As we passed
through the Soo Lock we officially left Lake Superior and completed the first
leg of our journey. As much as we love
Superior we were glad to see the backside of her as she wasn’t kind this
June. Cold, wet, and foggy weather
pretty much described the lake. Most
recreational craft use the Canadian lock as is it smaller and who wants to be
in a lock with a Laker if they don’t have to?
We stayed at the George Kemp Marina which was beautiful and had a full
range of amenities we were even able to use their bikes. All Michigan marinas are owned by the DNR and
are regulated to the same rate. We paid
only $37.00 for our 30 footer.
As we pulled
into our slip we were greeted by a gentleman who asked if we were
‘Loopers’. Well, I was so flabbergasted because that was the first time we had been asked, that I don’t think I even
answered him. Fortunately my husband was
there and he did answer. Glen and Jill are on their trawler, Last Dance, and they are on an extended second
loop. They were full of good information
about the Loop and we enjoyed our time learning more about the routes.
We arrived
on June 30 and July 1 is Canada Day. We
had docktails, (another first) with 3 Canadian couples enjoying the holiday
stateside. They left for the Canadian
side before the fireworks started to be
in Canada on their holiday. Very colorful people all dressed in Canadian colors
and enjoying an extended weekend.
Cheers!
We stayed in
the Marina for three days and had a chance to take in the Soo Museum and get a birds eye
view of the Lakers transiting the Lock.
To give a
short timeline of the Soo go back 12,000 years when the Native Americans first
settled here. This area was a crossroads
of trade and fishing for the Great Lakes tribes. Next came the Jesuit priests in the 1600’s. Then the French ruled the single community until
the British colonial rule. After the War
of 1812 the border became fixed between Michigan and Canada. To bring
you up to date we now have two cities joined by an international bridge with
American and Canadian Locks. Nearly 7000
ships pass through here carrying up to 86 million tons. It always amazes me how far back we can trace the history of this area.
The Paul R. Tregurtha transiting the American Lock.
The Japanese Gate at the Soo.
A belated picture of our grandson, Jaxon who joined us for the Bayfield segment. Hi Jaxon!
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