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We have enjoyed the trip from Chicago, Illinois, to Mobile, Alabama. In the past three months we have travelled 1,300 miles on rivers and canals. We will remember the varied terrain, locks and docks, the spectacular fall colours and fabulous small town hospitality, barges, bald eagles and beautiful backwater anchorages.
When I asked Coast Guard Boating instructor, Peter Marshall, for advice on navigating our way around the ‘America’s Great Loop’, he said “just remember ‘Red Right Returning’ and you’ll be fine. You can’t get lost.” I was so comforted by this piece of information that I went away reciting it to myself but with no real idea of how it was going to save us. Over the past year the ‘Red Right Returning’ rule has become the one that has guided us more than anything else. It refers to the red buoys that mark the right-hand side of the channel as you proceed upstream and home into any port. Simple! Until you learn that when going south on the Tenessee River towards the Gulf Goast you are actually going ‘up’ river as the current runs south to north. To compound the complications of river navigation, significant points of interest are referred to as being on the left descending bank (LDB) or right descending bank (RDB). Which makes a lot of sense as you fly down the Mississippi river going south as the LDB is on your left. However, turn the corner onto the Ohio river where you go ‘up’ river from west to east, and you will find that the left descending bank is now on your right. Confused!?! Well, it’s not too bad when you have time to think about it. For the most part, we have river navigation under control.
Controlling the weather is a different matter. Hurricane Ida brought heavy rain to the Alabama area and even though Ida was downgraded to a tropical storm, it managed to drop so much rain in the Tombigbee catchment area that river levels rose by 27 feet and the current was clocked at 8 knots. Boaters were advised to stay off the river for a week. We were fortunate to be north of the bad weather and able to stay in a safe anchorage in historic downtown Columbus, Mississippi, where we had plenty to keep us amused. We also had a week in Demopolis, Alabama, while we waited for the backlog of boats to clear from the anchorages downriver from us.
There is a famous incident that took place in this area in 1979 that makes boaters heed the warnings. See the following report and then have a look at the photos on the website below .
Cahaba Incident
On April 28, 1979, a tugboat named M/V Cahaba was on the Tombigbee near Demoplolis, Alabama. The tugboat was attempting to guide 2 coal barges under a flooded side-span of the old Rooster Bridge (removed years later), but the flood current was too strong. The tug and barges approached the drawbridge-section, which failed to re-open fast enough while the river was near flood stage (drawbridges must close & re-open to allow waiting traffic to cross). The fast currents pinned the craft, starboard side, against the bridge in high waters. The force was so dramatic that it pulled the boat downward, tilting it beneath the bridge, and fully submerging it in the river. The underwater pressure blew out a port-side window in the pilot house, which began filling with water, while the captain remained at the helm. However, soon, the tugboat emerged out the other side of the bridge, and righted itself, with water pouring from the doorways and decks. One of the 2 main ventilator funnels had tilted to the center, but one engine was still running, to steer/anchor the tugboat in a flooded cornfield. Another downstream tugboat, M/V Tallapoosa rescued the captain and all 3 crew members, with the pilot, then secured the 2 barges of coal. The barges were later towed to Mobile by the same company's towboat M/V Mauvilla.
Scroll down to see the photos at UNDER ACHIEVER:
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Port St Joe, Florida 
Fall colours, Natchez Trace, Alabama.
Mobile Bay, Alabama.
