We had talked to the tows and had found out that the Algeirs locks were out of order and that all water traffic was being sent through the Harvey locks. Most commercial traffic use the Algiers. As we got closer to the Mississippi we started to see tows and their barges pushed against the bank everywhere so I was not sure if we would even be able to get through. I was hearing the lock tender assign numbers as high as 105 to pass through the locks. Well being a persistent I kept going around all the town and through the bridges until I got near the lock. I called the lock tender on the radio and told him our intentions to go to New Orleans and requested to be locked through. He came back on the radio and had us standby near the lock entrance. He said he had a tow about to leave the lock and for us to pull in as soon as it passed us. When the tow passed we pulled in and attached a line to a bollard. The mighty Mississippi River was running high and fast so we were going to be raised about 10 feet. Once we were raised to meet the level of the river, they opened the gates and off we went down the Mississippi River under the famous bridge and along the waterfront by the French Quarter.
We had to go back in at the Industrial locks to continue East. We got to the locks at the bridge curfew time and had to wait for about 2 hours and then the lock tender was a real ass hole. But once we got through the lock and bridges, we headed towards Pontchartrain Landing Marina. Pontchartrain Landing looks like a resort for R/V's and boats. It is beautifully landscaped with a pool, waterfall, hot tub, nice open air bar, restaurant and a shuttle to the French Quarter. We ended up staying two nights.
We met another couple, Stephen and Gail on s/v Gail Merry. They had just bought a brand new Hunter from Nauti-Share in Kemah Tx., hired a captain from Hitchcock, Tx., and was headed to Miami Florida. Well they hired a real Captain Ron. He was supposed to take them from Galveston to Florida offshore. As soon as they got offshore he got so sea sick he was incapacitated. They went in at Sabine Pass and then took the ICW. There captain had never been in the ICW and it was a nightmare. Their generator had quit along the route and the captain did not have any repair skills. I went to his boat and showed him where his through hulls and strainers were, cleared the strainers and then checked the raw water impeller on the generator. The impeller had been destroyed due to lack of raw water flow. He fired the captain and send him home.
The next day we all went to the French Quarter had some drinks and a good time. We had a really nice New Orleans seafood dinner at one of the fine restaurants and them headed back to the marina.
After getting fuel the next morning we headed East to Gulfport Mississippi. We went to the small craft harbor. Right before we headed up the channel we were hit by a squall that brought up 6 foot waves and 45 knot winds with driving rain. Two cats got seasick and everything in the boat thrown around. We finally got into the marina and hooked up. The wind had blown all the water out of the harbor and it was almost impossible to get off the boat. The harbor was all brand new with hundreds of slips ad only $1.00 a foot, but it was hard to tie up to in a low tide / water situation. Very friendly and helpful staff through. We did not do anything in Gulfport and I would like to spend more time there in the future. It looks like a really nice town.
The next morning we headed to Dauphin Island and anchored for the night off the North side of the island in about 8 feet of water.
The next morning we pulled up anchor and planned to stay go to Orange Beach Al. and stay at a marina for the night. As we were headed there, my friend Dauphin kept texting me about his sister Joyce headed towards Pensacola on her boat. Then Joyce started texting me saying that her and Fred were anchored at Ft. McCree by Pensacola. Well when we got to Orange Beach it was so busy with boats that we decided to go on. We got to Ft. McCree and was met by Joyce and Fred (their boat is Neon Moon) in their dinghy to lead us in the entrance. Being a Saturday the anchorage was full and a party was everywhere on the beaches and in the water. We decided it was to busy and decided to anchor off Redfish Point which is located next to Ft. McCree. This is a real nice anchorage with many sailboats. Most all of them have dogs and cats aboard too. The water is clear and the beach is beautiful. We were treated to a fantastic super moon for the night.
Not sure what our plans are for today except to visit with Joyce and Fred and tell stories on Dauphin, her brother and my friend.
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