Day 129: Traveling the Divide Cut
Day 129: November 24: The sun is shining. What more can I ask? As long as there is sun, there is warmth. We pulled up anchor and got UW at 8:00 a.m. Two small fishing boats were on either side of the cove, trolling for dinner. This must be a good spot if the locals are here but darn if John could catch something last night. As the saying goes, if at first you don't succeed; I'll make sure he tries again.
The bank along the cove looked beautiful this morning; the smooth edges of the rocks softened the vista.
So begins our travels on the Tenn-Tom Waterway which connects the Tennessee River at Pickwick Lake with the Tombigbee River at Demopolis, AL. The waters from Demopolis to Mobile are called the Black Warrior-Tombigbee Waterway. It will not take us long to travel this stretch; southbound we will lock down 341' over 450.4 miles to Mobile and the current will be with us.
Originally proposed in the late 1700's by the French as a way of connecting the Tennessee and Tombigbee, no effort was made to complete the Tenn-Tom Waterway until December 1972 when work began on the canal. In 1968 President Johnson budgeted funds to start the engineering and design of the waterway; then in 1972 President Nixon included one million dollars in the budget for construction. Work began in 1972 but in 1977 President Carter proposed putting a halt to the project. Public outcry opposed him and construction continued and the waterway was finally completed in 1984; the first tow passed through the waterway in 1985.
This incredible undertaking surpassed the construction of the Panama Canal relative to the amount of earth that was excavated. The waterway shortens the trip for vessels to various ports by as much as 720 miles. For example, boats cruising from Pensacola, FL to Chattanooga, TN have only 771 miles to travel via the waterway as opposed to 1541 miles via the Mississippi River known for its swift currents.
The Tenn-Tom is divided into three sections; the Divide Cut, the Canal and the River. Today we started down the Divide Cut. The Tenn-Tom Waterway was cut into the backbone of the land here to a depth of 175 feet for nearly 25 miles. At Mile 411.9 the Divide Cut ends and the waterway opens into the headwaters of Bay Springs Lake where we plan on anchoring tonight.
Our cruise along the Divide was pleasant and interesting when you think about the tremendous undertaking it was to build the waterway. Commercial traffic was minimal. With plenty of room to spare, we passed one barge while we were on a straightaway. No need to hail the captain as passing on the "one" was obvious.
We took in the scenery, unique from open water, the cut banks calling attention to man's ability to move mountains so to speak.
Structures known as baffles spot the banks along the way. These are used to prevent creeks from rushing into the waterway. They are most often found around construction zones where a lot of sediment is pulled into the water via runoff.
Looking up on each side of the canal, it's amazing to see the top of the land. Imagine having dug this deep into the earth to create the waterway.
We eventually saw that there were three more Loopers ahead of us; Dos Gatos Locos, Dirtless and Indigo Seas. As we approached Bay Springs Lake, we heard Indigo Seas call the Whitten Lock requesting passage and stating there were at least three other boats behind him that would be locking through as well. I then received a message on NEBO from Dirtless asking if we were locking or staying on the lake overnight. As it turned out only Indigo Seas and Echo's Too were continuing on; the rest of us were stopping before the lock for the night. Indigo Seas did let the Lock-master know that he and only one other boat, Echo's Too, were locking.
Ahead of us, Dos Gatos Locos and Dirtless pulled into one of the coves off of the channel on Bay Springs Lake. We continued further into the cove, passing by the two Loopers who were busy anchoring and rafting. We dropped the hook in about 15 feet of water. There was no current or wind; I'm sure we would not have had an issue but John decided to put out a stern anchor. He wanted to use the Danforth; the bolt holding it had not been undone in years and was stuck and stubborn. John used a propane torch; heat was the solution. Armed with the heavy duty Danforth, he secured the stern. We would be going nowhere tonight.
We took the dinghy to shore, wanting to visit the Bay Springs Visitors Center. We rode to where we thought a dinghy dock was available for use. It was connected to a shack; evidently for government use only. We pulled the tender onto shore along the muddy bank. We had to climb up a small hill surrounded by trees and full of leaves. Something wasn't right; I couldn't imagine folks having to walk this way to get to the center. I was right; we were in the back of the facility where all the official ranger trucks were parked. We walked to the front and saw that there actually was a small dock in front right on the waterway just above the lock. Live and learn!
The Visitors Center was small but did have some interesting displays about the Tenn-Tom. There were plenty of brochures, maps and audio available that described the three sections of the waterway. We spoke to a lady named Loretta who was manning the reception booth. She was pleasant but didn't have much information to provide because she was filling in for the person who regularly works there. It didn't matter to me, just listening to her accent was an event in itself.
We headed back to the boat, stopping at Dos Gatos Locos, wanting to ask if they were planning on locking through in the morning. The next three locks run on a schedule on the weekends. The first, the Whitten, is on request every two hours starting at 6:00 a.m. and locking on all even hours through 8:00 p.m. It's easier on everyone when several boats lock through together so we settled on a plan. John would be in contact with the lock at 7:00 a.m. All six boats would monitor channel 69 beginning at 7 in the morning. Once John received information from the lock, he would convey that to the other boats. Everyone was hopeful we would be able to lock through at 8:00 a.m.
We settled in for a game of Cribbage after a dinner of leftover hamburgers and of course lots of vegetables. I managed to score a 16 and a 20 hand but still lost to John who is not a humble winner.
I happened to look out the window, catching the pink that was just showing through the clouds. It didn't take but a few minutes for it to disappear, leaving only puffy clouds. You have to be quick if you want to capture the colors of the rising or setting sun.
Darkness soon fell and the hooting of an cut through the silence. Blessed are we to be here; enjoying the sights and sounds of nature.
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