Andrew finally got a
vacation! 
Nadine had to work, but Andrew & the Old Man quickly planned an eight day 'guys' trip.
click to enlarge map
We thought that Stella, Waupoos, Main Duck, Sackets Harbour, Cape Vincent and Brakey Bay would be a nice circuit, finishing in Brakey Bay on Canada Day.
So after a very windy
trip to Stella on Saturday and an evening trying out the new 2hp Johnson on the
dinghy, we motored out the Upper Gap and almost to Waupoos in a calm straight
out of 'The Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner'! 
Thankfully, an afternoon wind sprang up, so we did a few elegant evolutions in Prince Edward Bay before pulling into Waupoos Marina.
Although the fire last January destroyed the largest building, the marina is alive and well. There are fish all over the place! Between the fingers, in the harbour - everywhere. Big fish. Bass. Catfish. 'Keepers'. We explored the shoreline of Waupoos Island in the dinghy - more big fish, everywhere you look!
Note: Bring a Fishing Rod next time.
Of
course, Waupoos wouldn't be Waupoos without a visit to the Duke of Marysburgh
Pub. To get there, walk out to the main road and turn LEFT i.e. to PORT.
On the way out of Waupoos the next morning, we anchored Carpe Diem off the mouth of the Black River, a mile south of Waupoos Island. From there, we mounted a motorized expedition up river to the Black River Cheese Factory, located by the highway bridge. The cheese factory has a great retail outlet as well as a handy dock and boat launch, shown here. They also have what I think is the best cheese I have ever tasted.
We
lost our wind again, just off the False Ducks, so it was back to motoring
*sigh*. Just off Main Duck, we slowed down to let the Algoville pass. She is 730
feet long, so we let her go first. "In collisions between ships and
boats, casualties are universally confined to boats."
We anchored at
Main Duck Island outside School House Bay - remembering the mosquitoes from our
last trip. (Say - how about calling the outer anchorage Randall Bay, after the
ship that piled up there? It would save a lot of confusion as some people refer
to the outer bay as School House Bay.) 
After
a great swim, we had an hour or so ashore at School House Bay, examining old
buildings and talking to other sailors at the dock. 
We
were quite surprised at how shallow the water was out from the South Beach -
that's Andrew waving from the rock. Way out there. Next stop - Oswego.
The wind came up at 03:30 and I spent a Nervous Nellie time listening to the waves slap against the undercut cliffs - now off our stern. But our anchor was deep in the Duck muck and we stuck. Not wanting to waste precious wind, we sailed off the anchor at 07:00 with five wraps on the genoa. Lots and lots of wind! Yorkshire Island fell away behind us with startling speed as Galloo Island rose up ahead. Boys! we were ripping along! Past Stony Island, past the Point Peninsula. Spray flying over the dodger and the lee rail just out of the water. Right into Black River Bay and Sackets Harbor. By the way, you can see the cylindrical water tower with the cone top at Madison Barracks from five miles out. Great aiming point. Takes you right in to Sackets.
We spent two nights at Navy
Point Marina. That's Carpe Diem, the Baby Boat, in the middle, among the Jenneau
38's and such. They ask you for your beam, not your length. The finger float
lengths are not the limiting factor - but you can't always squeeze two
giant boats between two fingers.
There are a couple of great places to eat - "Tin Pan Galley" has superb steak and live blues singers. "The Boathouse" has great air conditioning, great draft beer and deep fried fish to just die for.
Sackets
Harbor was the sight of a pitched battle between British and American
forces in the War of 1812. The battlefield is located just outside the marina
and its free to visit. You can also tour the Commandant's House for three bucks.
Main Street
sports the visitor centre, an antique store, a souvenir shop (Georgie's
Emporium) and a wine shop as well as several good eateries. 
Next to the band shell, opposite Navy Point Marina, is this little brick building. It's the town water plant. It also has an ATM , washrooms and the Videophone where you can report in to US Customs and Immigration. Groceries are a short walk away at Madison Barracks. (Yup, the grocery store has cold beer!)
We left Sackets Harbor in a light wind and tacked until after lunch just to get back to the Point Peninsula buoy. Turning north, we stayed close hauled in a rising wind, pointing at the East Charity Shoal Light all the way up past Grenadier Island. We finally had to kick in the motor for the last couple miles into Cape Vincent and a great dinner at Captain Jack's at the ferry terminal.
On Canada Day,
we headed down the St Lawrence River and Seaway in a rising tail wind. 
Small
Craft Advisory stuff. At hull speed under main alone, we were passed by the
Catherine Degagnes. Yielding gracefully, we skulked out of the channel to let
her go. "In collisions between ships and boats, casualties are
universally confined to boats."
The wind kept piping up until the whitecaps were getting rather plentiful. But at Quebec Head, we jibed over hard and shot back into Canada in a great blast of wind. We were both surprised at how narrow the Quebec Cut really is - and how close to the lighthouse you really come.
After a minute of shelter in the cut, we got the wind from the other side of Wolfe Island square in the face - with a great roar. It took the next two hours to tack from Port Metcalfe to Brakey Bay! Who ever said that we might be short of wind on this trip??
After a relaxing Canada Day afternoon and evening at Brakey Bay, we brought her home to Kingston on July 2 for a nose-to-toes wash and scrub and tidy up. Eight days out, seven days under sail.
We just gotta do it again some time!