Day 199 – 201; 12/4 – 12/6: Monday, 12/4 we left Bay St. Louis, MS just after 7:00 am for about an 8 hour run to Biloxi, MS in fairly open water. Carol had a board call for several hours and was glad that the dolphins were a bit scarce so she didn’t miss anything. Arriving in Biloxi, we passed our marina to go buy fuel, going under the Beach Blvd (Rte 90) Bridge that separates Ocean Springs from Biloxi into the Back Bay for Biloxi. Buying from a fuel service that primarily services the shrimp fleet, we paid $2.95/gallon versus 4.00 – 4.25/gallon at a pleasure craft fuel dock. It was well worth the extra time to get there when you are taking on over 900 gallons!
We then backtracked to the Point Cadet Marina adjacent to the Golden Nugget Hotel and Casino. Arriving around 3:00, the boys went and tried their hand at blackjack for about an hour before dinner (none successful). Matt and Tonia made dinner and then the boys were off again seeking restitution….. alas the casino won again, but none were too badly bruised! Casinos are not much of Carol’s thing and nursing a newly pulled pectoral muscle, stayed back with some ice and a Hallmark movie!
Tuesday, 12/5 it was time to leave Biloxi, MS and cross over to Alabama. We were up with the sun and under way before 7:00 am. Within 15 minutes of us leaving the marina, we had dolphins in our bow wave or riding along side. One pair decided to give us a particularly amazing jumping show, our first of this sort of performance so far. It was truly amazing to watch them play, staring right back at us. Legacy was accused of “stealing all the dolphins.” Must be something about the color, sound or shape of the hull they just love!
<<video 1:21>
It was a particularly long run from Biloxi, MS to Gulf Shores, AL, where Homeport Marina is built around LuLu’s, Jimmy Buffett’s sister’s restaurant chain. We arrived around 3:00 pm and once all were settled in, headed to Lulu’s for a beer and early dinner. Food was fabulous, as was the service. We met several live aboards in the marina who were kind enough to take Tonia and Matt to the grocery store. We all shared our short lists with them and they picked up the few things we needed. Lulu’s also has a very large arcade so some of the crew enjoyed the games that night. The next morning, one of the live-aboards also drove out ahead of us and took the pics below. So sweet of him!
The next morning we were off to the Wharf Resort Marina, also in Gulf Shores, AL less than an hour away. The forecast was for high winds in the afternoon so our short trip was perfect. This stop included a touristy area with shops, restaurants, a Ferris wheel, ice skating rink and even laser tag. Being off season, we could literally walk in anywhere without a wait. The best part of the day (aside from 12/6 being Carol’s Mom’s 86th birthday… Happy Birthday Mom!) was the arrival of the parts needed to repair the converter so we could get hooked back up to shore power.
Zach from Island Marine Electric in Fort Lauderdale had diagnosed the issue with the converter and overnighted the parts needed. Gary and Steve carefully removed the board with the burned out power supply and also found the fan that was supposed to cool it had failed. That, according to the supplier, was the cause of our issue. The fan that cools the power supply failed which caused it to overheat and begin to melt down. That tripped 2 fuses that cut off the power to the unit and stopped the burn. Gary and Steve replaced the fan, board and 2 fuses and we were up and running again. All parties believe there should be a heat sensor on that board that would trip the fuse and shut things down before it reaches a danger point like this one did. We will continue to work that!
The weather has continued to be unseasonably cold with mornings in the 40’s, highs barely in the 60’s and long pants and sweatshirts the dress of the day. We are eager to continue to head south in search of sunshine and warmer weather. Our next stop is still in Alabama: Johnson Cove, where the thing to do is go to the FloraBama Bar, right on the FL/AL line. Once we cross into FL, that will be “sweet 16” state that we’ve visited on this trip.
Task of the day is to look at our next ports beyond Destin, which we should reach by 12/11 or 12/12. The Seattle members of our flotilla will head home for Christmas while, since our home is rented, we will continue on down the coast of FL and likely be in Tampa for Christmas.
chashurley
Really great shots of dolphins sowing off and leaving Biloxi at sunrise!