Hello,

Our trip Southbound was to be much like all the others we had done.  We would bring the boat down to Orange Beach Marina in early November and leave her there until we returned after the New Years holiday.

We left Aqua Yacht and planned on rendezvousing with Gerald and Cheri Wallace on the "It Take Two" which is a Defever 49 RPH at Demopolis, AL. We had known Gerald for a few months since he was berthed for the summer at Aqua Yacht after purchasing his new to him Defever. Cheri was still working full time on the West Coast but would join him frequently until she completed her retirement plans and they would be off to complete the Loop!!

Our Defever 44 performed great as Kris and I headed South. The fall weather was cooperative with warm days and cool nights. Of course we would have to deal with early morning fog as we traveled.

One of our favorite stops along the way is Columbus Marina near Columbus MS. This is an ideal place to stop since our youngest son was finishing his college career at MSU and obtaining his commission in the U.S. Army!! Secondly, I was always impressed with the quality of service provided by "T" and his staff at the Columbus Marina! They are one of the best marinas on the river and I strongly recommend them to any boater.

We re-provisioned and started the next morning with a planned stop at the Sumpters Creek anchorage. While transiting the first lock just south of Columbus, I noticed a boat tied to the wall in front of us. The boat had a hailing port of St. Paul, MN. Of course since I have spent most of my professional flying career in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, I was curious to know more about these boaters.

I ask about their home port and the Captain tells me he recently retired from Northwest/Delta Airlines as a B747-400 Captain. What were the odds I would meet a fellow pilot from my airplane on the river in Columbus, MS. Once out of the lock, we communicated on a remote radio frequency and realized we knew and had actually flown together.

That evening we anchored together and enjoyed a good meal before leaving in the fog the next morning for Demopolis. And foggy it was!! We delayed our start until we felt safe to transit the next lock. Our speed was eerily slow as we passed the "The Green Wave" which is a commercial tow pushed on the bank to await the low visibility. Once out of the lock the fog began to lift and we could return to our normal cruising speed of 9 mph!

Our arrival into Demopolis was right on schedule and we were glad to meet up again with Gerald and Cheri.

Next update... our leg to Old Lock Number One.

Thanks for checking in on us.

All the best,

Rusty