Experience on the St Lawrence

[Steve Murray]

I'm a proud new owner of an '87 Ericson 35 III. Next week I'm bringing the boat home to Prince Edward Island using the Hudson-Lake Champlain-St. Lawrence route. No radar and the cold Atlantic are making me go this way. Does anybody have experience going downstream on the St. Lawrence?

 

[jthistle]

moving east

Congrats on the Boat. I'm moving my - new to me - Ericson 35II from Maine to Newfoundland in Late June. I'll be interested to hear of your trip. Good Luck....Mabey time for an atlantic Canada Ericson group.

Jason
E35II - #268

 

[Steve Murray]

Thanks, Jason. I've been following your requests for yard information in Maine. Attempting to do it all by remote control is pretty brave. My boat is in a marina/yard in NJ and I've been down twice to arrange for prep and launch. We leave NJ on May 21.

Where are you ending up in Newfoundland? East or West coast? If you are going through Canso, you should stop in Charlottetown. A couple of days rest might sound good by then.

good luck

 

[gareth harris]

I, too, hope you will pass on what you learn about the route, since you may be the Ericson trailblazer, and I hope to head that way once my boat is seaworthy.

I once checked into boat yards to hoist the mast once on the St. Lawrence, and there appeared to be one or two close to the exit from the canal on the Canadian side. A couple of people I spoke to about the route told me that there are strong enough tidal currents in the St. Lawrence to make it worthwhile timing your journey to go with them; and to take plenty of fenders for the locks. The also said the scenery is spectacular, and it is a very enjoyable trip.

Good luck, Gareth
Freyja E35 #241 1972

 

[Steve Murray]

I'm really looking forward to the trip. Three of us are on board and, disappointingly, we have to go for time. Stupid work thing. I have cruising guides and tide tables. The Parc Nautique Federal in Sorel has a crane with 600 lb lift capacity.
It's the section between Trois Riviere and Rimouski where is gets narrow and the big boats go by at 18 knots that's on my mind. I'll let you know how bad it is.

 

[jthistle]

Atlantic Canada

Hey Steve. Sounds like a great trip. We're heading to the East Coast. St. John's...If we miss it we're off to England. Going to do the South Coast of NS, accross to St. Pierre and then to Avalon Penninsula. My wife is from PEI - In-Laws are retired there. Good chance we'll sail over next summer. My boat needs work this year so I gotta get her home to begin the restoration.

Good luck - keep in touch. I wish I was underway this week. Gotta wait until work is over - June 25.

cheers

Jason
E35-II, #268

 

[wurzner]

Steve,

You will have a great time. I use to sail out of the montreal area and know the area between Toronto and Quebec City reasonably well from traveling it by car. The area around montreal I know very well since I sailed that area a lot. You will have a great time and a good portion of it you will be out of the seaway. Be careful though, it is really shallow around the Island of Montreal despite how wide the St Laurence is at that point. It will be a trip going through the seaway since there is A LOT OF TRAFFIC and it isn't too wide. Say close to the sides and you'll be fine. Keep in mind it is wide enough in many places for 2 ships to pass side by side...just make sure you aren't the third wheel in those situations. I'm not sure where you are picking up the Saint Laurence, but keep the camera loaded. Going by Quebec City with the Chateau Frontenac up on the hill would be amazing. I believe the oldest documented street is in oldport quebec.

Good luck...sounds like a winner of a trip.

Shaun

OK, re read the thread and missed the part about lake champlain. That explains coming through sorel. I have some articles that I need to find that describe the area east of quebec city a few hundred kilometers. The province turned it into into a marine santuary and it is absolutely incredible. I haven't been there, only read about it and seen the photos, but it is incredible. Just keep in mind that it is a LONG TRIP.

 

[Steve Murray]

Shaun,

It's really a shame that we are doing this trip in as little time as possible. The NYC to Sorel portion should take 4-5 days depending on canal transit before Lake Champlain.

You're right, Sorel to Gaspe is a long way, especially with the tides. By the time we turn south at Gaspe, there is only a run of 200 miles to Charlottetown. If we can get here in 12 days, I'll be happy.

The boat appears to be in wonderful condition; the motor is fresh and the sails are very good. The is something very solid about an Ericson. I'm graduating from a Paceship 29 - a lovely C&C design but slow. I'm looking forward to the speed of the Ericson since we "race" a couple of evenings a week.

This is a wonderfully friendly forum. I'll post a trip report in June.

Steve
E 35-III #222

 

[Tom Metzger]

Champlain Canal

Steve - You might be a day short on your planning to Sorel, but if you stop around Waterford +/- several miles, the junction of the Erie and Champlain canals, give me a call (518-371-8250) and I can help with fresh groceries, etc. I won't be around over the weekend, but if you get here before then, my car knows the way to lots of stores.

 

[Steve Murray]

Tom

Thanks for the offer. If the weather doesn't change soon, we might stay with you until July. If you look at the NAVTEX weather for the St. Lawrence today, it says gales NE 25 to 35 with snow!! NE winds against that tide and current must make some interesting wave patterns. Extra time to practise French.

Although the yard had a work order in early March, they aren't sure if the boat will be in the water by Saturday (I hope you are reading this, Jason). They haven't been able to schedule things like filling the new fuel tank and starting the engine. The yard is in the part of New Jersey where they may have some "special" clients who demand immediate service - or else.

I'll keep your number on speed dial Tom.

Steve Murray

E 35-III #222

 

[P Abele]

Feel free to drop a line while you're on Lake Champlain if you should need anything. Our E33 went in the water last week and is moored in Mallet's Bay although she isn't ready to sail right now. I have sailed the lake for a number of years but never ventured through the locks in either direction. Have a great trip!

 

[Willpatten]

Steve, you'll have a wonderful trip but no one has pointed out that the very best fresh water sailing in the U.S is Lake Champlain! Stop in Burlington and wander up to Church Street. Stop in Westport NY (great marina) and stroll through the lazy village. We're in Charlotte on a 38-200 at Point Bay Marina. Cell-802-922-6244 if you need help.

 

[jthistle]

under way?

Steve. how 'bout an update? Are you underway? Hope things are well. I'm planning my big trip - Maine to Newfoundland starting July 1st.

cheers
jason

 

[Steve Murray]

Almost there

Just arrived in Point du Chene marina in Shediac N.B. yesterday morning after running about 30 hours from Riviere aux Renard on the Gaspe peninsula. I can only describe the St. Lawrence portion of the trip as spectacular. As a cruise, when one could pick travel days, it would be a lot of fun. It should not be attempted (for sanity and safety reasons) without tide tables and an Atlas of Current and Tides for the St. Lawrence. Commercial traffic is not a big issue if you keep youe eyes open and navigate on the edge of the channel A full set of charts and a plotter are important to have. My sounder was inoperative (subject for another forum) and the engine would heat early (again, for another forum) but neither problem was a huge issue. I can hold my breath for five minutes now). Cruising guides are very useful. One published in Vermont was excellent for the Hudson, Champlain Canal and Lake Champlain. A glossy, magazine style guide for the St. Lawrence in published in Quebec has a lot of good info on the river. I guess the best advice I could give is to respect the current and use the tide cycles to your advantage. Travelling up river would be very difficult especially if one were trying to make time. I a couple of sections (the Richelieu Rapids near Grondine and the wonderfully named Traverse de St. Roche just downstream from Orlean we were riding 8 knots of current - we broke 10 SOG a couple of times !).

The lack of a sounder was only a real issue in the Hudson and the canals. The upper Hudson is very well marked except in one place where they have a big groove in the mud now. The Parks Canada people lie about the maintained depth in the Chambly Canal. They guarantee 6' 5" but in three places it is 6' 1". Luckily it is a loose gravel bottom so all I lost was some Vivid paint. We lifted the boat in Trois Riviere to reset the Max prop and the keel bottom was fine.

Jason, your boat must be in a yard in Maine by now. Be prepared for a bill that will take your breath away. In Morgan Marina (New Jersey), bottom paint and engine commissioning was in the 4 figures. Even with the big bill, they didn't get the air out of the heat exchanger system or properly tighten the shaft zinc. The zinc makes a lot of noise at low rpms.

All in all a great trip. A good way to get to know a boat in all conditions. I really like the boat - comfortable to live on, great ride even in lumpy conditions 20 miles off shore. I never once felt that the boat would let me down; the engine has enough power to push against 2-3 knots and the steering is precise and almost effortless.

If anyone is planning to make the trip, I would be happy to give a list of the spots we stayed in (depth is an issue in many places) and some info on currents.

The boat will reach her home port on the weekend.

Steve Murray
E 35 III 222
Charlottetown PEI

 

[gareth harris]

Thanks for the info. If you have time to write up your experience in the regional forum, with the names of the cruising guides you used, source for the tide tables, facilities you used (where did you raise the mast?) and any other particular items of interest, it would on file, and easy to find, for all of us who plan on heading that way in the future. That would make a great addition to the site.

Gareth
Freyja E35 #241 1972