Headed south down the Tenn-Tom and a side trip to the Shiloh Battleground.

We are at Grand Harbor Marina at the top of the Tenn-Tom Waterway.  Tomorrow we head south.  Officially, the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway is only 234 miles long from the Tennessee River to Demopolis, AL.  The 217 miles from Demopolis to Mobile, AL is officially the Black Warrior-Tombigbee Waterway, but most everybody refers to the entire 452 mile route as the Tenn-Tom.  There are 12 locks on the Tenn-Tom.  The Tenn-Tom is an alternate route (the primary route is the Mississippi River) to the Gulf of Mexico, and is a primarily a slack water system, as opposed to the fierce current of the Mississippi. Besides Memphis, there are very few marinas south of Paducah on the Mississippi so most recreational boaters take the Tenn-Tom as it has many marinas along the way, although commercial tows use the waterway also. 

 The creation of the Tenn-Tom was the largest civil works project of the time.  The first federal study was commissioned in 1874, the project authorized by Congress in 1971, and construction completed by the Corps in late 1984.  The system is five times longer and has a total lift 3.5 times greater than the Panama Canal.  Most Loopers utilize the Tenn-Tom instead of the Mississippi, because it is more user friendly than the Mississippi with its deadheads, divers and lack of recreational facilities.  If you will note the Looper map, however, either qualifies as a completion of the Loop.  Having already bent one prop on the Mississippi, we chose the Tenn-Tom.  The authoritative guide, Tenn-Tom Nitty Gritty, by Fred Myers, however, points out that even it has its issues.  These are his ten commandments for the Tenn-Tom (the comments are mine):

1.          Thou shalt hesitate to journey on these waters during times of flood.
2.          Thou shalt not bet strongly on where to anchor (water levels fluctuate).
3.          Thou shalt do whatever possible to get along with thy fellow man, especially those in small boats (Bubba gets upset when waked and the second amendment is gospel in the south!). 
4.          Thou shalt be wary of dredges.
5.          Thou shalt accept marinas for what they are, mostly simple places owned by friendly folks (we won’t be going to the opera along the way.  Houma is downright urbane comparatively). 
6.          Thou shalt honor approaching towboats, and keep them informed (if in a collision with one, you will lose).
7.         Thou shalt be wary of all debris and unexplained ripples of unknown size, lest they ruin your day (already violated this one).
8.          Thou shalt not cruise at night.
9.          Thou shalt watch your fuel gauge.
10.          Thou shalt not consider the scenery boring (see comment to number 5).

The entire trek will take us about 10 days.  We will stay several days in Columbus, MS (one of the larger towns along the way) and take in the Tennessee Williams house and museum.  Mobile has no marinas in town, so we will stay at a marina on Dog River off Mobile Bay to see the sites.  From there it is only a few days to New Orleans and the end of this journey.  To emphasize how bad things are, I just signed up for a continuing education class in December so I can keep my law license.  That was a truly revolting experience!  Well, I have a few blog posts left in me, so stay tuned. 

 

Loopers come in all sizes.  This 25' Ranger Tug is flying a gold flag, indicating completion of the Loop.  

Grand Harbor receives the warm and toasty award.  It is nice to feel wanted!  

A tale of two boats? The Bullish (the big one) appears in the beginning of this blog.  The captain helped us in at Highbourne Cay in the Exumas.  We meet again!  

These people were not at home, but I wonder about his spelling???

The battle of Shiloh (April 1862) pitted the Confederate’s Army of the Mississippi headed by General Johnston (44,000 men) against Grant’s Union Army of the Tennessee (40,000 men).  At the end of the two day battle, 23,746 Americans lay dead, wounded or missing.  More Americans died in those two days, than the combined total of all previous American wars.  The first day was carried by the Confederates, but the tide turned on the second day due to Grant’s leadership and the arrival of Federal reinforcements.  Most of the dead were buried in mass graves on site.  

The grave site was truly a somber experience.  

Many markers had no other identification, other than the number assigned to that grave.  

The Union troops landed via the largest amphibious assault ever in North America.  

There were many monuments throughout the National Park, which is very well done.  

General Johnston was the highest ranking officer of either army killed during the war.  

Many marinas have "courtesy cars" that we can use on a limited basis.  This is the one from Grand Harbor, and was one of the nicer, albeit conspicuous ones, we have used.  

General Prentiss was the highest ranking Union officer captured during the war.  

A Louisiana brigade fought here.  

Was Lt Gwin a relative?  Stanwood will have to answer that one.  

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