The World Cruise of Veleda IV
The Itinerary
The dates up to the end of July are reasonably firm, but could be modified to accommodate prospective crew changes. After that, we will be going into Lake Superior, and our itinerary is uncertain. Where “exchange any crew” is indicated, it is a location for those joining or leaving us to do so.
Update - June 1998
April / May, 1998 - Working on Veleda to install full cockpit enclosure, new batteries, new charger and electrical system, new wind generator, new cable for self steering, new epoxy and bottom paint and waterline strip, and general preparations and maintenance for live aboard and long distance blue water cruising.
May 16 - Launch Day at TH&SC
May / June - Check-out cruises to evaluate all the new systems and new engine
June 20 (Sat.) - Sailpast - a big celebration of the start of the sailing season for our club, the Toronto Hydroplane and Sailing Club (THSC)
June 27 (Sat.) - A big Pre-Sail party at THSC for family, friends, and fellow sailors hosted by Aubrey and Judy
July 3 (Fri.) - WE’RE OFF! Set sail between 6:00 to 8:00pm to cross Lake Ontario and enter the Welland Canal for a night transit.
July 4 (Sat.) - Spend the night at Port Colbourne and exchange any crew.
July 5 (Sun.) - Depart up Lake Erie with possible stops at Port Dover, Erieau, Leamington, Sandusky, Pelee Island and the Bass Islands, into the Detroit River to be up to Sarnia by Thurs. July 9, and exchange any crew.
July 10 (Fri) - Depart Sarnia for straight sail to Tobermory to arrive Sat. July 11. We would like to party with many of our friends in that area on Saturday and Sunday, and exchange any crew.
July 13 (Mon.) - Depart Tobermory to arrive at Killarney late the same evening and exchange any crew (Tuesday morning 0900).
July 14 (Tues.) - Depart for Little Current to replenish fresh food and exchange any crew. We will probably anchor in Mosquito Cove (but no mosquitoes), one of our favorite anchorages, after watching the sun go down over the North Channel.
July 15 (Wed.) - Depart early to sail to Gore Bay on Manitoulin Island for Thurs. July 16 for the Great Lakes Cruising Club Rendezvous. Here we will stay for the weekend. We can resupply with fresh food and exchange any crew.
July 20 (Mon.) - Depart back to the Benjamin Islands to anchor and gunkhole our way back to Little Current for Sun. July 26 to replenish fresh food and exchange any crew.
July 26-Aug. 3 - Sail into McGregor Bay and up Baie Finn. The itinerary is fluid pending anniversary celebrations in Espanola. We will be stopping in Little Current again on our way through the North Channel enroute to Sault Ste. Marie and hope to have a party possibly at Spider Island Marina with some of our friends from the Espanola area, but the dates are uncertain.
August 7 (Fri.) - Arrive in Sault Ste. Marie to replenish fresh food supplies and exchange any crew.
August 8 (Sat.) - Depart the Sault for Lake Superior. We enjoyed our sail in Lake Superior a couple of years ago. This time we will probably visit some of the American side, including Isle Royale. We haven’t planned our Superior ports yet (as of the middle of March).
September - Sail Lake Michigan, and down to Chicago. There we will take down our mast and motor through a canal system to get into the Missouri-Mississippi River system.
October - We will take our time sailing through the middle of the USA, stopping in several locations to rent a car and travel around by land. We will go down to Mobile or New Orleans and into the Gulf of Mexico.
November 98 - May 99 - We don’t want to get there until November in order to miss the hurricane season. We will spend the winter in the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea visiting such places as the Bahamas, the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
May - June - We plan to cross the Atlantic Ocean by way of Bermuda, following the Gulf Stream on the northern route over to the United Kingdom and northern Europe. We expect it will take from 4 to 5 weeks to cross.
July -August - We will sail around England, Scotland, the North Sea, visiting also Norway, Denmark, Sweden, and possibly some other states bordering on the Baltic sea.
September - October - We will drop the mast again and motor through Europe to the Mediterranean Sea through one of the river systems such as the Rhine, Seine or possibly the Danube. We will stop at different ports en route to tour. We especially will spend some time in Paris visiting Jacqui, Judy’s sister who teaches at the Sorbonne.
November 1999 - May 2000 - We will spend the winter in the Mediterranean, visiting North Africa, Israel, Italy, Greece, Turkey, and other countries and islands in that part of the world. We are not sure where we will be when the new Millennium comes in on Dec. 31, but in the Med. some place.
June 2000 - We may come back through Gibraltar over to North America, and maybe back to Toronto. Our plans are not settled yet after this point. Back to Toronto is one possibility. Another is to cross the Atlantic to go through the Panama Canal into the Pacific Ocean. There is a reunion of Navy officers in Victoria on Vancouver Island that we could sail up to in July, and possibly settle down in B.C., return to Toronto by air or train, or possibly keep on sailing for Japan to visit the many friends I have over there.
Next Log
