Midway Marina to Columbus Marine, MM 335

October 9, 2015

We decided on an early departure after talking to other cruisers on the dock who were planning to leave around 7 in the hopes of making it through at least 4 locks.  Shortly before we planned to leave, the Fulton lockmaster announced over the radio that he would start locking down southbound pleasure craft (that’s us) around 8.

Even though we still left the dock around 7, we didn’t feel rushed, because the lock was only about 2 miles away, and we had plenty of time to get there.  As it turned out, we needed that time.  The closer we got to the lock, the foggier it became, so we had to slow way down.  There were 4 boats that had left the dock, and then there was a 5^th boat that had anchored near the lock just outside of the navigational channel.

Fog at Fulton Lock

Fog getting thicker

As before when we had fog, we turned up the gain on the radar and Rob stood on the bow, keeping a sharp eye out front.  When you are in the middle of it and can’t see much of anything, the fog seems really thick.  When you get close to a structure like the lock, however, you realize that you can really see at least 700-1000 ft.  The lock chamber itself is 600 ft long and the long wall leading up to the gate is at least that long, so by the time we got to the wall, we could see almost to the end of it.

The fog wasn't so bad once we got within 1000 ft

When we exited the lock, the fog was gone, and we were off to the next lock, which was Wilkins Lock, about 15 miles away.  Since the sailboat, Mistral, was locking through with us and could only travel at about 5.5 mph, there was no need to hurry to the next lock.  Generally, if another boat going in the same direction is within 30 minutes of the lock, the lockmaster will wait for it.

2 boats we traveled with: The Bar B and I Think I Can

Relatively narrow navigational channel

Marsh grass along the sides of the channel

We passed a couple of tows with barges in the fairly narrow channel.  Sometimes the tow would radio first regarding which side we should pass on, and sometimes the lead boat would radio first.  When approaching the tow, it always looks narrower than it really is, so when you are actually passing, there is plenty of room.

Passing a tow

See how much room there actually it for us (pic courtesy of Craig & Carla on Mistral)

After Wilkins Lock was Amory Lock which was only 4.7 miles away.  When we arrived, we got right into the lock and all got secured to the lock wall.  Then the lockmaster told us that we were waiting for 2 more boats which were locking through Wilkins.  Since they were traveling pretty fast, it was worth waiting for them.

The dam looks like a bridge so it has a big warning sign

Floating bollard in the lock - secures the boat to the wall while letting it rise or fall with the water level

Lorelei IV in the lock (~20 ft to the top of the mast) - the color change on the wall shows the starting water level

One of the boats was a 44 ft Meridian, and her captain asked if there was a pin up front.  Since he knew he was traveling faster than the rest of us, he wanted to be the first one out of the lock so that we wouldn’t have to go through his wake.  The other boat, 28 ft express cruiser, tied up behind us since it was the last boat in.  We motioned for it to go around us when it was time to exit, but the captain either didn’t see us or ignored us.  We didn’t speed up much once we were outside the lock, because we wanted to give the express cruiser time to get around us.  Eventually, he did pass, but he was up on plane when he did so, and he waked us all – how rude!  The other boats let him know by radio that they didn’t appreciate his rudeness.  One of them also called to the next lock to report his behavior, because lockmasters will talk to offenders and often will also make them wait longer to lock through.

The next lock, Aberdeen Lock, was 13.6 miles away.  When we were exiting Amory Lock, the lockmaster had told us that there was a working dredger at mm 366, so we should call for instructions when approaching it and should slow going past it.  We heard the Meridian communicating with tows and the working dredge and letting them know that he would slow down as he passed.  Hopefully the express cruiser followed suit.

It really didn’t make a difference in time to the 2 faster boats which got to Aberdeen Lock earlier than the rest of us, because they had to wait for us to get there to lock through with them.  They were waiting for a tow to clear the chamber after locking up, and by the time it did so, the rest of us, except Mistral, had arrived.  Since Mistral was only 15-20 minutes behind us, we waited for them too.  We heard the Meridian explain the reason for his faster speed of travel to a passing tow captain who asked about the boat.  He said that he either has to idle or get up on plane to get the best fuel economy, because otherwise he is just plowing water unnecessarily.  Rob also said that he might have turbo engines, which perform better over the long run at faster rpm’s.

Waiting for the tow to clear at Aberdeen Lock

Once we got through Aberdeen Lock, we speeded up since we wanted to make it to Columbus Marina before dark.  The Bar B was also going there, so we matched her speed and traveled together.  When we came to an area where there seemed to be a minefield of marsh grass across the channel, The Bar B cleared the way for us.  Many of the clumps of grass actually had some pretty flowers on them.

The Bar B leading the way

There is beauty everywhere

We arrived at Columbus Marina around 6 p.m..  The dockmaster watched us come in and gave us direction and reassurance that we were on a good path the whole way in.  I think there were at least 8 people waiting to catch our lines – some marina staff, some resident boaters.  The grounds are very spacious and well-maintained, so Sasha had a nice big grassy area for her Frisbee session.  I did put her back on the leash before letting her get a drink at the edge of the water, because people at the dock said that a few alligators have been seen from time to time in the area.

When we went for our walk after supper, Sasha tried to make friends with an armadillo, but although it initially seemed curious – or stunned by my flashlight – it eventually moved off.  She definitely would have chased it if she had been free to do so.