A Walk In The Park Yields Smiles

Day 168 |  Columbus

I welcome the end to Daylight Saving Time and was happy to wake up to a brightening sky at 6:00. It was a beautiful morning and Number 1 on our To Do list was to get a good walk in and knock the rust out of the knees. Our destination was East Bank Recreation Area, just down the road from the Columbus Marina. The view of the Tenn-Tom Waterway from the shoreline bluff was crystal clear. The view in the opposite direction was of the Stennis Lock and Dam. We will pass through this lock almost immediately after departing Columbus Marina. There was a monument tribute to the visionaries behind the waterway and little mounds created by fire ants. It was important to look down as we walked across the grassy areas.

We were enjoying our walk when Barry got a text saying the four boats who started with us yesterday (but stopped short for the night) were nearing the marina, so back we went. A pleasant surprise was spotting a paved area with six ball hoops. I immediately commented that I would be back later. While Barry waited for their arrival, I finished marking our stops along the Great Loop route map we purchased at the Rendezvous. The shiny little red sticker buttons I picked up at home worked perfectly. Barry helped the final boat in as I headed back to the park with basketball in hand. I shot for an hour and had a great time with my new best friend, Avery. The three-year-old was not interested in hanging out with his dad and I was glad to entertain him. He showed me his dribbling skills, rebounded for me, and even picked me flowers. Rain began to fall and I made it back to Crossroads just before the sky opened up. In my absence, the wind had changed direction and a mass of water hyacinths had assembled at our swim platform.

We checked out the courtesy car for two hours which was enough time for a Walmart run. I couldn't believe the presence of the large Christmas tree outside. We picked up some line so that we can attach a trip line to our anchor. We will be anchoring in areas known to have submerged stumps and other obstructions and need to make sure we can get our Rocna anchor back onboard if it becomes snagged. We had hoped to walk through the downtown district, but it was raining too hard and a quick trip to the post office was the extent of the tour. It was refreshing to see the street corners decorated with a harvest/Thanksgiving theme.

The rain continued, sometimes heavily, into the evening. We stayed onboard and worked on route planning all the way to Mobile. Odds are we'll stay here in Columbus for another day awaiting better weather.