Northern Alabama

Tuesday, September 17, 2013

We arrived at Joe Wheeler State Park yesterday (Monday) mid-afternoon after departing Florence, AL, our Sunday night 'residence.' We detoured off the TN River on Friday to the TennTom Waterway for a reputable mechanic to look at the diesel engines and some problems that have arisen with them. We overnighted at Aqua Marina then made an early-morning appearance on Saturday at Lee Spry Marine, a mere one mile away. Clay was most impressed with Lee, an easy-going and mild-mannered fella who listened to Clay, then did the diagnostic work. Clay decided to forego the not-time-sensitive work on the engines now in favor of servicing them upon our return to this area in late October. But we stayed the overnight in this remote, industrial area and left Sunday morning, headed to Florence, AL.

We arrived at the Florence City Park Marina to find our frequent companions, the Nina and the Pinta, tied there for a 4-5 day exhibit. Crowds were thick, so the two Columbus ships are obviously a draw. We've encountered them numerous times along our way and see them now, as I'm typing this, entering the Joe Wheeler Marina harbor as we depart. Florence was touted as a very appealing boaters' paradise with a lovely downtown area, a well-maintained park and restrooms, laundromat, and restaurant on the waterfront (actually a floating marina office with these amenities). Having had just recently a poor dining experience at Pickwick State Park, I was leaning toward cooking aboard; but a fellow dockmate highly recommended the floating restaurant called River Bottom Grille. So, after regrouping and a glass of wine/beer, we joined the crowd at the Grille and had not only a wonderful meal, but an absolutely darling waitress.

We overnighted but were mildly disappointed with no evening satellite services (tv) due to the covered dock. Up to see a nice sunrise, Clay and I walked the park and encountered an older couple who could have been Florence ambassadors. They were so warm and welcoming; even their very large great dane Dudley warmed up to us. We left Florence around 11 a.m. which has become our routine of late with only 20 miles to cover but two locks ahead

A 5-star revolving restaurant in Floence, AL???  Been told the food is great!

Locking 101...don't shut down your engines until you know what to expect in locking through! The first chamber was a 93' pool which filled in an amazing 15 minutes. Tied up at the floating bollard with only my line controlling us, Clay had shut down both diesel engines to avoid my breathing fumes. Good idea, but... (why is there almost always a 'but'?) The turbulence created by the lockmaster opening all of the jets for the fill was unmanageable by only the use of my line and the thrusters; we found the thrusters just didn't have the necessary power to correct the bow moving away from the wall. I could have had those diesels going PDQ pronto, but we know Clay doesn't move as fast as Sal! Good learning experience! We made it unscathed, but I was sweating the swim platform! So glad the manufacturer tapered the back of the platform!

WOW!  A 93 ft. lift in Wilson Lock

No Gates on the upstream end--the lock wall goes down into the water 

Joe Wheeler Lock with a 48 ft. lift.

Turbulence in the lock chanber when it is filled.

Joe Wheeler lock's gates before the 48' rise.

The second lock of the day was a 48' pool which again filled in record time, 10 minutes. We handled this one MUCH better. As I said, experience is a great teacher. Clay did a magnificient job in handling the turbulence which was again incredible. I was awfully glad to reach our destination Joe Wheeler!
The Joe Wheeler office gal I contacted was quite vague in where we should overnight. Guess it really didn't matter as we were the only transient boater. Three+ weeks from now will be quite the opposite when Joe Wheeler hosts the Great Loop convention. Many Loopers arrive by car, but probably an equal number will arrive by boat, and the grounds will be a mass of people out to have a good time, to share experiences and expectations. We already have a good collection of stories to share, and we've been on board this experience only slightly over three weeks. I'm guessing our sagas will pale in comparison to others we'll hear.


Pool in sight; Clay sent me off to swim laps. Although the mornings have been quite cool, the day warms up nicely. So the water temp was fine at the 4 p.m.hour; Clay even joined me. Leftovers made dinner a breeze! We obtained a map of the grounds and figured that the map, along with our upcoming morning walk, would acquaint us with the area so as to be better prepared for our return during the convention. I like knowing my way around! Joe Wheeler State Park is another of Alabama's well-maintained state parks. On the expansive grounds are a lodge, marina, restaurant, convention center, golf course, swimming pool, park and playground area, cottages, to name a few. I'm sure it's a good place to host the Loopers! Clay has attended these conventions in the past (two others, I believe), but this will be my first.

Joe Wheeler Lodge and marina

Another beautiful day this Tuesday is. I swam at Clay's insistence...I didn't argue...while he did some trouble-shooting. Hanging over our heads is still the leaking fly bridge canopy (pun intended). I'm sure he has a to-do list; after all, this is a boat! Post swim, we departed Joe Wheeler after pumping out. Amazing how fast those holding tanks fill! No comments, please! A short 30 miles today, we'll be next in Decatur, AL. That brings you up to speed on our whereabouts.