Our Adventures on Sea Dream: Florida into Alabama

TUESDAY: Our last night in Florida, we anchored in Big Lagoon, off a sliver of an island named Perdido, at Redfish Point just east of Pensacola. Two sailboats and Young America shared the anchorage with a nice beach beaconing. We soon had the dinghy down and were ashore. Louie literally howled with joy approaching the beach, jumping into the water as Mike stepped out to pull us up onto the sand. A short hike over the dunes brought us to the Gulf beach but the steep breaking waves sent us back to the calmer ICW side where Louis ran and ran, tossing sticks, splashing and swimming. Many little hermit crabs strutted their shells in the shallow water, daring to be picked up so they could pinch you. At sunset we dinghied back to the boat and had a rice & pork aboard. With full tummies and bathed clean, we all slept soundly in our nautical cocoon.

With our dinghys on the beach at Redfish Point.

On the Gulf side.

Louis wanting Fred to share his almonds he was snacking on.

WEDNESDAY: We hauled anchor at 8:00AM hoping to reach Mobile, Alabama, before the predicted storm arrived. By 11:30, ominous clouds had produced only a small shower but we knew winds were likely kicking up shallow Mobile Bay ahead. About noon, we entered the bay and were immediately in very choppy seas with darkening skies. We all agreed to turn around and seek a quiet place to wait out the weather. “Lulu’s”, on the canal with free docking while eating, was a short run back. An very popular open-air restaurant, Lulu’s is owned by Jimmy Buffet’s sister. There was ample room for both boats at the face dock and over a delicious lunch we decided to stay the night, giving the bay time to calm. Nothing like having fun and chilling at Lulu’s!! Louis thinks it is named after him. And, LuLu’s is quite a place… extraordinary staff, great food, really nice docks, amazingly clean, very family oriented, virtually a theme park in itself…. twelve stars on a ten star scale.

LuLu's in Gulf Shores, Alabama.

THURSDAY: Leaving Lulu’s at 6:00AM, we entered a very calm Mobile Bay. The morning was sunny and beautiful, taking 4½ hours to cross to Dog River Marina for Fred and Linda to get fuel and a pump out. Mike practiced maneuvering while we waited.

Next we transited the busy commercial port of Mobil, Alabama, with its many barges, container ships and several naval vessels, all seemingly inside the city. Leaving the bustle of Mobile behind us, the landscape morphed into isolated wooded river banks. No more palm trees! Mike moved to the fly bridge to better dodge the numerous logs and floating debris in the high water of spring rains while Louis and I stayed in the pilot house charting our way and swatting green biting flies. Our day ended at a lovely anchorage in the Tensas cut at mile marker 39. Despite the strong 2½ knot current, “Young America” and SeaDream rafted together for potluck with Fred and Linda. After the 13 plus hour day, we slept soundly while our trusty Rocna anchor held about 120,000 pounds of boats and never budged an inch, despite the current, but still retrieved easily. Very cool.