Iuka, MS to Demopolis, AL

Total Miles Traveled 435.2

We left Aqua Yacht Harbor Marina on October 8^th; we had a great time visiting with our friends Charlie and Robin on the “Lower Place” and all the new loopers heading south.  We traveled about 38 miles to an anchorage at Bay Springs, just before Whitten Lock. 

As we were passing through the Divide Cut, we saw this fox looking for a snack.

Our plan was to lock through the Whitten Lock at daybreak with three other anchored boaters, but we discovered an issue with our waste system.  It turns out the sewer odor we experienced on the way to Bay Springs was a leaking bellows on the vacuum system which moves waste from the head to the waste holding tank.  I purchased spare parts for the complete system this summer so we were prepared for a failure at some point.  It was not a pleasant 6 hour job but at 1:30 pm we were ready to contact the lock for passage. I spared you any unsightly pictures of the waste system failure :~).

Due to our late start, we were only able to pass through three locks and anchor just before the Fulton lock.  It was an awesome day of cruising and a great sunset at anchor.

On October 10^th we weighed anchor just after daybreak and passed through four locks before arriving at Columbus, Mississippi.  We passed this tow on the way.

Our good friends Randy and Sherri from “Priorities” were there to great us.  We also caught up with several other boaters we have met during our travels, especially one from our home town of Terre Haute, Indiana.  We met Steve and Libby on “San Souci” the first time at Paris Landing, Tennessee; they have been experiencing a few mechanical problems and will be here a few more days.  We also met another looper from Evansville, Indiana, Norm and Vivian on "Quiet Company".  You just don't see that many people from Indiana on the Tenn-Tom.

We stayed at the Columbus Marina for a few days then locked through the Stennis Lock on October 13^th anchoring in an oxbow next to downtown Columbus.  An oxbow is a U-shaped metal pole that fits the underside and the sides of the neck on an ox.  The term oxbow is widely used to refer to a U-shaped meander in a river, sometimes cut off from the modern course of the river that formed it. 

We anchored here a few days; there is a park and boat dock next to our anchorage.  We dropped the dinghy one day and went to the dock meeting Randy and Sherri for lunch.  

We shared the anchorage with a sailboat the last couple of days.

On October 16^th we traveled 55 miles to an anchorage at Cooks Bend, near Panola Alabama.  We usually stop here on the way up in the spring or coming back down in the fall.  It’s a deep, well protected anchorage that’s easy to get in and out from the river. 

As we traveled south, we noticed more debris in the waterway, those small limbs sticking up could have a 15 foot tree attached to them under the water. 

We were gaining on this tow when approaching a river bend, we held back until he cleared the bend before passing.

We continued on to Rattlesnake Bend near Demopolis Alabama for one night, then to Demopolis the next morning to top off our fuel tanks.  Demopolis Yacht Basin is a major fuel dock for the tows going up and down the river; they sell a lot of fuel at a lower price than Kentucky, Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama and most of Florida. 

After our fuel stop we continued a few miles to an anchorage at Foscue Creek, just before the approach to Demopolis Lock and Dam.  We anchored here for five days getting caught up on a few projects and enjoying the scenery.  Our boat insurance prevents us from going any farther south than 32 degrees latitude until November 1^st, their date for the end of hurricane season. Our anchorage is 32 degrees, 30 minutes north.

Our anchorage is also close to a coast guard station which maintains the ATON’s (Aids to Navigation) in this region.  We were entertained by the activity of them loading buoy anchors and buoys onto the work barge.

This anchorage is also just off the river; we can see tows passing close to the entrance as they move through the lock. 

The only wildlife we have seen here were a few cranes and an Armadillo. 

With heavy rain and possible storms in the forecast we moved to the Kingfisher Bay Marina at Demopolis on October 24^th.  We’ll be here until November 1^st before continuing our adventure south.  We met our friends from Green Turtle Bay marina, Mike and Jan from “Trust Me” and several other boaters heading to Florida.  This is a good stop to receive Amazon orders, mail, and use the courtesy car for provisions.

I’m glad we came into the marina before the rain started; there is flooding north and south of us causing a lot of debris to break loose from the shore and create hazards on the waterway.

The current forecast calls for the rivers to drop to a safe level by our planned departure....... if we don’t experience more measurable rain.  We plan to be in the Gulf Shores area during the first week of November.