Finally Got The Boat Out

[RGrew176]

I launched April 22nd. Every day off I had since then it seems that the wind was blowing in the 20 MPH range. For me a bit to windy to head out as I am still learning the handling characteristics of my 3007.

Yesterday (Monday) was the Detroit/Windsor Freedom Festival Fireworks on the Detroit River. I really wanted to go but the winds were in the 15 to 25 MPH range so I was sitting dockside hoping they would subside. Finally at 8 PM the winds did subside and I headed out.

Of course many boat trips start at the fuel dock. I topped off my tanks pumping in 41 gallons of liquid gold totaling $172.00.



Gas is quite a bit higher priced in Gibraltar when compared to Bolles Harbor. It's about 80 cents a gallon more there.

Here we are leaving the marina headed to the fuel dock.



You can see the water is very calm hardly a ripple.

After fueling up we headed up-river towards Detroit. We should have left a half hour earlier. We were about a mile or slightly under south of the Ambassador Bridge when the fireworks started. We decided to watch them from there. About half way through the program it started to rain and rain rather moderately. We decided to start back towards home.

Since it was now dark I throttled up to about 1400 RPM. If I hit something I was hoping to minimize damages. I could not believe just how many boats were headed downriver at cruising speeds. We did see one boat being towed downriver and into their marina. Hopefully it was a breakdown and not a collision with an unseen object.

We puttered our way south arriving back at my marina about 11:30 PM. All in all, except for the rain it was a nice first cruise of the season. Hopefully more cruising to come. Hoping to get back out on the river Wednesday afternoon.

[Dewmyster]

WOW, your fuel is $1.10 more per gallon than what I paid, for 93 octane in Sandwich, MA last week!

[RGrew176]

Source of the post WOW, your fuel is $1.10 more per gallon than what I paid, for 93 octane in Sandwich, MA last week!

Yeah, it's high at the marina. I may try filling up at one of the local boat clubs next time.

[mjk1040]

Damn I thought we were the only one's getting a windy summer here in NY. Fuel here is $3.50>$3.95 in the finger lakes. The only up side is not burning a lot off fuel so far this season and more time to party on shore I guess! Boating on Lake Ontario is all but null. Water level up to the docks and every thing is under water still in the St. Lawrence River!

[bud37]

Nice , Rick, its good when you finally get out. It has been steady wind and rain here on Georgian Bay as well. Now a little info for ya hard done to US boaters , yesterday put 20 litres of gas in dinghy tank, $1.23 a litre at marina ( thats cheap )......to translate a little the equivalent would be $4.76 canadian for a USG, here. .........

[tomschauer]

We have also lost a couple weekends to high winds "down here".
I paid $2.64 Us per gallon for 89 0ctane. Its $2.14 on the street in Maryland.

[tomschauer]

Rick, I assume your transmission worked well?

[RGrew176]

Source of the post Rick, I assume your transmission worked well?

So far, so good. Hope I have no further problems with that transmission for some time.

[RGrew176]

I have talked with many other boaters and none of us can remember a spring and now early summer with so much wind. I don't think we have had a calm day yet this spring and now summer. Many days are in the 15 to 20+ MPH range.

[Midnightsun]

We are doing quite well wind wise in the 1000 islands region however a little on the cool side this year. Biggest issue is the water is so high our electrical boxes to the docks (junction box from shore to dock) are under water and therefor we have no dock power available. Since the levels are not going down any time soon, they expect no power available for the entire season! Good thing I installed solar panels on the hardtop early spring however the inconvenience of no power is really a PITA. They have budgeted $100,000 to reconfigure the entire marina electrical system at the end of the season this year so it will not happen again.