Canada part 2

Canada : Lake Huon -  Windsor

July

Bayfield

14 / 15  :  Sarnia

16 ...  : Windsor

Bayfield :12 - 13

We spent 2 night in Bayfield due to predicted high winds.  Jim called the marina from the Lake  and asked for slippage. No problem, depths were good and plenty of dock space.  We requested help docking and would it be a port or starboard tie up….(left side of right side?)  The young lady in charge says… ‘oh, I don't do well with (understanding) port and starboard (!!!) just put the bow in’ …. so if you are a boater, you are probably cringing right now.  It is one of the FIRST terms you learn  … It is important for the captain and crew to know which side is to prepare lines and fenders for docking, etc…. so we made our way to the pier where the dock hands were waiting and when asked (from the bow) which side would you like us on… ‘it doesn't matter’ was the response…. OK. so I'm scrambling on the deck to get lines and fenders in place, and in the end all is well. The very narrow harbor was calm and the dock hands (including ‘I don’t know port and starboard’ ) help secure lines.  It feels like summer!  We head to town, which is through a shady tree canopy up a short path. Town is lovely and boasts many cottages for tourist and travelers, some one hundredish years old. We lunch at one of the fine restaurant / hotel establishments and returned to the boat. I freshened up some laundry and whilehanging it off the lifelines a  HUGE  75 foot power yacht comes in and turns on a dime directly behind us,  asking for a slip due to the up coming weather, but declines when they assess the ‘small’ docks… hope it wants the laundry …

off loading the catch 

The next morning we head to town to get find a post office, grocery store and a hair salon. The salon is closed today. Strike one.  The post office is too far out of town. Strike 2.  And the grocery store is a couple miles away. Strike 3… back at the marina we inquire about a shuttle and the harbor master arranges for one of the dock hands to drive us for shopping.  Home run!  We gather our shopping bags, packages to mail, and we are off.  Fresh veggies and a nice selection of goods and we are stocked up again. I even found a basil plant to add to the still surviving garden… 

We left early the next morning for Sarnia.  Just off the harbor entrance we notice a shipwreck with the bow clearly still intact.  It’s close to shore, no danger to us but a reminder that GPS and chart plotters are a GOOD thing.

The Blue Water Bridge 

Sarnia : 14 -15 

Shortly after setting the sails, they are down again… a forbidding bunch of clouds on the horizon.  It passes with a quick rain shower.   We spent the remainder of the passage with the sails going up and down, wind shifting often.  Sarnia, across the channel from Port Huron, is connected via the Blue Water Bridge.  We could feel the current picking up the closer we got.  

Changing the oil

The 3 largest of the Great Lakes, Superior, Michigan and Huron, waters all funnel through this rather narrow cut.  We hit a new speed record for the boat.. 10.4 knots!  Scary fast for a boat that normally has a top speed of 6 knots motoring.  The marina we selected said their water depths could accommodate our 6 foot draft, so we cleared the bridge and followed the buoys.  Our depth sounder measuring 2 feet under the keel… we should be hitting bottom any time now…we cut the throttle back to nearly nothing…  Another shout out to the harbor master and he assures us (from his nice dry seat) that it’s only the weeds… which are clearly visible all around us.  Secure to the fuel dock, we take on fuel then head to the slip.  Super narrow piers make for no errors with your step or you would be assured an abrupt soaking.  2 nights in Sarnia.  excitement : a hair cut, REAL Canadian Geese, and made new friends with a couple doing the ‘loop’… The ‘Loop’ is the term given to boaters who circumnavigate the waters from the East Coast, through the Erie Canal, the Great Lakes (generally Ontario, Erie, Huron and Michigan) then down the Mississippi via Chicago.  Continuing through the Gulf of Mexico, and around Florida… more or less in that order. 

REAL  Canadian Geese

Windsor : 16, 17, 18

On to Windsor and our new crew member, Jan, from Germany who is flying in to join us for the summer.  En route we heard from friends Bill and Terry.  They are coming to to visit us in Windsor as well!  Terry graciously  asked if they could bring anything and we put in a request for a few items… 

We headed down the Saint Clair River with a current giving a push of 2 extra knots. Making great time, seeing freighters and a bit of boat traffic.  The first real traffic is several days.  Initially, the Canadian side of the river is host to numerous (25+) refineries and plants for power production.  These then give way to  lovely green spaces, sparsely populated.

Leaving the River and heading south through Lake Saint Claire, we encounter hordes of sail boats heading north presumably to Port Huron for the  Port Huron to Mackinaw race which starts this weekend.  Freighter traffic is fairly light, the AIS alerting us to their position and trajectory.  

A park with the Great Lakes relief map 

The Canadian side of Lake Saint Claire appears completely lined with wind turbans, just barely visible on the distant horizon.  Motoring along the current has diminished due to the widening of the lake area.  

decommissioning a coal plant 

We have reservations at the Windsor Municipal Marina.  Following the chart we head for the marina with the renewed down river current at the river mouth.  It appears we will hit the wall long before making the the inlet but just when it seems all is lost we  make the channel and head to the fuel dock for directions as no one responds to the VHF calls.  Shouting to the attendant on shore we are directed (sort or) to our pier.  Jim navigates the unfamiliar marina and we begin to get concerned as is narrows quickly and we can't see our pier or slip.  It’s calm at least and we manage to find the pier for tie up without incident, other than our anxiety over docking at unfamiliar slips.  We head to the office to pay for the slip.  The attendants all express concern over our tie up… we are on the NEW pier and no one told them is was available for service. Next, we ask about internet. The internet is almost ready to be hooked up but …. sorry, nothing today.  grrrr

refineries and power plants 

Terry, Bill, Kathy and Jim

Brian of Afeica...

river channel 

Our friends Bill and Terry are due any moment so we head back to the boat.  Within a short time they arrive and have quite a story to tell.  I had asked Terry to bring a  shower curtain, a small bowl and a kitchen knife.  Canadian customs questioned their intent for the items then make them pull off for further interrogation… “Why do your friends NEED a shower curtain?  …. What is the bowl for?  How much does it cost?   Oh, you have bottle of wine too?” … They were able to convince the boarder patrol they had no intention of starting a business with these 3 items… and were free to go.  Whew.  Who knew a shower curtain could cause so much trouble?…

We had such a nice visit with Bill and Terry.  It is so nice to know that out friends will keep in touch, even at the cost and hassle of crossing boarders and subjecting themselves to searches… Bill won the nights entertainment of IOTA… a card game….

After much too short of a visit, the next morning they headed home after dropping us at the shopping center / grocery store.  It was the biggest grocer and goods store we had been in since leaving home over a month ago.  We were like kids filling the cart with goodies… The selection was terrific and our purchase ended up bigger than we could possibly lug back to the boat by foot and back pack s we called a cab.  The fridge topped off, we head to the Windsor Yacht Club next door.  Sitting at the bar, the locals question us and say… ‘you have to meet Brian and Leslie.  They just got back from the Bahamas after spending a year cruising.’   So we are introduced to Brian (Leslie had a prior commitment) and we hit it off well.  Sharing ideas and stories.  It turns out they buddy boated with Dave and Rose, good friends of ours from Saugatuck on their Bahama trip… Small world.  Brian and Leslie sail aboard Afeica…  an acronym for   ‘Another   f *%#)@& expense I can’t afford  …    Love it!  

We made arrangements with our cabby from earlier to return and pick us up for the ride to the train station around 11 pm, in time to greet Jan.  The train is on time and soon we are all back aboard and getting reacquainted.  He is such a welcome addition to the Inishnee crew.  It’s late and we call it a night.

Welcome Jan !!!