May 18, 2016 | Flotsam
It’s almost time for us to depart on yet another adventure. This time we’ll be travelling virgin territory since buying R.E.D. almost four years ago. It will also mean not only new geographic ground covered but new skills required. We will be entering areas where weather will be a challenge, tides and currents will need to be calculated, fog will be a factor. We are confident with our knowledge of weather, navigation and tides and currents learned from Canadian Power and Sail Squadrons courses. We have added a new-to-us-yet-to-be-named dinghy to our little fleet (story here). We have fixed a lot of the electrical issues (new battery, improved wiring etc.). For greater autonomy we now have solar (story here, here and here) and a generator (story here). Because of conditions we will face, a radar will be necessary. Finishing touches for its installation are almost complete. Will post that story soon.
So here you have it, our wish list. If we get to complete the list, we will be very happy and very proud of ourselves. If we get to complete only one, then it will be forever a part of our treasured memories…
1. To see the Norwegian tall ship, Draken Harald as she makes her way along the Saint-Lawrence for the 2016 Tall Ship Challenge
2. To reach Quebec City for the start of the Transat Quebec/Saint Malo
3. To experience the magnificent Fijords of the Saguenay,
4. To catch site of whales.
5. To visit the sea sculptures of Sainte-Flavie.
6.Maybe visit the Tiny House Eco Lodge, near Rimouski. Friends have already mentioned considering joining us there. Wouldn’t that be a great reunion?
7. A photo op of R.E.D. in front of Percé Rock.
8. And finally to reach the Baie-des Chaleur. On a recent train adventure with my son (story here) we passed by its beautiful waters. We have GPS and paper charts up to that point so would like to give it a try.
Chaleur Bay
It’s a fairly ambitious voyage but we are both up for the adventure. One of the great things about our little boat is that whenever we feel we have had enough, whenever we feel we don’t want to battle the tides, currents and prevailing winds back up the Saint-Lawrence, we can find a safe harbour, take train, bus or air back, collect our tow beast and the trailer and bring R.E.D. back home.
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Apr 8, 2016 | Flotsam
“You can’t stay in your corner of the forest waiting for others to come to you. You have to go to them sometimes.”
Piglet, Pooh’s Little Instruction Book. ~ A. A. Milne
With wintery cold clinging to April we felt a strong need to get out of our ‘corner of the forest’. A road trip north and a long overdue visit with friends was just what these two weary sailors needed.
SO cold!
First a stroll through the village. You know you are no longer in the big city when people look you in the eye and greet you with a nod and a friendly smile.
Artisan Shops
Crispy Cold Trails
A hike at 1200′ left me breathless. Yup, I that out of shape!
Walk through the neighbourhood
Then we dined. Oh! did we dine! Amazing food. Laughter, tears and stories shared.
Delicious Home Cooked Meals
Brunch to Die For
Freshly Baked Croissants
A special mention must go to Monique (I did promise you your own blog post dear lady). Thank you for sharing your sailing stories and for taking the time to find us one of your beautiful creations in appropriate colours for R.E.D. We are all adventurers at heart.
Hand-loomed tea towel
And a big thank you to our welcoming generous hosts.
We came for the friendship but left with full bellies and good memories
…and caramels (at the time of this writing there remain just four, equally shared this time I may add).
Deadly Delicious Evil Treats (our host’s secret recipe carefully guarded as it should be)
Jan 30, 2016 | Flotsam
With less than two months until spring, it’s time to start preparing for the upcoming boating season….never too early.
We paid a brief visit to R.E.D. to make sure there wasn’t too much snow accumulating on her tarp. All was good.
Then we stopped to pick up our Atlas of Tidal Currents, a publication that will help us in navigating the challenging waters of the Saint-Lawrence River.
Also necessary and in Canada, mandatory to have onboard, paper charts for the areas we will visit.
Our plan for this year is travel from our home port in Montreal down the Saint-Lawrence Seaway to eventually reach Gaspé. If all goes well we may even venture farther, to complete what’s known as the
‘Down East Loop’.
Route Plan Summer 2016
There is much to do between now and spring launch. We have an ever-growing to do list, including modifications to complete and purchases to make so our life on the water is as safe as possible. Some additions will also help to give us more autonomy while away from home.
I’ll be keeping up to date on our progress with a blog post here and there so check back with us from time to time or to make it even easier, why not subscribe by email and little R.E.D. tidbits will be delivered directly to your inbox.
Next up, Rhode trip…
