It only took 2 1/2 hours to get to Rabbit Island from Oak Harbor Marina in Slidell, LA. We had a 1 1/2 knot current that helped drive us down the Rigolets.
Brett pointed out the white sandy beaches as we went to our anchorage. We dropped the new anchor and spent the afternoon making sure we didn't drag and listening carefully to the weather report. There was a railroad right next to the anchorage.
Our friend, Sue, had anchored there before and told us about the old oil platform. It was a great landmark for us to reference to.The sunset was once again beautiful as we sat watching the sun go down. The wind was to be pretty strong for the evening.
I made a cherry pie. Then, for dinner, I put together a casserole on my own without a recipe using the food we had- canned chicken, red potatoes, onions, cream of mushroom and seasonings. It turned out pretty yummy, especially after I topped it with Parmesean Cheese. I have started logging what we eat in a journal with pictures. I noticed you don't read too often about what cruisers eat and I wanted to change that. That night, as the temperature plummeted, Brett got up routinely to check on the anchor. In the morning, we found that we had only drug a small amount. When he pulled up the anchor at 730, there was a ton of mud and grass on it.
We started out early to cross the Mississippi Sound to Gulfport. The waters got choppy as the day progressed. After awhile, it calmed down again. I didn't even have a hint of getting seasick during the choppy parts. I made us pancakes about 1000. When nearing Gulfport, I called the marina that the waterway guide said would be there. They told me that they hadn't finished rebuilding yet and that there was no marinas in Gulfport to tie to! I had arranged to have important mail sent to the Post Office there and wasn't sure how'd we get it now. After several frustrating calls that day, I was able to reach Small Craft Harbor in Biloxi, thirteen miles from Gulfport, and get a slip. Many things went wrong yesterday, it was miserable and I am trying to recoup from my bad attitude about it. We ended up here, for 2 nights till the norther passes on Saturday night. This harbor charged us $40 a night and we have no power. They only have 50 amp service and no bathrooms and showers, claiming FEMA is to blame for all of this mess from Katrina, THREE years ago. ok. drop back and kick. We're staying here, under our blankets, and exploring the town. I can already tell we're out of Louisiana. 
On Sunday, we might sail back to Gulfport (thirteen miles) and anchor out and dinghy to shore so we can get our mail depending on what the post office tells me this morning. Last night, when we were pulling into Biloxi, Brett proudly exclaimed that I had experienced my first time offshore and I didn't even know it. He was very excited for me. It was calmer than the waters we'd exerienced twice in Matagorda Bay and in Vermillion Bay.
We visited the Hard Rock Casino next to us last night. There was tons of signed guitars, shirts, etc of famous singers like Madonna's black bust, lots of Elton John and Beatles things. It was cool. I had a Starbucks coffee for the first time in a month. We blew a little money on penny machines and then ate at the Hard Rock Cafe. Neither of us had eaten there. It was fun. THe food wasn't great but I had a yummy fruit drink.Today we plan to walk to Home Depot and then possibly visit West Marine, Walmart and Hobby Lobby, all on the same road about 5 miles from here.We are making preparations to jump from here clear to Apalachicola, Florida which is an overnight trip offshore. It's about 30 hours from here. There are a few things to get done on the boat but can easily be done the next three days. Being offshore doesn't seem near as scary to me as trying to find a place to pull into a strange city every night and forking out a ton of money to them just to tie up our boat.
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