Mike Norton and I arrived in Erieau, Ontario on Monday afternoon around 3:00pm. We had a very long day the day before and we had been pushing hard since we left Goderich so we decided to give ourselves a well deserved rest and stay at a marina in Erieau overnight. We had also arranged for Peter Hammond, a friend from the Goderich Yacht Club to join us for the trip the next day to Port Stanley.
The weather forecast for Monday night was not good, storms were coming in from the west, off Lake Michigan and high wind warnings were in effect for Lake Erie on Tuesday–but the forecast for Wednesday and Thursday was even worse. Early on Tuesday morning we decided to make a run for it and set out. For the first hour or so the going was pretty good so we decided to hoist our sails. We just got the sails nicely set and the wind began to kick up. Next thing we knew we were in the middle of a large number of commercial fishing nets. We had to be very careful navigating our way through that because there was the possibility of catching our propeller on a net. If that happened we would have a very tough time getting free. While navigating through the fishing grounds we lost control of our sails and it got pretty hairy for a while. By the time we finally got the sails down and secured the wind and waves were impressive. The waves were coming at our stern on an angle that was not complimentary to our desired course so we got tossed around quite a bit. Waves had built up to over 2 meters (nearly 7 feet) and the wind was over 20 knots! At one point the boat heeled over so hard that all of the contents in the galley fridge slammed up against the door and forced it open. All of the contents of the fridge fell out on to the floor and a bottle of beer collided with a bottle of wine–you know the rest! Broken glass, soaked and smashed food and a nice mess for the Captain to clean up 🙁
Almost eight hours later we happily arrived in Port Stanley and we were all very glad to see the boat finally get behind the breakwater. Thankfully none of us got seasick but we all felt like we were on the edge of it. I have been out in rough water like that before but it was always during “play time” where some friends and I would go out sailing from Goderich for a few hours fun and bash-about to see what the boat could take and whether or not we could bury the rails or the bow a few times. However, during those times we could head back to port any time we wanted–not the case on this trip!
We tied up at the Kettle Creek Marina in Port Stanley at a nice quiet dock and counted our blessings. It was time for Mike and Peter to go home. Port Stanley is only about a 30 minute drive from London and they were looking forward to a hot shower and a soft bed at home. I have to confess that I was too and was really happy when Catherine came to pick me up after her work was done for the day. It was now time for a few days rest before heading off to the east end of Lake Erie and the Welland Canal.
It is amazing how much stuff you can pack on a boat if you try. The pile was growing and so was my concern–but what the heck, I am going to be gone for 3 months so you need a lot of stuff to keep comfortable and happy, eh?
Even our cats were quite perplexed by the mountain of stuff that had invaded our family room–and what they considered to be mostly their personal space! Now that I had a few days layover in Port Stanley prior to the next leg of my journey, my mission was to properly sort through all that stuff and find a home for it. But first I had to go shopping to buy some more stuff that was on a list that I thought up en route to Port Stanley. Time to head off to my favorite boating supply stores – Wal Mart and and Canadian Tire!
