Pat's express arrives at about 5 in the afternoon. The winds have been light all day so we decide to take off immediately to Port Colbourne. We say goodbye to Pat and Belinda and cast off the lines and motor out of Leamington harbour.
We point Sansei towards the Pt. Pelee light. After 2 hours we finally arrive at the light. 14 nm out and still in 25' of water. Last time I went by this light it was dark so really could not see what it looked like.
As we rounded Pt. Pelee light the wind picked up from the N at about 10 to 15 kts. First couple of hours were fine, we unfurled part of the headsail to steady the boat and we motorsailed along at 7 kts. After midnight the winds had built to about 20 kts and the waves have built to 1 to 1.5 meters. I was up in the V berth and with each crashing wave would be jolted out of any slumber that I was having. I tried to move aft to one of the settees but each time, I started feeling nauseous so I quickly went back to the nook in the V berth. The deck prism over the V berth now leaks to water from the waves ws dripping down getting everything wet. After going back on watch, Robert and I watched the sunrise through the clouds. Excellent.
In the morning the winds subside and the waves flatten out. We have a more comfortable ride towards Long Point. For the next several hours we kept seeing Long Point. I guess there is a reason why they called it Long Point.
As we approach Port Colbourne, the winds pick up from the west. We hoist the main and pick up a little speed. In a short period of time, the waves have built again to about 1 m. We drop sails and then head into Port Colbourne just as the sun is setting. 26 hours and 188 nm we arrive at the mouth of the Welland Canal. We tie up at the Municipal dock and call in to the Seaway requesting passage. There is 1 other sailboat there and we are told that we will be transiting the canal with Zingara, but no earlier than midnight. I recall that a friend from Star sailing usually sails on a boat called Zingara. Sure enough Brian M is delivering Zingara back from the Beneteau NA Regattta in Cleveland.
At 2am, Zingara gets the call and is informed that once a Coast Guard boat exits the canal we are to enter and proceed to lock 8. Lock 8 has a drop of about 1' to compensate for the locks and the height of Lake Erie. No need to tie up to the side, just stop the boat, locks close and then the front lock opens and off we go. Its about 14 nm from Lock 8 to Lock 7. The temperature has dropped to about 8 deg C and as a result, there are some heavy fog patches. Our instructions are to stay with Zingara so I am following the stern light and trying to keep pace. Hard to do when going in and out of the fog patches. The light goes dim so I throttle up a bit and then all of a sudden the light brightens and we are only a couple of boat lengths away. Time to throttle back. We approach Lock 7 and there is a Big Black Boat in the lock coming up so we have to wait until it has passed us. As I approach the wall the throttle lever falls off and I have no way of throttling or changing gears. O Oh! We are going pretty slow so we are able to tie up and Paul goes to work and quickly repairs the lever. The connecting bolt had loosened so it just needed some tightening. The boat had been making a funny noise starting in Lake Huron and then across Lake Erie. We could not figure it out. We now believe that the lever was loose so the transmission was not being fully engaged and the noise was the clutch plates vibrating. After the repair, the noise has gone. I will change the transmission fluid and hopefully did not damage the clutch plates.
The most impressive set of locks are Locks 6, 5 and 4. These locks are back to back and drop about 50' each.
Going down the canal is way easier than going up. As the water drains from the lock, there is very little turbulence. Going up, there is lots of turbulence and it is very difficult to hold the boat in place. Going down, it is very relaxing, a little push here and there to keep the boat steady.
I had paid for the transit online and filled out the necessary forms electronically. We arrive at Lock 3 where I have to pay. I give them the Seaway receipt that I had printed out. The lock guy taking the receipt insisted that I manually fill out the form with all the information. Some day, the modern electronic age will catch up with the canal staff.
We arrive at Lock 1 and there is another BBB in the lock so we have to wait until it has exited the lock.
We exit Lock 1 at 1030 and go and tie up along the wall. Jim T makes breakfast. Hard to tell what meal one should be eating since we have been on the go for almost 2 days straight and have been awake for 8 hours already. Food is good and it hits the spot. We cast off the lines again and exit the Canal and point Sansei towards Toronto.
The wind picks up and we are able to sail. It was a welcome change from the droning of the engine. Jim T has crashed in the aft cabin so we turn off the depth sounder which continuously beeps in a strange pattern. Hopefully Jim appreciates our efforts to provide a quiet passage across Lake Ontario.
After 4 hours, we sail into Toronto Harbour and then drop the sails and motor into QCYC to the dry sail dock. Belinda and Pat greet us. After a quick unload of fender boards and jerry cans, we move Sansei back into her slip for the first time in 2 years. Its good to be home. We celebrate with a bottle of Glenmorangie and a bottle of El Dorado.
