Our Final Leg (For This Journey)

Goodbye Seabrook Marina

Zach and I pulled away from Seabrook Marina after a week of touring and several Good Nights in New Orleans. Since Zach was not 21, we ended doing a lot of things that I might have passed up had he not been along. Since I had just been to a WW II Museum in Carrabelle, I may have passed on the one in New Orleans. I am glad we didn’t miss it.

We set our goal to make it to Horn Island on the first day after leaving New Orleans, an 86 mile trip. It would be a long day of calculations. As we passed the flood gates we decided that at this speed we can make it. Then thirty minutes later, we had slowed down by 1 MPH, so now we are going to be about 5 miles short at last light. We start taking a closer look at the alternate anchorages we discussed before departing.

The wind favored our sails and we made it to our preferred anchorage about 20 minutes before sunset. We were treated to a great sunset and a peaceful night. And I thought, I am so blessed to have the Soul of a Sailor..

We enjoyed a spaghetti dinner in the cockpit and played few hands of Rummy to end the evening.

The next morning, we hauled anchor a little after 7 and headed for Mobile. Zach was behind the helm most of the trip yesterday, so I took the helm for the start of the trip. He took the helm after an hour or so, but he wanted me to take over once we got into Mobile Bay. I had us routed through some shallow areas of the bay, and he was a little nervous about the route. I think I took the helm when we went through a shallow area earlier in the trip (back when he was a rookie) and said something like; “if anyone is going to run aground, it should be me”. I guess those words came back to bite me.

We saw this monster barge near the
West End of Dauphin Island

We made it to the Mobile Convention Center Dock by about 3:30. I put Zach at the helm so he could have some experience pulling up to a dock. The wind was on our stern. Not the best way to dock, but the tide would be changing soon, so I wanted our bow to be toward the oncoming tidal flow. As we are approaching the dock wall, we got turned a little sideways by the wind and we have just a bit to much speed. I am outside the cockpit with the lines ready, so I tell Zach to put it in neutral and steer away from the wall. The wall is still coming up fast (well fast for a boat), so I tell him hard neutral. Zach was confused by this term (yeah, I don’t know what the means either, but I thought we were still in gear). As I jumped in the cockpit to put the boat in neutral, I realized it was the wind pushing us, so I slammed it into reverse to keep us off the wall. I decided that the current wouldn't be that bad against the stern over night and it would be much easier to dock going into the wind. So, we swung out away from the dock, so we could turn around and point the other way. I heard five blasts on the horn from the tow boat that was pushing down river (five blasts of the horn means danger or I don’t understand your intentions). I knew we were getting ready to swing back around, but to him it looked like this crazy sailboat was going to cut right across in front of him. We swung it around and Zach pulled Lesson Plan right up next to the dock wall. I lassoed a cleat. Zach did a great job. The first failed attempt didn’t get him rattled (which I should have known not to try that with the wind on our stern and a rookie at the helm). He kept his composure and slid her right in on the second attempt. Great job Zach.

It was time to explore Mobile. We headed out to see the sites of downtown Mobile. We saw a movie being filmed in the park (a horror movie they said). We went to the Carnival Museum, but they were closed. We peeked inside the oldest Catholic Cathedral in the Mobile area, Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception.

Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception

Then we wondered on up to Wintzell's Oyster House. Neither one of us are fans of raw oysters, but we decided to give the char-grilled oysters a try. Not bad.

The main reason we came up to the Mobile Convention Center dock was to meet my youngest daughter, Lauren, and her boyfriend (they are going a cruise out of Mobile). We had a great breakfast with them Thursday morning at A Spot of Tea, a local favorite for breakfast (I ate here with Frank and Carol my last time at the Convention Center Dock). We said goodbye to Lauren and Shane as they headed for the cruise ship, and we went to make our ship ready to head to the marina where Lesson Plan will spend the next few weeks.

The most dangerous part of the trip comes on Friday, the drive home. But we have one last night to find some great food. After we get Lesson Plan securely in her slip, we head over to the River Shack (a small restaurant right on the river directly across from Turner Marine). Zach has a new favorite place for Crab Cakes. After our meal, we discovered that they catch the crabs right there at the restaurant and serve them fresh.

The next morning I said goodbye to Lesson Plan and we headed for KY. At the end of May, I will come get her to take her to KY Lake for the hurricane season. We will be Rollin on the Rivers (thanks Rick) with Lesson Plan (not Proud Mary) for a couple of weeks. Adventure awaits for anyone who wants to ride along.

Lessons Learned:

There is a lot more to New Orleans than just Bourbon Street.

You can travel hundreds of mile and find out the best food is right across the river.