Friday 31 August 2007

Waterford and the Hudson River

Waterford Flight After a couple of days of travel we have arrived at Waterford on the Hudson River, at the end of the Erie Canal. Almost 350 miles, 35 locks and a 570’ change in altitude. The last 5 locks drop 169’ into the Hudson river valley, they are close together and claim to create the steepest canal in North America. This is the boy’s last week of summer holidays, Tuesday SCHOOL starts. Janine and I put on our teacher hats and try our hand at elementary school. Are we smarter than a six grader?!?

Waterford and the Hudson River

Waterford Flight After a couple of days of travel we have arrived at Waterford on the Hudson River, at the end of the Erie Canal. Almost 350 miles, 35 locks and a 570’ change in altitude. The last 5 locks drop 169’ into the Hudson river valley, they are close together and claim to create the steepest canal in North America. This is the boy’s last week of summer holidays, Tuesday SCHOOL starts. Janine and I put on our teacher hats and try our hand at elementary school. Are we smarter than a six grader?!?

Sylvan Beach

Sylvan Beach Sylvan Beach has a small amusement park. The grown ups decided that the kids needed to spend their own money on the rides. They carefully budgeted, bought tickets and went on a few rides, then bought more tickets and went on a few more. It was Bike Week at the beach, there was a live band, actually pretty good, and dozens of Harleys cruising up and down the strip. Sylvan Beach is just east of Syracuse so we had to say a tearfull goodbye to the Matthews, we had a lot of fun with them. Sara’s politeness rubs off on the boys nicely. Like the brothers she’s glad she’d never had. The kids went on strike for the next three days. Sleeping in late, lying around reading, spending the whole day in their pajamas. Even the locks would not rouse them anymore. “We had too much fun for 10 days, we need some rest!” was what they said.

Sylvan Beach

Sylvan Beach Sylvan Beach has a small amusement park. The grown ups decided that the kids needed to spend their own money on the rides. They carefully budgeted, bought tickets and went on a few rides, then bought more tickets and went on a few more. It was Bike Week at the beach, there was a live band, actually pretty good, and dozens of Harleys cruising up and down the strip. Sylvan Beach is just east of Syracuse so we had to say a tearfull goodbye to the Matthews, we had a lot of fun with them. Sara’s politeness rubs off on the boys nicely. Like the brothers she’s glad she’d never had. The kids went on strike for the next three days. Sleeping in late, lying around reading, spending the whole day in their pajamas. Even the locks would not rouse them anymore. “We had too much fun for 10 days, we need some rest!” was what they said.

Back to the canal

Back to the canal We have been on the canal with the Matthews for a week now. Every day we travel to a new town and explore. The towns along the canal have really cleaned up their waterfronts. Every town sports new or near new facilities, clean and shiny docks, even a few canal side restaurants have installed docks. The land has been very beautiful and varied. Near Niagara, the canal winds through orchards and farmlands. At times the canal is on a hillside with land level on one side and hillside below on the other. Later the canal wound through lowland swamp. The Montezuma wildlife reserve showed us dozens of osprey, kingfishers, well over a hundred herons, and many other kinds of birds. A pair of osprey put on a great display of fishing techniques and aerobatics. It was very fortunate to have Carolyn aboard as she was able to sew hatch screen covers just in time to save us all from getting eaten alive. The Locks continue to be interesting, the kids are getting very good at their deckhand duties and Janine is becoming more comfortable driving the boat in confined spaces. The weather has dealt us a bit of everything, cool hazy weather, and a few days of high heat and humidity with huge, but short, thunderstorms.

Back to the canal

Back to the canal We have been on the canal with the Matthews for a week now. Every day we travel to a new town and explore. The towns along the canal have really cleaned up their waterfronts. Every town sports new or near new facilities, clean and shiny docks, even a few canal side restaurants have installed docks. The land has been very beautiful and varied. Near Niagara, the canal winds through orchards and farmlands. At times the canal is on a hillside with land level on one side and hillside below on the other. Later the canal wound through lowland swamp. The Montezuma wildlife reserve showed us dozens of osprey, kingfishers, well over a hundred herons, and many other kinds of birds. A pair of osprey put on a great display of fishing techniques and aerobatics. It was very fortunate to have Carolyn aboard as she was able to sew hatch screen covers just in time to save us all from getting eaten alive. The Locks continue to be interesting, the kids are getting very good at their deckhand duties and Janine is becoming more comfortable driving the boat in confined spaces. The weather has dealt us a bit of everything, cool hazy weather, and a few days of high heat and humidity with huge, but short, thunderstorms.

Lockport NY

Lockport NY Lockport has the first 2 locks of the Erie Canal. Together they drop you almost 50 feet. We arrived late Saturday night and tied up alongside the top of lock 35. We all went for a walk around town to stretch our legs. There is a lot of work being done in Lockport to refurbish the downtown. This was a refreshing change from the economic depression we had seen in so many towns along the way. Sunday we toured the canal museum and took a cave tour and underground boat ride. Over one hundred years ago they cut an underground raceway to harness hydro power, for the operation of several factories, today they run tours in the abandoned cave. Of course the day wouldn’t be complete with out a bit of excitement. Our tour took an hour longer than usual as we were detained while one of the older ladies on the tour collapsed and then was exhibiting stroke like symptoms. Carolyn and Janine stayed with her until the paramedics could reach us down in the caves. By 2:30 we were starving and went for lunch at the locally recommended diner. After lunch we descended the locks ourselves. Being inside the lock is a very interesting experience, the doors close behind you and the walls grow around you as you drop some 25 feet in the first lock, then the next set of doors open allowing you to proceed into the second lock. After you move into the second lock the doors close behind you and you drop another 25 ft to the canal below. Then it was about 90 min to power down the canal to Middleport. Middleport is home to a restaurant called the Basket Factory. It had been highly recommended to us by some boaters in Dunkirk on Lake Erie so we had to stop for dinner. It was a good meal and there was a band playing out on the deck, they were great. The bar was filled with some local characters one guy was wearing a long blond wig. When the band stopped an older gentleman at the bar decided to serenade the patrons with a few old war songs. It made for an entertaining evening. Niagara Falls The eight of us, Bob, Carolyn and Sara are with us, wanted to see Niagara Falls. It seems the best way for eight people and a dog to travel is by limousine, so into the limo and off to the falls we went. I think the kids were more impressed by the limo than the waterfall. The day was cool and drizzling but we bravely climbed aboard the Maid of the Mist for the below the falls tour. The wind and spray at the base of the falls, with the boat lurching around in the current was exhilarating. After a very full day at the falls we returned to Middleport, with a stop at the beer store and a farmers market. It was fun to look out of the tinted windows and see the looks on the people passing by. We returned to the boat and continued downstream, with the bbq blazing, about an hour to Medina.

Lockport NY

Lockport NY Lockport has the first 2 locks of the Erie Canal. Together they drop you almost 50 feet. We arrived late Saturday night and tied up alongside the top of lock 35. We all went for a walk around town to stretch our legs. There is a lot of work being done in Lockport to refurbish the downtown. This was a refreshing change from the economic depression we had seen in so many towns along the way. Sunday we toured the canal museum and took a cave tour and underground boat ride. Over one hundred years ago they cut an underground raceway to harness hydro power, for the operation of several factories, today they run tours in the abandoned cave. Of course the day wouldn’t be complete with out a bit of excitement. Our tour took an hour longer than usual as we were detained while one of the older ladies on the tour collapsed and then was exhibiting stroke like symptoms. Carolyn and Janine stayed with her until the paramedics could reach us down in the caves. By 2:30 we were starving and went for lunch at the locally recommended diner. After lunch we descended the locks ourselves. Being inside the lock is a very interesting experience, the doors close behind you and the walls grow around you as you drop some 25 feet in the first lock, then the next set of doors open allowing you to proceed into the second lock. After you move into the second lock the doors close behind you and you drop another 25 ft to the canal below. Then it was about 90 min to power down the canal to Middleport. Middleport is home to a restaurant called the Basket Factory. It had been highly recommended to us by some boaters in Dunkirk on Lake Erie so we had to stop for dinner. It was a good meal and there was a band playing out on the deck, they were great. The bar was filled with some local characters one guy was wearing a long blond wig. When the band stopped an older gentleman at the bar decided to serenade the patrons with a few old war songs. It made for an entertaining evening. Niagara Falls The eight of us, Bob, Carolyn and Sara are with us, wanted to see Niagara Falls. It seems the best way for eight people and a dog to travel is by limousine, so into the limo and off to the falls we went. I think the kids were more impressed by the limo than the waterfall. The day was cool and drizzling but we bravely climbed aboard the Maid of the Mist for the below the falls tour. The wind and spray at the base of the falls, with the boat lurching around in the current was exhilarating. After a very full day at the falls we returned to Middleport, with a stop at the beer store and a farmers market. It was fun to look out of the tinted windows and see the looks on the people passing by. We returned to the boat and continued downstream, with the bbq blazing, about an hour to Medina.

Tuesday 21 August 2007

We are in the canal!

Well it’s Thursday night and we are officially in the Erie Canal! Only 200 yards but we are in the canal. We are tied to the municipal dock in Tonawanda. They have a summer music program, there is a “big band” Orchestra set up on the North bank playing an open-air concert. There are 10 or so boats tied up or floating watching and listening. Tomorrow night there is a band called Route 66, and on Sat there is the Keels, Wheels, and Meals festival??? Old Cars, old boats, and food.is the theme, we shall see. Tomorrow we can explore the town a bit, and stock up a bit on food and supplies etc. Bob Carolyn and Sara will be here tommorrow Gary’s parents are off to Europe for 5 weeks and plan to join us in Baltimore, the first week of Oct. Granny, Janine’s mom is coming to visit the first week of September.

We are in the canal!

Well it’s Thursday night and we are officially in the Erie Canal! Only 200 yards but we are in the canal. We are tied to the municipal dock in Tonawanda. They have a summer music program, there is a “big band” Orchestra set up on the North bank playing an open-air concert. There are 10 or so boats tied up or floating watching and listening. Tomorrow night there is a band called Route 66, and on Sat there is the Keels, Wheels, and Meals festival??? Old Cars, old boats, and food.is the theme, we shall see. Tomorrow we can explore the town a bit, and stock up a bit on food and supplies etc. Bob Carolyn and Sara will be here tommorrow Gary’s parents are off to Europe for 5 weeks and plan to join us in Baltimore, the first week of Oct. Granny, Janine’s mom is coming to visit the first week of September.

The start of the canal

Well the mast is down and strapped to the deck. We had a nice dinner at the Buffalo Launch Club, all the boys, including me, are clean and showered. We did 2 big duffle bags of laundry, and changed the sheets. Bradley and Tavish have been sharing one of the forward cabins for the last few days. Today Richard moved to the top bunk of the other forward cabin. This leaves the bottom bunk for Sara, and the Aft Starboard cabin for Bob and Carolyn. Now we just have to put everything back where it belongs, and clean all the other stuff and we will be ready for our friends. Yesterday we met Maria and Mario and 5 of their grandchildren at the marina where we de-masted the boat. They have a beautiful Chris Craft in Buffalo and a Trawler in Key Largo for the winter time……..pretty nice. They fed our kids lunch today while Janine and I put the mast on the deck, and last night they shared home made biscotti, red wine, and a bunch of information about the Erie canal and the ICW, as well as a gift to the boys of a NFL football. They have made the trip 5 times and had a ton of good advice. I am always pleasantly surprised at the friendships and generosity shared among boaters. Come on in, do you need a ride? Take my car, Don’t worry about it, you have to go to… People all the way along have offered so much usually before even knowing our names. If only the rest of the world looked after each other as well as this. Tonight we are at the Buffalo Launch Club. They like many others offer a free night to Yacht Club members. It is almost exclusively 40 – 50 ft Sun bridge motor cruisers; the club has a field, pool, tennis courts, horseshoe pits, a very nice place. Thurs night we will move to Tonawanda and tie up to the wall of the canal. Sat or Sun we will probably go see Niagara Falls with the kids, and then continue down the canal.

The start of the canal

Well the mast is down and strapped to the deck. We had a nice dinner at the Buffalo Launch Club, all the boys, including me, are clean and showered. We did 2 big duffle bags of laundry, and changed the sheets. Bradley and Tavish have been sharing one of the forward cabins for the last few days. Today Richard moved to the top bunk of the other forward cabin. This leaves the bottom bunk for Sara, and the Aft Starboard cabin for Bob and Carolyn. Now we just have to put everything back where it belongs, and clean all the other stuff and we will be ready for our friends. Yesterday we met Maria and Mario and 5 of their grandchildren at the marina where we de-masted the boat. They have a beautiful Chris Craft in Buffalo and a Trawler in Key Largo for the winter time……..pretty nice. They fed our kids lunch today while Janine and I put the mast on the deck, and last night they shared home made biscotti, red wine, and a bunch of information about the Erie canal and the ICW, as well as a gift to the boys of a NFL football. They have made the trip 5 times and had a ton of good advice. I am always pleasantly surprised at the friendships and generosity shared among boaters. Come on in, do you need a ride? Take my car, Don’t worry about it, you have to go to… People all the way along have offered so much usually before even knowing our names. If only the rest of the world looked after each other as well as this. Tonight we are at the Buffalo Launch Club. They like many others offer a free night to Yacht Club members. It is almost exclusively 40 – 50 ft Sun bridge motor cruisers; the club has a field, pool, tennis courts, horseshoe pits, a very nice place. Thurs night we will move to Tonawanda and tie up to the wall of the canal. Sat or Sun we will probably go see Niagara Falls with the kids, and then continue down the canal.

Tuesday 14 August 2007

Buffalo, the start of the Erie Canal

Today is Sunday the 12th of August it has been 5 weeks since we left Racine WI for the first sail of our trip. Since then we have traveled three Great Lakes: Michigan, Huron, and now Erie as well as the St Claire river, the Detroit river and Lake St Claire. Many of the Great Lake towns we visited are facing much the same fate as many BC industrial towns. With businesses and factories closing, unemployment rises, and the effects are felt through the whole community. Although the Marinas and yacht clubs we have stayed at have all been very friendly clean facilities, many of the people, especially in the smaller centers talk of lay offs and no jobs. Walking or getting rides into these communities often shows closed businesses and boarded up buildings. Now we sit at the Buffalo Yacht Club, at the head of the Niagara River near Tonawanda, the start of the Erie Canal. This starts another chapter in our voyage. This week we must remove the mast from the boat and lash it to the deck so we can fit under all the bridges in the canal. The New York State Canal System is the rebirth of a transportation canal first opened in 1825. It Joined Albany, on the Hudson river to Lake Erie giving New York City access to goods from far inland. This soon made NYC the busiest port in the USA. The canal connects to Oswego on Lake Ontario, and to Lake Champlain and the St Laurence near Montreal. Today the canals are mostly tourist destinations. With recognition from local and federal government the canal systems are being expanded to include “greenway” trails paralleling the canal, parks and many shore side facilities. Many towns offer free tie-ups and facilities to encourage boaters to visit. We are really looking forward to the more urban, marine orientated, canal. The boaters we have met on Lake Erie have all raved about the canal, many of them making it the focus of their summer cruise. Bob, Carolyn, and Sara are flying into Buffalo on Friday to join us on the canal from Buffalo to Syracuse. The family is all doing very well. One problem with Tia though, at the Erie Yacht Club the geriatric wonder dog tried to jump from the cockpit to the dock instead of walking to the gate in the lifelines. She hit the lifelines and fell in the water. Gary ended up jumping into the lake with her and it was only a few minutes until we had her on the transom. An exciting way to start the day. This should be a busy week getting the boat ready for the canal as well as (cleaning up all our stuff) for guests.

Buffalo, the start of the Erie Canal

Today is Sunday the 12th of August it has been 5 weeks since we left Racine WI for the first sail of our trip. Since then we have traveled three Great Lakes: Michigan, Huron, and now Erie as well as the St Claire river, the Detroit river and Lake St Claire. Many of the Great Lake towns we visited are facing much the same fate as many BC industrial towns. With businesses and factories closing, unemployment rises, and the effects are felt through the whole community. Although the Marinas and yacht clubs we have stayed at have all been very friendly clean facilities, many of the people, especially in the smaller centers talk of lay offs and no jobs. Walking or getting rides into these communities often shows closed businesses and boarded up buildings. Now we sit at the Buffalo Yacht Club, at the head of the Niagara River near Tonawanda, the start of the Erie Canal. This starts another chapter in our voyage. This week we must remove the mast from the boat and lash it to the deck so we can fit under all the bridges in the canal. The New York State Canal System is the rebirth of a transportation canal first opened in 1825. It Joined Albany, on the Hudson river to Lake Erie giving New York City access to goods from far inland. This soon made NYC the busiest port in the USA. The canal connects to Oswego on Lake Ontario, and to Lake Champlain and the St Laurence near Montreal. Today the canals are mostly tourist destinations. With recognition from local and federal government the canal systems are being expanded to include “greenway” trails paralleling the canal, parks and many shore side facilities. Many towns offer free tie-ups and facilities to encourage boaters to visit. We are really looking forward to the more urban, marine orientated, canal. The boaters we have met on Lake Erie have all raved about the canal, many of them making it the focus of their summer cruise. Bob, Carolyn, and Sara are flying into Buffalo on Friday to join us on the canal from Buffalo to Syracuse. The family is all doing very well. One problem with Tia though, at the Erie Yacht Club the geriatric wonder dog tried to jump from the cockpit to the dock instead of walking to the gate in the lifelines. She hit the lifelines and fell in the water. Gary ended up jumping into the lake with her and it was only a few minutes until we had her on the transom. An exciting way to start the day. This should be a busy week getting the boat ready for the canal as well as (cleaning up all our stuff) for guests.

Wednesday 8 August 2007

KOOKA-RACHA-BURA

J'ELLO MATES JUST THOUGHT I'D SAY WE'RE HAVING A BLAST AND WE HAVEN'T KILLED EACHOTHER YET (AMAZINGLY ENOUGH). WE'RE ON LAKE ERIE, AT THE ERIE YAGHT CLUB, IN A CITY CALLED ERIE AND I THINK (BUT I'M NOT SURE (ABOUT ANYTHING ANYMORE))WE'RE GOING TO BE HERE FOR A WHILE. WE NEED TO BE IN BUFFALO ON THE 17 TO MEET THE MATHEWS, BUT BESIDES THAT WE CAN DO ANYTHING AS LONG AS WE GET THERE ON TIME. BYE BYE NOW BRAD

KOOKA-RACHA-BURA

J'ELLO MATES JUST THOUGHT I'D SAY WE'RE HAVING A BLAST AND WE HAVEN'T KILLED EACHOTHER YET (AMAZINGLY ENOUGH). WE'RE ON LAKE ERIE, AT THE ERIE YAGHT CLUB, IN A CITY CALLED ERIE AND I THINK (BUT I'M NOT SURE (ABOUT ANYTHING ANYMORE))WE'RE GOING TO BE HERE FOR A WHILE. WE NEED TO BE IN BUFFALO ON THE 17 TO MEET THE MATHEWS, BUT BESIDES THAT WE CAN DO ANYTHING AS LONG AS WE GET THERE ON TIME. BYE BYE NOW BRAD

Tavish's post

Hi all. just want to tell everyone that the boat is still floating and no one has seriously injured themselves. Anyway, we have had a lot of fun and met some really nice people. We've met 2 families from Canada and I really hope we meet more soon. Talk to you later. Tavish

Tavish's post

Hi all. just want to tell everyone that the boat is still floating and no one has seriously injured themselves. Anyway, we have had a lot of fun and met some really nice people. We've met 2 families from Canada and I really hope we meet more soon. Talk to you later. Tavish

Tuesday 7 August 2007

richard'$ update

how you doing? i'm in Erie right now.i was here yesterday to. the day before that i was in ashtabula the before that to. that's all for now Richie asdfghjkl;'asdfghjkl;' asdfghjkl;'';lkjhfdsadf

richard'$ update

how you doing? i'm in Erie right now.i was here yesterday to. the day before that i was in ashtabula the before that to. that's all for now Richie asdfghjkl;'asdfghjkl;' asdfghjkl;'';lkjhfdsadf

Cleveland Ohio

Wednesday saw us heading to Cleveland to get some maintanance work done on the sails. Olde River Yacht Club is a privately run marina between the sand and gravel yard and the train tracks. A bit noisy but the moorage is free and they had a pool which is a real bonus for us Canadians who are not yet used to the high heat and humidity. I got the sails fixed up and the kids and Janine went to see the new Harry Potter movie. Thursday afternoon a huge Thunderstorm came through. Within a few minites it went from calm to heavy rain and 30 – 35 knots of wind. Fortunately it only lasted 45 minites or so and then it was calm again. These storms are to be avoided, it would have been pretty ugly to have been caught out on the lake. Friday we left late, headed for Ashtabula Ohio. About a mile upstream from the coal dock is one of the friendliest club I have ever been to. When we arrived no less than 10 peolple were there to greet us. It seems were were an hour late for the potluck dinner. Within 15 minutes of our arrival we were driven up to the grocery store for supplies. The next night there were 20 or 30 people around the bbq at “Raoul’s” their outdoor kitchen/bbq. A couple of kids joined up with our mob and they terrorized the playground. Several people offered us their cars or offered us rides. Janine borrwed Chuck's car and went to K-Mart for provisions. Monday’s forecast does not include Thunderstorms so we will head for Erie Penn. then.

Cleveland Ohio

Wednesday saw us heading to Cleveland to get some maintanance work done on the sails. Olde River Yacht Club is a privately run marina between the sand and gravel yard and the train tracks. A bit noisy but the moorage is free and they had a pool which is a real bonus for us Canadians who are not yet used to the high heat and humidity. I got the sails fixed up and the kids and Janine went to see the new Harry Potter movie. Thursday afternoon a huge Thunderstorm came through. Within a few minites it went from calm to heavy rain and 30 – 35 knots of wind. Fortunately it only lasted 45 minites or so and then it was calm again. These storms are to be avoided, it would have been pretty ugly to have been caught out on the lake. Friday we left late, headed for Ashtabula Ohio. About a mile upstream from the coal dock is one of the friendliest club I have ever been to. When we arrived no less than 10 peolple were there to greet us. It seems were were an hour late for the potluck dinner. Within 15 minutes of our arrival we were driven up to the grocery store for supplies. The next night there were 20 or 30 people around the bbq at “Raoul’s” their outdoor kitchen/bbq. A couple of kids joined up with our mob and they terrorized the playground. Several people offered us their cars or offered us rides. Janine borrwed Chuck's car and went to K-Mart for provisions. Monday’s forecast does not include Thunderstorms so we will head for Erie Penn. then.

Lake Erie and Put in Bay

Lake Erie The Detroit river separates Detroit from Windsor Ont. A few hour later we are on Lake Erie our third Great Lake. The west end of the lake is shallow, no we didn’t hit, with a shipping channel carved out into it. In the middle of the Lake we are showing 33ft on the sounder, as we power straight upwind into a 5 knot southerly on our way to Put-In-Bay. Put-In-Bay Puddin bay, South Bass Island looks like a party town, Boardwalk Marine operates a field of mooring balls and a water taxi. For 27 bucks you can stay the night and they will pick you up and drop you off whenever you want. The town has a big waterfront park and a bunch of restaurants and bars. We did not see it but on a weekend night I imagine that it could get pretty wild. The first day we found a patio that was dog friendly. We had a beer and listened to “West Side Mike” play Jimmy Buffet tunes. The Second day we rented a 6 seat golf cart, drove around the island, went to the beach and had a swim, then lunch and back to the boat for more swimming.

Lake Erie and Put in Bay

Lake Erie The Detroit river separates Detroit from Windsor Ont. A few hour later we are on Lake Erie our third Great Lake. The west end of the lake is shallow, no we didn’t hit, with a shipping channel carved out into it. In the middle of the Lake we are showing 33ft on the sounder, as we power straight upwind into a 5 knot southerly on our way to Put-In-Bay. Put-In-Bay Puddin bay, South Bass Island looks like a party town, Boardwalk Marine operates a field of mooring balls and a water taxi. For 27 bucks you can stay the night and they will pick you up and drop you off whenever you want. The town has a big waterfront park and a bunch of restaurants and bars. We did not see it but on a weekend night I imagine that it could get pretty wild. The first day we found a patio that was dog friendly. We had a beer and listened to “West Side Mike” play Jimmy Buffet tunes. The Second day we rented a 6 seat golf cart, drove around the island, went to the beach and had a swim, then lunch and back to the boat for more swimming.

Thursday 2 August 2007

Metro Beach

After Exiting Lake Huron, and transiting through Port Huron and St Claire river into Lake St Claire we followed Viking Heart into Metro beach. This was their turn. Lake St Claire, is 10 -15 deep except for the freighter channel dredged down the middle, and a small shoal mid channel on the way into Metro Beach. Metro beach is a community of canals and very fast boats. Every house has a canal on one side and road on the other, and everybody seems to have a speed boat tied up behind their house. We spent a couple of hours in the pool running off some steam. I was able to overcome some boat gremlins and got the propane stove working Viking Heart, was on their way home, and Saturday night found us down the dock from them at their home marina, Kean’s, in Detroit. We were a few minites behind and as we entered the marina our news friends and a few locals were there to greet us as we pulled into the slip and stopped, aground again, half way into the slip. A fitting end to a shallow week. Sunday found us doing laundry, cleaning up, and playing in the pool.

Metro Beach

After Exiting Lake Huron, and transiting through Port Huron and St Claire river into Lake St Claire we followed Viking Heart into Metro beach. This was their turn. Lake St Claire, is 10 -15 deep except for the freighter channel dredged down the middle, and a small shoal mid channel on the way into Metro Beach. Metro beach is a community of canals and very fast boats. Every house has a canal on one side and road on the other, and everybody seems to have a speed boat tied up behind their house. We spent a couple of hours in the pool running off some steam. I was able to overcome some boat gremlins and got the propane stove working Viking Heart, was on their way home, and Saturday night found us down the dock from them at their home marina, Kean’s, in Detroit. We were a few minites behind and as we entered the marina our news friends and a few locals were there to greet us as we pulled into the slip and stopped, aground again, half way into the slip. A fitting end to a shallow week. Sunday found us doing laundry, cleaning up, and playing in the pool.

Huron to Erie

Huron to Erie Lake Huron has been a long, shallow and windless place, Almost 40 hrs of motoring. The one afternoon we had wind it was right on the nose. In Harrisville a Catalina 42, Viking Heart, pulled in with three kids. Immediately the kids were up at the playground and within an hour they had returned to our boat to watch a movie and have dinner while the adults chatted and ate in the cockpit. The next day High Five was away early for another 10 hr motor. This time across Saginaw bay. The wind filled in in the afternoon….12-15 on the nose. When we got to Harbour Beach we entered the harbour and proceeded as directed by the harbourmaster. We slowed to a crawl as our keel dragged through the weeds. After 100 yrds the water deepened and we continued to the fuel dock staying left as the harbourmaster told us. Thud! We stopped, in the middle of the channel, inside the markers. “A bit to the right” she instructed and we tried again. This time no problem……inches to spare. We all decided it was a night out and we had a great Italian dinner. Early the next morning the South wind was still blowing and our new friends on Viking Heart had snuck in late, and were across the dock, so we went back to bed for a while. Around lunchtime we followed them out of the north entrance avoiding the shoals and weeds of the previous day. That afternoon, entering Lexington Harbour we had a repeat performance, off the end of the breakwater, going slowly in the middle of the channel we again bumped the sand. “A bit to the left, closer to the beach, you should have lots of water” it was becoming a familiar story. Lexington harbour Today was Chrissy’s (the older girl on Viking Heart) birthday! We celebrated with Pizza and Ice cream cake. The next morning we exited our slip and as we passed the gas dock, with boats docked 25 ft to either side of us…we stopped again!! The gas jockey walked over and said ”you should have plenty of water there” well guess what. We backed off and tried again, a little to the right, OK we are out of the slip and heading back on the lake. Taking the route closer to the beach as we had been instructed we kissed the sand, stoped listening to the harbourmaster, and continued on our way. Captains note: No sand or Fiberglass was hurt, all contact was in a very slow and gentle manner. I guess this is good training for the Inter Coastal Waterway. Lake Huron is surprisingly shallow, even 4 or 5 miles from shore the water can be 30 or 40 ft deep.

Huron to Erie

Huron to Erie Lake Huron has been a long, shallow and windless place, Almost 40 hrs of motoring. The one afternoon we had wind it was right on the nose. In Harrisville a Catalina 42, Viking Heart, pulled in with three kids. Immediately the kids were up at the playground and within an hour they had returned to our boat to watch a movie and have dinner while the adults chatted and ate in the cockpit. The next day High Five was away early for another 10 hr motor. This time across Saginaw bay. The wind filled in in the afternoon….12-15 on the nose. When we got to Harbour Beach we entered the harbour and proceeded as directed by the harbourmaster. We slowed to a crawl as our keel dragged through the weeds. After 100 yrds the water deepened and we continued to the fuel dock staying left as the harbourmaster told us. Thud! We stopped, in the middle of the channel, inside the markers. “A bit to the right” she instructed and we tried again. This time no problem……inches to spare. We all decided it was a night out and we had a great Italian dinner. Early the next morning the South wind was still blowing and our new friends on Viking Heart had snuck in late, and were across the dock, so we went back to bed for a while. Around lunchtime we followed them out of the north entrance avoiding the shoals and weeds of the previous day. That afternoon, entering Lexington Harbour we had a repeat performance, off the end of the breakwater, going slowly in the middle of the channel we again bumped the sand. “A bit to the left, closer to the beach, you should have lots of water” it was becoming a familiar story. Lexington harbour Today was Chrissy’s (the older girl on Viking Heart) birthday! We celebrated with Pizza and Ice cream cake. The next morning we exited our slip and as we passed the gas dock, with boats docked 25 ft to either side of us…we stopped again!! The gas jockey walked over and said ”you should have plenty of water there” well guess what. We backed off and tried again, a little to the right, OK we are out of the slip and heading back on the lake. Taking the route closer to the beach as we had been instructed we kissed the sand, stoped listening to the harbourmaster, and continued on our way. Captains note: No sand or Fiberglass was hurt, all contact was in a very slow and gentle manner. I guess this is good training for the Inter Coastal Waterway. Lake Huron is surprisingly shallow, even 4 or 5 miles from shore the water can be 30 or 40 ft deep.