Captain Mark and Sidekick Sue launched off the dock in East Grenadier Island without grounding despite the shallow water. The wind was blowing hard towards a swampy area, so they had to do a little creative line-handling to keep the boat from blowing into the weeds while getting off the dock, but they are getting a little smarter about managing these things. Captain Mark held a line around a dock cleat, while Sidekick Sue released all the other lines and jumped aboard. Sidekick Sue took the remaining line from Captain Mark while he went to the helm and they were just able to let the line fall as they backed away.
The views along the St. Lawrence were fairly consistent with the views since they turned into the river through the Thousand Islands. Many who have traveled to Alexandria Bay are familiar with Boldt Castle, but the Explorers passed through that area on the Canadian side so they did not see it on this trip. Today, they did pass Singer Castle in Chippewa Bay.
The US Government website lists Ogdensburg as a “port of entry”. So, the Explorers tried to dock there to go talk to Customs. They were greeted by less-than-friendly border control agents who said that Ogdensburg was NOT a port of entry (good job government website) and that the Explorers were trespassing on government property. Luckily, they let the Explorers leave and told them to download the CBP (Customs and Border Patrol) ROAM app to check in to the US. Give that the Explorers are a little bit tech-savvy, after 45 painful minutes of boating around in circles, they were able to download the app, answer the many detailed questions, pay $30 for a sticker for their boat (which will be mailed to NH…. helpful?), and “check-in” virtually. Sidekick Sue has some concerns about the security of the northern border if folks entering never have to talk to anyone and no one ever looks at their vessel. Hmmm…..
The next task was buying a $25 ticket for the Iroquois Lock (a different App) for the 2:00 pleasure craft lock-opening which only happens twice a day. The Iroquois Lock is another huge commercial lock that can accommodate tankers and freighters. Unlike most of the locks the Explorers passed through on this trip, which were in canals to circumvent waterfalls and rapids, this lock (and accompanying dam) are only needed to manage water levels. When the Explorers arrived at the lock, there was only one other recreational vessel waiting to pass through, nothing like the chaos at the locks in Montreal. At 1:30 the lock opened. As the Explorers entered, they were told they didn’t need to tie up. They could just hover in the lock until the doors opened. As soon as the back doors closed, the front doors opened. Apparently, the water level difference was only 5” so there was no need to raise or lower the water level. So the Explorers paid $25 to go in and go out. (Can’t blame the US government for this one, it is a Canadian lock).
The Explorers had been planning to stay at the Waddington town dock for the night for the bargain price of $10 (and required yet another App). Because they were making such great time, due to the lock opening early, and the speed increase they were getting from traveling WITH the current in the St. Lawrence (9 knots), they decided to finish the trip to Barnhart Island Marina in Massena, their destination for the summer. They had been outrunning the rain, but it was catching up and it just seemed more comfortable to get to “home base” to wait out a few days of rain. As they crossed the ship channel to get closer to the US shore, Captain Mark crossed a little too close in front of a huge container ship and was embarrassed to get the “five horn blasts of shame” which mean “move out of the way or collision is imminent”. Lesson learned, next time he will wait for the big boat to go by before crossing.
Once the Explorers had decided to continue to Massena, Captain Mark had started texting with his high school (and college) buddies, Billy and Kendrick, and when the Explorers turned into the marina, they could see Billy and Kendrick standing in the rain with a bottle of champagne and a cooler of beer. They enjoyed a champagne toast and a beer. Kendrick graciously offered to lend the Explorers his van until they could retrieve their Jeep from Rouses Point, so the Explorers and Kendrick headed out to Coach’s Corner to get a bite to eat (and a beer), dropped Kendrick off at home, and went back to the boat to settle in for the night.
Trip Summary Statistics:
The Explorers traveled 490 miles
They used about 200 gallons of diesel (slightly more than half their tank)
They went through 54 locks and countless bridges
Wayward Explorer Observations:
Their Verizon plan stinks in Canada. “Coverage in Canada and Mexico” is not real coverage.
The Canadian Park lock and mooring passes were epic and well worth the money. The Explorers never stayed in a marina. They anchored 3 times and otherwise stayed on Canadian park docks or public docks. Marina costs would have been at least triple the costs.
The Explorers need to rip out their old teak decks and replace them with fiberglass to make the boat livable. There is too much leaking during the rain, rendering much of the storage space unusable. Teak decks add character, but don’t hold up for 40 years.
The Explorers think they could have slowed down and taken the whole summer and still not run out of things to see or places to visit.
Boaters can’t have a firm schedule when boating….. the Explorers met fellow travelers who had been delayed for days because of locks, bridges, and mechanical problems.
Sidekick Sue says to always keep a Mechanical Engineer onboard.
The Canadians are very boat-friendly. They let the Explorers in for free, while the US government changed them $30 to come back.
Canadians are still taking Covid seriously (not politically).
