Dancing Wu Li Master Earthworm Jim teaches in lesson #42: “You’ve forced me to use the most powerful weapon of all! Strategic retreat!” And so too do we find ourselves invoking the same wisdom as we shift gears from sailing Newfoundland to exploring Lake Ontario/1000 Islands this year. As with all our decisions, we’re just goin’ where the wind blows us.
So yes, continued problems with the engine have pushed us to delay our St. Lawrence journey. But truth be told, there are other factors as well. We’re still disengaging from land life, and still have too much stuff to deal with. And I think we’re both feeling a bit creaky when it comes to sailing and cruising skills. The Rock will still be there next year. In the meantime this opens up the whole Thousand Islands and Lake Ontario for leisurely exploration.
What wisdom, the wind. Keep a weather eye, and always be willing to change tack.
Despite the engine setbacks, and our general slow pace at accomplishing things, we did actually manage to get off the dock and go sailing. Our mechanic did solve our latest fuel leak problems, and Grampa Tractor, as we affectionally call the engine, sputtered, coughed and roared to life. The next day we took her for a spin; the first time we’d been off the dock in our boat in nearly two years!
The test went great, so we decided to follow our friends from Windover (Chris and Deb) up the Bay to Trenton so we could watch the air show, and then spend our first night at anchor. It was an amazing little trip. And what was even more amazing is that we remembered how to sail and anchor.
The boat worked great, and so did we. We had a wonderful time with Chris and Deb, rafted up for meals, and just getting to know each other. The only glitch was when we went to start the engine again in the morning and it wouldn’t fire. Ann quickly found another fuel leak, and Chris, who is not only a master sailor, but seems to be able to fix anything, leapt aboard to help us. He tightened things and bled the engine — and she fired! Off again, but this just confirms our decision to stay nearby. We must have a reliable engine for the St. Lawrence.
Meanwhile, life at Stillwater Marina (where we’ve decided to haul out again in the fall) continues to be mostly pleasant and peaceful 
. It’s also been Stinkin’ hot at times, with the occasional scary storm rolling through:
So now that we know we can still sail, and that the engine seems to be working most of the time, we’re prepping for our first real journey in two years. A group of us Stillwaterians (seven boats, apparently) are heading down the Bay of Quinte, out into the Open Lake. The plan is to sail to Main Duck Island for Canada Day, and spend a few days revelling in the company of new friends.
Today we’re installing new batteries after confirming our old ones had gone to battery heaven. No surprise really since they were going on seven years old, and I have tried to murder them at least twice over the years (froze them solid one year 😉 ). The install went beautifully so now we have three new Group 31 true deep cycle batteries installed (vs our previous “dual purpose” batteries), plus one true starter.
All this just to keep the beer cold 😉
ADDENDUM: I forgot to mention, I had a birthday. Celebrations started in Ottawa with Mom and Kathy, and carried on at home on our boat. I am now the happy recipient of a new cordless drill, thanks to my love Annnneeeeeeeeee. And I also made great use of an LCBO gift card, which has kept our fridge full of excellent beer. I like this getting older thing 😉