Sarnia, ON

Sarnia ON, Sarnia Bay Marina – Sept 21-26, 2021

Yes, it really was a week of wind.  From the first night we stayed where we saw literally 6 inches of rain in a 24 hour period and winds of approx. 60 km winds til the day before we left there was wind.  During this time we did catch up on laundry, groceries, and small maintenance items.  We did not expect to be here for a full week. 

During this time we decided that perhaps hiring a Captain to cross from Sarnia to Port Huron, MI was a great chance.  We started looking into logistics.  We found helicopter charters from Windsor to Detroit.  So that would mean Uber or taxi or shuttle for us from Sarnia and from Detroit to get to Port Huron.  Also found a Captain.  We decided that the best way to make this work was for our Captain to contact the Border Patrol in Port Huron to see if they would allow this to occur.  To our delight,  our Captain did get a written letter to cross.  We were so happy.  This was a game changer.  Our original idea was to hire a Captain to take her across at Sault Ste. Marie, ON to Chicago, IL.  This would mean that since permissions were given in writing that we could now travel the west side of Lake Huron. 

We started making all the logistics happen.  Book Captain, helicopter flights for us, Get the Captain To Sarnia from Toronto, etc, etc.  So many twists and turns to make sure all the pieces fit.  After about two days of phone calls and making it GO TIME we were ready.  We did manage to find a pickleball court and got in a few games and made a few friends.

Then to our disappointment, and beyond our control, the border patrol Supervisor reneged on his letter.  I am not going to go into why, here in print, however it was extremely disappointing.  So now to cancel everything that we had been spending days on and making sure refunds are available.  All the vendors were very agreeable and refunded every dime.

So now what?  Back to our original plan.  Hire a Captain to take her to Chicago at Springbrook Marina, where we bought Heliopause.  We knew they would take care of her if…..she needed to be lifted, winterized and stored.  All this depends on if the border does open.  Springbrook Marina is located on the Illinois River which does not freeze in the winter.  So we decided on a drop date for having her lifted and we would stay in the cold until we could bring her home, only if the border does not open.

We waited for our window on Lake Huron and made a run for it.