The First week away onboard.

So this will be a test for us all, Dog included!

So setting off on this trip was going to be fun.......and Indi didn't want to miss out on the action, sitting in the car waiting for us as we packed the trunk.

Don't go without me! 

Radio troubles before we left.

 

Andy took apart the boat to find a radio reception and transmit issue, that he traced back to a broken antenna cable, probably right from the factory. So a few hours later, we could hear and transmit to the other side of the lake.

We left Port Dover on Sunday May 26th to head to our first stop of Port Stanley, about 82 miles by water away, 50 miles as the crow flies.
We left in sunshine and light breeze and headed out on our first run to the end of long point, and the fabled lighthouse we had heard so much about.

We arrived there some 40 minutes later, after a smooth run, and the end of the point is a pretty special place.

Its difficult to imagine that this huge spit can be 20 miles out into the lake.

But we took in the sights and then set off again, taking care to give the sand spit underwater a wide berth.

We then set off to traverse the lake down its northern shoreline on the 60 mile run to Port Stanley, which turned out to get bumpy near port Burwell.....so much so that i had to play the throttles to try to surf the waves.....a bumpy but fun 45 minutes. And Olli took it all in her stride, giving us lots of confidence in her sea keeping ability.

We eventually got to port, some 3 1/2 hours later, and tied up in our first stop, Kettle creek marina.
We were met with a smile, and tied to the wall, right by the side of a picnic table and BBQ grill.
The town is beautiful, with lots of old Victorian charm, and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves, with the local tavern only steps away, we ate out that night on the Patio at 'Me and Suzie's'. They even accommodated the Dog, by putting us by the fence so that she could be not on the patio, but right beside us. Lovely staff, great service and a killer menu made for a great night.

 

We enjoyed walking and exploring the town, and before setting off to our next destination, checked the weather.....not good.....so enjoying Stanley so much, we stayed another 2 nights at Kettle Creek.

Thunderstorms hit the boat.

 

 

We left there on Thursday, and set off back for Dover, passing under the lift bridge in town that opens every 30 minutes. once out of the harbour, I set about fitting the centre windshield for our journey back, and gave the helm to Louise to keep us straight whilst I did this.

That was the last that I saw of driving until Port Dover outer Harbour some 3 hours later!.....Louise drove all the way and did really well, keeping us on track and keeping an eye out for fishing boats, of which there were many, due to the super calm waters.....like glass all the way home.

So ended our first trip....and we loved it all. The boat Olli performed flawlessly, and we had a great time away.

We now look forward to our next trip away, in 4 weeks, when we are going stateside to see the July 4th celebrations, but more of that to come.

Remember...........