Duckies - Our 2013 Shakedown Cruise

August 2013 Shakedown Cruise

We have not yet installed any sort of entertainment system, like an HD TV antenna or WiFi, but we plan to once the snow is off the boat and we can get into it.  For sure before we move on it full-time.

With no sports to watch or listen to, here's how one guy chose to spend a fair jag of time while waiting out weather in a beeeeautiful anchorage (the Benjamins in the North Channel).  These little guys (or girls) became our new BFFs!!  They followed us everywhere.

I figure we better find an alternative before we get into 'gator country!!

                                        No duckies (or bears) were harmed in the filming of this video.

30 Thousand at LEAST! Shake down cruise

Glassy smooth!  My favourite!

Preparations - Summer 2013

Rafting up with friends

Buying an old boat is a bit of an adventure.  That first summer we had BIG plans for updates. We were going to add this and change that. BUT life had different plans for us. Hmm.... work on the boat or head out?  We would ditch the work in a heartbeat and take off more often than not.

What's cookin'?

We're blessed to live in one of the most spectacular fresh-water cruising areas in the world and man, did we take advantage of that!  We had a pass for Georgian Bay National Park which allowed us to tie up to any of the docks at Beausoleil island and a few other spots in the neighbourhood.  Jeff was working at our marina so after work he could just saunter down the dock to the boat.  I'd be there ready to go.  We'd take off for the evening and spend the night somewhere out on the bay.  In the morning we'd get up early and I'd drive the boat back to the marina while Jeff showered underway and got ready for work.  We'd tie up and he'd wander back down the dock, coffee in hand, just in time for work.  Perfect!

It wasn't all play. We did get some work done.  Jeff did a bunch of mechanical stuff and he surprised me by ripping out the old carpet and installing a beeeeautiful hard-wood floor (making me very happy).  I cleaned, added some homey touches, organized and then organized some more.  The more we did the smaller our ambitions became.  The boat was safe and comfy, albeit not the most stylish vessel on the bay....good enough.... let's go!!!

Georgious Georgian Bay. Love the sound of soft rain on the roof.

Nappy time

Swing bridge at Little Current

We took a shake-down cruise in August,  anchoring out every night but three. We traveled as far as the North Channel, occasionally meeting up and travelling with various friends. Then we had to turn around and head back home, saying good-bye to our friends who were travelling on.  Next summer -- our turn!

What is this "Great Loop"?

The Plan: The Great Loop.  Here's a map:

This is how it works:  You travel in a counter clockwise direction.  The summers are spent in the North, exploring Georgian Bay's 30,000 islands, taking in the endless vistas of the North Channel and making your way from north to south on Lake Michigan.  

In the autumn, you start by travelling right spanking through downtown Chicago (which will be a BLAST!!!), then down the river system, including the Illinois, Mississippi, and the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway, all the way to the Gulf of Mexico.  There are lots of interesting side trip to take along this route if time and inclination permits.  We're thinking of Nashville maybe.  Or maybe we'll park the boat, rent a car and take a road trip west to the Grand Canyon for a couple of weeks.  We don't know.  It depends on the weather, our mood, etc.  Jeff wants to take in some sporting events (hockey and baseball). I want to check out some live music (Blues in Chicago!!) and artsie-fartsie stuff.  The whole point is to be flexible, go where the wind takes us, and take in as much as we can.

Once the hurricane season is safely past we'll spend the winter in the South, hanging around Florida and, with the right weather conditions, maybe the Bahamas.  We think we might just find a nice marina and hunker down and spend a month or two working on our golf game, hanging out, taking in the sights. etc. etc.  Whatever we do, it will be where it's warm with no snow to shovel.

Once spring hits we'll point our bow North and travel up the intracoastal waterway, which is a protected passage of rivers, lakes and canals along the East coast of the the States.  We'll pass through old charming cities like Charleston and Savannah, Chesapeake Bay and we can take a side trip right to Washington DC and explore the U.S. capital while staying at "home" on our boat.  We'll cruise right through New York harbour, right past the statue of Liberty, (and visit my niece, Rachel). Then up the Hudson River.  From there a canal leads back to Canada where we'll maybe (hopefully) check out the Rideau canal (and Canada's capital city).  That takes us back to the Gananoque area, where we'll "cross our wake", ending the circle.  

That's the plan, in pencil.