Time flies and Internet can be soooo very frustrating. We made it back safe and sound on Sunday, Sept 14th. Then left for Midland TX and the annual CAF Airsho. Between getting reorientated to land, re-connecting utilities, and visiting kids and Fredonia relatives, I've not taken the time to let you all know that the Tumbleweed is in dry dock at Demopolis, Alabama. Her engines will be outfitted with closed system cooling by the time we return in early February. Til then, there won't be much of anything to post. Do keep in touch.

Dang that IKE...he's kept us from arriving in Wichita. We are currently holed up in Memphis. Gonna have BBQ tonight. The plane is gassed and still loaded with our stuff. We can handle rain, but not tornadoes. So we'll wait here to see what tomorrow brings. Hopefully, we'll be home on Sunday. Keep us in your prayers.

We knew we'd made it to Mississippi when we saw these guys on the river. Actually, we heard them first. Those air boats make just a lot of noise. Don't know how they stand it.

We made it to Demopolis, Al. Boat is scheduled to be hauled out on Friday afternoon. Needless to say, we have just a few chores to accomplish before that happens. All is good and we are scheduled to fly back to Wichita on Saturday afternoon. Looking forward to getting our land legs back. Will post more later.

One thing we've been able to do on this leg is trying out the inside helm station. The new electronics and the addition of the mini blinds has certainly helped. Still to be added is a depth finder. When the weather is cooler, this sure offers us more comfort and protection. Plus we are that much closer to the Diet Dr Pepper and candy. Notice the captain's new do.

AAAARRRRRGGG matie...bring it on.

Notice the flag blowing straight out...and waves waves waves....still managed to keep our sense of humor. Nope, just not having a bit of fun. Yea, right.

Three locks in one day...add a little rain and then top it off by traveling with that SNAKE...if I could have scaled that wall, I would have. This lock dropped us 85 feet. The largest we've encountered. Piece of cake...I've conquered that whole situation from the rope handling end. Don't try and get me behind the wheel...not interested. I take the front cleat, my boat hook, a rope and floating bollard ...any day, any time, any place.

Three locks in one day...add a little rain and then top it off by traveling with that SNAKE...if I could have scaled that wall, I would have.

Haven't been able to post any photos for a while...here's proof that we visited the Tennessee legend of the man who carried a big stick. Floyd's idea of cop heaven.

Another tip for those of you who may be trying to find us on the map. In your atlas, look on the Alabama map page. Then find that strip of Mississippi along the left side. We think the waterways and small lakes show much better there than on the Mississippi map. Hope that helps. I'm also trying to remember to post the town and marina names since most of the time the marina name isn't really related to the location on the map.

Can we talk a little about liquor? We feel like we entered a time machine and went backwards about 40 years...Aren't these the guys who made moonshine famous???? What is the deal? Dry Dry Dry counties where you can't buy, sell or consume alcohol. Often it seems like they don't even want anyone to hear them even discussing alcohol. Dry Dry counties where you can't buy it, they can't sell it but you can bring it in...in a brown paper bag, sit it under the table and mix your own drinks. Kind of the "don't ask, we won't tell" approach. Dry counties where you bring it in...they slap a big label on it and you order your drink, they mix it and serve it. Of course, you are charged a small fortune for mixing your liquor into their soda. They tell us that we've finally made it to civilization...WET County...tonight we can actually arrive, order and be served...fine dining...we'll see. We'll be glad to get back to Kansas where we won't have those worries any more. Who knew????

BTW, the catfish at the Midway Marina wasn't bad...just not great. (I prefer Scotch and Sirloin)...and they were Dry Dry Dry county.

We have docked in Columbus, Mississippi, and plan to stay put until Monday. They have a lovely cove area and a restaurant for fine dining just across the parking lot. We plan to use the courtesy van tomorrow and visit the home of Tennessee Williams and a few antebellum home/museums. These past few days have proved eventful in ways we hadn't really thought about. Yesterday in one of the locks, I spotted what looked like a pretty good sized stick...something the captain would want to avoid...yea, right, it was a SNAKE. First mate got more than a little skittish about being trapped in a lock with that critter. Then this morning leaving Aberdeen, we discovered ANTS all over the ropes. They'd been coming aboard all night. I've been on a killing rampage. Ant carnage is everywhere on deck. Those suckers should never have tried to stow away here. Ant traps are on the list for our WalMart trip tomorrow. We haven't seen any alligators yet, but the foliage in the water sure reminds us that it is possible. Next week this time we'll be headed back to Wichita. See you soon.

We left. Waited just a little for the weather to clear and then headed out. We had only 18 miles to get to the next marina...the challenge was the three locks. The first was an 85 foot drop. Piece of cake. We plodded on and the other two (30 feet each) were open and waiting for us when we arrived. Wind continued to increase throughout the day. By the time we got hooked into the last lock the sky had clouded considerably and yes, the rain fell...we were both soaking before we arrived at Midway Marina, Fulton, Mississippi. It was plenty early...so we've done laundry and are headed up the hill to their restaurant...catfish is the speciality. We'll see. Weather permitting (What is with all these tropical storms???) we are headed to Aberdeen on Friday (three more locks), and on to Columbus on Saturday (one lock). I'm gonna miss locking through!!!! We plan to then stay in Columbus over the weekend. Tumbleweed is running really well. We have experienced some inverter difficulties yesterday and today. But that is not a deal stopper so we'll keep an eye on the weather and continue on. More later...of course.

Wednesday morning, bright and early, we headed south to Bay Springs Marina, New Site, Mississippi. This portion of the Tennessee River is called the Divide Cut...it is actually a 24 mile canal that connects the Tennessee River to the TomBigbee waterway. More earth was moved to form this channel than was moved to form the Panama Canal. Beautiful it is not...but hey, it sure works. Water was only 280 feet wide and most of the time it was 15 feet deep...and yes, we did cross paths with a couple of tows. Sure narrows that channel in a hurry. Arrived at Bay Springs around 1:30. Met some looper folks and watched the weather...trying to decide whether to go or stay.

Amazing things do happen. During our stay at Aqua, we kept noticing a cute red ski boat (also getting beat to death) come and go around us. Husband, wife and two small children always lugging the assorted water toys and supplies for the day. On Saturday evening, Floyd and I both saw a bar/restaurant that looked like it had lots of character and decided to stop in. Full bar and we tried several chairs before finally locating two together at the very end. Nice young man sitting next to us...before long we discovered that he was the Husband we'd been watching. Small world. Great conversation about owning boats, sail vs motor boating, our adventures, and his dream to someday cruise. Sunday morning they all boarded the Tumbleweed for a visit.

yes, worry about us. Gustav came and is still blowing down here. We've had wind wind and more wind. The three days at Aqua Marina seemed like a month. Their transient dock was the wind break for the rest of the marina. Rather than risk moving the boat, we chose to be tourists. We spent the first day at the Battle field of Shiloh. Cannons, cannon balls, historical markers, graves, and more cannon balls...all very interesting and serene. Floyd and I both remarked how difficult it is to imagine the noise, confusion and violence that occurred here. It is a lovely wooded area now. Day two we ventured into Savannah, TN...found a lovely little museum about the Tennessee River and, guess who talked me into the Buford Pusser Historical Museum. Yep, felt a little like cop heaven. You do remember the guy from Tennessee who carried that big stick..."Walking Tall"???? How we got outta there without one I'll never know. Day three was a challenge....we headed off to Corinth...found North Corinth, South Corinth, and even old historic Corinth. After finally locating the Office Pro shop that didn't have the printer cartridge, we found Super Walmart...and yes, they had one. Then back to Pickwick, I did some laundry while Floyd went for a haircut. Boy, did he get a bargain. We took our chances and left there on Wednesday, Sept 3 headed for Bay Springs Marina, located close to New Site, Mississippi.