2011 Sailing Trip - Day 10 - Mentor to Geneva-On-The-Lake

Miles by boat – 23.5
Miles by foot - 3

We wake up to a grey, cloudy, rainy day after an evening downpour which has cleaned off our boats nicely. We check the weather forecast and see that there looks to be a break in the storm around noon so we spend the morning hanging around the marina and grounds, exploring some of the parts we hadn’t yet seen. Around 11 we decide to make a move and the Bella Blue crew is rounded up and sailed away. Andrew has to wait for this toilet to arrive so they stay back and spend the rest of the day there.

With a nice west wind we have a lovely sail over to Geneva, and since it’s only 20 some miles it makes it one of the shorter runs we’ve done. Along the way, I begin to regret teaching Stella the “devil horn” hand sign as she’s now incorporated it into this disturbing routine where she puts on a slinky sundress and her fancy shoes and dances around the cockpit pole and table, sticking out her butt and giving everybody the horns. This girl is going to do me in by the time she’s eighteen – of that I am sure.

We pull into the Geneva marina around 2 pm and find a massive, impressive complex, much nicer than what we’d anticipated. We check in at the Ship’s Store, which is probably the best marina store we’ve seen – they have a nice little food counter and a store with clothing, other merchandise, marine supplies and fishing supplies. We ask for directions to town and are told to simply walk along the lake for a mile or so, so we return to the boat (which feels like a mile long walk as it’s all the way around the marina on the sea wall), grab our stuff and begin the walk along the lake. The scenery is absolutely stunning as the paved pathway is on higher ground overlooking the lake, and to the right is a farmer’s field, then later on a nice hotel with a kids park and outdoor pool.

With a name like “Geneva-on-the-Lake” one would expect a quaint, fancy little town with air conditioned shops run by ladies who lunch, selling items such as handmade candles, expensive antiques, fine books, exquisite pastries, ceramic elephants, custom jewelry - all with small, neatly written price tags which have a “-“ instead of a “.99” at the end of the price. Instead, we came across a tacky house of horrors, a “carnival turned town” with hot and sweaty little shops, all smelling similarly of old moldy wood, selling Grateful Dead tapestries, crappy costume jewelry, biker pendants, incense infused hemp sweaters, hash bongs and funnel cakes. There was even a fortune teller promising insight into your past, present and future. Being pretty happy with our past, present and futures, we just passed on by, but did find the “Times Square” restaurant which served up pretty good French fried and tremendously good lemonade. We got the half order of fries which was actually half a serving tray full with enough fries for a family of four.

We walked back to the marina and took the boat over for a pump out, diesel fill up and to do some laundry up at the store. As we waited for the dryer to finish, tied up at the fuel dock, we sat on the back of the boat and enjoyed a drink on a lovely afternoon. We then took the boat back to our slip, returning just in time to meet Andrew and Michelle as they arrived. As we hadn’t yet had dinner, we decided to have a wiener roast on the beach, which was just on the other side of the marina, a very short walk away from the boats. This little spot was perfect - bordered on the west side by a long stone breakwater and pier, several hundred feet long, leading out to a lighthouse at the end, on the backside by a lush grove of trees and on the east by a grassy hill, over which was the marina. It felt like our own private, secluded beach, and we treated it as such, having a marvelous roast, some glasses of wine then a dip in the water to cool off, under a perfectly clear sky lit with constellations of stars and the warm, yellow glow of the marina lights. I must say, this was probably the best moment of the trip and one of those times that everything in your life seems very right.

2011 Sailing Trip - Day 9 - Cedar Point to Cleveland

Miles by boat – 51
Miles by foot – 2

By 4:30 am we`re on the water and headed for Cleveland, beginning the first leg of our return journey home. We navigate by lights to the main channel then make our way out under sail with a beautiful west wind. As we pass Cedar Point peninsula to the right the winds starts to die and, sadly, we need to fire up the engine. At a compass bearing of 98 degrees we motor along for 10 miles at which point the wind picks up nicely so we`re back under sail. I take the opportunity of quiet time to do a bit of work while everybody is still sleeping – Ana snuggled up in the cockpit under a fuzzy blue blanket and the kids down below. It amazes me that we can be practically out of sight of land and I`m still able to send email and log into my work computer with my iPad. While this prevents work from being far from your mind on vacation, it does allow me to keep up with things and not return to work with a thousand emails and three days of catch up.

The aft wind kicks up some pretty good waves, making the boat rock and roll constantly, and I don’t mean in a Def Leppard kind of way. As we are about halfway there a US border patrol boat roars up from behind then pulls ups right beside our boat as we are underway at 7 knots, close enough for them to jump aboard. As I was downstairs testing the toilet, Ana was left by herself in the cockpit sporting her pink sailing moo-moo, plucking her eyebrows, waving nervously at the border dudes. They looked at the boat, looked at her and, after sensing no imminent threat to national security, just wrote down our registration number from the hull and sped away.

As we get close to the Edgewater Yacht club in Cleveland, the wind has picked up and created a vicious chop at the harbour entrance. Andrew had arrived there an hour before us so gave us some directions to get in and soon we were tied up at the dock, sheltered from the wind and plugged into power enjoying a cool boat, as the temperature was again in the low 30’s. As we finish tidying up after the sail, Andrew comes by and tells us of his docking experience. As they entered the marina around 11am they saw a big sign saying “Gas Dock” so they proceeded to tie up there to fill up the tanks. A man wearing blue coveralls came out to meet them and it was clear from his wobbly stride and slurred words he was completely plastered. After somehow managing to gas up the boat, he was putting the hose back on the dispensing pump when they heard a man scream and saw his legs up in the air and head on the ground, suffering a massive wipeout. After clawing his way back up, and pretending not to hear Andrew’s laughter, he met them inside to process the credit card, sporting a nice throbbing arm which was already turning blue. He undercharged them a hundred bucks then pointed him towards the gas dock down the marina which was the actual Edgewater Yacht Club gas dock, giving them some hope that the marina was not run by a crew of drunken sods. It turned out the club was indeed well run, and by completely sober staff. It was a big marina, offering close to 400 slips, with a restaurant and bar on site. They were also two weeks away from completing their outdoor pool, which would have been very nice had it been available.

We had a delicious lunch of boat burritos in the dining car (Andrew’s boat) and made sure to drop some hamburger meat on the new carpets. Since he bought new carpets this year I’ve developed a compulsive habit of dropping food and spilling drinks on it every time I’m on his boat. Seems Ana has developed this affliction as well as she dumped half her burrito contents onto the seat and carpet, and I think some also landed on the dog. One day a few weeks prior, during boat lunch at Potahawk Point I spilled food three times during a single meal – a personal best for me. The first was an oily, Portuguese Pimento Potato, which made a reddish stain, second was a scoop of Brown Baked Beans, which produced brown splatter marks and lastly I lost half a bowl of Sticky Caesar Salad, which deposited whitish skids along with crouton wads which were accidentally ground into the carpet by my heel. I later dumped a beer, but that was well after the meal so didn’t really count.

We found out there was a beach nearby so Andrew, Michelle and I took the kids while Ana stayed back to relax and get out of the sun for a while. The beach was actually very nice, and even staffed by lifeguards. The wind had produced some lovely large waves so with Stella on my back we swam out and I taught the kids some of the finer points of body surfing (wait for big wave, swim like hell, don’t drink the water). That lasted until my legs felt like jelly then we packed them up and walked back to the boat. As we were crossing the park, we were met by a worn looking roller blader who happened to stop just behind us to adjust something on his skates. Magnus, staring at the man, asks “Daddy, can I tell you a joke?”

“Sure,” I say.

“What wears socks…..and is bald….and has roller skates?” he asks as his eyes dart between the roller blader and me.

“What?” I ask.

“A nerd.”



We return to the boat, spend a couple hours cleaning and doing a bit of work, then join Andrew and Michelle on his boat for a trip to the “Flats”, which is an area in downtown Cleveland on the river which used to be a major entertainment district, but is now mostly empty buildings with only a single restaurant remaining, called Shooters. After a short ride, which began with me spilling a full gin and tonic on the boat carpet, we are on the river and quite astounded with the number of bridges, which are everywhere you look. There are also plenty of piles of dirt and machinery around, giving it an industrial, gritty feel, which I love as I am very fond of urban grit. Andrew pulls the boat up to the restaurant, which has ample boat docking, and we get seated inside, as all the outdoor patio tables are already filled with patrons, drinking tall beers and cocktails enjoying a lovely view over downtown Cleveland.

We enjoy a delicious meal and several drinks, including Long Island Iced Teas for myself which are boozy, boozy good. During the meal, Andrew asks the server where the closest convenience store would be. He replies, “Well, the safe one is up the hill and to the right a few blocks”. Andrew and I look at each other, just to confirm we both heard the same thing.

“So there’s an unsafe one?” Andrew asks.

“Yes, that one is up the hill and to the left, in the projects,” the server replies.

“Like you’d have to be packing heat to go in there?” Andrew laughs jokingly.

“Yes,” he says seriously.

We decide to skip the trip to either of the convenience stores, mainly for safety concerns, but also because on closer interrogation, Andrew doesn’t seem to know exactly what he wants to buy there anyway. Instead, we go for a walk down the river, enjoying a nice Romeo & Juliet corona cigar along the way, to the nearby Jacob’s Pavillion, where, judging by the amount of cars, there is clearly something going on. The pavilion itself is right on the water and very cool and we learn that the band The Decemberists are playing, so we hang around outside the gate listening to a couple songs, taking glamour shots of ourselves.

By now it is getting dark and we stroll back to the boat, mesmerized by the transformation of our surroundings – the grit and grime being replaced by stunning lighted bridges, buildings and roadways. We push our point and shoot Cannon to the limit, trying to capture the beauty of the moment, but knowing the photos won’t come close to capturing it.

Andrew pilots his lovely vessel safely back to the dock, where we have a quick nightcap then hit the sheets after a very successful adventure in the Flats!

2011 Sailing Trip - Day 8 - Cedar Point

Miles by boat – 2.5
Miles by foot – 5

We wake up to an overcast, though warm morning in Sandusky and are on the water shortly after 8am headed across the bay to the Cedar Point Marina. We tie up at the fuel dock to get checked in and buy tickets for the day at the park. We’re surprised to discover that the full day adult tickets for access to both the Cedar Point amusement park and the Soak City water park are only forty bucks, and kids ones even cheaper. We motor over to our slip, get docked then prepare our day bag and we are off to the park, which is walking distance away. Once there, we go immediately to one of the bigger roller coasters to find there is already an hour and a half wait. We pass on that one but do find a couple other cool rides with shorter waiting times so we alternate between taking shifts with Magnus and Stella on the kiddie rides and going on the adult rides.

After a couple hours of that we walk over to the water park where we immediately head to the lazy river and doing a couple rounds in floating tire tubes, which is totally relaxing and a lot of fun. We remain in the water park for the rest of the day and the kids are in their glory, trying out all the slides, rides, pools and splash pads. Around 6:30 we are exhausted so head back to the boat for happy hour, grilled burgers and dock chatter. Andrew and Michelle head back to the park for a few more roller coaster rides and we head down to the nicely air conditioned boat, play with the kids for a while, watch part of a movie then head to sleep, thoroughly exhausted after a full day.

2011 Sailing Trip - Day 7 –Kelley’s Island to Sandusky

Miles by boat – 8.5
Miles by foot – 2

By morning, most of the boats packing the marine the previous night were gone, either back to the mainland, or perhaps they sunk, hard to tell because the water was so cloudy. We slept in until close to 8 and the kiddies were up shortly after that, after which we packed them full of Cheerios and toast then cast off for the short trip across the bay to Sandusky.

The entrance to Sandusky harbor is a little tricky, as there are hundreds of boats zipping around creating very confused waves. The channel itself is quite wide, though it gets shallow if you venture outside the buoys so we were careful to keep well within it. The roller coasters of Cedar Point loom large to the port side, creating additional distraction as you are close enough to hear people screaming as they plunge to their possible doom.

We arrive at the Sandusky Yacht Club and are met by the dockhands who show us to our slip and help us get in. The facility is beautiful, lots of bit sail and power boats, brand new clean docks, meticulously landscaped grounds and a classy and surprisingly cheap restaurant on site. It seems that every marina we visit makes Port Dover looks worse and worse. It must be the difference between a government owned operation and a private one, though it really doesn’t have to be like that. At our marina, at any given time there are six or eight red t-shirted kids standing on the deck by the marina office, waiting for something to happen. That is something you just never see in the US marinas – the kids working are always doing something and because of it, the docks are clean, no spiderwebs anywhere, grounds are clean, weeds are cleaned up, bathroom are shiny, etc. Our marina manager has been in the position for many years, which always leads to a degradation in the service since the get used to doing things the same old way and there is never a fresh set of eyes to take stock of things. Anyway, I don’t like to complain, so I’ll just get Ana to steal her job and she’d have that marina humming in no time.

After getting settled we head over to the restaurant for lunch and it’s pretty close to a white tablecloth sort of place, unbelievable servers and delicious food. When the kids inevitably don’t finish their food, the server takes it away to pack it up, and it comes back in neat little packages labeled with the date, time, name of the yacht club and instructions on reheating. Next time I simply must wear a shirt and tie instead of the grimy, three days strong, red and white t-shirt I’m sporting.

After lunch, we head to the pool, which is equally awesome – I have a quick swim with the kids then return to the boat to do some….ugh…work and they remain for a few hours. After that we go for a walk downtown then on the way back just happen to pass by the best fish sandwich shack on the lake – The Sandusky New Fish Company where I grab a perch sandwich to go.

We arrive back at the boats for happy hour then Andrew and Michelle head to the restaurant for lunch while we eat on the boat. Before long it’s time to retire to get a good night’s sleep before our big day at Cedar Point.

2011 Sailing Trip - Day 6 - Vermillion to Kelley’s Island

Miles by boat – 18.5
Miles by foot – 0.5
Miles by golf cart - 5

This was the first truly relaxing morning we’ve had this trip – skies were grey, storms were approaching and there was no incentive to do anything besides drink coffee and sit around on the clubhouse couches trying to find adult friendly cartoons on the tv for us to all watch, which was mainly unsuccessful. We were sure there would be a SpongeBob playing somewhere on the six hundred channels but all we could find were lame kids cartoons, fishing shows and infomercials. After making a nice breakfast in the marina kitchen I took advantage of the down time and got an hour of work done, all the while being ruthlessly heckled by the others. By this time Ana had found a break in the weather using this awesome iPad app called Intellicast, which finds your present locations and has detailed radar weather maps and forecasts. Shortly before leaving, we met a young guy who had been caught in the storm the day before in his 27 foot sailboat and thought he was going to die as he surfed his boat down the ten foot waves with no engine or sails and was doing 7 knots. Fortunately the storm didn’t last long, but it gave him quite a scare. I’m sure we’ll have our turn someday but until then we’ll continue to play it safe.

Around noon we packed up our gear, filled up with diesel, emptied the holding tank, threw off the dock lines and said goodbye to the lovely town of Vermillion. With a compass heading of 310 degrees, we set both the main and the headsail and the beautifully steady 14 knot west wind carried us across the water gracefully. The headwinds we’d faced much of the time had necessitated the use of the engine, but today this was not necessary as the wind was at a favorable angle, and gave us a deliciously quiet ride with the only sounds being the water splashing the side of the boat and the kids fighting down below in the cabin.

Sadly, the winds eventually died and we had to fire up the engine. As we approached Kelley’s we decided to stop for our “morning” swim as we had missed it the last time we were out because of the rough conditions. We hopped in suitless hoping, but not really caring that much, that the surrounding boats weren’t packing binoculars. The water was a balmy 31 degrees and felt more like a great bathtub than a great lake. After the swim, we motored in to Kelley’s island, where we were met at the dock by a dockhand and he directed us into a slip. The situation here on a Saturday afternoon was much different than that which we encountered last time we were here, which was midweek. This time the slow, quiet marina was replaced with boats in every slip, drunken dudes leaping off the pier and a heaving patio full of crazy boaters. There was a big festival happening this weekend in both Kelley’s and Put-in-Bay which had attracted thousands of people. After adjusting to the chaos, we met Andrew and Michelle then immediately head to the golf cart rental shop and picked up a lovely six seater. Kelley’s is small enough to do a full circuit in an hour in a golf cart but instead we did a half circuit and stopped at one of the beaches for a swim. As we were crusing around in that underpowered beauty we saw the black storm clouds rolling in which reminded Andrew that had hadn’t covered up his boat so we put the pedal to the metal, layed a mile long blackie on the roadway and were back to the marina in no time. Ana ad Magnus went to check out the local market while Stella and I went back to secure Bella Blue. As soon as she was prepped, the rain started to fall and we were pounded for about half an hour, which gave us time to listen to Nickelback’s “Rockstar” five times, cementing it as Stella’s current favourite. It was also the perfect opportunity to teach Stella the “devil horns” (high five minus digits 3 and 4 – if you can’t figure that out call Gene Simmons and he’ll show you).

Once the weather cleared, we walked over to the restaurants, on the way passing a charming young gent yakking over the side of his boat, attracting a legion of hungry sunfish in the process, making us all a little less hungry. We found a restaurant that had space and had a pretty decent meal, then head back to the marina for a couple drinks at the dockside bar, after which the Olsons retired while Andrew and Michelle pushed ahead and partied on until 4 am, what troopers!

2011 Sailing Trip - Day 5 - Slow Day in Vermillion

Miles by foot – 1

At 6 am I was up after a lovely night’s sleep so I grabbed the laptop and a coffee and snuck out of the boat to set up shop under the picnic canopy. It was already hot outside so my attire consisted of bathing trunks and sunglasses. I wanted to get a couple hours work done before the kids got up so I sat there tapping away until I was joined by a groggy but relaxed wife a while later, then shortly after that a little girl named Stella, who had a giant smile and hair that I can only describe as a nice place for a family of mice to bed down.

After getting everybody shampooed, shaved and shat we went out for a walk to see the downtown area and check out the shops. It was already wickedly hot by 10 am so we dashed from shadow to shadow, along the way finding a boat club with a pool that we were invited to use (yay!). As most of the shops did not open until 11 we sat down in the boutique coffee and gift shop and ordered iced coffees and iced tea for the kids. In the US, these drinks aren’t quite the same as we get in Canada. If you get an iced coffee from Timmy’s, it comes deliciously creamy, sweetened and in a slushy-like form. In the US, it is simply cold, brewed coffee with ice cubes in it. I am and have always been a black coffee, no sugar king of guy, but I had to add six packets of sugar and half a cup of cream to get this particular beverage into a drinkable condition. Same story with the iced tea – cold tea with ice cubes. I don’t think the iced tea in Canada bears any resemblance to brewed tea whatsoever, it’s mainly a powered mix of sugar and chemicals as far as I can tell, but it does taste good. Six packets of sugar in the tea wasn’t enough to make it drinkable for the kids so I drank that too, and in the process, got some sort of cold filtered caffeine rush that was quite enjoyable.

We visited the beach for a while, taking some glamour shots of Stella and her mom in front of the Marine museum, then headed back up the street to see the shops. We picked up sunglasses for the kids and Ana bought a nice dress at the consignment store. By this time we were steaming hot, and we had a report from Andrew that they were on their way, as the wind the previous day had prevented them from coming and they spent the night in Mentor, and were invited for drinks by the boat next door, a 70 foot monster. When they asked him what he did for a living he said, “I run a couple hotels”. They asked, “Oh, you own a couple hotels?”. He replied, “No, I just run them.” It’s that kind of place.

On the way back we stopped at the grocery store and picked up supplies, which included a box of 24 Labatt Blue for sixteen bucks, I just couldn’t pass it up. I’ve made a pact with myself to never buy alcohol in Canada again and so far I’ve been doing quite well. When we arrived back at the dock Andrew was there pumping another five hundred bucks of gas into his “investment” as the boating magazines like to call it. What they actually mean is an investment in your social life, but they make it sound like an investment in future, which is really just a guaranteed way to drain your bank account. BOAT is actually an acronym – Bring On Another Thousand.

After he extinguishes the flames from his credit card, we sit down for a nice beverage then head over to Quaker Stake for lunch, where I had one of the best burgers ever, the “Lubeburger”. A name this is just begging for a joke, but I suppose it fits the theme of the joint. Everywhere around us hung motorcycles, sea-doos, boats, small cars, engines, gas pumps and tv’s featuring mainly racing. Americans sure do love their themed restaurants. Canadian themed restaurants are few and far between, either because we have no imagination or maybe the Americnas have already had all the best ideas. We do have Moose Winooski’s in Ontario, at least, which features moose heads hanging everywhere and log cabin styling, sort of like Montanas but way cooler. But I digress.

Around 4pm or so this devilish looking layer of blackness boiled into the sky above the harbor. The temperature dropped ten degrees instantly so we closed up the boats and headed inside the clubhouse. Within minutes there were 50 kph winds, a deluge of rain and a scattering of hail, which did a wonderful job of cleaning up the topside of our boat. We enjoyed the storm from inside and the kids enjoyed cartoons on satellite tv for a couple hours

The rest of the day was taken up with having drinks, playing with kids, checking weather, doing laundry, having drinks, going for ice cream, having one more drink, checking the weather, then heading to bed. Overnight there was another vicious storm which felt like it was going to flood the city and explode our mast, but by morning it has calmed down.

2011 Sailing Trip - Day 4 - Mentor to Vermillion

Miles by boat – 55
Miles by foot – 0.5

I woke up at 4 to my gently bleating blackberry alarm clock then fell immediately back asleep as I was way too tired to get up. One hour later both Ana and I awoke, got the boat prepped and threw off the lines. We motored out into the lake to find stronger than expected winds and a very choppy lake. The further out into the lake we got, the harder the wind blew and the higher the waves became. Unfortunately, the nice strong wind was blowing directly in our face, forcing us to tack back and forth toward our destination, adding many miles onto our trip. As the boat was pounded by the waves, spraying water on the unfortunate cockpit members, the kids slept soundly below. At one point they both woke up and moved from the v-berth at the front of the boat, which was taking the greatest punishment, back to the aft cabin, which was slightly better, and immediately fell back asleep. The boat rocked and rolled, making it difficult to move around below, though Ana was able to make us a coffee and peanut butter and jam sandwich for breakfast. The kids slept on. It wasn’t until 9:30 that the children finally surfaced, after a restful and long sleep, assuring me that we have the best traveling kiddies in the world.

After nine hours we finally reached Vermillion, and it seemed like we were on the water for far longer than that. Because of the rough water we didn’t get to have our morning swim so Ana had a shower in the boat and the kids and I just stayed grubby. There were heat advisories broadcast over the radio the whole days as temperatures in the area were in the mid 30’s and humidity was maxed out, so it was a hot ride indeed, though the wind helped keep us cool on the boat. After negotiating an unusual, but neat harbor entrance, we started making our way down the channel and soon realized this was no ordinary stop. In place of coal piles, ancient factories and freighters, we passed luxury homes, neatly manicured lawns, beautiful yachts and lovely restaurants and bars, making this by far the prettiest town we’ve seen on the lake.

We pulled up to our marine, called the Vermillion Power Boat Club, and were immediately met by the manager who helped us dock then gave us a tour of the facilities. Because of our Boat US membership and the yacht club we belong to in Dover, we got 25% off the first night and the second night free. We like free, especially when it’s at a marina that has wi-fi, grills, outdoor covered eating area, full kitchen, fuel and pump-outs, and a huge air conditioned clubhouse with a giant television, perfect for a couple hours of cartoons for the kiddies. There is also a Quaker Steak and Lube restaurant immediately beside the marina, which is a US restaurant chain devoted to the burning of fossil fuels in all types of fast moving vehicles. A perfect fit for a marina with gas guzzling boats, I’d say.

Once we were settled, Ana got the kids ready and took them for a walk to the public beach to go for a swim, while I stayed back to get some work done. I’m in the middle of a big project at the moment so sadly have to spend some time on work stuff, but considering I’m working on a sailboat in a luxury harbor, I’m really not complaining.

When they returned several hours later we got the sand sprayed out of everybody’s butt then had a lovely steak dinner, and during dinner heard of their discoveries that afternoon which included a couple consignment stores, nice coffee house, beautiful beach, marine shop and, best of all, the sighting of a three foot long water snake, which they spotted from the bridge which passes over the canal.

While I finished up my work, Ana cooked us a delicious steak dinner and after gobbling that down we had a relaxing night and mainly stayed hunkered down in the air conditioned boat, relishing the thought that the next day’s plan was to stay put and have a slow, leisurely day.