We are planning on doing the Eire and Rideau Canals......i was reading in Skipper Bob publication and it stated that you must be at the start of the Rideau bay July 1 st We were thinking about August 1st so we would be coming down Lake Champlain late Aug and the Hudson in Sept.... What is the reason for that statement? Larry H M/V KnottyDog Sent from my iPad Spelling errors are its fault

Dear Larry, I am sticking my nose in here as I know the answer to your question as I am Bob’s widow. Bob’s thoughts were that you are a "full time cruiser" and intend to get to the southern US before the cold sets in. If you are coming down the Hudson in Sept then you are possibly looking at it being cool, maybe rain and windy, when it is time to go along the coast of NJ and then up the Delaware Bay. Then you are in a rush to get to Norfolk by the first part of Oct which is an ideal time to start down the ICW headed for FL & Bahamas, etc. Yes, you can come when it pleases you but he was pointing out “ideal” timing so you have time to enjoy the canals, NY, NJ, Delaware Bay and the Chesapeake Bay before heading into the ICW. He was one to give himself plenty of time for unforeseen problems and bad weather days when you want to just 'stay put'. He did not like to put himself in a situation where he had to move on and possibly miss some favorite places along the way because he knew the seasons do not wait for you. We tried to be in Norfolk before mid Oct. every year because our first year we got there in late Oct. and suffered cold rains and very cold nights until we got to Charleston SC. We missed some places that we wanted to visit and rushed ourselves along because it was uncomfortable. We saw folks in open cockpit sail boats who were really suffering the cold rains. We did have a pilot house so it was not so bad for us. So that was his reason for the timing as I recall. Sure, we hit bad weather at times and engine problems too but we allowed some extra time for delays. We were retired and out there to enjoy ourselves. Elaine Reib Co-founder, Skipper Bob publications On May 19, 2014, at 4:52 PM, Larry <lhemmerich@knottydog.com> wrote: > We are planning on doing the Eire and Rideau Canals......i was reading in Skipper Bob publication and it stated that you must be at the start of the Rideau bay July 1 st > > We were thinking about August 1st so we would be coming down Lake Champlain late Aug and the Hudson in Sept.... > > What is the reason for that statement? > > Larry H > M/V KnottyDog > > > > Sent from my iPad > Spelling errors are its fault > _______________________________________________ > http://lists.trawlering.com/mailman/listinfo/great-loop_lists.trawlering.com > > To modify your Great-Loop subscription options (change email address, > unsubscribe, etc.) go to: http://lists.trawlering.com/mailman/options/great-loop_lists.trawlering.com