Once the anchor was clean and my hands were scoured we rounded Boldt Castle and moved on. About 2 miles later we crossed the U.S./Canadian border and put up our Quarintine flag.
A short distance after we pulled in to the Ed Huck Marina in Rockport, Ontario to check in with Canadian Customs at the free phone located there. Since we were taking up so much of their fuel dock we decided to get a pump out. That was before we saw the price. $40.00! Unfortunately we had already committed and had to go through with it. It's illegal to pump overboard but apparently not to steal!
Anyway the check-in process was painless with no inspectors. Just a number issued that has to be recorded in case of a future inspection. It wasn't long and we were on our way through some of the prettiest scenery we've encountered yet. Very rocky and very deep. Along the way we spotted several places where stands have been built for the eagles to nest to keep them off the channel markers.
It was a short day of 16 miles that found us pulling into the 1000 Island Playhouse in Gananaque for our overnight.
The main reason for this stop was the novelty of going to a play by boat. We saw The Drowning Girls performed in the round. Good acting although the play left a bit too much to interpretation for me. Still a lot of fun.
Saturday 7/9/11 We departed Gananaque about 8:15 and headed west. Still beautiful scenery. Then our new chartplotter stopped showing details like shoals and depths and channel markers. Not good. This is why we have paper charts to back up the electronics.
You can see where the boat icon is, that there is no definition on the map.
Using our paper charts we made our way to Kingston, The oldest community in Canada. As we neared our destination we passed Fort Henry. Shortly after we arrived at Confederation Basin Marina where we had been told earlier that a slip was available for us. Oops! No slip but we could tie to the sea wall and wait to see if anything opened up. We ended up an hour later backing into a 26' slip that became available. Tourist stuck out like a horn on a rhino's nose.
Kingston quickly became one of our favorite stops. We walked around checking out the old buildings and noticed that there was an overabundance of restaurants within walking distance of the marina. Our choice for the evening was Curry Original (http://www.curryoriginal.ca/) an Indian restaurant that didn't disappoint. Pam quickly proclaimed it one of her favorites so far. I know we could have spent more time in Kingston but sometimes you just have to keep moving.
Scenes around Kingston.
The water up here is clear thus allowing the sun to shine deeper into it which promotes the growth of the thick bottom vegitation that gets intertwined on our anchor and rode. The picture below is in about 10' of water next to one of the docks at Confederation Basin.
Bottom growth at Confederation Basin.
Before we left Kingston we(Pam) got caught up on laundry and I was able to download the Canadian charts to something called an SD card and install them into the plotter. Miracle of miracles. They Work!
Saturday 7/9/11 It's 28 degrees outside. Why am I sweating? Maybe because that's 82 and some change in the U.S. I'm too old to learn this stuff. Guess I'll stick to stepping outside each morning to see what it's like.
Our travels took us from Kingston via the North Channel, Adolphus Reach, and Long Reach to an anchorage at Whitlow Point just off of Long Reach. Get your maps out and find these places! We had a mostly pleasant ride with one exception where we had exposure to the waves from Lake Ontario. Our anchorage was great with only 2 other boats coming in after us. We snuggled up close to shore and dropped the hook. One of the other boats was anchored out further and was being rocked by some kids wake boarding around them. At one point the anchored boater was yelling at them about their waves but to no avail. They kept at it until almost dark. Reminded me of my youth.
Sunday 7/10/11 Anchor up at 6:30. Clean the weeds off and head out by 6:40. Back onto Long Reach and then a hard left onto the Bay of Quinte for our ride to Trenton where we will start our journey on the Trent-Severn Waterway. A peaceful ride but one that requires a close lookout while transiting the Telegraph Narrows.
We pulled into Fraser Park Marina in Trenton about 10:45am. Topped off the fuel tanks and tied off on the wall next to the park. (fuel is 1.39 per litre) The marina staff was right there to assist with docking which is reassuring since the wall is concrete! First order of business. Wash the boat! Tourist hasn't had a bath since Brewerton and was starting to look like a fly strip with all of the flying bugs that have decided to make her their final resting place. As usual I recieved several words of encouragement from passers by, but no offers to help.
Later in the day we walked around town noticing several music shops. Must be a happy place! Our walk concluded back at the marina where one of us had an ice cream cone to put back those calories that he had just burned off.
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