OH CANADA

Upon returning to the United States from any port outside the country you are required to have a US Customs decal. This decal can be purchased for an annual user fee of $27.50. We are armed and ready with this decal. We were told that without it we would not be shot, but it could be a hassle. So, sometimes being a "goodie-two-shoes", I followed the instructions. More later. Leaving the USA and riding across Lake Ontario all you see is the expansive blue sky and then a view of the city of Toronto. We docked at the Royal Canadian Yacht Club. No trailer park for us. It is 23 acres, with a pool, tennis court and lawn bowling. You must wear "whites." In the formal dining room, jackets are required. You know I didn't get to eat there! I'm happy Mike has a pair of shoes with him. You can not walk to the pool in your bathing suit; you have to shower and put your suit on at the pool. Lots and lots of rules. You can walk or ride bikes for miles, which we did. Alcohol can only be consumed on your boat and we could not use our skateboards at all. There's some kind of flurry feather-like white dust falling from the trees. It's all over the place; stuck to boats, webs and docks. This pollen is driving me crazy, I can't stop sneezing. We took our bikes along a sea wall and the shoreline of Ward's, Algonquin and Center Islands. Just beautiful. Still, you must take the good with the bad...Bugs, bugs and more bugs. There's a launch that runs every half hour to the city. We went to the CN Tower. It's the tallest free standing structure in the world. We ate at the Revolving Restaurant overlooking the city skyline. It goes 360 degrees in about an hour. The view was breathtaking and so were the prices. We helped pay the Canadian National debt. You only pass this way once. We are staying 2 or 3 days everywhere we go. We are also trying not to travel more than 4 hours at a clip. Next port was Niagara-on-the-Lake. We stopped at a sailing club. Wherever we go, power boats are out-numbered 40 to 1. At the marina they have the whirlpool jet boats. They take you to where the whitewater waves mix with the swirling currents and form a whirlpool. Not good for a bad back or heart. You have to sign a release that they are not responsible for any injury......makes you think we are crazy. This town also has many wineries. Since we were riding our bikes, I was afraid to drink, I didn't want a BWI. There are dozens of little shops for anyone who enjoys browsing. If you continue along the bike path you can get to the falls. This town is known for its Shaw Festival. Port Dalhousie is only an hour away, that's our next adventure. We, again, took our bikes into town. You can see Murphy's Tavern and a picture of the 1920's carnival carousel, it still costs just a nickel. We spent the night at a Jimmy Buffett party. "It's five o'clock somewhere." At Port Dalhousie we made arrangements to go up the Welland Canal to Lake Erie. The Welland Canal is 23 miles long with a 326 foot lift through 8 locks. Each lock is about 46 feet deep. Each lock is about 80 feet wide and 1000 feet long. We saw a tanker that was 78 feet wide and almost 800 feet long. Obviously the tankers have the right of way. You must have a 3rd person on the boat, we had to hire a deckhand. The lock cost us $200. A tanker has to pay $23,000! These locks really had my stomach in a knot. Passage takes about 12 hours depending on the traffic. It wasn't so bad, we made it through in 7 hours.