Pictures From the Trip October 3, 2001 Last Cruising Update - Summary October 1, 2001 Cruising Update - From Annapolis September 26, 2001 Home Strech September 19, 2001 Last Of The Erie Canal September 15, 2001 Back on the Eastern Erie Canal September 12, 2001 Finishing the Western Erie Canal September 10, 2001 Lockport to Fairport September 7, 2001 Western Frontier of the Erie Canal September 6, 2001 Back in the Canal System September 4, 2001 Leaving The Great Lakes September 1, 2001 In our 7th State August 29, 2001 Ohio Has Libraries August 27, 2001 Vermilion, Ohio August 26, 2001 Fox Haven Marina August 22, 2001 In Put-in-Bay August 17, 2001 The End Of Lake Huron August 15, 2001 Down Lake Huron August 13, 2001 North Channel and Lake Huron August 3, 2001 Gore Bay August 1, 2001 Keel-Haulings July 31, 2001 Rocks Everywhere July 28, 2001 On To The North Channel July 17, 2001 Wouldn't Change A Thing July 13, 2001 Speed Limit July 9, 2001 Thousands of Islands July 5, 2001 Out Of New York July 3, 2001 Typical Day July 2, 2001 Cold Mornings July 1, 2001 Phoenix NY And Beyond June 26, 2001 Through The First Lock June 25, 2001 Up Around Manhattan June 15, 2001 Daily Routine June 12, 2001 Strolling The Vineyards June 11, 2001 Sag Harbor June 9, 2001 Block Island & Beer Can Music June 5, 2001 Lessons Learned June 1, 2001 The Tides Increasing May 25, 2001 Up The Coast Of New Jersy May 21, 2001 Getting To Know The Cruisers May 17, 2001 And So It Begins!

 July 28, 2001 

Georgian Bay is everything we had heard it would be - - rocky island after rocky island; twisting, turning channels that, in places, are no wider than 2 boats across; and lovely coves and bays that either require local knowledge to get into (because of sunken islands or just-under-the-water rocks) or are not charted at all. I must admit, it is all a bit intimidating. But we have found that the charts and cruising guides are fairly accurate and, by staying in the channel at all times, the water is plenty deep - - and that's a good thing ... we really want to cruise back to Maryland with the same prop we started out with! (For the boaters, actual depths are at chart datum thus far this year. But it is a little unnerving that one of our charts is based on a 1885 survey with soundings in fathoms - - fortunately, the water is very deep! Although the chart is supposed to be updated this year or next, right now it looks just like a chart you might see in a museum.)

Midland, Ontario (the location from which we sent our last e-mail), was a great place to stop. We were able to stock up on fresh fruits and meats and enjoyed walking around a larger town. To the boaters, we would recommend the Midland Municipal Marina - - not only was it a nice facility and just one block from downtown, but it was only $26 (American) per night, including electricity/hydro, water, and showers. Gary and Linda (a couple we met at Port Severn) docked behind us later that morning and we enjoyed talking with them again (thanks for the happy hour, G&L - - we hope you had a great vacation). In the morning, we discovered a Canadian Coast Guard buoy tender at the end of the wall where we were docked. Oh, and to follow-up on the lake freighter that pulled up behind us as we were getting fuel on Saturday morning - - it took 10 hours to unload the gravel it was carrying. We watched the ship go from a 30' draft to a 13' draft and it never moored/docked - - the captain (or someone) kept adjusting it to a proper position so that the "dispensing boom" distributed the gravel on short in huge piles. It was interesting (and impressive) to watch.

Maintenance note: Brian discovered a half cup of water in the bilge on Saturday afternoon and went searching for the cause. He found a faulty high pressure check valve in the fresh water system, but had the problem resolved in no time. Other than that, all is well in the bilge/engine area.

One more note about Midland. Starting in 1990, the town commissioned the painting of 36 murals on the walls of buildings throughout the town. Each mural depicts a different scene or event from Midland/Ontario's history. The largest is 80' x 210' on the side of 4-5 grain elevators. The grain elevators are the first thing you see when entering the harbor. They are very well done and make the town unique - - we'd recommend a stop at the town just to see them. Really, they are something to see. As we left Midland and entered the small boat channel on Saturday morning, we were shocked at the number of boats and cottages. It was almost like being on the Chesapeake between Annapolis and St. Michaels on a weekend! The numbers got less as we continued north/west, but there are still a lot more of both than we anticipated.

We traveled about 30 miles on Saturday (~4 1/2 hours) to reach our first destination of San Souci and the well known Henry's Fish Restaurant. Henry's is known for its fish baskets and meals. Once we found out that it was only $17 (American) to dock overnight at Henry's (to include electricity/hydro and showers), we decided to stay for the night instead of anchoring. I think we are starting to get soft in our old ... uh, middle age - - I'm not sure that we will remember HOW to anchor! Anyway, we had dinner at Henry's and it was wonderful. As is almost everything else in Georgian Bay (or so it seems), Henry's is located on an island (Frying Pan Island) so all of its patrons arrive by boat ... or sea plane! We must have seen 6-8 sea plane "taxis" bring people in to dine. The place is nothing fancy, but it (and the docks) was packed all evening.