2013 Finishing the Great Loop

We arrived in Brewerton, NY, a suburb of Syracuse, on Tuesday June 11.  We rented a one way mini van loaded to the top with enough stuff  for a few months on Island Hopper.  About 600 miles and 10 hour drive.
We stayed in a Comfort Lodge the first night and then moved onto Island Hopper which was "splashed" on Monday.

I had a checklist of items to be accomplished before we left for Lake Ontario and then Canada.  After sitting in storage for over 9 months they were many items needing attention.

 Winter Harbor is a working marina with two very large buildings for heated storage of large pleasure vessels.

We completed the checkout and repair of various systems by Sunday but the weather has not cooperated.  There was  torrential rain before we arrived and one day we have been here which has resulted in the closure of the Erie and Oswego Canal.  So here it is Monday June 17 and no formal word when it may reopen but it is rumored to be Wednesday. So we have been completing a myriad of chores.  We kept the rental car for an extra few days but are now using the courtesy car from the marina.

I brought 8 batteries from Cincy, each weighs 65 pounds and each had to be lugged to the boat, into the engine room, installed and the old ones lifted out.  Here they sit on the dock.  Six golf cart batteries for the ship's systems and two blue tops for the bowthruster.  I lived on Aleve for a few days.  Not getting any younger, Debbie reminded me.

We will head to Oswego, NY when we are able to leave and then cross Lake Ontario to Picton, Ontario which is a small town west of Kingston.
More on our route back to FL in future postings.