August 25 – Day 56 – Port Stanley Destination Achieved!

The waves were coming towards us sideways so we had a sloppy ride until we got past the tip of Long Point & turned towards Port Stanley.

Once we “turned the corner” the water smoothed out considerably & we were a lot more comfortable.

It was still pretty chilly outside so we stayed in the cabin & used the lower helm station instead of the flybridge.

By noon it had warmed up a bit so we ventured outside to enjoy some sun & calmer waters – only 5 1/2 hours to go!

As we got closer to Port Stanley we encountered a small flock (?) of monarch butterflies. Up until then I thought that we were making pretty good progress, traveling at 7 knots, but when a butterfly can fly circles around you at that speed it’s a bit humbling!

If you look closely in the photo above you can see a butterfly just at the horizon level. This little fella flew a few circles around us before heading towards the shoreline.

About 2 hours before our arrival we could see the outline of Port Stanley harbor ahead in the distance. At this point it really started to sink in that our journey was almost over. That left me with a mixture of happy & sad feelings.

Before long we were closing in on the harbor entrance & began to make preparations for docking. However, we still had one last bridge to contend with before we could reach our marina & it only opened once every 30 minutes so we were cutting it close!

We finally tied up on the dock at Stan’s Marina at 5:45pm Friday evening. The screenshot below from Google Maps shows the area where we are located.

Catherine’s mom Jeanne, her brother Steve & his wife Kim were there to greet us with wine & cookies. A great reunion & celebration.

It’s been an amazing journey with a boatload of memories.

We slept last night in our own bed at home in London. I’ll go back to the boat today to start unloading her. She’ll stay in the water for another week or two & then we will haul her out & get her ready for winter storage.

Over the next few days I’ll also compile some statistics about the trip & post them on the blog.

Cheers!

11 thoughts on “August 25 – Day 56 – Port Stanley Destination Achieved!”

    1. Wally Post author

      Thanks! We’ll catch up with you & Bob for coffee & I can show you the 1,500 photos I took along the way

    1. Wally Post author

      Thanks George. Our visit with you & Sandy was one of the highlights of our trip. Stay in touch!

  3. Steve

    Woohoo!! fantastic adventure Dad and Cathy!!….now what am I going to read every day?? I looked forward to my daily blog read!! So happy you completed the journey safely and are now home!! Love you both!! Love Steve and Zoe!!

    1. Wally Post author

      Thanks Steve & Zoe! The blog will be “quiet” for a few days & then I will post entries occasionally about renovations & winterizing the boat. Cheers!

  4. Barb

    Welcome Home Wally, Cath and Santosha! You made it. Guess Bruce and I will have to find other bedtime stories to read now that this Adventure is over. Thanks for ‘taking us’ along. Barb + Bruce xo

    1. Wally Post author

      Thanks! We are glad to be home. You will have to join us (in person) on another adventure next summer!

  5. gdmickle

    Congratulations Wally and Cathy – the adventure of a lifetime! Great photos and stories. Talk to you soon. Love Grace and Don

    1. Wally Post author

      Thanks! We are glad to be home, but a bit sad that the adventure (for this year) is over. Cheers!

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