Grand Tour

For many years, we have told ourselves to find a place in the watery world and just stop. After all, we spent years sitting on our mooring in Montrose Harbor in Chicago not going anywhere. And so, that is what we did this year. Ladd’s Landing Marina a series of piers hanging off the northeast shore of Grand Isle, Vt. in Lake Champlain and this where we ended up.

It is from here that we left for our grand tour of Lake Champlain on Water Horse, Carrie Rose’s sistership. Jerry (her owner) asked us to be ready by eight and then informed us that we were in for a long day. Eight o’clock came quickly. We are usually up early but as is often the case, when there is a deadline, it seems problematic to get the things done in time. I have practiced Chanoyu, the Japanese Tea Ceremony, for decades and in this world, if an invitation says 8:00 it means 7:45. But in Water Horse’s world, it appeared that thirty minutes early is the proper protocol, so of course I delayed our departure.

I was forgiven (at least I think I was) and settled in as we motored under the only drawbridge on the Lake Champlain Islands. This leads to an irregular shaped oval basin named the Gut. The Gut is a mile wide and two long. It lies between North Hero Island and Grand Isle. It is hard to tell if nature or the road and railroad builders stitched these islands together. The railroad is gone now so the western end is open to the broad lake.

Water Horse passed out at Bow Arrow Point and headed across Lake Champlain toward Treadwell Bay. There was a small chop on the lake, which slowly diminished throughout the day. The plan was to head south around Cumberland Head (in New York), back behind Crab, Valcour, and Schuyler Islands, and into Willsboro Bay.

Water Horse was then going to cross the lake at its widest point to tie up in Burlington, VT. for lunch but alas, due to a wooden boat show and a paddle board race there was no room to be had. A few phone calls later and we expertly glided into Indian Bay Marina for a pleasant lunch accompanied by the squealing of ancient machinery lowering a boat into the bay.

Dodging tacking sailboats off Indian Bay Marina

The traffic picked up as we closed on Burlington. I was impressed at the number of large sailboats tucked into every cove and littering the outer harbor at Burlington. Their names (mostly French) were proudly displayed in large florid fonts on either side of the bow. As we cruised the harbor, which is delineated from the lake by a large W-shaped breakwater, we saw the gleam of fresh varnish and the remnants of the paddle boarders straggling in.

Approaching busy Burlington Harbor

Now it was time to point north back to the Gut. But first we had to head west for Burlington is snuggled into an about two mile deep dimple. Then there was Lone Rock Point amply named for the large lone rock that sits off its point. Appletree Point, Providence Island, Wilcox Point and around Young and Bixby Islands, and through the cut in the abandoned railway bridge, back under the drawbridge and Jerry’s adroit backing Water Horse into her slip and the day was over. Our chart book marked with notations and anchoring symbols we departed. It is hard to know how to thank a fellow boater for the invaluable local knowledge passed down.

Home is just around the corner

The grand tour lasted nine hours and close to seventy statue miles of Lake Champlain passed under Water Horse’s keel. Exploring this long narrow lake dotted with islands and bays, beckons us to come, drop an anchor, and sway in the winds that divides these two distinct states.