12/28/2008 – Buzbee's

Launch: Buzbees in Spanish Fort
Fee: $3.
Route: West to Blakeley River via Yancy Bay Cut, then back up into Bay Minette Creek into Muddy Branch.
Distance: 7.6 miles.
Average Moving Speed: 3.3 mph.
Exploring time: 3.5 Hours.
Pace: Leisurely to idle.
Weather: Cloudy to Sunny, 60-70 degrees, calm winds, water approx 60 degrees.

1) Bay Minette Creek Bridge and the Necky Looksha Sport kayak that I was testing.

2) It was a dreary looking day. Weather radar showed a line of showers in the county north of us. Figured I try out the kayak for 30 minutes or so before it stormed.

3) After about an hour on the water, the clouds melted away and the sun began to shine.

4) Winds abated to less than 5 mph and the waters slicked off. What a great paddling day this turned out to be.

5) Not long after I put on a layer of sunscreen, a voice called out from behind me. Tom, relatively new to kayaking, saw me from afar and came over to visit in his sharp looking Solstice GT kayak. 

6) We chatted for a time and then paddled back to Buzbees. Tom landed at Buzbees and I proceeded up Bay Minette Creek.

7) Bay Minette Creek was one of my favorite places to paddle because it was so untouched by modern development. There are almost no houses, docks or boat ramps to be seen along this creek. Unfortunately, the above left photo is the look of the future. More boat docks protruding into the creek and more power boats noising up the environment.

8) An old branch sticking out into the water took on the characteristics of a marine animal crying out, "Please, no more power boats!"