Stuart, FL To Racine, WI On A 60MY

[rsmith]

A trip up the St. Lawrence would be nice.

I don’t remember the year I was pretty young the old man used to take me with him to his Power Squadron meetings. One of the meetings they had a slide show from one of the members trips pretty sure it was up the St Laurence seaway. Guy had a 30 something foot Owens. There were these railways that they had a cart and drug the boat over maybe 1/4 mile or so to the next section of canal. Any of that still exist?

[SKYCHENEY]

I don’t remember the year I was pretty young the old man used to take me with him to his Power Squadron meetings. One of the meetings they had a slide show from one of the members trips pretty sure it was up the St Laurence seaway. Guy had a 30 something foot Owens. There were these railways that they had a cart and drug the boat over maybe 1/4 mile or so to the next section of canal. Any of that still exist?

That's on the Trent-Severn. And, yes, its still there.

[Toronto]

Another interesting lift is the hydraulic lift lock in Peterborough, Ontario.
We went in that one in our 52 CPMY. Tough trip with a 5 foot draft.

[Freeebird]

Well, the Stuart to Racine route is confirmed, and the East Coast option is out. Unless Okeechobee comes up by Saturday morning, we’ll head to the Keys and work our way up via the GOM and river system.

If all goes well, that should be about a three week run. The guessing begins when the saltwater ends. That’s when the locks and potential flood issues can mess up the best of guesstimations. Either way, it’s gonna be UGE!

[jim rosenthal]

Stay in touch, Bird. Take a few carrier pigeons along to send us messages. If things get rough, you can always roast them.

[MadHatter53]

If the boat has AIS we could follow your trip.

[Sadey]

it does, Benedetto.

[Dan Mapes]

Bummer. As a result everyone will miss some of the best scenery there is to be had. I have never plotted the difference in miles and wonder if it will be a wash given you have to paddle up stream.

[racclarkson@gmail.com]

Bon voyage

[Freeebird]

Bummer. As a result everyone will miss some of the best scenery there is to be had. I have never plotted the difference in miles and wonder if it will be a wash given you have to paddle up stream.

The river route is shorter, but there is no denying the upriver parts can literally double your fuel use. Factor in all the river locks with massive potential for delays, and the time thing can get really close. Factor in flooding can and does close rivers, and it gets even more complicated.

The biggest factor here was the uncertainty with the Erie Canal and the Canadian border closing take the Welland out for pleasure boats. It's entirely possible that we could have been faced with a 30 day or more wait for either or both to open. I'm sure I've said that above someplace, but the river route is the best option in these strange times. No doubt the scenery is better on the other route, but unless you can reach your ultimate destination, that same scenery of being shut down at a dock would get real old and real expensive, real fast. Maybe next time.