O beautiful for spacious skies

We arrived in the U.S. of A. on Monday and checked in with customs.  I tried hard ahead of time to figure out what would be needed but I didn't quite get it right. Our Nexus cards made getting us into the country straightforward but the boat is a little trickier. Since there is a possibility that weather delays might require us to leave the boat in the US for longer than 6 months we need a cruising permit for the boat itself (this doesn't allow us to stay longer than 6 months less a day - we would have to leave the US briefly and return).  Unfortunately a cruising permit takes 48 - 72 hours to obtain so we are here on Drummond Island until Customs and Immigration gives us the green light to leave.

Not wanting to let the time go to waste I have completed a few boat jobs.  The wood under one of our water tanks as partially rotted out over the years so I went into town and got some plywood to replace it.  I'm glad I kept a jigsaw on board - it sure came in handy today. I also pulled the sink out and replaced all the hose clamps on the water line and the drains.  There had been a small water leak in that compartment and I think this is the cause. The best part about today was the marina loaner car.  On old Chevy Suburban complete with a wood interior.

I am optimistic that the permit will come in today.  We have a couple of meet-ups to do with friends on Lake Michigan and I don't want to have to rush to get there.  Rushing on a boat can easily lead to poor decisions.

We have been watching some local TV on the boat.  Apparently in Northern Michigan there is a problem with youth becoming addicted to chewing tobacco so there is a fairly heavy public health campaign to warn of the dangers.  Ewww!

Last Chance for Canadian Healthcare

It will come as no surprise to anyone that our first visit to an ER on this trip was for Sam.  4 days ago he dropped a hatch lid on this big toe and the nail instantly turned black.  With my history of running and roller skating I've lost many nails over the years so I told Sam not to worry about it.  By this morning, however, his pain was increasing as was the size of his toe.  Since we are about to cross the border we decided a trip to the ER is Blind River was in order.  We were a little nervous when the room they put us in had one of these:

The hospital in Blind River had to call in an x-ray tech and the doctor who were both off enjoying their weekends.  The toe isn't broken, the swelling has been drained and Sam is feeling much better.

Sam relaxing now his toe is healing.

More Alternator Trouble

Our alternator bracket that we had welded in Windsor and inspected in Port Lambton has sheared again. We had the local mechanic in Spanish (the town, not the mechanic's native tongue) come down to take a look.  His diagnosis is that the the saddle mount on the bottom of the alternator is not a tight enough fit allowing things to vibrate.  I'm not surprised - I had lots of problems ordering the alternator in the first place and had to go to the manufacturer to get some custom spacers made to get it to fit snugly.  I was never very happy with the solution but the manufacturer assured me it would work.

The vibrating alternator has actually caused a smaller corner of a large plate on the engine to snap off.  We have ordered a replacement from Westerbeke but it is a huge undertaking to install (possibly requiring the engine to be pulled from the boat entirely!).  In the meantime the mechanic has welded the small corner to a thick plate which is bolted on the the engine and reinforces the plate.  This not only repairs the problem but should also strengthen the mount.  When the replacement parts come we will keep them onboard but if we are lucky we won't need them.

The past few days are starting to feel like fall so we are happy that tomorrow we should be turning south.  But the upside to the cold weather is the lovely misty mornings.

The Kindness of Strangers

The plan today was to continue on west to Gore Bay so we could visit the Service Ontario office. Normally if we were to leave the province for longer than 7 months we would be subject to a waiting period before we could qualify for provincial health care (OHIP) again.  This would mean that travel insurance would be very expensive as the insurer wouldn't just have the option to fly on of us home and have the government take care of us.  Luckily, once every 5 years the province lets you apply for a 2-year extension so that you can return home for health care if needed.

So that was the plan but as we are learning you can't really have plans on a sailboat. The strong west winds continue and no one in the marina is budging.  But the woman on the sailboat beside us let us use her car to drive to Gore Bay and we have our exemptions.

With no need to sail west we can now take advantage of the strong west winds and head north to an anchorage.

--------------------------------------

After a great sail where Sam and I worked on getting a decent angle to windward (jib cars all the way aft, traveler to windward, tons of backstay tension for the sailors in the crowd) we arrived at anchor in the Benjamin Islands.  The Benjamins are a very popular spot in the north channel but I'm not really sure why.  Don't get me wrong they are very pretty but with hundreds of other pretty anchorages it is hard to say that one is better than the others.  I suspect it might be because the Benjamins are pink granite whereas most of the rest of the North Channel islands are White Quartzite.

After all this talk about pretty islands you are probably expecting a great photo.  Alas, it is overcast and drizzling at the anchorage so I don't have anything.  Instead I present a picture of a sailing monkey.

Discretion is the Better Part of Valour

Today was a tough day.  We anchored for the night on the East side of Clapperton Island.  Overnight a storm kicked up with winds touching 25 knots (about 50 kph).  Our new anchor (a Rocna 15) held us beautifully.  I guess there is a reason one sailor we have met called his Rocna a “sleep well”.  We had been planning on another night at anchor but with the wind forecast to increase during the day we decided to head to the marina in Gore Bay some 15 nautical miles west. Not our best plan.

We found ourselves pounding into waves with winds on the nose reaching 38 knots.  That meant we had sustained near gale winds with regular gusts in the gale force category.

Dark, stormy, wavy, and damn challenging

About half way to our destination we decided to change our plan and turn into the much smaller but closer harbour of Kagawong.  With help from many hands on the dock we managed to get tied up safely.

Once on the safety of land it was actually a pretty nice day and we took a short hike up to a waterfall/swimming hole.

The forecast for tomorrow is for more westerly winds (but weaker) so we are hoping to head north back into an anchorage.

Wingfield, Killarney, and into the North Channel

We arrived back at the boat in Owen Sound on Monday the 14^th with the kids and Sam’s girlfriend Ally in tow.  

Riley settles in to his new digs

The additions to the crew

The next 6 days took us back to Wingfield Basin then on to Killarney, Baie Fine (Bay Finn to the locals), and Little Current.  A picture is really worth a thousand words in this neck of the woods, so here they are:

Diving competitions are the best way to pass time during the doldrums

The Pool is a great anchorage at the end of an
8 nautical mile trek up a long Bay and Fjord.

At anchor in the Pool.

A short but rather challenging hike from the Pool took us
to beautiful Topaz Lake surrounded by white quartzite cliffs.

Riley takes the plunge...

... followed by Ally

... and Sam

(who then tried in vain to find his glasses)

Waiting for the last swing of the bridge to get us into Little Current.

Big Pride in Little Current.  Manitoulin's first pride parade

Home Again, Home Again, Jiggity Jig.

Once east of Tobermory, we got great escarpment views

After leaving Tobermory we had a lovely sail downwind and spent the night in Wingfield Basin.  It was our first night having to share an anchorage.  Besides three rafted powerboats having a bit of a party it was quite peaceful.

Helming from the hammock on the way to Wingfield

Our first time anchoring with neighbours.

After Wingfield we spent a night in Lion’s Head. Much of my time was spent messing around with the Genoa furler which is still giving me grief.  But we had time to drink beer with Steve from our Power Squadron course, who we ran into (not literally) at the docks.  He had spotted us a few days earlier and been waving at us on the water and trying to hail us on the VHF but we were oblivious.

Lion’s Head is a lovely town with everything you could need – groceries, LCBO, hardware store (one of those old-timey ones that sells one of everything but Lord knows where you would find it), a couple of restaurants, a beach, and lots of sailboats in the marina.  A spot to consider keeping our boat in permanently when we come home.

Judging by the number of folding bikes outside the LCBO,
we weren't the only cruisers stocking up!

The last stop before heading home was Owen Sound where I finally caved in and called in a professional rigger to help us with our furler.  He raised the genoa about 8” up the forestay by attaching the tack to a length of rope instead of directly to the drum.  This eliminated the halyard wrap and now the sail furls up with almost no effort.  An expensive call-out but a free solution.  You take the goods with the bads, folks. 

Now home for a few days to pick up the kids.

It's a Long Way to Tobermory

Two days traveling up the coast has landed us in Tobermory.  The first leg from Kincardine to Chantry Island (Southampton) was what cruising is all about: 

A lovely broad reach in about 12 knots of wind...

... and a peaceful anchorage for the night.

Bruce Nuclear Plant

On the way we passed the Bruce Nuclear Power Plant.  Reg sent a photo to his father who regaled us with stories the construction of Bruce A in the 70's.








The second leg from Chantry to Tobermory was the other side of cruising.  Motoring in the doldrums, a quick exciting sail later in the day, a tangled jib furler, a soaked crew (well, only me), and abandoned plans to anchor because the wind direction was all wrong. Luckily, Little Harbour in Tobermory never turns anyone away and they were able to squeeze us on to the end of a dock. 

We fit on this dock like the slipper on an ugly stepsister.

Planning to anchor in Wingfield Basin on the north east corner of the Bruce Penninsula for one or two nights now.  We'll be without wi-fi so I'll post again in a few days.

Wingfield Basin

Three Blustery Days in Kincardine

We have just finished a 3-day stay in Kincardine.  Our first extended stay anywhere that was a result of planning and not breaking something vital!

We had a nice sail in on Thursday with storms all around us but we were in a nice, dry bubble.

When we arrived in Kincardine were were placed in a slip that was 2' wider than the boat on a fairly narrow channel.  I managed to get her in but not without a lot of help from the dock hands.

We got a real treat on Friday - a visit from home! Our friends Eric and Tegan came up for the night with their wee ones. 

Someone was unimpressed with this photo shoot!

We had a BBQ on shore and then wandered into town for the car show.  Their toddler was in heaven - little boys love everything with wheels.  The kids didn't love sleeping on the boat quite so much.  We had heavy onshore wind all through the night and the boat was rocking a little too much for comfort.  Judging by how many other boaters told me they napped on Saturday afternoon, I don't think anyone got much sleep in the marina that night.

The big winds had caused a build up of waves on Lake Huron which brought out all the surfers, kite surfers, onlookers, and the kid in all of us.

 

Another treat in Kincardine - provisioning with a car!  One of Reg's coworkers keeps his boat here so he took Reg grocery shopping where he bought all sorts of heavy luxury items like spring water and pop!

Having people around also meant we got a rare photo of the two of us together!

The Doldrums

Another day of motoring today as there was barely a breath of wind on Lake Huron between Sarnia and Bayfield for most of the day.  When we were about 25 minutes from our destination a storm passed south of us causing the wind to pick up from 0.5 to 17 knots in about 3 minutes.

We borrowed the marina bicycles in Bayfield and did some provisioning and explored the town.  A pretty tourist town - can't imagine how quiet it must be in the winter.

Sailing from nowhere...

... to nowhere

The (in)Famous Bluewater Bridge

Today we motored up the St. Clair river to the Sarnia Yacht Club on Lake Huron. A mostly uneventful day except for going under the Bluewater Bridge where there is quite a current as Lake Huron empties into the river.  We had been told by many sailors to stick as close to the Sarnia side as possible where the current is somewhat weaker.  Even following this advice we still had a speed over ground of as little as 1.3 knots with our instruments showing approximately 5.8 knots.  A heartfelt thanks to everyone for the advice as the trek was slow but trouble-free.

Upon arrival at the Sarnia Yacht Club we came across a local sailor who backed his boat out of his slip when we were about 6' from crossing his stern.  Luckily we were on high alert as we were in an unfamiliar harbour so were able to reverse quickly and avoid a collision. Turns our sailors can be jerks, too.

The Sarnia Yacht Club is a great place and I would highly recommend it to other boaters in the area.  They only charged us $1 per foot for the night including tax.  I think this is likely the cheapest dock fee we will encounter on the entire trip.  As a bonus, the club has a private beach where we got to cool off and then sit in chairs in the surf reading while the sun set.  Lovely.

For dinner we went to a local Italian restaurant (http://salvatoresinpoint.com) where they don't have a menu, they just bring you whatever is freshly made that day.  Not having to make any decisions other than the wine choice was quite refreshing and as all the pasta is made on site I don't think any dish would have been disappointing. 

Sorry, no pictures today so I'll leave you with another cute animal photo I stole from the internet.

Putting Lessons into Practice

Over the fall and winter Reg, Sam, and I took some courses with the Canadian Power and Sail Squadron (http://www.cps-ecp.ca/).  This week we got to put some of the lessons learned into practice.

Using paper charts to do some route planning for Lake Huron

Whipping the end of the fender lines

Lining up a range on the St. Clair River.  Almost there...

... perfect!

Somewhere on the Lazy River

We left Windsor after 3 nights with a functioning alternator and a spring in our step.  The trip up Lake St. Clair was uneventful as we didn’t have enough wind to sail.  The lake and river were extremely busy as it was a glorious Sunday with the St.Clair River Classic Offshore Boat Race (powerboats) and lots of families out on their ski boats.

We spent two lovely night at Ecarte Marine in Port Lambton. This place has the friendliest staff and locals (retired staff who live on site I think).  We arrived on Sunday after the office was closed so we tied up to the wall near the gas dock and figured we could sort things out in the morning.  We had a lovely evening chatting with a guy in his early 70s who is taking his Alberg 30 to the North Channel from Erieau.  This is the second time we have run into him and likely not the last. We also enjoyed some fantastic people watching on the river.

Floating dock complete with a trolling motor, a BBQ, a cooler, and 8 passengers

The next morning, we paid up for the night before ($1.30 per foot – the cheapest yet) and were planning on heading straight out.  The alternator set up was still making us nervous, however, so we had the in-house mechanic do some work for us.  He adjusted the pulleys so the belt runs straighter and assured us that the newly-welded arm is holding strong.

He was finished in early afternoon so we decided to stay another night.  Reg was able to put in a full day of work and I did some laundry (free!), stocked up on beer (the staff drove me to the store!), and read my book under a shady tree.

On our second morning the staff brought us coffee and fresh cookies from town. Now that is service.

Now on to Sarnia and the Bluewater Bridge which every sailor we talk to tells us is tricky to get under with the strong current.