Kingston, Ontario was a great town to visit. We stayed an extra day due to a mechanical problem, our starter motor decided it was time to quit. Good for us in that we are still in shake-down mode and expect to be making the boat as bullet proof as we can before we pass Quebec. We stopped in the Kingston Marina and found they had no mechanic on duty so they called a fellow named Bob who diagnosed our probem as the starter, removed it and found us a new one. So hopefully we are good to go engine wise.

Last night after leaving Kingston and powering east through the Thousand Islands we stopped at Leek Island in a small harbor on the south side. Up to this point we have either been staying at marinas or sailing over night so we've had no opportunity to drop the hook. Last night was out first. With Alice at the wheel, I went forward with the windless remote in hand; I prepared the anchor and then turned on the remote to drop and quess what, nothing. The windlass remained silent no matter which remote button I pushed. Alice was wondering what I was doing and was getting anxious about setting the anchor. I decided to drop the hook manually and worry about retrieving the chain in the morning. In about 18 feet of water I dropped about fifty feet of chain and had Alice back down a bit. It set the hook and we were good to go, no wind, three other sailboats and an incredibly serene harbor. Loons were calling there distinctive sound while other birds on shore in the pine trees were serenading us. After a couple of bloody marys, some dinner it was time to call it a day. The windlass would wait until morning.

The trusty volt meter helped solve the problem of a loose wire on the control box, so with remote in and I again approached the bow with Alice at the wheel and wonders of wonders it worked perfectly. We weighed anchor and headed east through the islands. We can now more clearly understand the appeal of the Thousand Islands. Simply beautiful with deep bays and channels with reefs everywhere. Our chartplotter performed flawlessly as we manovered between islands.

Three ships passed us once we entered the seaway channel enroute to our next destination, Prescot, Ontario and here we sit for the night. Tomorrow we will pass through the first of seven locks on our way to Montreal. We're not sure whether we'll make it all the way to Montreal tomorrow or we might stop and practice anchoring again.

The weather was cloudy, rainy with winds from the NE. Tomorrow SE with more of the same clouds and rain. We don't care we can still enjoy the beauty of this area.

Cheers,