October: Holding On a Little Longer

October is my favourite month of the year. But it’s also when life on land starts demanding attention again. With our hearts and minds divided, we managed only one last day sail to Thousand Islands National Park.

The water was too shallow to reach the docks, so we anchored and went for a hike around the island instead. As the sun set, we made our way back to our slip. Many boats were already on the hard, wrapped and dressed for winter. Only a dozen or so remained in the water, the ones holding on until the very last moment. The yacht club was winding down, quiet now. And I wasn’t ready for my long winter nap just yet.

Tom loves squeezing every possible day out of the season. This year, I couldn’t blame him, I was right there with him. But Mother Nature has a way of reminding you that she always gets the final say.

We already knew water levels at the yacht club were low. When we tried to pull into a neighbour’s slip to help with Yacht Club's haul-out day, we got stuck in the mud. Eeks. Thankfully, a quick reverse freed us, and we decided our boat would just have to be in the way. We weren’t risking getting stuck in someone else’s slip. On the way back to ours, I noticed we were stirring up mud. Things were getting concerning.

Tom kept telling me, “It’s going to be okay.” And that day, I believed him.

It wasn’t until days later that I started reading about boats on the St. Lawrence River getting stuck, water levels being historically low. Cue the anxiety. I was especially worried about the channel at Iroquois—last year it had been shallow, and we’d hit a rock. I quietly started building backup plans: who to call, where we could haul out, where we might store the boat for winter if we couldn’t make it.

Finding last-minute winter storage is not easy.

---

A cold puppy

We started our day late on a chilly Mid October day after buying a dinghy motor from a club member, a much-needed upgrade from our trolling motor. We were never going to make it all the way to Iroquois that day, but we left anyway, following the advice of another trusted yacht club member.

We knew Brockville Yacht Club didn’t have slips that could accommodate our boat, but we were told we could use their break wall. Boats our size often do. We arrived in the early evening, creeping in slowly, and sure enough, we grounded just before the wall.

Thankfully, Brockville knew we were coming. A gentleman came out to help, we tossed him a line, and Tom used the winches to get us unstuck. We safely pulled into the pump-out station. Tom and the gentleman tried to problem-solve whether we could fit anywhere else, but between our length and beam, nothing worked. We were given permission to stay at the pump-out dock overnight, as long as we left early before it opened.

Water levels were definitely a concern. Starting to not believe “It’s going to be okay.”!

Bright and early the next morning, we set off for the final leg. At the channel, we anchored in the river while Ryleigh and I watched Tom disappear down the channel in the dinghy, pole in hand, mapping shallow spots and confirming whether we could make it safely to the marina.

The relief came quickly, we only had one narrow section to really worry about, as long as we stayed perfectly centred.

With Tom at the helm and me posted as eyes on the bow, I guided him through. We missed every rock, with only one close call. Going into the slips felt like tempting fate, but our haul-out was scheduled for the next day, so we snuck into the day dock and tied up and finally exhaled.

I had read know the International Joint Commission who controls the water levels on the St. Lawrence had allowed extra water to flow to help stranded boats reach safety. Maybe we picked exactly the right day.

Haul-out itself had its moments. On the way to the pump-out, we got stuck in the mud again. We managed to free ourselves and get back to the day dock, but it took some serious skill from Tom to keep us moving. When it was finally our turn for haul-out, we got stuck again, and the staff had to pull us through the mud.

Eeks. But we made it.

Once again, the Iroquois staff were amazing, placing Agra2 gently into her cradle for her long winter’s nap. They made sure she was perfectly level, perfectly centred, and even loaned us two jack stands just to be extra safe. I love that place. Iroquois Marine isn’t fancy, it’s a little rough around the edges, but I know Agra2 is well cared for there. I trust she’ll be safe all winter.

And just like that, the season ended, not with fireworks, but with relief, gratitude, and one last deep breath.

⚓💙