Medina, NY on the Erie Canal

We departed Tonawanda, NY on Tuesday, August 26^th and arrived in Medina, NY.  We went through our first lock today on the Erie Canal in Lockport, NY and actually it is two locks stepping down from one to the next for a total of 50 feet.  We stopped in Middleton as we had to mail an envelope and the lift bridge operator travels from one bridge to another and we had to wait for him to drive back to Middleton to open the bridge.  They are roaming bridge operators that have to operate more than one bridge.  The lift bridges actually go straight up and and down and the minimum height is about 15 1/2 feet - this is why we had to take our mast down!  There are many towns with free dockage on the wall on the Erie Canal.  The dockage was free in Medina with power and water and restroom facilities.  Medina is a very old, historic town with sandstone buildings.  We only encountered one boat today during our 8 hour trip. 

 

Tonawanda, NY on the Erie Canal

We departed Buffalo, NY on Monday, August 25^th.  Our boat neighbors on M and M gave us the most thoughtful departing gifts – homemade sausage, sauce, and bread.  We enjoyed the most wonderful dinner tonight.  We traveled north on the Niagara River and then turned east into the Erie Canal.  Tonawanda is very busy and one of the largest docking facilities on the Erie Canal.  Although this is Monday, there are so many boats and people here it looks like a Friday night!  On the Erie Canal, boats tie up along the wall and there are some places where the dockage is free.  Within less than 1/4 mile we have crossed under three bridges.  Only 338 miles and 35 locks left to go in the Erie Canal!

Niagara Falls

We rented a car in Buffalo, NY and went to Niagara Falls on Sunday, August 24th.  We parked on the American side and walked across the bridge to the Canadian side.  The last time we saw the Falls was in February with below zero temperatures and mostly frozen (us and the Falls!).  Niagara Falls is a wonder to be seen.

Buffalo, NY on Lake Erie

Thursday was another motor sail day with 2-3 foot waves.  Just as we passed the Buffalo Harbor Light, we fueled up at one of the few places that have diesel fuel.  We went up the Black Rock Canal through two opening bridges and one lock to arrive at Rich Marine where the mast was taken down to prepare for the Erie Canal.  We tied up next to the most wonderful couple living on m/v M and M.  Mario and Maria have been living on their boat for some time and invited us over for dinner with their relatives, Joe and Rosa, and Peter and Agnes.  We had the most awesome dinner with some great people and everything was homemade, including the bread and the wine.  How lucky were we to have these fantastic boat neighbors!  We rented a car as we will be here until Monday to give us time to re-provision, shop and buy more boat supplies.  The mast was taken down on Friday – Silent Dream doesn’t look the same!  

Dunkirk, NY on Lake Erie

On Wednesday, August 20^th, we motor sailed with less than 2 foot waves and winds 10-15 knts to Dunkirk Harbor, NY past the Dunkirk lighthouse.  We can’t believe we reached a speed of 8.3 knots, although the picture we took shows 8.1 knots.  We stayed at the Dunkirk Yacht Club where the first night is free.  There are a few harbor shops within a two block walk where the “smallest bar in New York” is located with eight bar stools. 

Erie, PA on Lake Erie

On Tuesday, August 19^th we departed Ashtabula and headed for Erie Bay (Presque Isle), Pennsylvania.  The winds were on the nose again and less than 3 knots and the lake was flat.  So much for sailing Lake Erie!  We got a picture of Presque Isle lighthouse as we motored past it to enter Erie Bay.  We were able to get a well at the Presque Isle Yacht Club located on the Bayfront.  Silent Dream is located right in plain view of the new Sheraton Convention Center.  There is a walkbridge from the convention center to the hotel that we had to sail under to get to the yacht club.   The facilities here were very nice and clean and the people friendly.  Smugglers Wharf has good seafood- try the She Crab Soup.

 

Ashtabula, Ohio on Lake Erie

On Sunday, August 17^th was another motor day, no wind and the little we had was right on the nose!  There was an unmarked bridge on the charts, and even though it looks like we might not make it, the height was 100 feet.  The next bridge was much shorter and we had to wait for the bridge to open before we could arrive at the Ashtabula Yacht Club.  The members at AYC were very friendly and hospitable.  Everyone was helpful and friendly and several offered their cars for us to drive to the stores.  We highly recommend a stop at this yacht club and town.  Ashtabula is a harbor town with several restaurants, bars and ice cream shops and all were very good!

 

Fairport Harbor, Ohio on Lake Erie

On Saturday we motored 47 miles to Fairport Harbor, Ohio on the Grand River, as the wind was behind us and only at 5 knots. We experienced the stalling engine again, but this time we found the issue.  We have some bad fuel and it is clogging the check valve.  Now that we know the source of the problem, it can be fixed!  There is not very much at Grand River, however, the gem of a restaurant and bar is called Pickle Bill’s with live music and four bars.  Their specialty is live, fresh seafood and as you can see the décor is quite different!

Lorain, Ohio on Lake Erie

Weather did not improve until Friday when we were able to leave Put in Bay and headed for Lorain, Ohio.  Spitzer Lakeside Marine is huge- just to get to the bathrooms you need a pair of roller skates!   We met a lovely couple from South Padre Island, Texas, who have been living on their sailboat for six years and are doing the Great Loop.  We wish them the best and a safe trip. 

Put In Bay on Lake Erie

The crossing on Monday in Lake Erie to Put in Bay was a bit rough – heavy storms with thunder and lightning, 3 to 5 foot waves, and engine trouble.  What should have taken 6-7 hours, took us 11 ½ hours.  To top things off, our front hatch wasn’t completely closed, so all the bedding and mattress was soaked!  We had to re-group on Tuesday and hopefully fixed the stalling engine and washed and dried everything at the Laundromat.  We celebrated with drinks at the Blue Luna with live piano music and at the Longest Bar in the Guiness Records.  That evening the 31^st Annual Bartender Olympics were held at the Roundhouse Bar – fun and entertaining!  Wednesday’s forecast for Lake Erie – 20-25 knot winds and 3-5 foot waves with small craft warnings and water spouts on the lake.  Another day in Put in Bay!  All of our chores were done, so we relaxed and took the train tour of the island.  For those of you that don’t know, there are hundreds of golf carts and they are everywhere – this is how just about everyone gets around.

 

CRCA Cruise Weekend at DYC

Our sailing club, CRCA (Clinton River Catalina Association) held a weekend cruise event at the Detroit Yacht Club this past weekend.  The weather was perfect, the drinks were awesome (try a Mai Tai at the pool bar!), the food was good, and the CRCA friendships are the best.  The only part we didn’t like was having to say goodbye to our wonderful friends as we planned on leaving for Lake Erie on Monday.

 

Departure Day

Departure Day is finally here!  Ready or not here we come!  We left Markley Marine at 9 am, Friday, August 8, 2014 headed for the Detroit Yacht Club for a cruise weekend with our sailing club friends at CRCA.  Life is Good!

                     

Going Away Parties

In the last few weeks we have been busily preparing for our departure.  The To Do List was full and when we completed one task, we then added two more.  Although we seem to be busy from morning till night, we had plenty of time for a few Going Away Parties with our friends.

For the last 10 years since we moved here from Chicago, we have been members of a Catalina sailing club, CRCA (Clinton River Catalina Association).  We can’t say enough about these people, not only are they good sailors, but they are great friends, too.  Roy and Judi Schoenherr hosted an awesome Going Away Party for us at their home on Anchor Bay.  Almost everyone in the club came to the party bearing decorations, good food, drinks, music, presents, and the warmest and safest wishes for us on our journey.  One of the best moments of the party was the “Roasting of Chuck and Linda”.  Many people came forward to tell stories of us – the good, the bad and the ugly!  We love and treasure every one of them.  We are so glad we have been able to leave an impression.  We just can’t thank everyone enough for their friendship and support – just remember we are not leaving you, just starting a journey.  

Our very good friends, Tony and Michelle, gave us a Margaritaville Bon Voyage Party in Detroit on the same day Jimmy Buffet played at Comerica Park – how appropriate!  We dressed up in our finest pirate and wench attire and swigged several Painkillers!  We were a big hit as we swash buckled our way on a pub crawl through Detroit.  I wonder how many different Facebook pages expose our pirate qualities?

We Are Now Live Aboard's

The wait is over, our condo has been sold, we have moved out and we are now live-aboard's.  We moved aboard on Monday June 2nd, 2014.  The new Profurl roller furler is installed, the 195 watt solar panel is up and running,  We are still figuring out where to put everything.  We visited Roy and Judi via boat for a couple of days we went there as a power boat.  We added two more shelves in the boat and repaired another. Got the Sails on among several more items off of our to do list.  Thank goodness for the shop at Roy's it was great to use mounted tools to instead of all hand tools.  We left Roy and Judi's looking like a sail boat.  We are still working on different little items, but feel good we are about ready and could leave at almost any time if needed.   Our journey will begin on Aug 8th as we head south to the Detroit Yacht Club for a few days.

Sneak Peak

It has been quite awhile since I promised you the new interior pictures.  Here is a sneak peak at what has happened with Silent Dream.

New Cushions covers and foam.  The mirror was added last year.

Starboard Side

Now the best part of our updates.

New Corian counter tops with under mounted sink and new stove.

Our 13 year old Refrigerator was giving us problems so I replaced it this year.

I moved the thermostat controls outside of the box and installed a digital thermometer.

We will soon be living aboard and will have more pics coming soon.

Under Water Lighting

As we get ready to move aboard and with the weather finally breaking I have had a chance to play catch up.

You see the underwater lights and the lights on the swim platform, both are Blue in color.

When I finished  up the exterior wiring of the lights, this is what happened next.

We are in the Water!!!!

The Waterline Has Been Raised

The boot stripe is painted over and the bottom color has been changed.

Working on the underwater lights now.

New Rub Rail and Lifelines

The old tan Rub Rail is gone and replaced with the new Gray color.  Great improvement to the looks of the  boat.

The Lifelines have also been replaced from the old cracked white plastic coated to bare Stainless.  

I'm loving the new look.

I'm also in the process of raising the water line.  I know we will be in salt water and will float a little higher, but we have always had an issue with the water line in fresh water.  Now that this is our home and the boat will be loaded down even more I feel the need to raise it the width of the boot stripe.  We have read too many cruisers blogs that ended up raising their waterline while in the Caribbean. So that helped with the decision as well.

I will also be changing the bottom paint color to Black.  The Shark White showed too much of everything that was trying to grow on the bottom.

Linda will be back from Hungary soon and the new interior pictures will start appearing as soon as we get the inside clean.