Departed Dunkirk, NY on the morning of the 25th and motored against a south wind forty-five miles to Presque Isle Bay in Erie, PA. The seas were one foot or less and wind was under 10 knots which made for a pleasant trip the whole way. I stayed close to shore in case the winds shifted to the west. Presque Isle Bay is a natural harbor and large enough for commercial traffic. A few freighters were tied up to the piers in the harbor. The waterfront has a Maritime Museum and Commodore Perry’s reconstructed Flagship the U.S.S. Niagara which is also Pennsylvania’s official ship. Lots of artifacts and history about the battles of 1812 that was fought on Lake Erie at the museum. I spent the first night at the Transient Marina (not free but very nice). The next day, I hopped a bus downtown to a hardware store called West End Hardware. Wicked good hardware store with a very helpful staff. It seems each week something on the boat needs some loving. Sure glad I brought tools with me. Nothing major has broken just little things that I can’t seem to ignore and have to fix it. I left the transient marina late afternoon on Saturday and motored across the bay to a cove that is completely protected from the wind. The cove is part of Presque Isle Bay State Park and Marina. I dropped anchor in the cove and will be here until Thursday morning. The weather forecast has strong winds from yesterday until Wednesday night with up to 20 knot winds with the word “west” in the wind direction. Local sailors here shake their head and say, “stay put” and wait for the winds to change. I have plenty to do and can row into shore with my dinghy. I may walk around the State Park over the next several days.
Two things that have followed me everyday, since I left Vermont, are spiders and train whistles. Not sure how the spiders are getting on board but they do. I flick them off when underway and let them swim ashore. Yet more spiders show up each morning making webs in the railings and rigging. I hear train whistles everyday. Since I anchored in the Presque Isle State Park, I have not hear a whistle so far today. It’s likely because the train tracks are on the other side of the harbor.
Here are photos from Erie, PA Presque Isle Bay harbor:
Roblgreatloop 