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"Marathon- the Heart of the Florida Keys"

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Mobile Alabama, and -
Back to the Sea! - Gulf of Mexico!
Nov 11-16, 2001

We arrived in Mobile Alabama on Friday November 16th. Back to the SEA - FINALLY!

Here Jessica is aboard with two of her friends she met while we stayed at the Grand Mariner Marina up the Dog River.
They are daughters of our friends Kim and Chris aboard "CALEB". Noel (top) is Chris' daughter, and Faith (middle) is Kim's daughter.
Jessica liked the marina and her friends so well there that she didn't want to leave. We stayed there for a week while I traveled for work.

Late that afternoon of arrival, while hanging around the marina office, we heard the call come in on the radio from "Misty Sea". It was almost sunset and he was about in a panic trying to find dog river off Mobile Bay (its a very big open bay with lots of shoals and shallow water). After an hour of them trying to give him directions that he couldn't follow, I finally commandeered a 20 foot fishing boat with two strangers and my newly met friend Chris, and we went out the several miles into the bay to retrieve him. There's lots more to it than this too. (See the REST OF THE STORY).

Anyone that ends up in Mobile - I HIGHLY RECOMMEND the Grand Mariner Marina. It's family owned, plain and simple, but as friendly and helpful as you can get.

The dogs were getting really tired of these long river trips!

Here you can see me (Capn Greg) on the Flybridge of CALEB along with Barbara and Willy from the Grand Mariner Marina, and my friend Chris who owns the boat. Today we get to be the pilot boat for a 155 ft brand new MotorYacht LIQUIDITY that was at the Marina. I got invited along for the ride. It's many miles out from the Dog River, through shallow Mobile Harbor, into the main shipping channel and they have a deep draft. Only the crew was onboard - the new owner wanted it up in Chattanooga TN for the rest of the summer.

I didn't envy the captain who had to run this boat day and night up through the rivers we'd just come through - since there was no place that could accommodate them for an overnight!

CLICK HERE for the next photos in series of the Great Circle Trip . . .

Sunset picture of Dog River Bridge on right courtesy of Kevin & Karen Hughes aboard S/V Windigo III