We are only 216 miles from Mobile now, and we should be there by Friday evening.

The Tenn-Tom is a great waterway to make this trip on. The scenery ranges from man made banks of stone, to cliffs, to many areas that look like a normal small river. Commercial traffic is somewhat light, so the going is fairly fast. The only problem with that is that when Headquarters goes fast so does the fuel. Example: If we go 10 mph we use about 10 gallons an hour.

Seem like a lot? If we go 20 to 22 mph we use 50 to 60 gallons an hour Yes, that's right, this is not a misprint. So......on those days we make all that time, we must go fast, so the fuel stops are more often. (this is why I wanted to make this trip while I was still working---so we could recover when we returned).

An interesting fact---follows this now.

On my dash I have this interesting thing called a chart plotter. It is a computer screen that is meant to show you where you are. I works like this:

You buy chart chips (navigation charts that are computer generated from the original charts, and put into small chips about the size of a stamp) You put these chips into the plotter so you now have the area you are traveling on your computer screen. I also have a GPS satellite system that sends a signal to a satellite and receives one back to let you know exactly where you are.

You interface the GPS system with the plotter, and you can actually see on the screen (chart) where you are. There is a lot more to it that I won't bore you with, but the point is this-yesterday I took the plotter cursor, and put it on the marina we are headed for in Mobile. The plotter said that it was 232 miles away. I thought that can't be right. We were at the 358 mile marker. Which is 358 miles to Mobile. So how can that be. Well the plotter computes in straight lines, so in a straight line is was 232 miles, but because the river twists, and turns so much, it will actually take us over 100 more miles of travel to get there. Well I thought it was interesting.
Today.......

1 lock (three miles from here), and 105 miles to a place called "Bobby's Fish Camp" (that should be special) The weather continues to be perfect. 87 and sunny.

Well the sky is starting to brighten in the east, so I think I'll pay my bill and head back to the boat. (what do you think I should leave as a tip?) I need to check the fluids in the engines, and look at that pesky seeping manifold bolt to see if it is getting any worse. Then we'll spray the bugs off the boat, (Steve does this every morning-it's great to have a good crew) and we'll head out.

Thanks for all the notes-
* Neal-still no fishing, not enough time, maybe next week.
* Jenny-you're on the list now
* Randy-Dad is doing good-Thanks
* Holly-another vacation for you?
* Art-yes, more fuel
I'll keep you posted......

BK