Bluebird's Great Loop Diaries

500 statute miles through Alabama and a bit of Mississippi, from the hills that hint of mountains to the coast and the sea, was an amazing journey. The towns and riverside homes were sparse and the wilderness and the river were ever-changing as we passed through 12 locks on our way to Mobile in eight… Read more: Oct 31 to Nov 11: Down the Tombigbee Waterway to Mobile

We returned to Bluebird at Green Turtle Bay Resort and Marina in Kentucky after almost three weeks away. We had a sibling trip with Hervey’s sisters and their husbands in North Carolina (an annual event since 2002, made all the more poignant with the 100th anniversary of his father’s birthday.) We also had medical appointments… Read more: Kentucky and Tennessee Rivers: Sept 28-Oct 30

We had been looking forward to this part of the trip with some eagerness and some trepidation. We were worried about the currents on the Mississippi, the debris that might be in the water, and the long stretches with no marinas in sight. The whole month of September, even with stops in Chicago, Ottawa, and… Read more: Down the Mississippi to the Kentucky Lakes Sept 20 to 27

We went from Chicago to St. Louis over the past nine days: a trip that included a lot of bridges, locks, and nostalgia as Hervey revisited the Illinois river valley where he lived when he worked for Cricket magazine. And it is near where Kitty lived for the first ten years of her life and… Read more: From Chicago to St. Louis on the Illinois River: Sept 10 to 19

On our way south now, after returning to the USA and having eaten our share of butter tarts, pea meal bacon, and Canadian wines and spirits. This is the second half of our trip and we are beginning to look forward to the Illinois Rivers and the other inland rivers that will take us home… Read more: Northern Lake Huron and Lake Michigan, August 12 to Sept 9

Traverse City, Michigan is cloudy this morning. And the fog is rolling over the Leelanau Peninsula from the west, just like it comes over the Coastal Range into San Francisco Bay at Sausalito: those thin tendrils that presage oblivion. It is 66 degrees here and there is the hint of Fall weather in the air… Read more: Reflections from Halfway: August 21

It has been an eventful week! We have left Georgian Bay and have finished touring the North Channel of Lake Huron (nestled behind Manitoulin Island between Killarney and Sault Ste. Marie and Mackinac Island). Along the way, we have rescued the boat from disaster twice and drug our dinghy through heavy seas — upside down!… Read more: The North Channel of Lake Huron: August 3 to 11

This week has been a dream come true for Hervey, and a lot of new experiences for Kitty along the way. Georgian Bay has been described as the best boating outside of the Greek Isles and it has proven to be amazing and challenging and beautiful. Our trip began at Wye Heritage Marina in Midland,… Read more: Georgian Bay, Canada: July 23 to August 3

We enjoyed our stay in Peterborough and left on Monday, July 14, refreshed and ready for the next stage into the Kawartha Lakes. It was similar to our first day out of Trenton where we traveled only a few miles but endured a large number of locks, one right after the other. And we had… Read more: Trent-Severn Waterway Part Two: July 14 to 22

From Trenton to Port Severn, Ontario is 240 miles on the Trent-Severn Waterway across the lower portion of the province that curves from East to North of Toronto. We finished it today. This is part one of two for this extraordinary part of our adventure; one we did not realize would be so enjoyable and… Read more: The Trent-Severn Waterway, Part One: July 7 to 13

We finished the Erie and Oswego Canals on July, but stayed a day on Oswego to wait for better weather for our 5o-mile crossing of Lake Ontario to Kingston, Ontario. So how did that work out? We stuck our nose into Lake Ontario on July 3, but the wind was up from storms the night… Read more: …And onto Canada! July 3 to July 6

We completed the Erie Canal today, only completing about half of its length as we turned north to follow the Oswego Canal north to Canada. The past 10 days have included a week-long hiatus with family in the Adirondacks. Yes, some fish were caught. We spent the time before our break in ILION and returned… Read more: Finishing the Erie Canal, June 19 to July 2

We stayed at Donovan’s Shady Harbor in New Baltimore for an extra few days, waiting for the weather to improve and for the Erie Canal to be repaired. Overnight, Kitty got up to see the Strawberry Moon. Our next journey is north for 18 miles and then — Westward Ho! 150 miles on the Erie… Read more: Onto the Erie Canal June 11 to 18

The trip from Kingston to New Baltimore was beautiful and easy: 34 miles that took about 4.5 hours. The sky was partly cloudy, hinting at rain to come, and the tidal current was helping us out with an additional knot of speed. We said goodby to our new friends in Kingston (George and Robin, Peter,… Read more: New Baltimore, NY — June 2 to June 9

After departing from Baltimore on May 3, the journey included smooth sailing up the Chesapeake Bay and a challenging ride down the Delaware Bay to Cape May. We enjoyed stops in Barnegat Light and New York City before reaching Kingston, where we experienced local culture. Due to delays on the Erie Canal, we returned to Baltimore briefly.