Bama Belle Riverboat Is On The Move Again

Who remembers the Bama Belle Paddlewheel Riverboat sitting at the dock below what is now Parker-Haun Park at 1 Greensboro Avenue, or seeing her cruising up and down the Black Warrior River?

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Although the Belle has a long history that includes several names and locations, she landed in Tuscaloosa in the early 2000s and was named the Bama Belle. If you’ve looked along the Tuscaloosa riverfront in recent years, you’ve probably noticed she is no longer there. But the Belle has remained in Alabama all along. Owner Craig Dodson purchased the 1970 riverboat in November 2015 with hopes of making
the necessary repairs and once again offering public and private cruises in the Tuscaloosa area.
At the time, Belle needed repairs to her engine cooling system that required access to the vessel's underside. The closest facility that could lift the boat out of the water for those repairs was in Mobile, AL. So, after making temporary repairs, Captain Craig set off downriver toward Mobile. Following the repairs, the Bama Belle returned to service for several years, offering dinner cruises, private events, live music, and other trips along the Black Warrior River. When the COVID-19 pandemic arrived in 2020, the Belle shut down and never reopened for regular passenger service.
While plenty of people enjoyed seeing the iconic paddlewheel boat along the Tuscaloosa Riverfront, operating a vessel of that size came with significant expenses, including fuel, maintenance, and insurance. Eventually, Dodson took the Belle upriver and returned his focus to his excavation business. Now, the Bama Belle is moving again, and this time, she is leaving Alabama. Social media posts began surfacing this week showing the Bama Belle making her way down the Black Warrior River. Dodson has confirmed that the vessel has been sold and is headed to Florida.

In a social media post today, Dodson wrote: “Well, I thought I might just quietly paddle off into the sunset. I can see that’s not gonna work, so I’ll embrace it and thank everyone for the farewells and good vibes. The Bama Belle is en route to a boatyard on the coast. We are laid over today in Tuscaloosa, making a few repairs. This old
girl is chugging along at about 5 knots, so it will be a slow go. We make about 70 miles per day and lay over at night. After the boatyard, Dane Gilbert hopes to have her running on the Suwanee River in Old Town, FL, as the Suwanee Belle. Thanks for the memories.” If everything goes according to plan, the vessel that Tuscaloosa knew for years as the Bama Belle will begin a new chapter in Old Town, Florida, where she is expected to operate on the Suwannee River under a new name: the Suwannee Belle.

For Tuscaloosa residents who remember seeing her docked along the riverfront or slowly making her way down the Black Warrior, it may be the end of the Bama Belle’s Alabama chapter, but not the end of the Belle herself.