Gettinthere :
OK..here's what to do...
First of all, keep in mind you have a
current running that's between 2-3 knots right along side Amhurstburg...yes, the
current in the rest of the river is not quite that fast, but right there it narrows a bit & so the
water moves a bit faster...
Anyway, when you're heading
down-bound just follow the Livingston channel (we call it "the tube") out to Lake Erie like the freighters do. I've been passed by freighters in there many times & you'll have no problem.
Having said that, be sure to look ahead of your
boat & behind your
boat to see what sort of traffic there is (or isn't) coming into the channel as you're about to enter.
Hopefully seeing that you will have a clear shot through "the tube" will put your mind at ease...or if not, you'll have time to get out of the way in the unlikely event you may have an up-bound & down-bound freighter at the same time...that's never happenned to us & we've been running the river for many years.
The fact that you'll be assisted by the current, will have most sailboats moving close to 8-9 knots over ground...so even if you have a freighter off in the distance, you should be just fine to go though without them overtaking you.
Up-bound is a different situation (also due to the current) & so the thing to do is to keep close to Amhurstburg & NOT go through "the tube" so that you can stay out of the way of the faster boat traffic & freighters.
Once you're past Amhurstburg, I reccommend you stay to the American side to proceed up-river as it's a much wider channel & quite well marked.
In both up-bound & down-bound situations, I'd also strongly advise that you be sure to travel in daylight...as there's often "stuff" in the river (logs, tires, bodies, etc...) that are also making the trip out to Lake Erie, & so it's always a good idea to be able to see "things" to avoid hitting them & having a costly
repair...or damaging the evidence.