Bobby's Fish Camp To Three Rivers Anchorage

December 4, 2016

We survived the night on Steiner's Bend, in spite of the near miss by the Tow Captain of the Ella Gertrude. We were off the hook at 7:21, traveling south in light rain. It was warmer than the last few days, but we are bundled up in rain gear to keep us as dry as possible. The boom shade was tied over the top of our mast cradle, covering our hatch and part of the cockpit.

Winding our way down the Tombigbee

View along the waterway

We will arrive at Bobby’s Fish Camp in Coffeeville, AL today. After a long day of cruising along the winding river we manage to arrive at the dock around 3:30. There were two power boats already tied up. They had passed us, up river, and called Mucho Gusto on the radio to ask if we planned to stay at Bobby’s. They said they’d pull forward so we’d have room to dock when we arrived. Bobby's dock can only hold about four boats depending on their size. We'd heard stories about boats arriving to a full dock having to raft up two or three deep into the channel. We tied Mystic off then helped Mucho Gusto raft up to us. A third power boat was arriving soon and would take the final spot at the end of the dock. Bobby’s ain't much but it’s everything when there is nothing else. It cost us $1.50 a foot to get a place to tie up. We had electricity but wifi was too far away to access. Bobby's is the only place to dock between Demopolis and Mobile, AL. Some say it is a "must" stop; a unique Alabama experience at a quaint, old school, fish camp with a whole lot of character. There is a restaurant at the camp. Catfish is the specialty there; it's fried golden brown, soft, light and full of flavor. If you order the whole catfish you know you are getting the local fare. The meal came with cole slaw, potato and the best hush puppies we'd ever tasted! The beer selection was no surprise; Bud, Bud Light, Coors, Coors Light, Miller, and Miller Light but we could bring our own wine to the table. The food prices were very reasonable and the folks at Bobby's were warm and friendly. The restaurant was full of antiques, artifacts, fishing trophies and old photos. After dinner, we retired, planning on an early morning departure. The power boats would leave before sunrise but we would wait until daylight. We woke to rain with temps at 56F. A warm southern wind was causing us to bob against the dock and then rock against Mucho Gusto. 

Rural SW Alabama attraction: Bobbys-fish-camp

First view of Bobby's Fish Camp

We're at the right place

Bobby's Fish Camp

Bobby's Dock

Mystic & Mucho Gusto rafted on Bobby's Dock

Southern Pride

Bobby's Restaurant

Bobby's Fish Camp Restaurant

Wine Tree

Yard Gator

It's all good!

Bobby's Fish Camp 1956

The porch at Bobby's Fish Camp

Mounted Gar at Bobby's Fish Camp

New friends at Bobby's Fish Camp

The final lock of the Inland Waterway is only about 2 miles south of Bobby’s at Coffeeville.  We noticed the egrets and blue herons hanging out on top of the lock wall. As the water drops, fish get caught on the cross beams making for easy pickings for the patient birds. It was hilarious to watch them pecking and swallowing as many fish as they could. It makes sense now why we always see them hanging out at the locks! The heron tried to chase the egrets away but the effort was pointless as there was more than enough fish to go around. We had a short wait then locked through, bursting with excitement at this milestone. We’ve passed through all 24 locks from Chicago to Mobile. Tonight we would celebrate.

Two egrets on top, one heron in the middle

Heron fishing on lock door

The Coffeeville Dam

A few miles downstream, one of us ran aground outside a red marker. It only takes a second of distraction or confusion to get into trouble on the waterway. It doesn’t really matter which one of us missed the buoy marking a sand bar. What matters is what happened after this unfortunate grounding. It is a true testament to friendship, trust, team work and maybe just a little grace from God. This was a soft grounding but the 1-2 mph current was keeping the grounded boat on the sand. We made several attempts to get a line attached between the two boats, hoping one could help pull the other against the current. It took some maneuvering, patience, and a little juice from both boats but we finally freed the hull and had two vessels pointed south again. The channel is defined by red and green markers. They are our waterway guides. When you are traveling up river, you pass red buoys on your right side and green on your left. Down river is the opposite. The way I remember this is “Red, Right, Returning", (up river). You have to be aware of which way you are going at all times because you could be heading south but going up river. We actually had several occasions on the trip down the inland waterway when we were going up river, even though we were down bound. Confusing? Yes, at times! This is how "Oopsies" can happen! But what’s a day Looping without some excitement anyway? 

Bridge south of Coffeeville Lock & Dam

Lumber mill near Three Rivers anchorage

Shoreline South of Coffeeville Lock & Dam

Tree on sandy shoreline

Our goal today is to make it 58 miles to the Three Rivers anchorage. We know there is a chance we will be cutting it close for time. Sure enough, we arrive after dark. We can see the entrance to the anchorage on our charts but it is almost impossible to find it on the waterway without powerful flood lights and our navigation software showing us our location on the electronic chart. Mucho Gusto went in first. We used our lights to help them see the shoreline. Of course, everything looks distorted in the dark and artificial light. There were a lot of trees falling into the river making the channel look even smaller. It reminded me of the apple trees in the Wizard of Oz, reaching out at us as if to grab us and tangle us in their limbs. It was creepy! We had to move slowly as we followed Mucho Gusto until we found an opening where we could anchor. In the darkness I stumbled and fell backwards from the entryway to the cockpit floor. Ouch! I was able to get up and point the flood light toward shore even as I whimpered in pain. It took us an hour to get settled but it was worth it. We had a quiet evening on the hook. I made mint chocolate chip cookies for dessert and we had a toast to passing through that final lock at Coffeeville. We’d saved a bottle of beer since Saugatuck, compliments of Keith and Nikki Henry, for the occasion! After dinner, we retired early, eager to be in Mobile tomorrow...weather permitting.

Our Three Rivers anchorage

Our Three Rivers anchorage

Mystic and Mucho Gusto at Three Rivers anchorage