Heading Down the Tenn-Tom

Day 166 |  Iuka to Fulton  |  7.3 Hours  |  49 Miles  |  3 Locks

Our early morning departure coincided with sunrise and our flotilla of five Looper boats was treated to a nice light show high in the clouds. Just after leaving Aqua Yacht Harbor, we entered the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway (Tenn-Tom) which is a 234-mile engineering marvel that links the Tennessee River to the Gulf of Mexico. The trees were once again displaying all their fall colors.

The controlled water level has been lowered to winter pool levels, exposing the intricate root structures of many trees along the way. The water was flat with no current, and provided a perfect reflective surface for the foliage to dazzle. Heron were everywhere and it seemed that one was perched at each of the many spillways along our path, just waiting for a snack to come out in vending-machine fashion. The oddest sight of the day was three wild turkeys walking up the bank. We joked that they heard it was November and were off to seek shelter and protection until Thanksgiving has come and gone.

Where large tributaries spilled into the canal, spillway baffles have been installed to slow the flow and ease erosion. The sky cleared by mid-morning and we again had a scenic trip, taking in all the views at a speed of 7.5 knots.

We met an occasional barge/tow along the way, but the channel had plenty of room for comfortable passing. We arrived at the Whitten Lock at noon and were able to proceed right into the chamber. This is the fourth-highest single-lift lock in the United States at 84-feet. The five boats entered and tied up with military precision and the trip down was smooth. We were quickly on our way to the Montgomery Lock, just a few miles downstream.

The Montgomery Lock was ready for us and we were lowered 30-feet without delay. The channel on the other side narrowed and it was possible to see near-shore turtles sunning themselves on logs. Crossroads was the lead boat in our parade and our chartplotter showed the four other boats behind us as we approached a 3x3 tow heading our way. Rankin Lock, also a 30-foot drop, was our final lock of the day. Upon exiting we noticed a change in the tree species and that most of the leaves had already fallen. The white trunks stood in sharp contrast to their dark background. Four miles later, we turned into Midway Marina for the night.

After tidying up dock lines and checking in, it was supper time. We ate onboard and enjoyed a beautiful sunset across the water.

Tomorrow will be another challenging day, with a similar overall distance, but four locks. We are hoping for the same efficient passage through the locks that we had today.