We had a couple of great sails from Fort Pierce to West Palm, Fort Lauderdale to Miami but we also had to motor quite a bit again as we finished out the ICW and had a rough Gulf Stream crossing. We ended up motor-sailing across the Gulf Stream because the wind was heavy from the Southeast and we couldn't make the wind angle under sail alone. We also had to motor for many hours of our Bimini to Chub Cay passage since our wind completely died half way there.
24 Nights on Anchor 7 Nights At Marina
December was a rough month in Florida, we had about 10 days in a row of 20+ knot winds, ending in a huge front that came through with up to 50 knot winds. We were able to get a slip in West Palm for a full week. It cost a small fortune, but we were able to get out of the anchorage for heaviest wind.
45 kWh of Solar Generated
In the month of December, we generated 33 kWh of solar power. Since we motored less in December we had to really conserve our electricity. Now that the days are starting to get longer again and we're out of the cloudiest month we should start seeing our solar output improve again. Our best month of 2023 was August at 53 kWh.
$3,685 Total Spent $118.86 Average Per Day
Outside of our normal spending, we had three things that piled onto Decembers spending #'s: The slip in West Palm cost us $1,066 for the week - more than we'd spent at marinas for the last six months combined! The next item was health insurance - we paid for 6 months of an international plan which was about $770 for the two of us. Finally, we bought $713 of groceries - we continued to provision while we were in West Palm, and now we're packed with food on Resande. One bonus one is the cruising fees for the Bahamas were $375 total, and we took the cats to the vet for their health check which was $232 including some vaccinations they needed. There was quite a bit of 'one-time' items this month so we're hoping the next few months in the Bahamas will be significantly less expensive.
The month started with us leaving the marina in Titusville and heading south. The wind was coming from the south and pretty light so we took the ICW for the day. We anchored just off the ICW in a quiet little spot, nothing much around to do but we slept and then headed off again in the morning and made it to Fort Pierce.
We stayed in Fort Pierce for two days. We enjoyed finally being somewhere with clear water. There were several small islands around the anchorage with little beaches to explore. We walked to the ocean beach and actually got in the water for the first time since the Great Lakes! We briefly met Brain and Erin aboard SV Lost and will hopefully catch up with them again in the Bahamas.
We chose a perfect weather window for the 45 mile sail south to West Palm Beach. We were finally able to sail pretty much the entire passage! We had flat seas and sunny skies. We threw a lure in while sailing and to our surprise, actually caught and got a fish onto the boat! We caught a good sized Mackerel or Wahoo ( we aren’t 100% sure) and it was so good! We ate it for days, and the cats also had plenty!
We had then finally made it to what we thought would be our final anchorage in Florida. West Palm Beach is where we planned to stage and wait for our weather window to cross over to the Bahamas.
Well… We ended up stuck in West Palm for a while. Our first week we had wind 15-20 knots most days but some sunshine. We met up with several other boats all waiting to cross to the Bahamas. We had a great time playing beach games and going out in downtown West Palm with our new group of young cruising friends. We also met up with family friends of Ryan’s. They took us to a nice lunch and gave us a gift basket full of goodies.
Our second week in West Palm there was a big low pressure system setting up, we thankfully were able to grab a marina slip to wait out the storm. This front brought clouds, rain, storms and heavy wind (gusting into the 50s on the worst night of it). Erika did not feel comfortable staying on anchor through the days long storm. We had sustained winds 25-35 for about five days. We hunkered down at the marina and waited it out. We were really glad we did because several boats dragged anchor during the worst of the storm. A boat we met in West Palm was hit by another boat dragging anchor. We had our dock lines doubled up and although it was still wavy and uncomfortable we made it through without any damage.
With yet another week before any possible weather window was forecast we set off about 10 miles south to Lantana to get a change of scenery for a few days. We spent some time with SV Sunwise and got to meet SV Explorer. Getting a change of scenery was really nice. We took a few walks through town and after much deliberation decided to go further south and cross from Miami instead of going back to West Palm.
We took off from Lantana and traveled on the ICW to Fort Lauderdale. This stretch of the ICW has a lot of bridges! Waiting for them to open slowed us down for sure but we made it to the anchorage late afternoon. The anchorage was very busy but we squeezed in for the night.
The next day we took off, heading outside in the ocean for Miami. The wind was up a bit more than we had hoped. We had a wavy ride down to Miami. With one reef in the main and stay sail only we averaged 5.5 to 6 knots in 3-5 ft waves. Once inside the inlet at Miami we had a wonderful sail in Biscayne Bay to arrive at our anchorage in Key Biscayne, No Name Harbor. SV Explorer who we met in Lantana sailed down with us. We enjoyed dinner with them onshore and met SV Cloud.
With a weather window insight we headed to shore for a final grocery run. We had been stocking up again and again since Titusville while we waited for weather to cross. Our pantry was jam packed but we needed some fresh veggies before crossing.
We spent a rainy Christmas day in Miami and then the following day it was finally time to cross to the Bahamas!
We woke up early and raised the anchor. The wind hadn’t died down as quickly as forecast so we set off with wind 18-20 knots. Big waves had us almost turning around to try again later on but we pushed through. Actually as we got further off shore and into the gulf stream the waves become more spaced out and manageable. We made landfall in Bimini before dark and anchored in a peaceful bay for the evening.
The next morning we got officially checked into the country and headed across the Bahamas bay to the Berry Islands. The bay is about 10-15 ft deep all the way across with a sand bottom. The water is so clear you can see the ripples in the sand as you sail by. The Berry Islands lay about 80 miles across the bay. We arrived at our anchorage at about 1am, anchoring in the dark for the first time ever.
We crashed for the night after arriving to Chub Cay. The following day was rainy and windy in the afternoon. We spent a lazy day onboard , relaxing after many ocean miles traveled. The wind shifted overnight making our anchorage very uncomfortable. We headed out at first light in search of a more calm anchorage.
We got our fishing line out right away and very quickly had a king mackerel on the line! We sailed around the outside of the Berry Island chain up to Great Harbour Cay. We caught a blue runner and a barracuda on the way as well. We didn’t keep the barracuda but the other two fish we had were great eating! The cats were super excited for all the fresh fish!
We spent the remainder of December in Great Harbour Cay. We walked the beach, explored shark creek which winds through the island, paddle boarded, snorkeled and went spearfishing. We saw plenty of fish, turtles, a few eagle rays and a lemon shark. Ryan got a huge lobster spearfishing on new year’s eve. We had a fantastic feast to finish out the year.
We were waiting for parts to be delivered to us in Beaufort NC at the start of the month. They arrived on the first and we were able to fix our leaking water pump! It was very windy and the anchorage got a bit crazy in the afternoon. The current can be quite strong and it was affecting the monohulls and catamarans very differently. This had boats swinging in different directions and in a packed anchorage, some boats were getting very close to each other. We were spaced out safely and didn’t have any issues. Between that and the numerous dolphin sightings, we were very entertained in our anchorage.
The following day we headed south. It had been blowing a gale the past two days so we decided to take the inside ICW route vs going out into the ocean. We went past Camp Lejune and anchored for the night in a bay surrounded by military-owned land. We saw several marines on shore and a few marine boats and helicopters. The helicopters or osprey aircraft (we aren’t entirely sure what they were) circled overhead all afternoon and evening.
The following day we made it through the ICW to Carolina Beach. We picked up our first-ever mooring ball and stayed two nights here. Friends of ours who live in North Carolina had recently bought a beach house in Carolina Beach with plans to rent it out. A group of friends from Michigan was visiting them and the new beach house while we were there. It was great to see everyone and catch up. We were so happy that the timing worked out!
After enjoying our time with friends. We headed off on our first overnight passage in the ocean. We traveled 42 NM from Carolina Beach to Charleston South Carolina. The wind forecast was about 10 knots. We were hoping for more of a beam reach but it was pretty much dead down-wind so we sailed as much as we could. Most of the way we had to motor. Given that it was November, the sunset was at 5:30ish pm. That meant a lot of hours of darkness which made me (Erika) nervous.
Several hours after sunset, while Ryan was sleeping, there was quite a lightning show off our port side. The sky was clear overhead but after watching the storm for a while I was getting pretty freaked out. We were far enough off-shore that we lost Star Link and I couldn’t check the radar to make sure the storm wasn’t coming our way. After our autopilot turned unexpectedly I lost it and had to call Ryan up. At this point, I was having a full-blown panic attack. Ryan upgraded our Star Link plan so we could check the radar and once convinced the storm wasn’t coming our way I went down to sleep for a few hours. Ryan ended up staying up all night to finish this passage. We made it to Charleston and spent the entire next day relaxing and catching up on sleep.
While in Charleston we met up with another young couple from SV Mojo. They have cruised to the Bahamas before with their two cats so it was great to chat with them about everything we have to look forward to. We really enjoyed walking around Charleston but the anchorage was pretty rolly. Our original plan was to wait in Charleston for another weather window to jump offshore and head for Cumberland Island (at the Florida/Georgia line). The weather was not cooperating for the foreseeable future so we decided to continue down the ICW instead.
We headed south with plenty of dolphin sightings along the way. It was nice to find a quiet anchorage without any rolling or boat traffic buzzing by.
We enjoyed a night near South Fenwick Island which had nice trails to walk on. Also nearby this anchorage was B and B Seafood which sold their freshly caught shrimp for $8 lb. We watched the shrimp boats going by all day and it was nice to be able to enjoy locally caught seafood! The ICW in South Carolina is very pretty. You are surrounded by salt marshes and palm trees. We had some really great sunsets!
We landed in Beaufort SC and stayed a few days to take a break from all the travel. The weather was warm and sunny the day we arrived but then a cold front came through bringing high winds, rain, and much colder temperatures. We made the most of it and still enjoyed walking around town. The town is really pretty, full of antebellum homes and trees that are dripping with Spanish Moss.
After a couple of days, the weather still didn’t look great for jumping back out into the ocean so we continued south and into Georgia.
The wind was still up, it was cloudy and cold, for several days. The current in this part of the ICW is also quite strong with the tide peaking at 9 ft in the middle of Georgia. With the water moving by the boat quickly at night it isn’t exactly quiet. We were both feeling pretty worn out at this point. It was several days of zig-zagging through Georgia before we finally made it to Cumberland Island which is at the Florida-Georgia line. Once we made it there we waited for the weather to clear so we could enjoy the island before moving on.
The Island was a highlight of the whole East Coast trip so far. The hiking trails are beautiful and there is so much wildlife to see! We hiked the island for two days, taking time to enjoy the beaches and exploring the ruins of an old manor owned by the Carnegie family. We saw several armadillos, turkeys, and deer. The island is also home to wild horses but we only saw one on the beach as we were leaving the anchorage.
From there we headed just across the state line to Fernandina Beach Florida where we stayed for a few days. Making it to Florida meant we could finally slow down again. We caught up with friends aboard SV Keilani (whom we had met in the North Channel) and SV Mojo whom we met in Charleston. We enjoyed our time in our first Florida beach town and began organizing and provisioning for the Bahamas.
Our next stop was St Augustine. We had nice weather and were able to jump outside for a motor sail in the ocean. It was nice to be out in the open water again. The buildings in the historic part of town were amazing to see. We spent a full day wandering the streets and taking it all in before continuing south. Here we also had our first Thanksgiving aboard. While it wasn’t the normal, huge meal, we enjoyed it! We would have loved to spend more time but we had a marina reservation in Titusville so we could have a short re-set and see some family. We once again had nice weather to jump out into the ocean. We actually were able to sail for several hours of the passage. We also saw a giant ray leap out of the water!
We spent five nights in Titusville at the marina. On our way to the marina we had several miles in the ICW. This part of the ICW was really pretty and we saw plenty of manatees and dolphins. While at the marina, we got plenty of projects completed and cleaned the boat. It had been two months since we were at a marina. We took full advantage of the endless fresh water, laundry on shore and plugging into shore power to use all the power we wanted/needed. We had a wonderful time visiting with family for a few days (Erika’s mom and Chip flew down and her Aunt Nancy drove over for a day), walking the beach and the nearby. nature preserve. Thankfully our visitors had rented a car and didn’t mind running us around so we could fully prevision for the Bahamas where groceries will be much more expensive.
After all our visitors left we treated ourselves to a full day at the Kennedy Space Center. We toured the visitors center and took the bus tour around the launch pads and to the Saturn 5 and Appollo Center. It was really amazing to see everything and well worth the cost for the tour.
The following morning we slipped the lines and headed south, back our on anchor. West Palm will be our final destination in Florida. From there we will wait for our weather window and cross over to the Bahamas!
Another big month of motoring. When we planned our trip South, I didn't think we would be motoring quite this much. Due to weather conditions, we made the decision to push South in the ICW instead of waiting for a good window to jump outside. It is the dirty secret of cruising this coast this time of year is that the wind forecasts are very unpredictable. We are getting strong fronts about once per week, winds directly from the south, etc. We overall have generally only been able to sail (right wind direction) about one day per week this month, and the wind has been dying on us when we do try to sail.
23 Nights on Anchor 5 Nights at Marina 2 Nights at Mooring
After over two months being away from the dock, we got a slip in Titusville for 5 nights. The goal was to visit family, provision our pantry, get the boat ready for the next big jump to the Bahamas get off the boat to go to the Kennedy Space Center
29 kWh of Solar Generated
Our solar output was pretty bad here in November, with the bad weather we had a lot of cloudy days. We also motored
$4,746 Total Spent $158.15 Average Per Day
We blew past our budget this month - no question about it... by about 3X. It was for good reason, and we hope to make up for it in the next few months. A lot of what we purchased either went into our pantry (about $1,000 of groceries for pantry only). Getting a slip and mooring was a big expense that saved us a lot of time, water and electric. Once again, we spent about $440 on fuel - way higher than what we had planned since we were planning to sail. Restaurants were another area we went over budget, meeting our friends in Carolina Beach caused us to go out to eat a few times, then again in Charleston. We went over budget in these areas, but we did want to experience the local food in these destinations. Finally, we spent a lot of money on boat upgrades getting the boat ready for the Bahamas: new lifelines, EPIRB, oil change, various spare parts, fishing gear... this is the last opportunity we have to get Amazon orders, parts, etc. so we're trying to take advantage before going to the Bahamas. While we blew up the budget this month, this was at least somewhat intentional because we expect the next few months while in the Bahamas will be very low cost.
We are so sick of motoring - this is the final 'big stretch' of a bunch of motoring going through the ICW at Cape Hatteras. We started the month in the Hudson River, and ended up having to motor all the way down the New Jersey Coast and through the Delaware Bay due to no wind. Once in the Chesapeake we had a couple of windy days - it's either blowing <5 knots or > 20 knots there doesn't seem to be any in-between here. We knew there'd be a bit of motoring, but thought we'd left the majority of it behind us after the Erie Canal. It seems like motoring is the dirty secret of cruising life since everyone is doing it to make miles, but it's frustrating when you just want to sail.
31 Nights on Anchor 0 Nights At Marina
For the first time, we spent every night of the month on anchor. We haven't been to a marina since we had the mast put back up in Catskill Creek. We prefer anchoring, not just due to the cost savings but it's quieter and honestly easier since our boat is set up to be off-grid. We still haven't turned on the watermaker, but we picked up a water jug in Annapolis so we can haul water in the dinghy without going to the fuel dock or marina.
44 kWh of Solar Generated
In the month of October, we generated 44 kWh of solar power. The lowest our batteries got were 35% state of charge due to getting rained out for a couple of days. With the sun getting lower in the sky and days getting shorter, we're seeing a lower output per day (1.42 kWh/day). We did pick up an additional solar panel as a 'floater' that we can move around the deck to optimize another 100+ watts of solar. We now have 550 watts of solar installed plus another 130 watt floater panel.
$3,137 Total Spent $101 Average Per Day
Boat repairs and upgrades were higher than expected. While we were in Annapolis, we got spare parts, a new halyard, a series drogue, and some other odds and ends. We also had an issue with our engine raw water pump leaking - driving about $400 in rebuild kits (including spares). We didn't spend ANY money on marinas or moorings, but had another big month of motoring driving our fuel expense higher than we budgeted. Groceries were also higher than planned because we did a pantry grocery run while we were in Baltimore. Finally we had two Amazon orders, including the solar upgrade we did (another panel, controller, and wiring). November we're hoping to get our costs back under control, but do expect to greatly exceed our grocery budget as we start to stockpile food for the Bahamas.
After two very rolly, uncomfortable nights in the Hudson River, in the wind and waves, we set off for New York City. We had sunny skies and dying waves as we entered the city. We just so happened to see a boat from our Marina in Muskegon leaving to head south as we were about to pass the Statue of Liberty. This worked out perfectly as we could each take pictures of each other’s boats as we passed the statue!
After our quick photo shoot and a chat on the radio they headed south and we went to anchor behind the Statue of Liberty for the night. It was amazing to see the statue lit up at night and watch the sunset with views of the Manhatten skyline. We celebrated our arrival to the ocean with some Jefferson’s Ocean bourbon that we had bought a while ago before we left Michigan.
The weather for the next few days was nice and calm for us to head south so the following morning we woke up early to take the current as it was flowing out of New York Harbour. We had a nearly full moon and a well-lit city to help guide us out in the dark.
We had barely any wind so we had to motor to Atlantic City, it was a long, 91-mile day. We made it in just as the sun was setting. We saw dolphins in the channel as we entered. It was exciting to have completed our first passage in the ocean.
From Atlantic City, we continued south and stopped just around Cape May. We were able to sail for part of the passage before the wind died off again. We were thankful for the calm weather window to get us down the New Jersey coast and into the Chesapeake Bay. There are not many places to stop along this stretch of coast. We anchored just inside of the Delaware Bay for the night. We got a great sunset and then tucked ourselves in for the night.
The next day we went all the way up the Delaware Bay and through the C & D Canal. Part way up the bay we became surrounded by dense fog. There was a long line of boats headed in the same direction as we were. We heard a lot of marine traffic on the radio as we all hailed each other to make sure we were staying safe and clear. We were really glad we had AIS and radar! After about 2-3 hours in the fog, it did burn off and we were left with sunshine and calm seas. We planned to stop in Chesapeake City for the night but the anchorage was pretty full when we arrived. We continued on through the C & D canal and entered the Chesapeake Bay! We ended up making it all the way to the Sassafras River where we anchored for two nights. We were all very happy to finally be in the Chesapeake and start slowing down!
The next day, we met Ryan’s aunt Judy and uncle Don in Fredericktown for lunch so they could bring us the several items we had delivered to their house. It was nice to see them and catch up! After our visit, we did a few boat projects and figured we might as well toss a line in the water and try to get some crab. In less than 20 minutes we had two catfish! We fried them up and they were delicious!
From the Sassafras River, we moved across the bay to Middle River to wait out some rainy, windy weather. Here we tried our luck at crabbing but we were unsuccessful. We got several projects done and gave the inside of the boat and the cockpit a good cleaning while it rained.
Once the rain stopped we made our way to Baltimore. The anchorage here was set up super well! We were walking distance from almost everything we wanted to see plus there was a dingy dock, grocery store, Ace Hardware, and West Marine nearby.
We didn’t know a lot about Baltimore before we arrived but we ended up really enjoying our time in this city! We walked the harbor and explored the neighborhoods of Fell’s Point, Little Italy, and the Inner Harbor. We had some delicious food and explored historic Fort Mchenry.
After Baltimore, we headed to Annapolis where we planned to attend the boat show.
While in Annapolis we caught up with Sandpiper who we briefly saw in NYC. They left our marina in Muskegon a few weeks after we did. It was nice to chat and exchange stories of our journeys so far. Before attending the boat show we headed to Bacon Sails and Marine which we had heard great things about. They have everything you could ever possibly need aboard your boat. They have consignment items and new items. We were there for hours searching every shelf and chatting with the super friendly staff!
We met up with Erika’s mom and other family, and friends for the boat show. It ended up pouring rain the day we all attended but it was still a lot of fun! We saw a lot of fancy new boats but we both felt we still would rather have Resande at the end of the day!
In Annapolis, we also caught up with another couple who had left from Michigan this summer. We had been talking with Lucas and Emily from SV Alaya for years but never met in person until now.
Once the boat show was over we moved on to a more secluded anchorage. We had a perfect sail to Wye Island! We hoped to do some hiking on the island but the trail was not as easily accessible as we hoped. It was still a beautiful anchorage and we saw a ton of little jellyfish in the water! SV Alaya also met us here for a night so we could share another evening and a beer with them before moving on.
From Wye Island, we moved to the nearby town of St. Michaels. We had heard this was a very cute town and it did live up to the hype! There is a dingy dock in town and the town is very quaint. There are plenty of shops, restaurants, cafes, and ice cream places in town. We enjoyed a hot chocolate and sat outside to enjoy our afternoon after wandering through town. There is also a large marine museum with plenty of ships you can see from the water.
The next day, it was time to move south through the bay. We woke up early and left for Solomon’s Island. It was about 48 miles away but we added a few miles, tacking back and forth upwind. We started with a great sail across the bay but then we had to beat directly upwind into the waves to get south. We knew it would be an upwind passage but the wind was much stronger than forecast. The waves were slowing us down to a knot or two. After several hours of this, we put the staysail out and motor sailed, tacking back and forth to get a better angle. This made the ride a bit more comfortable and helped up make 4-5 knots of speed through the waves. It was a rough passage but we landed in a very peaceful anchorage. We stayed in Solomons for a few days, waiting out some stronger winds before moving on.
We enjoyed walking around Solomons Island and we found possibly the best pizza we have ever had at Cryptic Pizza while we were there. After the wind died down we headed south. It was starting to get quite cold. A few nights, we had lows in the 40s!
Our sail from Solomons started with worse conditions than we hoped. The wind was still up, gusting to 35 knots at one point with larger waves than we expected. With a reefed main and the staysail we were doing well in the conditions. As the afternoon went on the wind slowly died. We got a short period of time with sunny skies and perfect sailing conditions and then the wind completely died. We had to motor the last two hours of the passage but we made it to Deltaville.
We took a day off from moving and did a few projects in Deltaville before heading to the end of the Chesapeake Bay. We landed in Hampton where we stocked up on groceries before starting down the Atlantic ICW. For more details on cruising the Chesapeake check out our post- Cruising the Chesapeake Bay.
From Hampton, we left in the dark, very early the next morning to get going. We went through Norfolk and passed all the Naval boats and aircraft carriers. We chose to take the Virginia Cut route of the ICW to avoid having to go around Cape Hatteras in the open ocean. This cut takes you under several lift bridges that need to open and a lock. The ICW is busy this time of year! We locked through the Great Bridge Lock with 15 other boats. The lock raises or lowers 2-3 feet with the tide, we are not sure it moved us at all! After the large locks in the Erie Canal, this one seemed like nothing.
We had several very long days of motoring through the ICW in Virginia and North Carolina. In the beginning stretches there are not a lot of places to anchor. This made for a few 60-ish mile days.
Our first stop in an actual town was Belhaven North Carolina. This very small town is extremely welcoming to cruisers! A very nice woman gave us a ride back from the grocery store. Then at the dinghy dock while filling our water jerry can we were welcomed by another woman and given a welcome packet with information and coupons. The town is tiny but we really enjoyed walking around. The final canal that connects the ICW from Virginia to Florida was completed here so it is said to be the birthplace of the ICW.
After spending a day in town and completing a project to fix our autopilot we headed off. Another long day took us all the way to Beaufort NC. We saw plenty of dolphins as we approached the city. The ICW finally gets close to the coast again here and it felt nice to see them again and smell the ocean air. It really feels like we are south now. There are palm trees and pelicans constantly flying overhead. The weather has been warm in the 70s-80s and sunny!
When we arrived in Beaufort we noticed a problem with the water pump on our engine. We had a spare so we thought it would be a quick swap. The spare was also leaking, even worse than the original. We quickly called around but couldn’t find the part we needed at any nearby marine store. Thankfully EBay had it and we ordered it to be delivered to a marina here this week.
After realizing we couldn’t fix our issue yet, we decided to enjoy our time in Beaufort while waiting for our part delivery. From the anchorage, we can see wild horses on the island across from town. We took the dinghy over to hike and get a closer look. We also really enjoyed walking through town, looking at all the impressive old houses and taking in the history of the area. We walked the old burying ground which is a historic cemetery established in 1724. There are stones mostly from the Civil War era. The grounds are beautiful to walk through.
Our month will end here in Beaufort. Today and tomorrow high winds are forecast so we will wait that out and get our part delivered tomorrow. Hopefully, a quick install will fix our issue and we can move on Thursday. We are planning to be in Carolina Beach at the same time as some friends from Michigan so fingers crossed it all works out!
This was a month of making miles! We started the month on our first overnight passage from the Bruce Peninsula to Lake St. Clair and ended the month in New York City. In between was a visit with family in Detroit, a sail across Lake Erie, unstepping the mast in Buffalo, then motoring through the state of New York via the Erie Canal and Hudson River. A lot of hours on the engine this month, but we made a lot of progress!
15 Nights on Anchor 12 Nights at Free Walls
3 Nights At Marina
We spent two nights in Detroit visiting family on our way through, then one night at Hop-O-Nose waiting to get our mast put back up. During the Erie Canal, there are free spots to stay the night throughout. Some even have power and water for free so we were able to keep charged up and topped off on water throughout the canal. We only paid for 3 nights total, plus we paid $20 for power at the Waterford free dock for two nights. Our solar output dropped significantly with the mast partially covering the panels.
27 kWh of Solar Generated
In the month of September, we generated 27 kWh of solar power. This is our lowest solar generation so far, for multiple reasons. Our mast was over our panels which cut our solar output by at least 50%. We also motored a ton, which tops off our batteries and our solar chargers go into float mode (limits solar absorption). Finally, our days are getting shorter and weather is becoming less predictable meaning fewer hours of good sunlight hitting our panels
$4,204 Total Spent $140.13 Average Per Day
We knew this would be our most expensive month because of the mast work we had to do, but we also had a few other things that made it extra expensive. Taking the mast down was $10/ft plus $100 for the cradle, and putting it back up was $7/ft for a grand total of $1,116. We also had to pay for a full year of boat insurance, which was $908. Backing this out of the total spent, we spent $2,180, or $72.67 per day. We motored a ton, and had to order some spare parts that we'll pick up in the Chesapeake. We also went out to eat a few more times than in the past since we were in the canal going through small towns. Overall it was an expensive month, but should be an outlier on our way South.
We started September, waking up after our first overnight passage. That morning, we went under the Bluewater Bridge, flying at 9 knots in the current! We anchored in Bassett Channel for the night, needing to find a place to recharge before carrying on. Bassett Channel was our last night in Canada. After about 6 weeks cruising Canadian Waters, we checked back into the U.S. the following day.
We entered Lake St. Clair which is where Ryan grew up power boating. We headed into Metro Beach to anchor for the night. We enjoyed walking along the park in the afternoon. That evening, we were visited by some family friends of Ryan’s- Rich and Sue Zimmer.
The following day we headed into Detroit where we had a marina slip booked for two nights. We started off with a nice sail and then the wind picked up, gusting up to 25 knots. After tacking back in forth for a while we turned the motor on to head into the river. The wind was coming directly from Detroit and we couldn’t make much forward progress tacking and avoiding the shallow areas around the channel.
In the Detriot River, we had big, sloppy waves from the wind and boat traffic. We made it into Milliken State Harbor and were thankful to be docked for the day. After chatting with the boat next door we headed to the grocery store to re-supply. Later that evening we visited with family and were brought some more groceries from Costo. On the way back from dinner we got an amazing sunset and a partial rainbow although only a few sprinkles of rain.
The following day we had more family visits and the delivery of our new mainsail from Presision Sails. This was delivered to Ryan’s mom and we had been anxiously awaiting being able to see it! After all the visits were over we settled back in, put everything away, and prepared for our journey into Lake Erie the following morning.
We woke up early and set off just after sunrise. We got great views of the Detroit skyline in the sun and then went under the Ambassador Bridge. After that, we saw the Gordie Howe Bridge which is still under construction. Part of the bridge is built on either side but it is not yet completed in the center.
We anchored at Kelley’s Island for the night before waking up early and continuing across Lake Erie. Our next anchorage was Fairport Harbor. On the way, we got hit with a big storm that blew through. We thankfully were ready, we had two reefs in the main and the staysail only up. The storm brought gusts up to 36 knots and tons of rain! It was over relatively quickly. It stole all of our wind so we were left motoring the rest of the day. Our next stop, after another long day of sailing, was Erie Pensilvania. This brought us most of the way across the lake. In Erie, we slowed down to catch up on a few things and called the boatyard that was going to be taking our mast down so we could transit the Erie Canal. We also met some fellow cruisers from Muskegon while anchored here. We enjoyed sharing stories and future cruising plans with SV Dauntless.
After a few days in Erie, we headed on to Buffalo New York. This was the end of our time in the Great Lakes. The following day we headed down the Black Rock Canal to Tonawanda which is where our mast was taken down.
We arrived at Wardell Boatyard in Tonawanda and were told he could take our mast down that day. We quickly got the sails down and the boat ready. After a long afternoon of work, our mast was on the deck and we were prepared to head down the canal. We stocked up on groceries in town and shared a drink with SV Dauntless one last time, for now.
The following morning we left our new cruising friends and headed into the Erie Canal.
Overall we really enjoyed our time on the canal. Traveling the canal took us 340 miles, through 16 lift bridges and 35 locks. The canal is centered around tourists and pleasure boats transiting so everyone was very welcoming, helpful, and friendly. We stayed most nights for free, often with electric and water hook-ups. For more details on the canal, read our post on- Transiting the Erie Canal by Sailboat.
On the Erie Canal:
Day 1- Tonawanda to Lockport 18 miles, 2 locks
Day 2- Lockport to Spencerport 49.2 miles, 15 lift bridges. We stopped in Holly for lunch and to see the waterfall which was quite impressive.
Day 3- Spencerport to Newark 44.5 miles, 4 locks
Day 4- Fairport to May’sPoint/Lock 25 22.5 miles, 5 locks
Day 5- May’s Point/Lock 25 to Brewerton 53 miles, 2 locks
Day 6- Brewerton to Lock 20 45.5 miles, 3 locks
We were trying to stay in Rome for the day and explore the city. We ended up running hard aground and getting stuck in the mud approaching the dock. We had to drop the dinghy in the water and use it to tow Resande off the mud. We got floating again and headed off to find another place to stay the night.
Day 7- Lock 20 to Little Falls/Lock 17 26 miles, 3 locks
We went through the largest lock on the canal that day. Lock 17 rises/lowers 40.5 ft and the guard gate lifts over the boat as you exit. It is one of only two locks in North America that has this feature. This lock was the tallest lift lock in the world when it was built and is still one of the tallest today.
Day 8- Relax and Explore in Little Falls and Moss Island
We decided to take a day off and explore more around this small town. There are many historical buildings in town to see. We also enjoyed seeing the falls as we entered town from the lock. After our walk around town, we grabbed some pizza and beer for lunch at Mangia Macrina’s Wood-Fired Pizza.
The other highlight for us here was exploring Moss Island. This unique island is known for its large 40-foot-deep potholes (rock formations).
Day 9- Little Falls/Lock 17 to Lock 11, 40 miles, 5 locks
Day 10- Lock E11 to Crescent, 34 miles, 5 locks
Day 11- Crescent to Waterford, 5 locks, and the end of the Erie Canal!
We transited the Waterford Flight on the last day on the canal. This set of locks includes locks 6-2. These locks are known for raising/lowering a boat the greatest amount in the shortest distance in the world- 169 ft in 2 miles! Once we got through the locks we arrived at Waterford where we stayed two nights to relax, clean the boat, and re-provision. This concluded our time on the Erie Canal!
We really enjoyed walking to see Cohoes Falls and walking around Peeble Island State Park while we were in Waterford. Cohoes Falls is the second-largest waterfall in the state of New York.
From Waterford, we entered the Hudson River and headed south! At Catskill, we got our mast put back up and the boat re-rigged with all sails back up. It felt really good to get the mast off the deck and get back out on anchor!
Much of the Hudson is really pretty with rocky hills along the edges. We passed West Point which was very impressive to see from the water.
As we approached Nyack we got caught in a significant rainstorm! New York City saw flooding in the streets and subway with up to 10 inches of rain seen in parts of the city and surrounding area. We had planned to have lunch with a friend but had to postpone until the weather passed. With the rain came a wind that had us rocking and rolling as we were anchored along the river. As the tide and current oppose the wind the waves really stack up. We had possibly the worst night on anchor ever here! There are not well-protected anchorages along the Hudson and even a lot of the small marinas are exposed to the waves so there was nothing to do but wait it out. We slept in the aft cabin where at least it was a little quieter than in the v-berth. On the last day of September, the rain still lingered so we continued to wait it out.
Tomorrow is the first day of October and it is supposed to bring sunshine and more favorable conditions as we head into New York City!
August started with us in Sault St. Marie needing to re-supply after our journey through Lake Superior. We spent one night in the marina on the Canadian side. We got groceries, filled our water tank, washed the boat, and got rid of trash. From there we headed back down the river and then east towards the North Channel.
We planned to really slow down in the North Channel. We want to enjoy our time in the Great Lakes as much as we can before we leave and head for the ocean!
After a quick stop in Milford Haven for the night we continued across the channel, officially entering the North Channel anchorages! We dodged squalls all day, getting rain and some distant thunder and lightning. Our first anchorage in the North Channel was Turnbull Island. We met several other cruisers here since there is a nice beach with picnic tables, a fire pit, and grills. We shared some of the delicious walleye that a neighboring boat had caught that day. Cruisers who had traveled the North Channel several times before shared their favorite anchorages with us and other important intel on the area.
While in Turnbull we finally blew up our inflatable paddle boards and got into cruising mode! With all the anchorages in the North Channel being so close together we kept them inflated for our entire trip, giving us another way to explore!
From Turnbull, we headed to Beardrop Harbour. This was one of our favorite stops in the North Channel! We found plenty of blueberries here! We made pancakes, waffles, and blueberry muffin top cookies with our loot! Beardrop is a huge anchorage with access out into Whalesback Channel. We did a ton of paddle boarding while we were here and had great weather!
Our next two stops we okay anchorages, pretty but not the best compared to what we knew was ahead of us. We did one night in Moiles Harbour and one night in Eagle Island before heading into the Benjamin Island group.
We loved every island in the Bejamin group. South Benjamin is by far the most popular but the island group includes Fox Island, North and South Benjamin, and Crocker Island. We visited all of them! Fox was our first stop and it was stunning! We did our first stern tie here and found the island to be full of little channels perfect for paddle boarding.
North Benjamin is more heavily wooded but we still found some rocky shoreline to explore.
South Benjamin was also great for paddle boarding and walking up the rocky hills for great views of the anchorages below. The rocks in this island group are pink quartz which is different from the rest of the North Channel. While in South Benjamin we met another boat planning to leave the Great Lakes and head south this year. We spent a great afternoon chatting with them and their kids aboard their boat SV Keilani. We look forward to seeing them again as we both head south.
Our last stop in Crocker was also a very pretty anchorage. Here we even saw several minks running and swimming along the shore right next to where we stern-tied.
It had been just over two full weeks since we provisioned in Sault St. Marie so we were in need of groceries and filling our water tanks. In Lake Superior, we filled our tanks with lake water while underway but we didn’t feel as good about that in the North Channel. The water isn’t as clear and there is significantly more boat traffic. We stopped in at Little Current where you can tie up to the marina wall for free as long as you’re not spending the night. We got a spot, filled the water tanks, emptied our trash, and then headed to the grocery store. After getting our groceries back on the boat and put away we walked to lunch. We had delicious fish and chips from The Port (a small shack/foot truck-like place). After lunch, we waited for the next opening of the swing bridge so we could head out to our next anchorage. The swing bridge opens every hour, on the hour, for 15 minutes.
There was a pretty big blow and storm forecast for the next day so we tucked into Mary Ann Cove which is inside a fjord called Baie Fine. This anchorage was super protected from the wind and the waves. We waited out the wind and explored Mary Ann Cove. There is a great hike up Casson peak right from the cove. The views were amazing!
Once the wind died down and the weather cleared, we headed up the fjord to The Pool. This anchorage is a highlight of the North Channel and we had been looking forward to it for a while! The anchorage is beautiful. You can hike to several lakes from the anchorage as you are within Killarney Provincial Park. The highlight is Topaz Lake! We had the lake to ourselves when we arrived. We dove into the clear water and saw a huge, terrifying snake on the rocks along the shore!
While at the pool, we celebrated Erika’s birthday with grilled swordfish that we had picked up on our most recent grocery run.
After the pool, we headed to our last North Channel anchorage, Covered Portage Cove. This place was also stunning, with tall, white cliffs. We hiked to the top of the hills and enjoyed paddling around the anchorage here. We talked with some fellow cruisers and soaked up the last of the North Channel! It was beginning to feel like fall weather and we knew its just about time to start making miles south!
Before officially leaving the North Channel, we spend the night at the Killarney Mountain Lodge. We were told by several other cruisers it was a nice spot. The marina stay includes access to their pool, sauna, and free laundry. We used all the amenities and enjoyed dinner at the restaurant by the pool while waiting for our laundry. After dinner, we walked the property and then tucked in for the night. For more details on our adventures in the North Channel, you can read our post-World-Class Cruising in the Great Lakes.
The following day we headed into the Georgian Bay. This was our first open water, wavey passage since before we entered the North Channel. We were hoping to be able to sail however the left-over swell from the day before was still relatively high. We were beating directly into 3-5ft waves with not enough wind to power through without the engine to help. We motor sailed east and entered the Bad River Channel.
The Bad River anchorage was recommended to us by other cruisers we met in the North Channel. The anchorage is super well protected. We spent two nights here. The Devil’s Door Rapids are right next to the anchorage. With a motorized dinghy, you can get past the rapids and then explore the river and smaller channels. Our dingy, Caribe ended up taking us over several sets of small rapids. This was a really cool stop and we had a lot of fun exploring here!
From the Bad River, we crossed the Georgian Bay towards Tobermory. We had a wavey sail across. We sailed dead down-wind in 4-7 ft waves. We arrived at Windfield Basin anchorage after the crossing. This was the narrowest channel we have ever entered. We arrived with waves crashing along the shoals on both sides. Once inside it was completely calm. This anchorage itself doesn’t have much to explore. We spent the night, walked to the lighthouse the next day then headed off.
We had a perfect sail to Dunk’s Bay with sunny skies, calm seas, and 10-12 knots on the beam. Dunk’s Bay is beautiful. There are cottages along most of the shore so it is difficult to explore here by land. Last year we were in this area with our teardrop trailer and we were surprised at how much private land is on this Peninsula around the National Parks. We paddled around in the crystal clear waters and were able to explore the coast this time around!
The following morning we headed into Tobermory. On the way, we went by FlowerPot Island to get a view of the flowerpot rock formations along the shore. We got a slip in Little Tug Harbour for the night. Here we stocked up on groceries and enjoyed a beer and some food at Tobermory Brewing Company.
From the marina, we also took our dinghy over to Big Tub Harbour. Big Tub Harbour has two shipwrecks that lay in very shallow and clear water. We weren’t able to explore this harbor last year when we came with the trailer. We would have had to pay to take a tour or rent kayaks to get to the shipwrecks. This year, with our dinghy and paddle boards we were able to visit for free. The area right over the wrecks is restricted, and no motorized boats are allowed. We tied Caribe (our dinghy) up to a mooring ball right in front of the restricted area then paddled directly over the wrecks. The larger of the two is in very good shape! We were really glad we got to see them this time around!
From Tobermory, we headed back out on anchor at Cove Island. There was some weather forecast to come through so we left the marina early in the morning to get tucked into our anchorage before the wind and rain. The anchorage on the island is well-protected in all directions. The island itself is heavily forested and also part of the Five Fathoms Marine Park. We waited out the weather here for two nights before taking our weather window for a big push south.
On the last day of August, we left our anchorage and began our first big passage. From Cove Island we took off, all the way down Lake Huron.
This was our first overnight passage. We sailed 173 miles south. We started with no wind and big swells left over from the high winds the day before. The waves calmed down and we got enough wind for a pleasant sail all afternoon. Overnight we had calm seas and low winds so we motor sailed until morning with a full moon overhead.
For more details on hours sailed, motored, how much spent and more statistics check our post – August Cruising Stats.
September will have us picking up the pace to make miles out toward to Ocean and then South!
In the North Channel, most of the anchorages were very close together. We didn't put many miles under the keel once we got to the North Channel Cruising grounds. The majority of the miles in August were at the beginning of the month (Sault Ste. Marie to Turnbull Island) and the end of the month (Killarney to Bad river, and South to Port Huron). We were able to sail about 50% of the miles we traveled in August.
27 Nights on Anchor 3 Nights At Marina 1 Night on Passage
We spent 3 nights at paid marinas in August. We started the month at a Marina in Sault Ste. Marie after 2 weeks in the Lake Superior Canadian wilderness. We decided to spend the money on the next two, but they were voluntary: Killarney Mountain Lodge was recommended by many cruisers, and was a refreshing stop. Tobermory was the last one, and it was a choice we made so we could spend some time in the town, stock up on groceries, and get a permit for the Five Fathom Marine Park. We could have done this all by dinghy, but we liked the town and taking the dinghy would have been a long 4+ mile ride each way. We ended
53 kWh of Solar Generated
In the month of August, we generated 53kWh of solar, or 1.77 kW/day on average. Overall we've been able to keep up with the power loads, but we've had to go into power management a few times (turning off Starlink more hours per day and using the electric kettle less). The lowest our batteries got was 52%, which was due to 2 full cloud days with minimal solar. We're starting to see our solar output reduce with the shorter days, so we're being a bit more mindful than we were in July
$1,911 Total Spent $61.64 Average Per Day
Groceries, non-food, and fuel were the top three categories in August. Since we landed in Sault Ste. Marie on August 1, all the expenses from that day hit in August. We bought about $192 in Fuel that day, which was the fuel we used while we were in Lake Superior (this is about 2/3 of the fuel we spent money on in August). Non-Groceries is a catch-all category for things that aren't groceries, but not for the boat. For example, the Coco Coir we use for our composting toilet or cat litter. We made a big Amazon order that we're shipping to our parents in Detroit which we needed several items that will set us up well for the next few months. Groceries were more expensive in Canada than we were anticipating, as the small town grocery stores are generally more expensive. We did add a new category, which is 'YouTube Related" which is a catch-all for expenses related to doing our YouTube content. This month we bought a new hard drive and a full-year subscription for Artlist music. They aren't necessarily Cruising expenses so we wanted to split them out. September will be a very expensive month. We're going to motor a TON with the Erie Canal and rivers, plus we need to unstep and step the mast for the canal. Fortunately, we should only have to pay for about 3 nights at a marina/mooring, but we'll see!
