Louisa Island to Matheson Island

Louisa Island to Matheson Island

July 4, 2010
6NM

As you’ll notice if you’ve been following the nautical mileage I post in all the headings, our daily mileage has shrunk and we’ve been spending less time sailing and more time relaxing at anchor. This is by design. Now that we’re midway through our cruise (1 month behind us, just over a month ahead of us) and we’re in the heart of the North Channel we’re taking it slow and stopping at all of the anchorages that call to us on the charts.

Today’s destination is little Matheson Island along the North Channel’s northern shoreline. This pretty little rock island has a nice natural harbor that’s protected from the southwest winds forecast for today. As it turns out, we’re the only boat at this off-the-beaten-path island and so we’ll celebrate America’s Independence Day as a family enjoying our freedom to travel, freedom to explore and freedom to grow!

Bare in mind, this is a cruiser’s celebration somewhere between here and there so we’re not afforded the “luxuries” of sparklers, parades, bands playing the Star Spangled Banner or Old Glory flapping lazily in the center of a park. What we do have is unlimited quantities of refreshing blue water. So, we started our celebration by diving in from Island Bound’s gunnels and taking baths, complete with shampoo, conditioner and three bladed razors to remove the stubble that seems to sprout up on a cruiser’s body. Our Independence Day dinner consists of cheeseburgers and veggie-packets on the grill and Yankee Jim Ice Lager (brewed in Utica, NY). It doesn’t get any more American than that, does it?


Allow me to take a mid-cruise diversion from my normal blog entries. Are cruisers made or are cruisers born? After having lived in a floating 28.5’ by 9.5’ home that travels where the wind blows for more than a month, I’m starting to believe the answer isn’t that simple. I’ve felt an almost magnetic attraction to the water for as long as I can remember. Somehow I’ve always known that the seas (oceans and inland seas such as the Great Lakes) would shape who I am. And so, while cruising seems to be in my blood I can now attest that the fun, adventure and hardships have strengthened the attraction. I once read that “The cure for everything is saltwater: sweat, tears and the sea”. Whether you’re happy, whether you’re sad; whether you’re lost, whether you’re found; cruising will expose it. There’s no hiding your emotions from yourself when all you’ve got is 28.5’ by 9.5’. So we continue to live by the theme of our cruise: Sail far, live free!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Top 10 Favorite Affordable Bluewater Sailboats

Image
I've always said that my favorite boat is whichever one I currently own. Being able to call it "mine" makes it my favorite by default. My first boat was a $400 derelict that I loved (still love) deeply. And she loved me back. However, that doesn't mean there aren't other boats I love that I'd like to call "mine" someday. The following is my personal ranking of my favorite affordable (available for ~$50k) sailboats. I've rather arbitrarily set the price limit around $50k and called it "affordable" in hopes that one day one of these boats might fit my budget and help my family and I to sail far and live free. Also note that other than the top 3, these rankings change in my head almost daily and I really struggled to narrow the list down to just 10.   As you peruse my list, you'll notice that they're all bluewater cruisers . You won't find any modern designs, fin keels, spade rudders, sugar scoop transoms, carbon fiber
Read more

Go Small and Go Now! 5 Pocket Cruisers to Take you Anywhere

Image
"Go small, go simple, go now!" -Lin & Larry Pardey Iconic cruisers Lin and Larry Pardey are well-known among cruising enthusiasts for the above statement. Can it really be that easy? Grab yourself a small boat, outfit it properly but simply for offshore work, and get going while your dream and your body is still alive! Lin and Larry not only made the statement, they lived it. If you're looking to do the same, maybe some of the micro- or pocket-cruisers I've listed below can serve as your "go small" portion of the equation. Going small and choosing one of these or several other pocket cruisers will lead to trade-offs. Of course first and foremost you'll be giving up length, both on deck and at the waterline. This often leads to less storage space, less weight capacity, and slower sailing. But the upside is presumably less maintenance (less paint, less wood, fewer systems) and more affordable expenses. For example, replacing the sails or rigg
Read more

Escape to the Sea: How to get from the Great Lakes to the Caribbean

Image
Let's say winter's chill was something you could no longer take as a Great Lakes sailor. Or perhaps you just want to extend your sailing season beyond the boundaries of summer. What options do you have?  You could just opt for a bareboat charter somewhere in the Caribbean and consider the itch scratched. But then you'd miss out on all the adventure of moving a boat between the Great Lakes and the Caribbean. And you wouldn't be sailing  your  boat. I'm here to convince you that the best option is to sail your own boat south. What follows is an overview of the route you could take to get you and your boat to warmer water and weather from the Great Lakes. Route 1: St. Lawrence Seaway (including Lake Champlain shortcut) You're adventurous if you choose this route. From most starting locations in the Great Lakes, you'll also be seeing the most scenery and passing the
Read more