“Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead.” Every time I enter Mobile Bay in South Alabama I mutter those words made infamous by Admiral David G. Farragut, in a maritime battle in Mobile Bay during the Civil War. Mobile Bay was the only port on the Gulf of Mexico that was not successfully blockaded by the Union until its capture late in the war in 1864.

Noted sailors and Naval Officers, Confederate and Union alike, have plotted courses across Mobile Bay, Captain Raphael Semmes of the CSS Sumter and CSS Alabama, Lieutenant John Newland Maffitt of the CSS Florida and of course Farragut of the USS Powhatan are just a sampling of great sailors of past times. Mobile is steeped in maritime history dating as far back as the early 1700s when John Baptisite LeMoyne Sieur de Bienville, founder of Mobile, urged Louis XIV to authorize construction of a canal connecting the Tombigbee River to the Tennessee River. The Tombigbee River joins the Mobile River north of Mobile Bay.

It would be more than 150 years later in 1874, when President Ulysses S. Grant authorized a survey followed by a proposal to build a waterway from the Tennessee River to the Gulf of Mexico. The waterway opened 111 years later in 1985 and is affectionately known as the Tenn-Tom. Of course the end product was much different from the one Grant proposed in 1874, but the U.S. Corps of Engineers effectively gave Great Lake’s and inland industries and boaters shortened access to Mobile and the Gulf of Mexico via the Tenn-Tom Waterway.

There are notorious sailors of current times who have plotted their own unique courses across this relative shallow bay. For instance, the King of the Parrot Heads, Jimmy Buffett. Let’s not forget about the most famous mythical shrimper of all times, Forrest Gump! It is even rumored around town that the Mobile Ship Yard has an application on file from a Mr. Hank Williams, of course that was long before “Your Cheating Heart” hit the airwaves.

Storms have played a major role in the Mobile Bay area throughout time. In 1979, Frederick was a direct hit, and since 2004 there have been five storms that did not hit directly but did have a direct hit on the waterfront economy. It is remarkable how resilient the area is and resourceful the local waterfront merchants are. Watching the area bounce back over the past year has been inspirational and I would encourage any boater to visit and take in all there is to offer.

To the east side of the bay, Gulf-front communities, Perdido, Orange Beach and Gulf Shores, connect to Mobile Bay either by the Gulf of Mexico through Perdido Pass or the ICW. These communities are great boating communities with overnight and long-term docking available. Orange Beach is internationally known for its charter fishing fleet. The east end of Perdido butts the Alabama-Florida state line, but what is better known and marked here is the world famous FloraBama beach, side honky tonk! Approximately 20 miles east of the state line is Pensacola, Florida, home of the Blue Angels, with scheduled practice times free to the public and two big time air shows per year.

Saunders Yachtworks located at Orange Beach Marina is one of the best service facilities on the Gulf Coast, in my opinion. Orange Beach Marina offers short-and long-term dockage. Mango’s and Calypso Joe’s, offer casual dining and there are more casual dining experiences dockside at Orange Beach Marina. LuLu’s at Homeport Marina at MM-155-ICW in Gulf Shores, Alabama, is a given for a cheeseburger in paradise and first-rate marina facilities. Word on the street is LuLu taught her brother Jimmy a lot about cheeseburgers! Gulf Shores is also home of the “Tiniest Hooter’s,” that’s what their shirts say, and presently overlooks the white sugar sands that lead to the emerald gulf waters! These coastal communities have numerous pubs and restaurants, and live entertainment is not only abundant, it is impressive, making the area a destination unto itself.

Along the eastern shore of Mobile Bay are Bon Secour, Point Clear, and Fairhope and each has it’s own unique flavor. Point Clear is home to The Marriott Grand Hotel Resort and Marina. Winston Groom, author of “Forrest Gump,” “Gump & Company,” and numerous other bestselling novels hails from Point Clear. Fairhope is a very artsy community with a village feel. Shops and bistros in the downtown area are within a casual stroll from marina facilities. Ronald Everett Capps, artist and author of the novel “Off Magazine Street,” calls Fairhope home. His book was adapted for the screen and titled “A Love Song for Bobby Long,” starring John Travolta and Scarlett Johansson. His son, Grayson Capps, writes and sings his own version of the blues and is a must-hear if you like New Orleans Folksy Blues (check him out at www.graysoncapps.com)

Also on the northeastern side of Mobile Bay is Battleship Park, featuring the USS Alabama, a World War II Battleship and the USS Drum submarine. They operate as museums with self-guided tours, an aircraft pavilion with numerous war planes, including, Calamity Jane, a B-52 Stratofortress, and an A-12 Blackbird. A National Maritime Museum of the Gulf of Mexico is currently under construction and is due to open in 2007 in the downtown waterfront area.

This visit took us along the eastern side of South Alabama, often referred to as L.A. (Lower Alabama) and the eastern shore of Mobile Bay. Maybe in our next issue my editor will let me take you up Mobile River to Sarah Bayou, the most gorgeous cypress bayou I have ever seen (I rode out Hurricane Dennis last year there on a Carver 36) and back down the western side to Dauphin Island, Bayou LaBatre, shrimp capital of the Gulf and across Mississippi Sound towards Biloxi. Keep in mind, that when planning your visit, winters here are relatively mild and fuel is generally less expensive than areas in the north. So, until next time, keep the slimy side down.