June 25
Since our experience with salads (June 20 blog: Salad Anyone?), we've been wary of it - often looking hard into the water and the chartplotter to avoid them. So far, it seems that Brighton and the entrance of Trent-Severn Canal were the worst spots. Yey!
From Belleville, we did 4 short sails (3-4 hours/day) to Kingston. The first two anchorages were perfect: good holding, few houses, quiet. I finally was able to kayak! If you've read my other blogs, you'd know that due to high winds and dirty waters, I haven't had the inclination to start kayaking this season. My favorite kayak time is first thing in the morning, with my thermos coffee mug, I kayak for about an hour. I like the calm water, the few people drinking their coffee on their balconies, fish lazily swimming under me, the light touch of the sun, a few fishermen, all is so quiet. By the time I come back, Frank is done with his computer stuff (news, wind/weather forecasts, emails); and we have breakfast before continuing our trip.
The third day, we stayed at Collins Bay Marina. Initially, we chose it because there was one of Frank's "toy store" across the street, from which Frank had a short list of items to purchase. At the last minute, we found out that they move, now a bicycle ride away (6 kms). Surprise! Nearby I found a bakery/patisserie (Bread & Butter Bakery). Oh the yummy stuff in there! We picked their multigrain sourdough bread, some savory scones to go with dinner and a patisserie before hitting the road again. Back to the marina, such friendly boaters! A few didn't hesitate to introduce themselves. Even the vice-commodore Gene and her husband Bob invited us to their yacht club's St. Jean Baptist party of steaks and lobsters on Saturday night. Unfortunately, we had already made commitments in Kingston to meet up with friends. Gene and Bob have been very generous by also inviting us for an ice cream at a nearby Reid's Dairy. Such a delightful marina.
What we're noticing now is a increased French Canadian presence in the marine communication. So we started to listen carefully on the marine radio to learn the proper terms when calling/answering another boater. By the time, we cross over to the Quebec province, we want to be familiar with the most used terms. That reminds me, we should buy a Quebec flag. It is a courtesy when visiting another province.
Now Kingston. We were not able to see our friends Karel and Mila. They are friends we made two summers ago while sailing the North Channel. Health issues prevented them to meet with us. They are in our thoughts every day. If all of you want to, with us, send them positive thoughts, I'm sure they'd appreciate all the good vibes they can get.
We had a busy day in Kingston: after 15 km bicycle ride, 11,600 steps, and laundry, we regained all the calories we'd lost at the Kingston Brewery with fish 'n chips, wings and lagers. LOL!!!!
Frank had a great surprise in Kingston after dinner. As we were strolling towards the marina, Frank took a picture of the marina and posted on Facebook. A friend from his high school, Bryan whom he had not seen for a long time and now lives in Kingston, saw the picture, recognized the location and contacted Frank. Bryan and wife Karen visited us for a couple of hours. Even though I didn't know them, we had a lot to talk about and got along as old friends. Mosquitos decided to crash the party. What a nice couple!
Before we left Kingston this morning, we had the chance to visit the farmers market. Five years ago, I bought a turkish cotton afghan that I wear very often. I had the pleasure to find the same sales lady! Guess what I bought???
We're meeting up with friends David and Regina tomorrow at an anchorage in Brockville. Mid-way Gananoque is where we're anchoring for the night. Getting here is a beautiful route - 1000 islands. We understand the reason Kingston boaters are happy with their location. There are many bays and anchorages to spend a night or two. The waterway is very busy though with all sizes of vessels, many going way too fast for safety and courtesy.
On to the kayak ....
