Thurs June 23: To Montreal!!

The very first thing we need to do today, is celebrate a Very Important Birthday - Loyal Reader Betty Rohrbach (hi Betty Mom!) is celebrating another year around the sun today, and we promised her a shout-out.  As you know, NO birthday is complete without a Blue Horizon shout-out!!!

Rick's mom, Betty, sister Janet and brother Matt.  Rick is the favorite child, of course, but these other two are pretty great.

The NEXT part of the day was to get the grass off the damn anchor.  (I actually got out of this in a legit way - my arms were too short!)  This was to be the tone of the day - Hard Work with a touch of Anxiety thrown in, sprinkled with Exhaustion.

This Longest. Day. Ever. had been the cornerstone worry in Rick's mind since he started planning (MANY) months ago.  It was a long distance to cover + 2 bridges + 4 locks famous for lengthy waits + weather + a language barrier + a big timing problem between the bridges and locks + scary current before the marina.  Which all = a horrible Word Problem.  Since the very idea of Word Problems gives me math PTSD, I just let him feel all the feels and tried to be reassuring. I pointed out that we often overcome boating problems like the above + shallow water + major wind/tide.  He was too stressed out to hear me.  Nothing for it but to get the day over with.

 I must say the weather wasn't helping.  I find it's much easier to be brave when it's sunny/light outside, don't you?....  And this was NOT that day.  The sky was gloomy and heavy, and it rained most of the day.  Of course it did... The first bridge (operated remotely from some place, unhelpfully, else) came into view - scheduled to open at 9:30am (thank you Canada, for actually posting a schedule), but it was rumored that they wouldn't open unless you put your nose almost under the bridge so they could see you in the camera.  However, the water under the bridge was rumored to be swift and unpredictable so we were uncomfortable about getting close.  Fortunately, we found a radio channel and had a nice chat with the bridge operator and we got through right on schedule, and with her assurance that she would let the next bridge and the two following locks know we were on the way. 

Prior to the next bridge we picked up another pleasure craft (I hope his craft brings him nothing but pleasure).  Since he was fast we just followed him, which made things easier.  Bridge #2 opened early which made it possible to get to the first lock in time for it's 10am opening.  (The next scheduled opening for pleasure craft was at 2pm - so we didn't want to miss the first).

So the 2 Beauharnois Locks were easily managed, but almost impossible to pronounce. Coming out of the lock was this weird, unnecessarily expensive, military boondoggle. Rick here - this is a Hover Boat.  It rides on a cushion of air and on a smooth surface can go very fast.  This particular boat had a Canadian government “Fisheries” label.  Not sure why they need a hover boat - maybe to catch really fast fish.  

 

These locks introduced a new way of locking - the lock hands threw attached long lines down to us. This didn't see efficient, from a staffing point of view, but what do I know. The upper lock disgorged TEN boats - it must have taken them almost 45 minutes to get them all seated.  Much faster to be in charge of your own lines... if you ask me.

Note lines coming from the wall down to us, and the boat in front of us.  He was fast, but had to keep waiting in locks for us!  Hee Hee.

At the penultimate lock of the day we had to wait until 4pm - no matter what.  The instructions were clear that they would ignore you if you radioed, and were going to open only at 4pm, and not before...  So I made the Captain of Stress lie down for an hour.

We were also weirdly cold, from being wet all day. I finally put on my long underwear and rain gear, which I should have done at the start of the day.

We had to wait at the final lock, St Lambert, as it was lifting this big beast....

Note the two boats we are traveling with, on the waiting pleasure craft dock.  They aren't small, but are dwarfed by the Big Boy.

IDK- this made me laugh.  I think they don't want you to smoke.

Bye Big Boy - nice AFT!!!

By the last lock we were over the whole thing - so close, see us/the blue dot on the right.  So close, yet so far from where we are trying to be.  As is so often the case, in life.

We are SO CLOSE to Montreal, and yet so far.  We won't get there until 7pm.  That is, by far, the latest we will ever have arrived at a destination. It is light until almost 9pm, btw.

Finally, FINALLY, we were through all locks and headed around the corner by the amusement park.  The dreaded CURRENT was dead ahead.

We came out from behind the protective barrier of St Helen's Island, and were whacked by the current.  Rick had been so worried about this maneuver (great French word) - getting up and across the current and being able to get out into the marina on the other side.  Look at how this green buoy is being knocked by the current rushing past it; that is what we are fighting up against.

I'm not going to say anything - one gets to feel how one feels.  But it was NO BIG DEAL.  That's all I'm sayin'.  We were about 10 minutes (Rick says 20) in the current, during which I was very supportive and left Rick alone in order to take pix.  Then we were around the wall into the marina basin and it was perfectly calm.

First view of Montreal - a bit gloomy, but CANADA!

We have a super convenient location, in Vieux Port (Old Port), and the most secure marina we've ever been in, other than the DC Yacht Club.  It's surrounded by the high walls of the old harbor and only accessible with a key card.  It's right by the Cirque du Soleil tents, the Eye (Farris Wheel) and much more.  Which we will tell you all about in the Montreal bits, when it becomes clear that it will be 100% A PARTY UNTIL MONDAY...