Bigbee waterway
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Tombigbee
I'm sure others will be able to give you better info than me, but I can tell you that your mast cannot be any taller than 54'. The first bridge you come to after leaving Pickwick Lake is that level. My Catalina 380 was at Aqua Yacht Harbor for several years until this spring when I moved her to Seabrook. What kind of info are you looking for?
I'm sure others will be able to give you better info than me, but I can tell you that your mast cannot be any taller than 54'. The first bridge you come to after leaving Pickwick Lake is that level. My Catalina 380 was at Aqua Yacht Harbor for several years until this spring when I moved her to Seabrook. What kind of info are you looking for?
Tom Bigbee Water
I thanks the correct name is Tom Bigbee waterway. I am not sure if it is call by that name for the entire length. It ends at Mobile AL about 500 mile from Florence. Florence is located on the Tennessee River and you will be traveling north from Florence approx. 40 miles then you will turn to port on Yellow Creek then South which takes you to the ditch. The ditch is a 300 feet wide ditch that will end at Bay Spring MS approx 40 mile due south. From there you will be going down hill through 11 or so locks. I do not have my books and charts with me presently so this is just rough numbers. Points of interest is a great Italian Restaurant in Florence (Rigotoni) sic This portion of the Tennessee River is called Pickwick Lake it is located at the intersection of three states. (TN, MS, AL) Bay Springs is consider the Head Waters for the Tennessee/Yellow creek river and the water is extremely clear. If you need to check the bottom this is the place to do it. You can buy charts from the coast guard and two author have written books on the Tom Bigbee. Fred Myers who keeps his boat at Pickwick and I believe Skipper Bob may have written one also. Yellow Creek has two marinas Aqua Harbor with a boat Yard and Grand Harbor with fufu dogs. Pickwick Lake is a great place and if you have time look us up at Aqua Harbor. We are there most week ends. If you need additional information let me know.
I thanks the correct name is Tom Bigbee waterway. I am not sure if it is call by that name for the entire length. It ends at Mobile AL about 500 mile from Florence. Florence is located on the Tennessee River and you will be traveling north from Florence approx. 40 miles then you will turn to port on Yellow Creek then South which takes you to the ditch. The ditch is a 300 feet wide ditch that will end at Bay Spring MS approx 40 mile due south. From there you will be going down hill through 11 or so locks. I do not have my books and charts with me presently so this is just rough numbers. Points of interest is a great Italian Restaurant in Florence (Rigotoni) sic This portion of the Tennessee River is called Pickwick Lake it is located at the intersection of three states. (TN, MS, AL) Bay Springs is consider the Head Waters for the Tennessee/Yellow creek river and the water is extremely clear. If you need to check the bottom this is the place to do it. You can buy charts from the coast guard and two author have written books on the Tom Bigbee. Fred Myers who keeps his boat at Pickwick and I believe Skipper Bob may have written one also. Yellow Creek has two marinas Aqua Harbor with a boat Yard and Grand Harbor with fufu dogs. Pickwick Lake is a great place and if you have time look us up at Aqua Harbor. We are there most week ends. If you need additional information let me know.
Rick!!!
How are things back at Aqua? It would've been a great day for sailing down here today.....NOT. The wind has been howling around 30 mph all day here, getting colder all day. It's down to about 58 degrees now. Beautiful day however...
How are things back at Aqua? It would've been a great day for sailing down here today.....NOT. The wind has been howling around 30 mph all day here, getting colder all day. It's down to about 58 degrees now. Beautiful day however...
oh boy.... 
I wasn't going to be part of the trip until they got it to Mobile but then decided "what the heck". I was told it was 230 miles which I was a little skeptical about. Now that I look at it on Google, it's 280 miles as the crow flies. Oh boy...I got myself into a mess. Can this be traveled at night on a new moon?
I wasn't going to be part of the trip until they got it to Mobile but then decided "what the heck". I was told it was 230 miles which I was a little skeptical about. Now that I look at it on Google, it's 280 miles as the crow flies. Oh boy...I got myself into a mess. Can this be traveled at night on a new moon?
It is Paradise here at Aqua
Sun is always shining and temps in the 80s. You and Stella should come home.
Sun is always shining and temps in the 80s. You and Stella should come home.
scenery
Is good but cutting the travel time in half is better I've been told not to try to do the ICW after dark because the barge crew at night gets careless (this coming from a ship pilot). Just wondering if the waterway is just as dangerous at night.
Is good but cutting the travel time in half is better
I've been told not to try to do the ICW after dark because the barge crew at night gets careless (this coming from a ship pilot). Just wondering if the waterway is just as dangerous at night.
If you have Radar.....
FRANKLIN: If you have Radar, then nighttime should not be a problem. If you dont have radar, i would advise against it. Big as they are, barges are hard to spot in the dark. Very often, their lights are quite dim. Also if they are crabbing,( at an angle to the wind) its easy to tell on radar, very confusing as to what is ahead if you dont have radar. The Army Corps of Engineers probably has charts for sale on the Tom Bigbee. The C.O.E. charts are great. I used to have the chart book for Arkansas River (Kerr-McClellan Waterway) or something like that. It was $10 and showed details of each marker and all the facilities, radio frequencies and tel. no's. of bridges, locks etc. I'll prob get off this comming Sun. and drive to meet Phillip (Nice and Easy) and help him get his boat back to Slidell. Anyway, have fun. Hope to see you when I get back home from Phillip's trip. Ciao.............Tony B
FRANKLIN: If you have Radar, then nighttime should not be a problem. If you dont have radar, i would advise against it. Big as they are, barges are hard to spot in the dark. Very often, their lights are quite dim. Also if they are crabbing,( at an angle to the wind) its easy to tell on radar, very confusing as to what is ahead if you dont have radar. The Army Corps of Engineers probably has charts for sale on the Tom Bigbee. The C.O.E. charts are great. I used to have the chart book for Arkansas River (Kerr-McClellan Waterway) or something like that. It was $10 and showed details of each marker and all the facilities, radio frequencies and tel. no's. of bridges, locks etc. I'll prob get off this comming Sun. and drive to meet Phillip (Nice and Easy) and help him get his boat back to Slidell. Anyway, have fun. Hope to see you when I get back home from Phillip's trip. Ciao.............Tony B
Tenntom
I went upstream on the Tenntom 3 months ago on a 41 ft powerboat. We had radar, but chose not to travel at night. In many places, the canal is very narrow and a marker could be in the middle. We had about one knot of current, but that could change depending on rainfall. All locks have floating bollards. You need a minium of 2 people, 3 would be better. You will need 2 large fenders, that you will probably destroy. We ran a line from the bow and one from the stern around the bollard and back. Don't tie them off because is a bollard jams, your line will become very tight quickly. Station a person on the bow and stern to fend off the wall and keep the lines adjusted. A pair of old gloves will help. You will need to have your registration or documention number handy for the lock master. You will need to have enough fuel to go 200 miles at a time. We fould plenty of fuel stops except between Hefflin Lock and Mobile, which had none. The cruising guide stated a fuel stop at Lady's Landing, but has been closed down. Contact lock master on VHF 16 and they will take you to another channel. You must wear a life jacket while in the lock chamber. Just north of Hefflin Lock is a large marina. The river side is for large tug boats, the inside is for small craft. I can't remember the name of the place, but there is a great restaurant there and you will be ready for one.
I went upstream on the Tenntom 3 months ago on a 41 ft powerboat. We had radar, but chose not to travel at night. In many places, the canal is very narrow and a marker could be in the middle. We had about one knot of current, but that could change depending on rainfall. All locks have floating bollards. You need a minium of 2 people, 3 would be better. You will need 2 large fenders, that you will probably destroy. We ran a line from the bow and one from the stern around the bollard and back. Don't tie them off because is a bollard jams, your line will become very tight quickly. Station a person on the bow and stern to fend off the wall and keep the lines adjusted. A pair of old gloves will help. You will need to have your registration or documention number handy for the lock master. You will need to have enough fuel to go 200 miles at a time. We fould plenty of fuel stops except between Hefflin Lock and Mobile, which had none. The cruising guide stated a fuel stop at Lady's Landing, but has been closed down. Contact lock master on VHF 16 and they will take you to another channel. You must wear a life jacket while in the lock chamber. Just north of Hefflin Lock is a large marina. The river side is for large tug boats, the inside is for small craft. I can't remember the name of the place, but there is a great restaurant there and you will be ready for one.
Came up in April
I agree with not traveling at night!!! Especially on the lower parts below Demopolis. We used the Army Corps of Engineer's chartbooks. One for the TN river one for the Tenn-Tomm and the other for the Black warrior to Mobile. The water levels are online. This last April was dry so the water levels were low and the current slow. When the water is up it can literally go over top of the dams and the currents are strong. We went over to Aliceville on time and the water looked to be 10' deep going over top of the dam. There were a lot of logs and other debris going over too. Go to the web site and check water levels as getting washed over a dam or under a bridge would ruin your trip!!!! The barges are usually well lit and usually have two or more fixed spotlights and one or more that move around. We could usually hear their diesels 30 minutes or more before we saw their lights. They are pretty awesome going upriver at night. We talked to them often by radio to avoid surprises. Railroad bridges are a pain in the a$$. We were stopped for 4 hours by one bridge. We anchored well out of the channel below the bridge to wait. PLEASE NOTE the barges go where they want to go and we were almost ran over by a coal barge that decided not to follow the channel. The channel as marked was the center span of the bridge. He decided to go between the center span and the eastern shore. Once he commited he couldn't change course and that's when he saw us. I didn't have time to raise the anchor or start the engine and used the river's current to steer against the bank. I literally put our boat over until the keel hit. He passed with only a few feet between us. We were stopped by another rr bridge but just for an hour or so. My biggest fear with high water would be washing into a closed railroad bridge. It is about 200 miles from Mobile to Demopolis and this is an isolated area with no fuel. There is often "stuff" floating in the river. Everything from dead alligators to very large logs especially in the lower parts. The upper 100 miles or so is basically motoring through a lake for an hour or so and locking. Sometimes it took us 3-4 hours to lock through. If a barge is locking through it has priority and they will make you wait. Overall I was very impressed with the lockmasters. I moaned and groaned about waiting for another boat..sometimes 30 minutes or more but then they waited on me a couple of times. Bottom line is that it may take all day to go through a couple of locks. BUT a couple of times the lock was open and waiting for us and we immediately locked through. They were closing the gates behind us before we had even tied up. This makes it hard to plan. They seem to like to get a group of pleasure boats together and keep them together all day. We noticed several power boats that would race off and be waiting an hour or so at the next lock until the sailboats arrived. DON"T TRY TO ANCHOR AT DAVID"S LAKE!!!!! It is full of old barges stumps etc and is shallow. It is influenced by the tides so you might get in at high tide and be stuck at low tide. We tried to anchor there because it was recommended by our guidebook...things change.
I agree with not traveling at night!!! Especially on the lower parts below Demopolis. We used the Army Corps of Engineer's chartbooks. One for the TN river one for the Tenn-Tomm and the other for the Black warrior to Mobile. The water levels are online. This last April was dry so the water levels were low and the current slow. When the water is up it can literally go over top of the dams and the currents are strong. We went over to Aliceville on time and the water looked to be 10' deep going over top of the dam. There were a lot of logs and other debris going over too. Go to the web site and check water levels as getting washed over a dam or under a bridge would ruin your trip!!!! The barges are usually well lit and usually have two or more fixed spotlights and one or more that move around. We could usually hear their diesels 30 minutes or more before we saw their lights. They are pretty awesome going upriver at night. We talked to them often by radio to avoid surprises. Railroad bridges are a pain in the a$$. We were stopped for 4 hours by one bridge. We anchored well out of the channel below the bridge to wait. PLEASE NOTE the barges go where they want to go and we were almost ran over by a coal barge that decided not to follow the channel. The channel as marked was the center span of the bridge. He decided to go between the center span and the eastern shore. Once he commited he couldn't change course and that's when he saw us. I didn't have time to raise the anchor or start the engine and used the river's current to steer against the bank. I literally put our boat over until the keel hit. He passed with only a few feet between us. We were stopped by another rr bridge but just for an hour or so. My biggest fear with high water would be washing into a closed railroad bridge. It is about 200 miles from Mobile to Demopolis and this is an isolated area with no fuel. There is often "stuff" floating in the river. Everything from dead alligators to very large logs especially in the lower parts. The upper 100 miles or so is basically motoring through a lake for an hour or so and locking. Sometimes it took us 3-4 hours to lock through. If a barge is locking through it has priority and they will make you wait. Overall I was very impressed with the lockmasters. I moaned and groaned about waiting for another boat..sometimes 30 minutes or more but then they waited on me a couple of times. Bottom line is that it may take all day to go through a couple of locks. BUT a couple of times the lock was open and waiting for us and we immediately locked through. They were closing the gates behind us before we had even tied up. This makes it hard to plan. They seem to like to get a group of pleasure boats together and keep them together all day. We noticed several power boats that would race off and be waiting an hour or so at the next lock until the sailboats arrived. DON"T TRY TO ANCHOR AT DAVID"S LAKE!!!!! It is full of old barges stumps etc and is shallow. It is influenced by the tides so you might get in at high tide and be stuck at low tide. We tried to anchor there because it was recommended by our guidebook...things change.
Charts & Guide Books
Charts and guide books for the Tenn-Tombigbee are available at all the marinas on Lake Pickwick. If you're leaving from Florence, you're entering into the Tennessee River on Lake Pickwick. Anchorages can be tricky, the guide book is pretty much a necessity.
Charts and guide books for the Tenn-Tombigbee are available at all the marinas on Lake Pickwick. If you're leaving from Florence, you're entering into the Tennessee River on Lake Pickwick. Anchorages can be tricky, the guide book is pretty much a necessity.
Bags are packed
and ready to go. I'm sitting here in my boat drinking a beer and listening to "Tears in Heaven" and wondering what kind of sleep I'm going to have tonight. Shortly after I wake up my ride (the owner) will be here and we'll drive to Florence. I made a list so I think I will have everything (comtemplating taking my Bulwagga to give it some more testing). It's when I don't make a list I forget something important. I know, it's not a Gulf crossing but I'm a little excited. I think this is a great trip to go on....on somebody else's boat Running my motor for two weeks straight would drive me nuts. I hope we can get some sailing in there somewhere. I'm also hoping for a strong current to help speed us along. I'll post some pictures and updates along the way. Thanks for all the help. I feel more comfortable about this first leg of the trip now.
and ready to go. I'm sitting here in my boat drinking a beer and listening to "Tears in Heaven" and wondering what kind of sleep I'm going to have tonight. Shortly after I wake up my ride (the owner) will be here and we'll drive to Florence. I made a list so I think I will have everything (comtemplating taking my Bulwagga to give it some more testing). It's when I don't make a list I forget something important. I know, it's not a Gulf crossing but I'm a little excited. I think this is a great trip to go on....on somebody else's boat
Running my motor for two weeks straight would drive me nuts. I hope we can get some sailing in there somewhere. I'm also hoping for a strong current to help speed us along. I'll post some pictures and updates along the way. Thanks for all the help. I feel more comfortable about this first leg of the trip now.- Status