We’ve been home about 2 weeks, just enough time to visit Dean’s parents, our sons and their wives, unpack and do laundry, pedal up and down hills with friends in Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom, and get back to our jobs. We’ve somewhat adjusted to life on land and living life indoors several days a week. All good.

Dean made this great graphic of all our stops from our leaving Maine in June to our leaving Clare in mid September in Brewerton, NY. A true northeast loop and we loved all the new areas and having the time to fully explore and appreciate them. The slow trawler life suited us just fine.

The purple location marks indicate our second lap through the Erie in September.

Over 1700 miles and 99 locks, countless anchorages, moorings, town or lock walls, and occasional marinas. All in all, a terrific adventure with no regrets, only great memories of a summer well spent.

People and boat cards – we met so many interesting and amazing fellow adventurers from the US and Canada. So many stories told, resources shared, and political opinions discussed over dock lines and “docktails.” Hope to keep in touch with many and perhaps our boating paths will cross again in years to come.

So, we turn to home projects instead of boat projects, to alarm clocks and work, and to being with family and friends on land instead of on water. And we begin planning for next year, God willing, when we head back to Clare, eager to live aboard and explore again. Back to the Erie Canal, across Lake Ontario, then into the Trent Severn Canal (more locks!) and into Georgian Bay, Lake Huron, and the North Channel. Back to Ontario, Canada we go! Then who knows?!?!

Thanks for reading and sharing the journey with us!

By the grace of God we go,

~ Karen and Dean