Lakes Erie, St. Clair & Huron

Saturday, July 7, 2018

We have a long way to go, passing through Lake Erie, Lake St. Clair and Lake Huron to get to our next major cruising area - Georgian Bay and the North Channel.  Our plan is to move along quickly with as few stops as possible.  After a 2-day rest from the Welland Canal, we head southwest, crossing Lake Erie to our first stop in Erie PA.

The large sailboat in the background is the US Brig Niagara, owned by the Erie Maritime Museum.  She is a replica of a ship commanded by Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry in a decisive naval battle in the War of 1812.  (More on Perry in a few days.)

Entering Erie PA Harbor

Our marina is in the inner harbor near downtown.  A big conference center and hotel complex are prominent landmarks.  After an 8-hour day on the water, we just didn't make an effort to do any sightseeing in the little time remaining before the museums closed.  Guess we are still tired from our Welland adventure, too. I have vague memories of coming here as a child when the lake was very polluted.  It's nice to see the water is much cleaner now.

Erie PA

A quick phone call to customs and we are checked back in to the US.  Finally getting the drill down!

Sunday, July 8, 2018

We get an early start, heading west along the southern coast of Lake Erie.   After a 5-hour run, we pull into the harbor of Ashtabula, OH and anchor inside a breakwater.  Access to the area marinas would be up a river, past several lift bridges, so we opt to anchor and get an early start in the morning.

Ashtabula harbor OH

Monday, July 9, 2018

An early start puts us in Cleveland by mid-afternoon.  We have a great view of the skyline as we make our way to the Edgewater Yacht Club, close to downtown.

Cleveland OH

We plan a 2-day stop here to provision and refuel, and we decide to extend our stay 1 more day to wait for some weather to move through.

Edgewater Yacht Club, Cleveland OH

The Yacht Club is a nice stop, convenient to town and next door to a huge, waterfront park with nice walking trails and views of Lake Erie.

Edgewater Park, Cleveland OH

Tuesday, July 10, 2018

We rent a car for a day to run errands, making time for a quick visit to Eastern Market to take advantage of some great meat markets.  Reminds me of Reading Market in Philly, which we enjoyed last year.  We're finding lots of interesting sausages in this part of the country, in addition to our new favorite - hangar steak!

Eastern Market, Cleveland OH

Wednesday, July 11, 2018

Our last day here, we have arranged to fuel the boat at the yacht club as they have one of the best diesel prices in the area.  We will load about 750 gallons, so price does matter!  We expect to fuel up at their gas pump, but we learn their tank only holds 1000 gallons, so they arrange for a fuel truck to pump directly into our tanks.  The Yacht Club staff has been very accommodating and we have enjoyed our stay!

We are fortunate to carry as much fuel as we do.  Our last fuel stop was in Solomons MD, in the southern Chesapeake.  We have come about 1500 miles since then.  So nice to pick and choose where we buy fuel!  Especially given the high prices in Canada.  The cheapest diesel price we have seen across the border is about $4/gal!

Fueling up at Edgewater Yacht Club

Thursday, July 12, 2018

We are off again, finally working our way north, back across Lake Erie.  En route we pass this historic schooner, the Lettie G Howard.  A Google search reveals she was built in 1893 and measures 125 feet in length!  She is on loan to Erie Maritime Museum from her home port in New York City.  It's amazing to see these antique ships being maintained and still in use.

Lettie G Howard, Lake Erie

An easy, 6-hour cruise brings us to Put-in-Bay OH.  Billed as "Key West of the North", this is party central!  This little weekend-getaway town is on one of a group of islands near the western end of Lake Erie.  The only access is by boat, either personal watercraft or a ferry, or by plane to the small, private airport.

Put-in-Bay OH

The Boardwalk is the main pier with several restaurants and bars overlooking the harbor.

Put-in-Bay OH

See what I mean about the Key West look?  Tiki bars, lots of outdoor patios, golf carts everywhere.  We rent a golf cart for a couple of hours and do the island tour.  Not much here except weekend homes and lots of tacky tourist stuff.  And bars ... lots of bars.

Put-in-Bay OH

We continue to see these black squirrels.  We first noticed them in Kingston ON and have seen them, off and on, since.  Not sure of the species, but clearly different from those we see in most other areas.

Black squirrel

The marina is small and requires boats to "raft", or tie side by side, up to 4 deep.  To reach a dock, the outer boaters must walk across the swim platforms of the inside boats.  Hope they are all good friends!  Everyone rafted hangs out with loud music from multiple sources.  Thankfully we were not required to raft.

Party time at Put-in-Bay

Here's a better view of the rafted boats, tied 3 - 4 deep on the left side of the picture.

Village Docks, Put-in-Bay OH

At sunset, the Boardwalk lowers their American flag and plays The Star Spangled Banner.  All the boaters stand at attention, then honk their horns and cheer at the end.  Very moving!


Friday, July 13, 2018

Today we walk to the Perry Monument and museum, near the marina.  Remember Commodore Perry from the Erie Maritime Museum's replica ship?  Perry commanded the US force that defeated the British / Canadian navy defending this area in the War of 1812, which gave the US a strategic advantage in the area and the war.  The monument is quite imposing, visible for miles on the lake surrounding these islands.  Architectural detail is impressive!  Officers from both American and British navies who died in the battle are buried here, symbolizing the friendship between our countries and Canada that has endured since this war.

Perry Monument, Put-in-Bay OH

Here's a little history, for those who are interested.

War of 1812

War of 1812

An elevator ride to the top of the monument provides spectacular views.

Put-in-Bay harbor from Perry Monument

One last sunset before we head north again.

Sunset, Put-in-Bay OH

Saturday, July 14, 2018

We head north again, cruising to the far western end of Lake Erie.  Here we pass the Detroit River lighthouse, marking the entrance to the Detroit River and the city.

Detroit River Lighthouse

Our route takes us past many industrial sites and, finally, past downtown Detroit.  The largest building, to the right of the center of the bridge, is GM headquarters.

Detroit MI

Directly across the river from Detroit lies Windsor, Ontario.

Windsor ON

We soon pass the impressive Detroit Yacht Club.  We tried to get a slip here, but they were booked on this busy, summer weekend.

Detroit Yacht Club

We cruise a little further to our overnight stop at Bayview Yacht Club, in the northern suburbs of Detroit.  Turns out to be a delightful, friendly club with a nice restaurant and great views of the Detroit River.

We had hoped to tour the Ford truck plant while here, but discover too late it is far south in Dearborn and not in operation on Sunday.  So we decide to move on, rather than waiting here 2 more days.

Detroit River from Bayview Yacht Club

Sunday, July 15, 2018

We head out early and soon exit the Detroit River into Lake St Clair.  This lake is quite small, relative to the Great Lakes, but is still 20 - 25 miles across.  Calm winds are most welcome!  We are seeing some commercial ships, like the "laker" in the distance.

Lake St. Clair

We are now in the St. Clair River.  Lake Erie connects to Lake Huron via the Detroit River at the south, across Lake St. Clair, then the St. Clair River.  As we proceed north, the water becomes a gorgeous, deep turquoise and very, very clear.  Wow!  Looks like the Caribbean except it is cold.

St. Clair River

Many homes and cottages line the shores and boats are everywhere, fishing, swimming and riding around on this beautiful weekend!  This route follows the international border, so our left shore is all US and our right shore, Canada.

Marysville MI, St. Clair River

We stop for the night in Port Huron, MI, tying up to a wall near a fuel dock.  We walk across a drawbridge to the main town, but find most businesses already closed for the day.  The town is struggling to revive it's "old town", and has numerous thriving waterfront bars, but not much else.

Black River, Port Huron MI

Monday, July 16 - Tuesday, July 17, 2018

We head out early, passing along the last 3 miles of the St Clair River, before entering Lake Huron, another milestone!  We encounter an unexpectedly strong opposing current of 5 knots, slowing our speed to 5 mph.  Ouch!  Thankfully this is short lived and we are quickly in the open waters of the lake.

Swift current in St. Clair River

After an easy, 4-hour run, we tie up in a slip at Port Sanilac MI.  We will stay here for 2 nights, taking a break to wait for calm wind before continuing our run up Lake Huron.  I am able to buy a few groceries here, but the little store (an IGA for those familiar with Port Aransas) is quite small with a very limited selection of fresh veggies.  Major shopping will have to wait.

Port Sanilac Harbor MI

Wednesday, July 18, 2018

We head across Lake Huron to the small town of Goderich, Ontario.  A phone call to customs and a very confused customs agent on the other end, trying to figure out why we are checking into Canada in the middle of the province.  She finally realizes we are on a boat and we get our approval number.  This is too easy!

Maitland Valley Marina, Goderich ON

Our modest marina / RV park is at the base of a tall hill, where the main town is located.  We follow directions to a foot path leading to rough stairs up the hillside to see the town.  The town is quite lovely with well-kept older homes, manicured lawns and flowers everywhere.  Several overlooks provide panoramic views of Lake Huron.

Goderich ON

The town square is hopping with a weekly event, featuring live music, food trucks and vendors selling locally made crafts.  Did I mention the weather has been gorgeous?  Low humidity, temps mostly in the 60s and 70s, maybe low 80s.  Fabulous!

Goderich ON

Thursday, July 19, 2018

We get an early start for our 7 hour run north to Port Elgin ON.   Despite a late afternoon arrival, I am able to take a taxi to - wait for it - SuperWalmart!  Woohoo!  Never thought I would be glad to see a Walmart!  But at least they have a decent fresh vegetable selection and we can pick up assorted sundries here, too.  I also scrounge through the discount DVD bins and find a few treasures to add to our growing collection.  Evening entertainment consists of reading or movies.  Seems Canada does not have the same requirement as the US to provide broadcast TV and we are finding no channels in most small towns.  Our decision to not install satellite TV may not have been the best, but we will make do. 

According to my taxi driver, Port Elgin was featured in National Geographic a few years ago for its spectacular sunsets.  This was one of two locations, the second being in Japan, noted for the best location for viewing sunsets year round.  Well, we could use a few more clouds tonight to make this more scenic, but not bad!

Sunset, Port Elgin ON

Tomorrow we will head to the northern shore of Lake Huron and the beginning of Georgian Bay and another milestone in our cruising!  Today is the end of 2 full years of cruising since we left Houston.  We have covered 7750 miles total and still having fun!

Niagara and the Welland Canal

Monday, July 2, 2018

We say farewell to Toronto on a beautiful, sunny day.  Calm seas follow us for an easy 32-mile crossing of Lake Ontario.

Lake Ontario with Toronto in the background

We arrive at our next stop, Niagara-on-the-Lake, at the mouth of the Niagara River.  We are staying at a sailing club and must wait for the kids' sailing class to launch their boats right next to where we will tie up for three nights.  The current in the river is swift, maybe 5 knots, and we are definitely aware this spot is only 13 miles downstream from Niagara Falls!

Niagara River

Fort Niagara is across the river from our slip, but our marina is in Ontario and the Fort is in Youngstown NY.

Fort Niagara and US Coast Guard Station

We settle in for the evening, enjoying a nice sunset with the Toronto skyline barely visible on the horizon.

Tuesday, July 3, 2018

Robert has never seen Niagara Falls and I haven't seen it since I was a kid, so off we go to play tourist.  We've rented a car for a day and will drive around this interesting area.  The Falls is only 15 miles from our marina.  First, we see the American Falls.

American Falls, Niagara NY

And the Horseshoe Falls.  That's a tour boat at the base of the falls.  We opted not to take the boat ride.  Still magnificent after all these years!

Horseshoe Falls, Niagara Falls ON

Here's another tour boat headed toward the Horseshoe Falls.  The rainbow would come and go, depending on the way the wind blew the spray from the falls.  The American falls are visible at the far left.

Niagara Falls

We drive back to the boat along the Niagara River.  Hard to believe this view is just a few miles below the falls; this is a really beautiful area!

Niagara River

This region, along the Niagara escarpment, has a good climate for growing fruit, especially apples, cherries and cold-hardy grapes.  The area is packed with wineries; tasting rooms abound!  We didn't have much time to explore, but stopped at several to try the local wines.  We found the white wines much better than the reds, similar to our experience in upstate New York.

Jackson-Triggs Winery, Niagara-on-the-Lake ON

We are obviously too early for the harvest.

Jackson-Triggs Winery, Niagara-on-the-Lake ON

This wine-growing region is known for its ice wine, a desert wine, very sweet, made from grapes frozen before harvest which concentrates the sugars.  While not a fan of ice wine, we enjoyed some exceptional appetizers at this winery restaurant.  Of particular note were beets marinated in ice wine.

Trius Winery, Niagara-on-the-Lake ON

Wednesday, July 4, 2018

The town of Niagara-on-the-Lake is a charming, upscale, touristy town with great restaurants, shops and theaters.

Niagara-on-the-Lake, ON

Flowers are everywhere in this beautiful, clean town.

Niagara-on-the-Lake, ON

The town is known for its summer-long Shaw Festival, with 3 theaters presenting plays by George Bernard Shaw.  Unfortunately we were not here on the right nights to partake.

Niagara-on-the-Lake, ON

A large city park graces the corner of downtown Niagara-on-the-Lake.

Niagara-on-the-Lake, ON

We are spending July 4th in Canada, so we didn't really expect to see any fireworks tonight.  We, along with several boats docked next to us, kept waiting to see fireworks from Fort Niagara, across the river in the US, but it was not to be.

Thursday, July 5, 2018

We must finally leave this delightful area to begin working our way to far northern Lake Huron - Georgian Bay and the North Channel.  We will need to transit the Welland Canal system to get from Lake Ontario to Lake Erie.  The Welland is a major Canadian canal used mostly by large, commercial ships.  The locks will lift us a total of 326.5 feet to the top of the Niagara Escarpment, an extension of the cliff that Niagara Falls drops over.  Pleasure craft are allowed to transit the canal, but the system is not set up to easily handle smaller boats.  Our locking fee of C$200 is a small fraction of what the big ships pay.

We are required by canal authorities to have 3 people on board, since we are locking up and turbulence in these large locks make handling the boat challenging.  A group of retired canal employees hire out as crew and we have arranged the services of one of the group.  We are advised to arrive at the staging wall by 8 am to wait for the okay to begin locking through.  Our crewman will meet us there. 

Commercial traffic is given precedence; once we begin the passage, there is no place to tie up to wait or spend the night.  Regardless of when we begin our transit, we must continue all the way through the 8 locks, even if we end after dark!  We have heard horror stories of 20-hour transits and long delays and also of easy transits.  The shortest trip we can expect is about 7 hours.  The entire Canal is about 24 miles long but the first 7 locks are within the first 7 miles; our crewman will leave the boat after lock 7.

With all this to anticipate and little sleep overnight, we are up at 5:30 for the 90 minute run from Niagara-on-the-Lake to the Welland staging wall.  We arrive at 7:30 and tie to the wall; our crewman arrives shortly thereafter.  He calls the Canal traffic controller to check in.  A short time later they call back to tell us to expect to begin locking at noon.  Our crewman goes back home, leaving us to cool our heels, waiting, tied to the concrete wall.

Finally, about 12:30, traffic control calls to tell us to be ready to go at 1:00.  Hooray!  Our crewman comes back and we are ready!  And we wait, and wait, and wait ...  Just before 2:00, we are told to proceed to the first lock as quickly as possible.  When Robert hesitates to wait for a large cargo ship to pass, he is berated by traffic control for delaying the operation.  It appears we are locking through alone.  NOT off to a good start!

Inside Welland Canal lock

These locks are huge, measuring 766 feet long by 80 feet wide.  Once we are inside the lock, lock staff drop 2 ropes, tied together, down to us that we must untie and take one to our bow and one to our stern.  Our crewman and I will use these ropes to help control the position of the boat as water rushes into the lock.  These are our only means of connection to the lock wall.  Our lift will be 43 - 49 feet per lock and the lines we are given are more suitable for a boat half our size; some are badly frayed.  Hmmm ...  As water starts entering the lock, Robert is struggling to keep the boat straight using our thrusters. We also realize we must educate our crewman as to what we need him to do.  Don't think he has ever locked through on a boat this size and he doesn't understand the limits of what Robert can do from the controls. 

The white water in this photo is turbulence caused by millions of gallons of water rushing into the lock chamber.

Welland Canal Lock

Locking up takes about 30 minutes.  We exit Lock 1 and have to wait for this cargo ship locking down in Lock 2.  While waiting, Robert must keep the boat in the canal channel as the edges get shallow quickly.  Suddenly my cell phone rings; the caller asks for the "master of Sauvy B".  I tell him I am the first mate and should I put the captain on?  The caller proceeds to tell me he is with Canadian Customs and was driving beside the canal on a highway when he saw our boat.  He wants to know if we checked into Customs when we arrived from the US, where and when we checked in, our authorization number, and where we've been.  Wow!  I answered his questions and that was that.
 

Looking back at Lock 1

The locks come in quick succession with little time to recover from the 30-minute ordeal.  At least we have a 15-minute or so wait in each lock while the lock crew drives to the next lock.  The canal system is totally automated for the large commercial ships.  Large plates with suction cups attach to the sides of the ships to keep them positioned in the lock and the water flow valves are controlled from a remote location using cameras to monitor the operation.  We've been told the staff dropping lines to us have come only to assist us today.  They are driving from lock to lock as we progress, slowing us down somewhat. 

We have little leverage using the ropes at the bottom of the lock so our crewman and I are working hard to pull on the ropes to keep us parallel to the lock wall.  Despite wearing heavy gloves, I will have blisters on my hands by the end of the day.  Robert's job is more mental than physical, but no less challenging. 

Here we approach triple locks 4, 5 and 6.  The end gate of lock 4 is the entry gate to 5 and so forth.  The stair-stepped gates are visible in the photo.  So no break for 90+ minutes.  Did I mention it is blazing hot?  We get a little bit of shade at the bottom of the lock, then we are exposed to the blistering sun the rest of the time.  Temps are upper 80s and heat seems to reflect off the metal walls of the locks, making them feel like ovens.  This is NOT glamorous!

Approach to Welland locks 4, 5 and 6

Canal staff positions us at the calmest part of each lock.  Mostly we have been at the back with water coming in closer to the front.  For the next three locks, we are positioned right at the front, uncomfortably close to the gates.  Looking up at the gate to the next lock is very intimidating!  The concrete sill, or ledge, visible at the base of the gate, sticks out very close to our bow.  As the current pushes us around, we slide dangerously close to this sill.  We breathe a sigh of relief as the water gets deep enough to cover the sill to a safe depth.

Part way through the 5th lock (lock 2 of the triple locks), we have drained the batteries powering our thrusters, which are a big help keeping us straight against the wall.  Oops!  Now we have much reduced maneuvering ability.  Robert does a great job getting us through the remaining locks and safely to a marina at the end of the canal.  We tie up just before dark for a total transit time of just under 7 hours.  We will stay at the municipal marina of Port Colborne ON for two nights to recover from our ordeal.  Lake Erie lies ahead!