Day 11: You know you're really getting South when...

...you spot one of these guys sunning himself on the bank!

We have also seen lots of great egrets, the ever present herons, several bald eagles, a hawk or two, and a bunch of buzzards.

Fog delayed our departure this morning, again, so we recalculated our distances and made a new plan. Below Coffeeville Dam and Lock the topography changed dramatically.

Sandy shores and dunes graced the banks, and while there is still some red and gold among the changing trees, the predominant colour is now green.





 Instead of travelling in several layers to keep warm, we wore short sleeves and light pants, and were opening windows to let the breeze in.  Temperature in the sun on the bridge reached 95F or 35C, but it was still a touch cool in the shade.  It's wonderful.

We dropped anchor at Mile Marker 100, at the site of the old Lock #1, which is now in ruins.  But it is a beautiful spot, with lots of green, and silver fish jumping all over the place, and birds pacing the shallows looking for their next meal.


There's only one other boat anchored here, but there is a public access boat ramp, and the local bass fishermen have no regard for the wake they produce when charging by at full throttle.  We can only hope they don't do a whole lot of night fishing!  We've heard a couple of hunters shooting at things - at least we're assuming they're hunters.

Another day should bring us within striking distance of Mobile Bay, where we will head for Fairhope on the eastern shore, weather permitting.

Today's miles:  45 to mile marker 100

Total miles:  515