Bay St. Louis to Dauphin Island. anchor

Subtitled: A bird in the hand.

Russ watches the weather. He'd gotten very good at reading and predicting travel days. And he promised these next few days would be awesome: Windless, with the exception of afternoon breezes that always seem to rise on the Gulf. Yesterday, arriving in Bay St. Louis, winds were up higher than anticipated. Despite the marina being behind a hefty break wall, we bounced a little all night long.

Good morning, Gulf of Mexico

That continued into the morning. I walked the dog early, and winds were still up. Knowing they'd grow into the afternoon, I was a bit dubious about the ride. This day we were on the gulf, and even though there are barrier islands, it's pretty exposed. We planned a number of bail-outs, just in case. We could go back to Biloxi, which is a short day's ride. Or anchor out near any of the islands along the way.

As it turned out, the day was awesome. Bumpy getting out, and a little choppy once we got to the gulf. But within an hour the water laid down, and 1 - 2 foot seas turned into 6 in ripples most of the day. 

inQuest on ancho in the little lagoon,
Dauphin Island

So we came to Dauphin Island, which is the farthest point before heading up into Mobile Bay. We'll do that tomorrow, getting another early start. That should give us a good part of the day to play in Mobile.

Engine started right up, radar worked all day, AIS showed all the tows around us. Everything worked like it was supposed to. I love it when a plan comes together.