Lake Erie to Lake Ontario Via The Welland Canal
Sailing Milestones
A big milestone was ahead as we planned to leave Lake Erie bound for Lake Ontario because it would mean sailing on all the Great Lakes. To get between Lake Erie and Lake Ontario included another milestone event; transiting the Welland Canal.
Welland Canal Special Event
After all the wonderful family trips on Lake Erie, it was time to switch our focus to the Welland Canal. An essential resource is the Seaway Guide for Pleasure Craft with the days for transit, fees, a sketch map, and details of the locks and bridges.
Our passage would begin near Port Colborne so we called to reserve a slip at Sugarloaf Harbour Marina for the night before when we hoped to reserve our transit. That’s when we learned about Canal Days; a big event in Port Colborne. Marina slips are reserved well in advance. With that new information, we adjusted our plans and pointed our bow to Point Abino instead of Port Colborne.
Point Abino
Spending a few days in Point Abino was a pleasant and relaxing time. We checked into Canada and raised our courtesy flag. The community kitchens and dining area reminded us of our days working at summer camp. We made good use of the kitchen as a break from cooking in our galley.
Our first night there, we met a couple who spend their summers here. In true boating friendship style, we exchanged phone numbers and they offered to help with anything. The next day was overcast and rainy and Mary (new friend here) said she was going to town to do some shopping, “wanna come along?” she asked. “Sure!” I eagerly replied. It didn’t matter that we had just met briefly yesterday, we had a lovely time hanging out together and browsing the town’s shops. We ended our outing with a grocery store stop. It’s always a blessing to re-stock our galley with fresh produce and a few specialty bakery items, yum!
The next day Tony and I went exploring by foot to see Point Abino Lighthouse. Because of where it is located, you need to reserve a “site visit” ticket in order to gain access to walk to the lighthouse. Walking by beautiful homes with gorgeous landscaping and gardens added to our enjoyment of seeing the lighthouse.
Port Colborne
Canal Days
After a few days at Point Abino, Sugarloaf marina called with a slip opening for us. We sailed there and were able to take in the last day of the festival. There was music all day and night at different locations; some on big stages and other musicians playing in the streets. On the water, the tall ship Sandy came and went taking customers on a sail. We were amazed at how easy they made docking that big ship look. The streets were lined with food trucks and gift shops and one truck had a big rubber duck graphic that caught our eye.
Rubber Ducks Fundraiser
Their marketing of a big rubber duck on the side of a truck worked for us! It peaked our interest enough to stop and check out what their booth was about. It was a fundraiser where you “buy” rubber ducks and then there’s a race to see which ducks win a prize. We decided to support the area youth organization and bought a few ducks for the race. They dump the bags of rubber ducks all at the same time and see which float into the funnel first to win. What a unique way to raise money and with a good turnout of participants!
The Welland Canal
Going downbound on the Welland Canal only requires two people. So for this transit, we were fine without additional crew. If we return this way and are upbound, we’ll need an additional crew member.
Preparation for the Welland
As part of our research for taking the Welland Canal, I talked with Jim, a friend from Port Superior. He gave suggestions such as have a “push stick” like a 2×2 instead of using our boat hook to fend off the walls. We had those ready along with a fender board and work gloves.
All the pleasure craft meet by 7:00 am at the Port Colborne City Docks. It was there we’d see who we’ll be spending the day with. We actually had met the crew on SV Great Escape; Joanie, Ian, and Wendy, the night before. Another sailboat and one powerboat and our group was ready to go!
Welland Canal Stories
We’d heard stories of Welland Canal transits not going well or going long and into the night. Therefore, we had our minds and boat prepared that this might go smoothly or it might not. Fortunately for us, our transit was one of the easier and smoother ones! We had nice weather, all the boat operators handled their vessels easily in and out of the locks, and there was only one relatively short delay.
Rafting Up
The lock tenders instructed us to raft up two by two once we were in the locks. The sailboat we rafted up with had a father and son heading to Toronto. We were on the lock wall side and they rafted up to us. On a few of the locks, we invited them aboard to tend to lines or push off the wall with our push sticks. They appreciated getting the chance to work the locks and we were happy to share the experience.
Big Ships
It’s always exciting to see a big freighter up close and being in the Welland Canal provided us with that opportunity! One time, the lock tender asked all the pleasure craft to pull over and wait for the ship to pass and other times there was room to continue on our way as they passed by.
Port Weller
Because of the uncertainty of what time we’d exit the Welland, we didn’t reserve a slip at a nearby marina. There’s a pleasure craft dock at the Port Weller side of the Welland. Since we had read other boaters were allowed to dock there overnight, we hoped the same would be true for us. We pulled up to the dock and chatted with some locals who were fishing from the dock. They confirmed that some boats spend the night at the dock so we stayed.
Relaxing in the cockpit and sipping our evening tea, I looked up to see a border patrol truck appear in the parking lot with four officers approaching us. Tony was sitting across from me facing the water. Later, he said “I wondered why your eyes grew so big!”
The officers were doing their jobs. They asked about our last port and when and where we checked into Canada. We answered all their questions and showed them our Canada reporting number displayed in our bow port. All was fine, but it did add an element of excitement to our day on the Welland Canal.
Sail to Toronto
The forecast to sail to Toronto seemed just about perfect. We set off at sunrise and as we were crossing the lake, the winds kept increasing along with the wave height. “Meraki is handling this wind and the waves pretty well!” Tony commented. A few minutes later a wave splashed into the cockpit and onto Tony. “That’s colder than Lake Erie!”
As the skyline of Toronto came into view, our excitement mounted to arrive there by boat. We had volunteered at the Toronto boat show last winter and thought it would be special to sail here in the summer. And here we are!
All The Great Lakes
Not only that, now we’ve sailed on all the Great Lakes! Our sail to Toronto gave us a sense of accomplishment of completing another big milestone.
45th Anniversary
Speaking of milestones, we got to celebrate our 45th anniversary in Toronto. On our pre-anniversary day, we biked around Toronto Island with its beautiful beaches, large garden area, and even a small amusement park for kids. And on our anniversary, we explored the city of Toronto by foot and using public transportation. We shared a heart shaped tiramisu at St Lawrence Market (dessert before dinner is our style!). Then we headed to The Historic Distillery District and found the perfect backdrop for a photo on our anniversary. We also listened to some music and browsed a few specialty gift shops. For dinner, friends Joanie, Ian, and Wendy; whom we had recently met on the Welland Canal, took us out for a waterside dinner with wonderful conversation.
What a full couple of days celebrating the adventure of marriage!
And The Adventure Continues
Next up is a visit from Jordan. We’ll enjoy time with him in Toronto before continuing our big journey on Meraki.
