We were up by 5:15 this morning – who gets up that early voluntarily??? Loopers who want to get to Demopolis AL before sunset, which occurred at 4:58 p.m. It was 118 miles and 3 locks, more miles and locks than we had ever done in one day. The challenge was on! There were eight boats going through the first lock , but not everyone was going as far as us, so by the third lock there were only 4 boats. We were able to go fast some of the time, but numerous fishing boats and tows really slowed us down for seemingly long stretches. It was freezing cold out and we couldn’t understand why so many guys were out fishing – surely there must be better things to do – it’s Alabama – shouldn’t they be watching ‘Bama football?

We made it into a slip at the marina in Demopolis just before 4 – we did it! There of course is no restaurant on the premises, and no way to get to one in town. Marinas on the Tenn-Tom have been lacking those amenities.

Tomorrow is another early morning. We’re headed to Bobby’s Fish Camp, which is another iconic place you have to stop at because it’s the last fuel stop until you get to Mobile, 120 miles away. It’s another long run(97 miles), but only one lock. We plan to be there 2 nights because of heavy rains predicted for Monday. We’ll either be tied to a dock that runs along the river bank or rafted to a boat that’s already tied to the dock – should be interesting. I don’t know if we’ll get cell service and I’m pretty sure there’s no internet, so there not be any blog posts for a couple of days.