First Dolphin Sighting

We departed Dog River Marina early this morning. Our route took us back to the Mobile Bay shipping channel for about 6 miles where we passed a fishing trawler and a freighter. We had a tip from an experienced delivery captain on how to cut across the Bay to the east, shortening the journey to the ICW (intercoastal waterway). The bay waters were pretty flat and the sky was cloudy. We entered the ICW and began to see homes and marinas along the way. We also had our first dolphin sightings, at one point several of them were jumping so high that we could see and hear them exhale through their blow holes (or whatever it is they do with them). Didn't even try to get a picture, too busy watching and delighting in the experience. LuLu's Restaurant is owned by Jimmy Buffet's sister and we could see the folks eating lunch at the windows as we cruised by. Parts of this section are straight cuts through the land, one section had houses and a busy road running parallel to it. Other parts open up into large bays. We are anchored in Ingrams Bayou and have the place to ourselves. A 6 hour cruising day is about right for me and we are just relaxing on the boat. A tasty onboard dinner and some cribbage will round out our day. We always look for anchorages with alot of bars (internet bars, that is) and this one is good. Hopefully AT&T will continue to cover us in Florida, where we plan to be tomorrow with Pensacola as our next destination.

We are adjusting our electronic charts (and our brains) to thinking in nautical miles (the river charts use statute miles) and adjusting to different ways of tying our lines and our fenders due to the tides. Lots to learn for us "river rats".

In response to those who wondered how much fuel we've used, Captain Steve has provided the following numbers. To go 1554 miles from Newport, MN to Mobile Bay in 206 engine hours (plus 26 generator hours...it's not even broke in quite yet), we used 416 gallons of diesel fuel (plus 13 gallons for the gen). Our fuel consumption is considered economical at 3.74 miles/gallon. Prices varied from lowest in Aberdeen, MS at $2.46/gallon and highest in Rock Island, IL at $3.10/gallon. Average price was $2.78. Now if you are still with me after all those facts, I'll tell you that we are budgeting $100/day. I've read estimates from $25,000 to $50,000, putting us right in the middle. Anchoring out saves money as marina costs depend on how long your boat is, average $1/foot on the river, but Florida and the east coast will be more. We hear that there are record numbers of loopers this year. Good fuel prices and lots of baby boomers pursuing their dreams. So if you can dream, you can do.