Dec 1998        Ohio River to Tampa, Florida

Early in 1998, we finalized the sale of our home and business in Vermont, and were able to return to the boat in early May on Kentucky Lake, with literally not a care in the world. We went up the Ohio, against the spring flow, with water as much as 25 feet above normal pool stage. The first two locks we entered, in fact, did not even change the water level, but simply closed the doors behind us to slow the current and opened the upstream doors with no change in elevation.

With a downstream flow of 2-4 mph we struggled to make 3-4 mph for about two weeks. After about two hundred miles things began to slow down and the water returned to normal pool. The cruise of almost 1000 miles up to Pittsburgh was both interesting and exciting as the Ohio has many more small and medium sized towns than the previous two rivers we had been on. Especially interesting were Madison and Ripley, Ohio and Pittsburgh, PA. We also did the entire navigable lengths of both the Allegheny and Monongahela Rivers. Most memorable was waiting on the Monongahela in flood stage at Morgantown, WV, from a torrential downpour in late June to recede enough so that we dared to continue downstream. Locks were first closed, then, even when opened, so full of trash that we had to stop hourly to clean raw water filters.

We spent the July 4 holiday in Pittsburgh, and were there to see the enormous fireworks display shot from a barge in the middle of the Three Rivers area, along with every other boat in Pennsylvania.

The trip back downstream on the Ohio was uneventful except for revisiting a few of the more memorable towns. Marietta, OH, was especially friendly and interesting, with a lovely municipal marina and several interesting museums. The lock system on the Muskingham is even older and more original than the Trent-Severn in Ontario. We continued on to Kentucky Lake and entered the Tombigbee, headed truly south for the first time in several years.

The Tenn-Tom Waterway was 450 miles of unique but undistinguished cruising (read dull). The only truly memorable places were Bay Springs Lake for its lack of development and rare beauty, and Demopolis AL, for it's being the only real town directly on the waterway. At Mobile Bay, AL we met the Gulf Coast ICW and dodged hurricanes successfully until we got to Apalachicola, FL, limping in to town with a leaky fuel line. Removing the fuel line and waiting for it's replacement made the decision to wait out hurricane Georg easy. We had no choice, as the boat would not run without a fuel line. All the shrimp boats went upstream to Saul Creek, but we stuck it out with several other yachties in a marina with floating docks. We all rented cars to make our escape if necessary, but the event just missed us, with the only damage being 3-5 foot higher than normal tides and flooded parking lots. Major damage occurred just 40 miles west in Panama City, so we counted our blessings.

With a day waiting for the seas to calm down, we ventured on to Carrabelle, FL, the jumping-off point for the offshore trip of 150 miles to Tarpon Springs or Clearwater. This is a section of the trip with no Intracoastal waterway option for protected waters. With an excellent forecast we hauled anchor at 7:OO AM off Dog Island and headed southeast. Thirty hours later we pulled into Tarpon Springs, following a wonderful night cruise with flat calm seas and a full moon. Our many nights sailing Panacea in the South Pacific made this short overnight seem a piece of cake.

The only untoward event of the cruise happened then in Tarpon Springs, when the skipper ran a 1/2 inch sliver from a piling at Pappas's restaurant up under his finger nail, requiring a visit to an emergency care facility. Watch out for Greek food!

A few more days found us at an inexpensive marina on the south side of Tampa Bay in Ruskin, FL, where we could have "Sadie B" hauled for the winter at a reasonable price, and convenient to our winter home in Kissimmee. This cruise involved 159 days, 3,870 miles, and 560 gallons of fuel for a total of 0.78 gph and 6.9 mpg. Over all the cruises we have taken this is about average. We have never used more than 0.80 gph, usually cruising at about 6-6.5 mph at 22-2,400 rpm.

With 3,700 hours on her, "Sadie B" has an estimated 24,000 miles under her keel. We have enjoyed remarkably inexpensive cruising with very few repairs (knock on wood). Most nights are spent anchored out, and our only repairs have been a few raw water pump impellers, a steering cable, and a throughhull shut off, plus the above mentioned fuel line. Routine maintenance is done as prescribed by the Lehman engine manual.

Now we are playing tennis daily, and looking forward to another summer on the water. Hopefully, up the East coast, west on the Erie Canal, and across Lake Ontario to the Rideau Canal to Ottawa, and down the Ottawa River to Montreal, then back to Lake Champlain via the Richelieu Canal from the north. We always enjoy hearing from other cruisers, and would enjoy corresponding with anyone with similar interests.

Good sailing and cruising to all our friends.

Dennis and Esther Bruckel,

M/V Sadie B - Albin27FC