Monday, May 2, 2011 – Demopolis, Alabama, mile 216 on the BWTB

We were on our way before 7 am. The sky was partly cloudy, temperature 68°F and there was a very light southerly breeze. We made good time and arrived at the Demopolis Lock and Dam shortly before noon. There was a barge in the lock ahead of us but the lockmaster said he would have him locked through very soon.

Just as we were preparing to enter the lock, another northbound barge showed up so the lockmaster had us standby as he put the second barge through. While we were passing the time circling around, the second pleasure craft we’d seen during this whole week arrived at the lock. Pete and Linda aboard Carina, a 37-foot Carver trawler, hailed us on the radio and said they’d been keeping an eye out for us since they left Mobile early Saturday. They’d heard through mutual friends (people we haven’t even actually met yet – we’ve just conversed by phone) that we were out on the river somewhere between Mobile and Demopolis.

Before the second barge was locked through, the lockmaster informed us that there was now a southbound barge above the lock and he would be putting him through next. Finally, after a 2-1/2 hour wait, we had our turn. Barges and commercial traffic always have priority over pleasure craft so we weren’t totally surprised we had to wait. It was a good thing that we had all afternoon to make the transit.

We pulled into the Demopolis Yacht Basin at 3:30 pm where we fueled up the boat and took a slip. After getting settled in, we walked up to “The Wall” to meet several of the boaters and enjoy a few drinks. “The Wall” is where the daily gathering takes place in the late afternoons and all are invited. After a couple of drinks, we met Pete and Linda for dinner at the marina’s restaurant. The folks at “The Wall” had recommended we try the “Mo Mac” burger and they did not steer us wrong. We were just glad that we shared one sandwich instead of ordering two!