Oh, what a gorgeous morning of beautiful sunshine! In spite of the temps in the upper 30’s, we are thrilled to see the sun! Today we cross Mobile Bay!
Last night we had a visitor! Mary happened to glance out Dream Chaser’s front windows towards the bow and in the darkness little beady eyes were watching us! A kingfisher (we think) was perched on the railing next to our AGLCA flag as if he was standing vigil. As Mary slipped out the side door to get his picture, he flew away, but returned a few minutes later and resumed his position. Perhaps, he liked the Christmas garland wrapped around the railing? So, the picture below is through the front window in the dark, but you get the idea. As Mary headed to bed, those piercing eyes were still staring at her through the window!
At 9 am, we untied the lines, bid Dog River Marina “adieux”, and motored into Mobile Bay.
The navigational forecast for the morning predicted small to moderate chop and temp around 40, but glorious sunshine! As we headed south across the bay, a barge and four large ocean going vessels were heading out of the bay to the ICW (Inter Coastal Waterway) or perhaps the Gulf of Mexico 22 miles away. As we ate our lunch, we were entertained by pelicans as they swooshed down and grabbed their lunch from the bay.
Mobile is a city of strong French influence, a historic port city and a Coast Guard base. There are many attractions worth a visit such as: the USS Alabama Memorial Park, art museums, historic houses, charming streets, and restaurants with great seafood. Having traveled through this area in the past, we chose to continue on to new sights and discoveries.
As we left Mobile Bay and entered the ICW, two dolphins appeared in front of Dream Chaser and then swam along side. They appeared to be welcoming us, rolling on their sides, and staring up at us in the helm. Mary was so busy talking to them that she didn’t get pictures. After about five minutes of checking us out, with a flutter of their flippers they were gone. What a pleasant surprise!
We are enjoying the calm waters of the ICW and looking out at the white sand, pretty homes, hundreds of seagulls, pelicans, loons, and great marinas. As we continued east, many more dolphins joined us, swimming playfully, leaping out of the water, and then disappearing.
The area of Orange Beach was discovered by the Spanish, and many years later was named after the orange groves that provided fruit for soldiers at Ft Morgan. Orange Beach Marina, which is our dockage for the night, is off the main ICW channel, and it was a little tricky as we began our trek through some confusing channel markings. Finally, we saw the marina’s private channel, found the marina, and settled in the slip. Tonight’s dockage is free because Mary received a marina coupon as a prize in a drawing from the Fall AGLCA Rendezvous. Yeah!
Shrimp was the choice for our early dinner at Fisher’s Restaurant, a popular restaurant near the marina. Delicious! After we signed the marina papers and picked up the keys for the courtesy car, we doubled back to Mobile, AL to visit the Bellingrath Gardens.
Created by the Bellingrath family (owners of a Coca Cola franchise in the early stages of growth) , the property began as a fishing camp and grew into a huge country estate along the Fowl River with a 15 room home, conservatory, rose garden, rock garden, chapel, terraces, pavilion, lake, and endless gardens. Our visit was to experience “The Magic Christmas in Lights”. It was a spectacular wonderland with music and over three million lights. Absolutely breathtaking! We walked through light displays of “Candy Land”, Christmas trees, “Under the Sea”, the “Twelve Days of Christmas”, angels, toyland, animals including aligators, and the list goes on and on. The lit items in the displays are 4-20 ft. high. Here are just a few.
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