Au Canada The Journey Continues

8 August 2016:  Rouses Point New York

Marc -Departure at 08:00 for Canada Customs Dock.  An easy passage with no difficulties.  We arrived at Marina 360 in St. Paul for the dismasting.  We followed what appeared to be the channel to an open dock and ran hard aground.  Fortunately we were able to back off after lowering the dinghy and distributing crewmembers to the foredeck.  Unfortunately we took in some mud and weeds when backing off and the engine started to overheat.  Three hours later we had dismasted both Indian Summer and Lucy III with the help of our friends Richard and Gregoire (Indian Summer).  The engine ran hot at about 180 degrees as we made our way North to the town of St. Jean and the entrance of the Chambly canal.  The Parks Canada staff suggested passing the first lock immediately for a quiet evening and an early start for the next day.  We did find an excellent Ice Cream shop.

Marc -  Departure from St. Jean at 08:30 but we soon had a major overheating engine and stopped at the first available dock.  Our cooling water was now completely blocked.  Richard spent 1/2 hour diving under the boat to clear the weeds.  Our HERO.  I found zebra muscles in the strainer.  I then blew out the line using the  Zodiac air pump.  We were back in business.  The Chambly canal was uneventful passing nice homes, flowers and even a few cornfields before arriving at Chambly.  Fortunately there was a supermarket right next to the dock for a few choice items on this super hot day (90's).  Ice Cream to the rescue and cold drinks.  Our next port was Beloeil at the Marina du Phare.  Very nice setting  with a view of Mount St. Hilaire nearby.  The old town section was worth a visit and yes we did find an ice cream shop and a creperie.  Sue cooked up an incredible dinner for all.

Marc-  11 August 2016  Departure from Beloeil for Sorel at 08:00.  Nice passage with a stopover at the St. Ours Lock.  We took a short break to visit the new camping areas and a shop here.  We continued on passing three cable ferries to the St. Lawrence River and the Federal Marina in Sorel.  Due to construction near the mast crane, we were told not to use the mast crane to remast our boats.  Fortunately Richard convinced them that we would be safe to use the crane in the morning.  The mast raising went very well and we departed Sorel after Lunch 13:00 for Trois Rivieres.  Arrival at Trois Rivieres Marina at 17:30.  We refueled and did a pumpout. Nice place next to a rather large pulp mill that was downwind preventing the stink.

Marc-  12 August 2016:  Departure at 13:00 to take advantage of the tides to reach Marina du Port de Quebec.  We did enjoy a poutine lunch at the snack bar before departing.  All went well passing many ships (and being passed by many) until we reached Quebec and the lock entrance to the marina when the fuel pump quit.  I made  a quick diagnosis and used the outboard fuel supply with Sue using the primer buld to get us through the lock to our slip.  Poor Autum lost her phone in the lock.  Ouch!  This is the nicest marina that we have ever stayed in bar none!!!  We are next to the public market and the old city.

Marc-  13-14 August:  Quebec  Visiting this great old city.  Sara arrived today on the bus from Montreal in time for a harbor concert a a fantastic fireworks show.

Gaspe Cruise: 2016

Marc-Departure is set for 7 August 2016 from Gaines Marina in Rouses Point, NY

Gaspe Cruise pre-positioning begins

Marc- 30 July 2016.  Point Bay Marina

We arrived from NYC today and slept over.  The boat does seems a little beat from last weekend's spot storm.  The heavy winds cracked the dodger in several places.  I was able to tape things up for short term fix.

31 July 2016.  Nice sunrise at 5:30  this morning.  I was up for an early start for our 10 hour trip to Rouses Point, NY.  West winds of 10 knots favored us during the first hour until Essex when the wind turned North and then went calm off of Burlington.   It was a motor trip.  Fortunately the autopilot worked beautifully until South Hero.  I disengaged the system to give Autum a lesson at the helm.  Unfortunately it would not restart despite several attempts.   The weather was sunny and warming to the 80's.  Our reception at Gaines Marina was excellent.  Fuel up and pump out completed quickly.  Then we went off to the clean showers.  John and Mindy arrived soon after to take us back to Point Bay Marina.  We did stop for dinner at Archie's in Shelburne.  Nice trip and a great day.  John amused us with some new riddles.  Autum stumped him with one of her own.

July 3, 2016 Cruise Week at RSYC

Marc-  Sue and Stephanie and I arrived on board at about 18:00.  We immediately set sail for Shelburne Bay to join up with the fleet.  We were able to sail for perhaps 1/2 hour until the winds vanished.  The engine brought us to our destination without a glitch.  Our arrival was marked with the beginning of the fireworks display at Burlington. They were fantastic.  We quickly rafted up with Coquina and enjoyed the show.

4 July 2016-  Sailed on a beam reach all the way over to Spoon Cove on Valcour Island.  The autopilot could not handle the wave and wind today on shut down after the first hour.  Not a problem with three of us aboard.  Lucy III enjoyed its best point for sailing staying ahead of a 36 foot Beneteau.  Spoon cove was calm but busy when we arrived.  We picked a spot near our fleet and dropped the anchor.  It set immediately in the hard sandy bottom.  Steph and I went ashore to explore a bit and then went over by Dinghy to Sloop Cove to see the several powerboats from our fleet anchored there.  We all enjoyed an interested get together on the beach for appetizers and a few drinks.  John Donnnelly had requested that each boat come up with a theme song and present it.  Steph helped out with getting "Build me up Buttercup" on you-tube and then we played it on the speaker system provided.

5 July 2016- Early departure for Burton Island State Park.  The fleet split at this point and half went to Deep Bay while the rest went to Burton Island.  Since we were on a short cruise we decided to skip Deep Bay for our beloved Burton Island.  We sailed and motored and then sailed up and across the Lake to get to Burton.  We arrived at the Grand Isle Drawbridge only three minutes early.  We were the first boat to arrive at Burton (sail or power) and quickly settled in at the new sailboat docks.  After checking out the General Store we learned that they were having a special Lobster Omelet today.  Sue and I both ordered this and Steph had  excellent French Toast with strawberries and cream.  I have included just a few photos of the many flowers we discovered around the island. Raspberries were also in season and tasty too.  Steph and I enjoyed swimming off of the boat and Steph tried the paddleboard.  It was a nice swim.  A rather large steel houseboat came in and tied up behind us.  When they plugged in it tripped all of the Marina circuits.  I fear they have a ground fault in the hull making it unsafe to be in the water.  The Park Rangers came over and fixed the problem by denying them electricity.  Come nightfall the RSYC gang had a bonfire and marshmallow roast beneath a sky filled with stars.  There is no background lighting in this part of Vermont so we could see a great many constellations.

6 July, 2016- 07:00 departure for the Bridge opening.  This would end up being a total motoring day heading all of the way South to Kingsland Bay.  There were several RSYC boats to greet us there.  This was an excellent swimming day and we used the paddleboard extensively.

June 25, 2016 Kingsland Bay Weekend

Marc- Up here again to finish the boat preparations for Cruise Week.  Lucy III ready to go.  Sue and Steph will get the main food items and ice next week.  I sailed over to Kingsland Bay where quite a few other RSYC boats were headed.  Lucy III rafted up with Knot Negotiable to form quite an odd couple.  John and Mindy came over later on Coquina and also rafted up to us.

May 15, 2016 Boat Launched

Marc-Yes we are again in Lake Champlain with a lot of help from our friends John and Mindy Donnelly.  Sara prepped and painted the bottom.  I repaired the soggy cabin top and installed new stainless steel handrails.  Everything aboard seems to be functioning well.  Several new electronic items have yet to be installed fully including the AIS and the Radar.  The Raymarine autopilot is working.  Our maiden voyage was an overnight to Kingsland Bay State Park.

Mid-Winter visit.

5 March 2016:  Point Bay Marina, Charlotte, Vermont

Marc-  The Lucy III is still frozen in here at Point Bay Marina's storage yard.  Not much snow this year but rather a lot of ice beneath the boat.  All is secure for a few more weeks before we start the Spring preparations.  Stephanie and I attended the Royal savage Yacht Club Mid-Winter Raft Up at the Fire & Ice restaurant in nearby Middlebury.  Great meal and excellent conversation with fellow boaters.