Great Lakes to St Lawrence and South?

[Tom Keevil]

Our cruising grounds are the Salish Sea and Inside Passage of WA, BC and AK. Our plan for this summer is a trip to Haida Gwaii. I always enjoy planning new voyages, and am wondering about a change of scene. The usual result of that thought in these parts is sail down to Mexico. I've been wondering about a different plan.

This would be to ship Rover to MN or WI, and spend several years sailing the Great Lakes, down the St Lawrence to Newfoundland and the Maritimes, down through New England to the Chesapeake, and then reevaluate the situation.

This would provide many new places to explore, but would it be worth it? We could sail our current location the rest of our lives, and still not see everything out here. Would we be trading a fantastic location for heat, humidity, bugs and crowds?

This trip would be through the heart of Cape Dory country, so there are a lot of you out there. What do you think?

[jen1722terry]

What a great plan.

There are several Cape Dory owners with Great Lakes experience. We also know of a couple who recently completed two summers in Newfoundland.
Captain Cheryl Barr has written and revised a book on sailing the St. Lawrence and Hudson River loop. Can't recall the name of it but you can probably find it on Amazon. She gives a lot of detail on New Bruswick and Nova Scotia. I sailed the New Jersey coast from boyhood and there are many
guides and books about the great cruising in the Chesapeake.

Good luck planning this special cruise.

Jenn and Terry McAdams

[Jerry Hammernik]

I think you would like the Great Lakes. In addition to the beauty there is no salt in the water and no tides.

Lake Superior is big water. Beautiful but can be a long way between safe harbors. Michigan and Huron are amazing. The northern parts are spectacular. The North Channel is a can't miss destination. Erie and Ontario have many great destinations and slightly shorter distances. The season is shorter than some places. Most people consider it 5 months. Some tough it out to 6.

They can all get rough but a 33 is a good size. Weather forecasting is pretty good and in much of the area safe harbors are not too far apart. But at sailboat speeds you can be far enough that a thunderstorm will pop up and catch you out there. The good news is they don't last long. But they can be a challenge. When there is one tree in the forest, and it's made out of aluminum, and you're sitting under it, a lightning storm can be real scary.

[Paul D.]

Tom, PM me if you would like more information on Lake Superior. The big Lake has exceptional wilderness cruising, a lightly visited National Park and a very detailed cruising guide. As well as its own Twitter account (@LakeSuperior)!

[Jim Walsh]

Our cruising grounds are the Salish Sea and Inside Passage of WA, BC and AK. Our plan for this summer is a trip to Haida Gwaii. I always enjoy planning new voyages, and am wondering about a change of scene. The usual result of that thought in these parts is sail down to Mexico. I've been wondering about a different plan.

This would be to ship Rover to MN or WI, and spend several years sailing the Great Lakes, down the St Lawrence to Newfoundland and the Maritimes, down through New England to the Chesapeake, and then reevaluate the situation.

This would provide many new places to explore, but would it be worth it? We could sail our current location the rest of our lives, and still not see everything out here. Would we be trading a fantastic location for heat, humidity, bugs and crowds?

This trip would be through the heart of Cape Dory country, so there are a lot of you out there. What do you think?

I think it's a pretty adventurous and novel plan. You can avoid crowds easily by choosing your anchorages, bugs are not a huge problem and can be mitigated with screens, heat and humidity may be more than you are used to but nothing like the southern states. Others opinions may differ but I consider the waters of the Canadian maritimes and south to outer Cape Cod to be ice water due to the effects of the Labrador Current.

[Tom Keevil]

OK, thanks for your input. After some research, I am now convinced that Lake Superior and the North Channel of Lake Huron are worthy destinations. Northern Lake Michigan is appealing. Also, everything downstream from Lake Ontario looks good. But, what about the bit in between? Southern Huron, Erie and Ontario are not calling me at this point. That is a long haul, with visits to Detroit and Cleveland? I've never visited those cities, but their reputations don't exactly match Montreal and Quebec. What about the Trent-Severn Waterway? It looks a bit marginal for a boat with a 5 ft draft; has anyone here made that trip?

[Paul D.]

Mike Ritenour has cruised his 33 up in the Ontario-Montreal- St Lawrence area and may have some good advice.

If you are thinking more seriously on Lake Superior definitely pick up this guide.

https://www.amazon.com/Bonnie-Dahls-Sup ... 0942235924

All the best,

[Tod Mills]

If you do decide to come to the Great Lakes, the Great Lakes Cruising Club is a great resource for info on various ports and all sorts of out of the way anchorages; well worth the cost of membership, imo.

http://www.glcclub.com

Regarding Trent Severn (haven't made the trip but have been researching it lately)

Topic: Trent-Severn Waterway Depth
Question:
Response: Under normal conditions, there is approximately 2.4 m (8') of water in the navigation channel from Lock #1 in Trent to Lock #19 in Peterborough. Water depth in the navigation channel from above Lock #19 to Lock #45 in Port Severn, approximates 1.8 m (6').
Please note, however, that in a few places between Lock #19 and Lock #45, navigation channel water depth may be less than 1.8M (6'). THe operator of any vessel drawing 1.5 m (5') or more, who is considering navigating the Waterway should call 1-888-267-8888.
Water depth in a secondary navigation channel from Sturgeon Lake to Port Perry approximates 1.22 m (4'). Water depth in the Murray Canal, under normal conditions, is 2.7 m (9').

from https://www.trentsevern.com/index.php/tool-kit/faqs