After spending the morning at our quiet bird sanctuary anchorage, we raised anchor and came into Toronto’s Inner Harbour. We were able to secure a “transient slip” at a marina here on one of the islands directly across the harbour from downtown.
We will be here three nights before moving across the way to another marina in the heart of downtown. Guidance will stay there until Anne flies home on the first to work at the hospital for a week. Jim will remain with Guidance at that marina until Anne and Grace return to Toronto on the 10th to continue our journey on to Montreal and beyond.
Finding marinas has sometimes been challenging for us. Guidance is fairly large, and many marinas don’t have the capacity to host her. Toronto was especially tough because we will be here over Canada Day (July 1), which is a major holiday here.
If you are wondering why we are in Toronto for so long; we had to plan in advance where Anne would fly home from in time for her scheduled patient care week, and we built in cushion in case of weather or other delays. We wanted to avoid any possibility of a time pinch — sailing to deadline runs the risk of unsafe decisions. We’ve made great time! And we are very much looking forward to being tourists here for a bit.
Today marks three full weeks since we left Bayfield. We’ve been reflecting on what we’ve learned over these past few weeks and the 995 nautical miles (that’s 1145 miles on land, or “statute miles”):
- Overall, we prefer anchorages to marinas (quieter, more private and scenic, lend themselves to a morning swim), although marinas are more convenient for grocery shopping, laundry, etc.
- Shore showers (aka “Hollywood showers”) are a lovely treat after days of Navy-style showers on the boat (not enough of a treat to outweigh the benefits of anchorages, see above).
- Moving Guidance every day is wearying — somewhat physically but mostly mentally. Lots of planning, navigating, and lots to consider to choose a good place to settle in for the night.
- We still enjoy one another’s company, even in tight quarters.
- While our journey hasn’t been as consistently picturesque as sailing the Apostles or in the Caribbean, it’s been a great experience to appreciate the size and variability of the Great Lakes, and it’s been fascinating to appreciate how much industry depends on them for transport.
- We have met many very kind and helpful people in our journey. Fellow sailors, especially, are eager to help out when they can.