Mississippi Sound

 From Pensacola to Mobile Bay was only a short run and as the weather was nice we proceeded offshore motoring as usual.

Along the way we saw our first rigs.  These stretch all the way to Tampico, Mexico in a great arc of oil producing formations.

Oil rigs

The passage into Mobile Bay was surprisingly rough as current opposed wind and waves. The wind was only 12 to 15 knots so I wonder what conditions would have been like in a blow.  We were guided into the bay by an historic old lighthouse on Sand Island.  This lighthouse is decommissioned and endangered by erosion. Likely it will be washed away entirely eventually.

Sand Island lighthouse

Our destination was Dauphin Island, Alabama.  We wanted to stop to compare it to our favorite beach town--Port Aransas, Texas.  However, there was no safe way to get into the marina our 5 and 1/2 foot draft.  So we anchored on the north side of the island in 10 feet of water about a half mile offshore.

The next day brought more fair weather and White Pepper was actually able to sail for several hours. Mississippi Sound is delightful in the prevailing winds that we experienced that day.  It does have a long fetch between the mainland and the barrier islands.  I suspect that it would be rough in brisk norther. We saw the first of the commercial barges that clog the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway between Mobile and Brownsville.

The next anchorage was Cat Island, a barrier island just south of Gulfport, Mississippi.  We anchored again in 10 feet of water about a half mile offshore.  We did not go ashore and spent a pleasant night at anchor.

Cat Island, MS

Rabbit Island, LA

Our last day on Mississippi Sound was a short trip across Lake Borgne to Rabbit Island.  Rabbit Island is the only practical anchorage in this part of the world.  It is part of the Rigolets (pronounced Rigly by the locals).  The Rigolets are a systems of sand berms and channels that form the entrance to Lake Pontchartrain.  From here our plan was the motor 20 miles into New Orleans and cross the Mississippi River.  The disaster that was the next day will be the subject of our next post.

Pensacola

The earliest Spanish explorers quickly realized the potential for Pensacola.  It has remained the military and cultural center of western Florida since 1559. It is the oldest European settlement in N. America. St. Augustine is actually the oldest continuously occupied European settlement as Pensacola was abandoned for a while after a devastating hurricane.

Old Fort Pickens

Pensacola Pass on a cloudy morning

White Pepper arrived about noon after a rough morning dealing with a late season cold front. The pass is deep and wide.  It soon sweeps behind a barrier island occupied by Fort Pickens.  This short sound opens up into a protected bay.  Historic Pensacola is 5 miles north up the bay.  The marina is at the base of Palafox Ave.  Palafox was an early commander at Pensacola and his avenue anchors the entire district.

The main reason we had bypassed Panama City to come to Pensacola was renew acquaintances with Lt. Beth Hagen.  She and Jan met in Corpus Christi while sailing on the Wed. night races.  Beth was in Basic Flight School at Corpus Christi. Pensacola is her Advanced training.  Her aircraft is a huge SR-60 helicopter and her winging was the next day.  The winging ceremony was to be held under strictest social distancing.   No family was allowed at this momentous occasion.  So we were privileged to spend an entire afternoon with this lovely warrior and celebrate her winging at Jacob's, a fancy restaurant in the marina. Thank you for your service Beth, now and in the future.

Lunch at Jacob's

Lt. Beth Hagens

Later Jan and I were able to explore historic Pensacola walking.  It was almost empty due to the lockdown. There were numerous statues and we wondered how many would survive cancel culture. Readers of a certain age will remember the lunch counter sit ins at Pensacola that were part of the early civil rights movement. The lunch room is closed, but the lunch counters have been preserved along with a plaque.

Good luck to you, Gen. Jackson

Cool Street Mural

Palafox Ave. is empty at 10:30 am.  This is the main drag!

Looking in at the famous lunch counters