People will get to see a different side of Baldwin and Mobile counties this weekend — from the water looking back.

Blakeley State Park is now taking reservations for a three-hour boat tour that will carry more than four dozen travelers up the Tensaw River into the Delta, then wind its way down the Mobile River to see the state docks and the shipbuilding areas of Mobile.

“It is really an interesting tour,” said park director Jo Ann Flirt. “Passengers will see unusual plants, birds and other wildlife, including alligators, in the shallows and marshes of the Delta.

“When you come down to the Port of Mobile, there is all kind of barge traffic, with tugs coming and going. The traffic is the thing that impressed me. You just can’t see that from land.”

The state park north of Spanish Fort has been offering boat tours since the fall of 2003, when they purchased the 55-passenger Delta Explorer. The covered boat has fixed seating and a rest room. It also has a sound system to allow rangers to narrate the tour. The ship will depart the park’s dock at 9:30 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 22 and return at 12:20 p.m.

“We recommend that people get to the park gates by 9 that morning,” said Flirt. “Folks don’t realize how long it takes to get from the park gates to the dock.”

The boat tour is billed as a “walk-on” excursion, with seating on a first-come, first-served basis. But tickets can be purchased in advance. A major credit card will guarantee seats by calling the park at 251-626-5581.

“You can actually call as late as 9 p.m., when the park closes,” said Flirt. “If you don’t want to drive all the way out here only to find out all the seats are gone, you probably need to book in advance.”

Tickets are $35 for adults and $17 for children 6 to 12. Children ages 4-5 will be seated for free.

“Because this is a long trip for the general public, all children need to be at least 4 years old,” said Flirt. “Children under that age can get tired and start to cause problems for the other passengers.”

The proceeds of the tour will go toward the operation of the roughly 2,000-acre park located on Highway 225. The park is open to day visitors from 9 a.m. until dusk daily. It is available to tent and RV campers 365 nights a year.

The park began offering boat tours nearly a decade ago. At the time, the Delta Explorer was privately owned. It sailed from a spot on the causeway, bringing school children up the river.

“He would stop at the dock and let the children off for a while,” said Flirt. “One day, we asked if he would be interested in selling. The only way to see the Delta is by boat.”

The park offers several boat tours each year, but not on a regular schedule. A shortened version of this trip was done last November for snowbirds. Flirt is also working on a separate trip into the Delta to visit a Native American site. That trip requires the rivers to be low and is tentatively being planned for November.

For more information on Blakely Park, go to www.blakelypark.com