Going through New Orleans to Gulfport

After a bouncy night, which included a little rain, we woke to a beautiful day. It was pretty late by the time we got tied up last night. And by the time we got our beds set up and ate supper, it was nearing bed time (because dawn comes early on a boat).

I usually like to get on Google maps and look to see what is around us. You never know what might be over that hill that you can't see. That morning I noticed that we slept about 1,500 ft. from the Waterford 3 Nuclear Generating Plant. I am really surprised that someone didn't run us off. I guess they figured a couple of guys on a pontoon boat, didn't pose much of a threat.

Our first stop for the day is to pick up the prop at Donovan Marine in New Orleans, which is only one mile from the river bank. We located the address and looked on Google Maps (satellite view) to identify an area where we hoped we could beach the pontoon. If we can find a place to park the boat near the end of Hickory Street, it would be a straight shot to Donovan's. We had a plan.

Since the water is high, the area looked a lot different today than when the satellite photo was taken. Barges lined the left descending bank of the river. We have to first get in behind the barges. The tow companies line these things up like a great wall along the river. We finally spotted a gap in the barges, near a dredging rig. It looked like a permanent dredge that pumps sand into a basin and where it is scooped out for deliver. We found a little cove among the tree lined area of the river bank about 100 feet up river from the dredge hose. We were very close to the end of Hickory St. Bingo!!! There was a haul road right in front of us. Charlie found out from one of the truck drivers running back and forth on the haul road, that it would lead right to Hickory St. Since I went for the gas in Greenville, Charlie volunteered to walk to the warehouse.

After about an hour, Charlie returned with two props. The price was so good he ordered two. Two 10 lb boxes don't seem heavy until you carry them for a mile. I think Charlie was glad to finally see the boat. We packed the props away and turned to head on down the river. We were at mile 107. Just 14 miles from the industrial lock, where we will leave the Mississippi River. Most of us think as New Orleans being at the mouth of the Mississippi River, but it is another 100 miles from downtown New Orleans to the Gulf of Mexico.

We passed through New Orleans, past the cruise terminal, the idle paddle wheel river boats, and Jackson Square Park. Normally the park along the river bank would be full of people, watching the river traffic and enjoying the sunshine. Today it was empty.

We arrived at the Industrial Lock around 11:30. Our timing was perfect. A river bound tow pushing two barges was in the chamber, when we got there. As soon as it pushed out of the lock, we were able to get into the lock and lock down. We were going from the level of the river down to sea level, on this day about a drop of 20 feet.

This is the first lock we have been trough since the Ohio River, and actually we drove over the top of the lock at Olmstead. It's 972 miles from Olmstead Lock to the Gulf of Mexico. Fun fact: Today, the Ohio River at Cairo, IL gauge is at 43.54'. The zero level datum for this gauges is 269.12'. That means the water at Cairo, IL is 312.66' above sea level. The river level is 1.13 feet at the Mississippi River Gulf Outlet gauge. Remember, no locks in between the two. A drop of over 300' in 972 miles. I guess that is why we can't cut out all those ox bows, it keeps the water from running out too fast. But, USACE could build locks. But, then we would have to deal with the tows at the locks. Ok, let's just leave it like it is. I will address dealing with tow boats at locks when we start up the Ten-Tom. Back to the trip.

Charlie called Seabrook Marine, which was on the Industrial Canal near Lake Pontchartrain. We were looking for a place to change the prop, just a place we could tie up and get to the motor. The person he got on the phone said; "We are closed. No one is working. You are welcome to find an empty slip and do whatever you need to do". They had a dry stack, so Charlie wanted to see if they could lift us out of the water so we could change the prop as well as the engine and foot oil. The engine was getting close to its 100 hour maintenance requirement. We pulled in and saw someone walking around. Turns out he was just staying on a friends boat there in the marina. He went to look for someone working, but couldn't find anyone. We went back around to the canal side, were we saw some slips on the way in. Charlie backed in one. Once the engine was raised it was a pretty easy to get to the prop to change it. Fifteen minutes later we were back underway.

Our next big challenge would be the Mississippi Sound. The first 34 miles of the Gulf Intra-Coastal Waterway (GICW), would have the protection of the marsh land on both sides of a canal. The waves would be no more than a light chop today on this part of the path to Bay St. Louis, MS. But once we got past mile 34, we will be on the Mississippi Sound which is more open. The wind driven waves could build in this area as the day goes on. The forecast for the Mississippi Sound was waves 1 to 2 feet. We can handle those without issue. We just hope the forecast is accurate.

We emerge out of the canal to find that the sound is only at a light chop. Charlie called Bay St. Louis to check the gas price, $3.00 per gallon. He called Gulfport Marina, another 15 miles further. Gas was $2.02 at Gulfport. We're sure, well pretty sure, that we have enough fuel to make it to Gulfport. (We had not run either of the tanks out of fuel, so we were relying on the gauges being accurate.) We charted a new course to Gulfport.

It turns out we had about 10 gallons to spare. We filled both of our tanks and the four 5-gallon cans. Charlie asked the dock attendant about a place to change the oil. He said we could do it right there. So we changed the oil in the engine right at the fuel dock. The dock attendant even provided a bucket to empty the old oil into and showed us where the oil recycling tank was. We were glad to see that the marina had COVID-19 protocols in place. When Charlie went to pay, he couldn't go into the dock office. The dock attendant took is credit card, with gloves on, and went into the office to process the payment. He sprayed it down and wiped it off before he gave it back to Charlie.

Charlie's brother-in-law, who lives in Biloxi (about 10 miles from Gulfport), recommended the Half Shell Oyster House for dinner. I was looking forward to having dinner off the boat. We called the Half Shell Oyster House to make sure they were doing carry out. We found that they closed at 8. It was 7:45, and we were still on the fuel dock. Oh, well there is always Pizza. But first, showers. It has been since Bob's cabin that we have had a proper shower. Sponge baths with disposable wash towels can only do so much. Thankfully Gulfport had not closed it showers. They provided Clorox wipes and spray to wipe everything down. It was still a little unnerving.

We had pizza delivered and ate on the boat.