A calm night on the hook! Eager to see glaciers, we leave to make our way up the channel. A quick stop to get some fresh water:

Behind us is the water fall, brave Lauren lends over

and success:

There are ice bergs all around, large ones and small ones, crystal clear, white and dark Caribbean blue.

I can’t believe that we are moving forward.

We pass the entrance to the S.Sawyer Glaciers and continue north. Here is the North Sawyer Glacier.

It did calve; we needed to be attentive but there was success.

The South Sawyer Glacier is larger than the North one so we were looking forward to seeing it. A gentleman whom Tim had met said that the glacier was calving nicely and we wouldn’t be disappointed. Entering the channel that leads to it I was surprised that there were so many ice bergs.

Chuck skillfully made his way through them, pushing them out of the way, and finally we stopped, with the glacier right in front of us.

Kelley looked behind us and found a small iceberg and captured it!
Not the large one, obviously, but a small chunk!

We watched for at least an hour and we were well-rewarded. As the boat turned to leave, Karlyn and I watched as one large piece fell into the water. Watching the icebergs behind us glide up and then down as the swell came towards us, made us realized how big the chunk must have been.

The tide was coming in and it brought back many of the icebergs that we had passed earlier. Manipulating the boat around these made me think that we were an icebreaker.

We returned to the same cove as the night before! Toasting the 4th of July and a successful glacier viewing, we enjoyed our drinks with

Happy Days!

Kelley and I flew to Ketchikan and it was an easy trip with a transfer out of Seattle to Ketchikan. The airport sits on an island off the island on which Ketchikan sits. There is a ferry that takes the passengers from the airport to the main island.

We stayed at the Cape Fox Lodge and the shuttle picked us up. As we always do we put on our raincoats and went to walk the town…had an Alaskan Amber at the Sourdough Bar, a local spot. Dinner at Annabelle’s and then back to the Lodge. The Lodge sits up in the trees above the town and the view of the water is fabulous…they have a tram (cog) that takes you down to the Old Historic section of the town. A great beginning!

Year one: 3,622 S Miles   9 months   January 2008 to September 2008

Year two: 1,245 S Miles   3.5 months   June 2009 to September 2009

Year three: 2,825 miles   5 months   June 2010 to September 2010

TOTAL MILES:     7,692/  18 Months/ 3 years

Fuel:  4,586 Gal;    $16,995,            Average $3.70;  Ave 1.7 + MPG

High  $6.11/gal July 2008 in Canada

Locks:

Bridges:

STATES

Year one: 9  states + Washington, D.C. and  the Canadian Provinces of Quebec  and Ontario

Florida

Georgia – Savannah

South Carolina – Charleston

North Carolina

Virginia

Maryland – Annapolis – Chesapeake Bay

Delaware – Cape May

New Jersey – Atlantic City

New York – Statue of Liberty – Hudson River – New York City – Manhattan -Adirondack Mountains

Vermont – Lake Champlain – Shelbourne Museum

Michigan – Lake Huron

In Canada the beautiful cities of Montreal in Quebec and Ottawa in Ontario.

Anchorages in Georgian Bay

Canals and Lock Systems:  Champlain, Chambly, St Lawrence Seaway, Rideau, Trent Severn   700+ miles

Year 2: Lake Huron to the North Channel – beautiful anchorages of the Benjamins, the Pool, Snug Harbor, the Bustards in Georgian Bay, Covered Portage and little towns like Little Current, Kilarney, Gore Bay and Meldrum Bay.

On to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan: Detour Village, St Ignace crossing the Straits to Mackinaw City. Visiting Mackinac Island! Cruising down the west coast of Michigan visiting charming spots along the way, like Leland. Crossing Lake Michigan to Sturgeon Bay and visiting Wisconsin and its charming Door County. Leaving the boat in Green Bay for the winter.

Year 3: Arriving in Green Bay we rented a car and drove to Minnesota. We stayed on Lake Superior in Wisconsin in a charming Bed and Breakfast. Then returning to get the boat we cruised north up Green Bay to Door County and then farther north to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan to Fayette State Park. Magic there! Crossing Lake Michigan to Mackinaw City to spend the 4th of July. Then up to our favorite spots in the North Channel again before returning to Michigan and following its coastline to Indiana and on to Illinois and the beautiful city of Chicago.

We followed the Illinois River through Chicago, one bridge after another. We entered the lock system and cruised with barges and tows, the largest we saw was 32 barges.  Then on to the Mississippi River – St Louis and St Charles were visited in Missouri; on the River we passed St Louis and marveled at the Arch. From the Mississippi to the Ohio to the Cumberland and onto to the Tennessee River which took us through Kentucky Lake, Kentucky, Pickwick Lake. We visited Nashville and Chattanooga, Tennessee. From the Tennessee River we entered the Tenn Tom Waterway, guiding us through the states of Mississippi and Alabama and bringing us to Mobile Bay.

The truck was then trucked to California where cruising will be familiar. We will boat with our friends and remember the new friends that we mad along the way for those fabulous three years.

Don’t wait. There is always an excuse to put off an adventure…but life is a journey, you must decide its destinations along the way.

We pulled anchor at 7:30 along with the other 2 boats. These last few miles on the Illinois River were the prettiest. Many islands covered in trees, some that had begun to turn. There were a few narrow spots and we hoped that there would not be a tow coming towards us. We were heading towards Grafton, mile 0 and where the Mississippi begins. We tied up at noon at the Grafton Marina. Kaleen and Dave of Family Time were there – we had lunch at the Loading Dock. They are leaving tomorrow for Hoppies on the Mississippi.

We are going to stay for a while. Two of the boats here have now completed the loop. We are thrilled for them and there was a bit of a celebration. One boat had its gold flag (signifying the completion of the loop) mailed to the marina. I look forward to receiving ours. But, the Mississippi awaits.

Illinois Waterway: Mile 46.5 Buckhorn Island Anchorage to Mile 0 Grafton Marina

Miles covered: 46.5         Bridges: 2            Locks: 0

Left at 7:30 am  Arrived at 12