Man Plans. God Laughs. It All Works Out In The End.

Day 167 |  Fulton to Columbus  |  7.1 Hours  |  53 Miles  |  4 Locks

The crews of nine boats awoke early and prepared for a first-light departure. As dawn broke, we realized we were blanketed by dense fog, limiting visibility to a few hundred feet. Our 7:00 plan came and went, so did the 8:00 re-write. By 9:00 we were on Plan C, but able to see some of the stumps and trees that lined the channel to the marina. A scout boat went out to check conditions in the river. At 9:30 we all anxiously got underway. Every boat was working a similar math problem concurrently: If my boat leaves Point A at 9:30 and travels at 8.5 knots, can we make 53 miles before dark knowing that we have four locks to pass through. 

By the time we reached Fulton Lock, our first of the day, most of the fog had burned off. The moisture in the air, however, was still clinging to the spiderwebs found on the lock walls. The captains had made great use of our morning delay, and mapped out the entrance order and tie up location for all boats. Everyone secured their boats and we passed through without delay. We met an up-bound tow waiting to occupy the lock we just left. If we had been 15 minutes later, we would have missed our turn and would have had to wait an hour or more for passage. Spirits were picking up.

The third photo below shows a car crossing on the highway bridge, a train on the railroad bridge, a line of tows waiting to head upriver, and a line of Loopers heading downriver. It was a busy day on the water, but the scenery was still spectacular at times.

We spotted a single bald eagle who watched our little parade go by from atop a dead tree. Two more locks -- Wilkins and Amory -- welcomed us right in. We exited and headed to the final lock of the day at high cruise, just shy of 10 mph. We were determined to hang with the four go-fast boats in front of us in order to make the final lock (Aberdeen) and therefore our original destination of Columbus as well. Our timing was again perfect, as a barge exited the chamber right as we all arrived. Yay, no waiting. We exited knowing we would arrive by 5:45, just before sunset and the marina office's closing. We could breathe easier and settled back in to check out the wildlife. Being there was no real shoreline along this stretch of waterway, this heron was also perched in a tree.

Yellow flowers popped up in the marshy transition zone, next to the vibrant green of the water hyacinths. An odd sight was the gathering of three red markers (nuns) in close proximity. We both thought it to be the start of a joke -- Three nuns go to a sandbar -- but could never think of a proper punchline. Maybe one will come to us later. We also saw a new plant appear, a palm or succulent of some type. It was getting cold so the thoughts of palm trees seemed to be most appropriate.

Just prior to the Stennis Lock and Dam we pulled off to enter Columbus Marina. We were the last of five boats to make it all 53 miles, in just over eight hours of travel time. We couldn't have done it without the help of the faster members of our group who raced ahead and held our position in the locks. (Four other boats had cut their day short.) We and the crew of Folie a Deux used the courtesy car and went into town for a spicy celebratory dinner at Huck's Place. The Great Loop isn't just about the places we visit, its equally about the wonderful folks we meet along the way.

We will stay in Columbus tomorrow and wait for rain and thunderstorms pass through.