The Gulf Coast

After finally getting Lauren Grace out of "sick bay" in Dog River we cruised across Mobile Bay to Fly Creek on the Eastern Shore and shared an enjoyable Thanksgiving feast with our friends Pat & Ruth Kelley in Daphne, AL. After the Holiday we were so ready to move on and get to the blue water and sandy beaches, alas it has been too chilly to enjoy the beaches.

We saw our first dolphins of the winter last Saturday (Nov 28) about an hour after we left Mobile Bay astern and entered into the Gulf Intercoastal Waterway (ICW). Actually it was a couple of hours because we stopped for lunch at Lulu's and we didn't see the dolphins until after lunch. Lulu's is kind of a tourist trap, largely due to the celebrity connection, but we like the shrimp and oyster Po' Boys, yum. Regarding the celebrity connection - Lulu's is owned by Lucy Buffett, Jimmy's sister. And yes they do serve a great cheeseburger, and while it might not be paradise it is mighty nice to sit and look out over the ICW while enjoying that burger with a "big kosher pickle and a cold draft beer". After such a feast for lunch we motored on over to a favorite anchorage and spent a chilly night on the hook. Sunday morning was warm and beautiful but the weather forecast was stinky and so we headed a few miles into Florida and checked in at Holiday Harbor Marina where Lauren Grace will reside while we celebrate Christmas in Boise.

That was Sunday, by Monday it was raining and windy, Tuesday was worse and a heck of a storm was moving ashore. Even in the marina we were getting waves, especially after the wind shifted to the Northwest. By Wednesday the winds were 40 mph and the waves were creating all kinds of whitecaps even on the ICW. Before leaving the boat to visit with friends ashore we put a couple of extra lines from the windward side to pilings a couple of piers over. Wednesday night we gathered, along with the occupants of several other boats, at the Innerarity Island home of our friends Tom & Patsy to commiserate about the horrible conditions and swap stories about the restless night we had all had. Turns out that our friends got the worst of the storm, about a half an hour before he was scheduled to collect all the boaters with no cars Tom noticed that something appeared "funny" down at his dock and when he went to investigate he discovered a broken piling and a section of dock missing. Luckily it was daylight and he noticed it before his boat had the opportunity to bounce down on a wave and hit the broken piling. He and Larry are planning to spend tomorrow doing dock repairs while Patsy and I go to Fairhope to do a little shopping ('tis the season) and collect our truck which is sitting at the Fairhope Yacht Club.

This week will be spent getting ready to leave the boat and head to see our girls. We are flying out of New Orleans on Friday and I can't wait! In the meantime there is the refrigerator to defrost, packing to attend to, and a little last minute cleaning to finish. Hopefully by the time we return next year the weather will have settled down and we will be able to have smooth sailing as we explore the Gulf Coast.