August 19, 2012 Day 100 Turnbull Island Total
miles to date: 1798.9
This was our 100th
day on the Loop and we thought it was interesting to look back at our docking
choices each night. We spent half of the
time (exactly 50 nights) at a marina; 24 nights at anchor; 21 nights on a lock
wall; and 5 nights on a town wall.
We arrived at our anchorage
off Turnbull Island by mid-morning and found several sailboats there already. More
boats arrived after we did, so we were glad to have found space here. It was a pretty anchorage and well protected.
We appreciated the sunny sky and fairly calm sea today!
This 100th day
also marked our last night in Canada. Tomorrow we will travel over 50 miles
into the open water of the North Channel and enter customs at Drummond Island,
Michigan. Leaving Canada was very bittersweet. The Chambly Canal, the Rideau Canal,
the Trent Severn Waterway, the Georgian Bay, and the North Channel will forever
be in our memories. We were in awe of the canals, lakes, inlets and rivers with
their granite rocks, cottages on the shore, and thousands of little islands. We
loved the undeniable cry of the loons, the charm of the small towns, the
grandeur of Montreal and Ottawa, the new food we tried (Poutine, peameal bacon,
and pickerel), and certainly the friendliness of the Canadian people. We found
serene anchorages, busy marinas, and lock walls filled with house boats. We
traveled with new friends, or at times it was just the two of us. We found both
quiet waters on our bow and high waves on our beam. We rode two exciting lift
locks and the Big Chute Marine Railway. It could not have been better.
At the same time we know
it is time to return to our homeland and start down Lake Michigan and then the
inland rivers before heading to the Gulf Coast.
