Day 217: - - Tensaw River Cut-off to Mobile, AL
Day 217: Tuesday, November 29th: The cold front last night turned out to be very mild where we were. There was a little rain and wind but nothing to be concerned about. This morning was a chilly 45 degrees. The tide had dropped, exposing the mud below the thick underbrush on the bank:
We got underway and headed back out the creek. As we passed Wind Dreams a short way down, we discovered a drifting log had tangled their stern anchor:
They were able to free it easily enough, so we went on. Back out on the main river, now the Mobile River, we began to approach Mobile with its accompanying barge and ship traffic. That's the Cochran Bridge behind the nested barges:
Mobile is one of the busiest seaports on the Gulf coast as witnessed by this large freighter. Note the modern tugboat tied to the pier:
Here's another freighter being loaded:
This, we guessed, was the cruise ship terminal. In the background is the tallest building in Alabama under construction. After the recent hurricanes, we questioned the wisdom of this construction so close to the Gulf:
We began to notice the results of 2004's hurricane Ivan and this year's Katrina:
Even more impressive were these two ships washed up on the bank. We think these have been here longer than a couple of years. It was no less impressive:
It's not just the shipping that makes the harbor busy. Note the shrimp boat crossing the channel behind the inbound freighter:
We went about eleven miles down Mobile Bay and turned west into Dog River. We had reservations at Dog River Marina, a popular spot. So popular, in fact, that the marina was full and couldn't honor our reservations. Instead, we moored at Grand Mariner Marina across the small river. We were perfectly happy with this spot, so all was well.
We borrowed the marina's courtesy car and ran several quick errands the rest of the afternoon.
Our friends on Silver Boots, Pam and Jim, were here. Jim's mother lives in Mobile and they had been visiting for almost a month. We had happy hour with them and caught up on all the happenings since the AGLCA Rendezvous in early October. It was good to see them again.
Position tonight: N30 34.017 W088 05.564
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