Windy, wavy Lake Erie

The title says it all. Lake Erie has been pretty rough on us so far. With strong south and southwest winds, big waves have been whipping up every afternoon, forcing us in to shore before we can get a full day in. We've talked to some locals, and they've all said the weather has been odd lately, what with thunderstorms passing through every day and big, choppy waves forming rapidly in the afternoons. It doesn't help that the shoreline has been mostly cliffs ever since passing Wheatley.

After leaving Leamington, we came around Point Pelee in some rough water. Thankfully, once getting to the other side, we had a couple hours of calm water but strong wind that pushed Boldy the Beluga Whale very quickly eastward. By two in the afternoon, though, we were in whitecaps and not comfortable with how the waves were building, so we headed for the cliffed shoreline, hoping to find a beach where we could land. We found one and landed, then climbed up a wooden staircase leading upwards on the cliff face. Thankfully we found some more kind souls, Dolores and Steve, who allowed us to camp in their yard. The next day we were up early and headed to Rondeau Bay. We made it to the bay, but had some of the roughest water either of us have ever seen. The wind came from nowhere, and the waves, swells two meters or greater, soon followed. There was no place for us to go but to the bay, for the shoreline was all rocks or metal sea wall. We were praying to God the whole time. It was only by His grace that we made it into the bay unscathed, though it was certainly close. We survived, though, and are thankful for that. Our respect for this lake has increased tenfold.

Once we got into the bay and made land, we emptied our boats of water (there was quite a bit of it in both of them) and set out in search of someplace to stay the night. We were led to an awesome little campground with cabins and loads of friendly people who gave us free food and beer. We're something of celebrities here, as some of the people at the site saw us out on the water in our little makeshift sailboat in the huge waves. After telling them about our trip, they thought us even more amazingly crazy. Thinking about what we were sailing in, maybe they're right about the crazy part. We're in the town of Erieau, taking a break for the day (we were whooped after the hard, nerve wracking few days on the waves) and trying to determine our next move. Big waves and strong wind continue to be in the forecast, and the coastline continues to be unfavorable for making land in a pinch. We'll figure something out, though.

~ Shannon