On Our Way to Quebec City

 Sunday, July 4th: Kingston

 Sea Change and Sandcastle on the wall at Cobourg Marina

I've tried several times to get blogging with no luck. I haven't had much time or Web access and more to the point, there hasn't been much "adventure" - yet - and I'm finding it hard to write something interesting about a part of the route that's old hat for us.

Last Tuesday morning after a couple of hours of final preparations, we left our dock at the club and sailed to Whitby were we met up with Karen and Warren on their sailboat Sandcastle. We first met Karen and Warren in the Bahamas and traveled with them along with other boats for part of our trip home on the Intracoastal Waterway. Sandcastle will be our sailing partner for our cruise to Quebec City. Once there, we'll be having a bit of a Bahamas renunion with three other couples that we also met on our cruise south. They are all sailors but they'll be driving from their home cities to join us.

On our first two days of sailing first to Whitby and then to Cobourg, we were pushed east by bitterly cold stiff winds coming out of the west. The winds also brought an uncomfortable following sea which I always find difficult at the beginning of a cruise when I don't yet have my "sea legs". Those cold days were not a lot of fun but when we got to Belleville, it was starting to warm up. From there on the winds moderated and we began to feel more in the "holiday" frame of mind. By the time we got to Kingston we were totally back into our on the water routine, the sun was out and after a rollicking fast sail for the last part of the cruise, we found ourselves sitting at the Kingston Yacht club below Queens University and within walking distance to the heart of things in downtown Kingston.

Bob, Eileen, John, Karen and Warren

We've been sailing less a week but we've done a fair bit of socializing. In Whitby, my cousin Bob and his wife Mary drove from Pickering to have dinner with us and then in Belleville, it so happened that John and Eileen Woolsey were on Somewhere In Time at Meyers Marina where we stopped and they kindly invited all four of us onboard for dinner.

As we were sailing towards Kingston, a couple that Karen and Warren know well from the Bahamas trip heard Warren on the VHF and called him. During the call another sailor broke in, he and his wife also know Karen and Warren from their trip south. Both couples were on their boats and staying at Collins Bay Marina - a short drive to Kingston. The next day the two couples drove to meet us and we all walked over to the Kingston's famous all day breakfast place, Morrison's for a late breakfast. (Those Bahamas travelers are eveywhere!)

Bahamas Sailors Breakfast in Kingston

Warren has been having trouble with their GPS and to give him time to sort everything out, we decided to stay a second night in Kingston. This also gave us the opportunity to have Sean and Michelle drive from Toronto for a night on the boat. (We had already discussed the possiblity with them.) They arrived late Saturday afternoon and we immediately set out for dinner and after that a walk around town and the university.  The campus was beautifully quiet - no students - just the lovely old stone buildings with lots of big trees and green spaces.

Michelle and Sean are on their way back to Toronto today and along with Sandcastle, we're making the short run up the Bateau Channel to the Trident Yacht Club. The club has a picturesque peaceful setting and the hilltop barbecue area looks out toward the Thousand Islands. We'll do some laundry there, and confer with Karen and Warren on how far we go tomorrow.