st lawrence sailing

[douglas32]

Ahoy! Im going to live on 32ft slowly heading to montrel up St. Lawrence river 20 yrs sailing on lake Ont. retired 61 yr old male seeking advice? Never been past 1000 isl.?

[Tetepare]

Water will be high this year.

First one to post a photo of a keelboat passing through the cut on the north side of Endimyon wins, forever gets my admiration and jealousy.

[Mike OReilly]

I (my spouse and I) traveled the length of the St. Lawrence back in 2017 when we sailed all the way to Newfoundland. Happy to share what I learned.

Your message is a little unclear, but I think you're heading down to Montreal from Lake Ontario (not up). Not sure what info you're after. Feel free to ask away...

If you're going this season I bet you'll be dealing with higher-than-normal downstream flows. Just like in 2017, Lake Ontario is high, so they'll likely be letting out more water than normal. We found this increased the normal downstream currents by at least a knot. So you can expect to feel 1-3 knot currents most of the time, and even more in some tight areas.

Other than that there are seven locks on the route if you are going all the way to Montreal. I think they require that pleasure boats have at least two people on board to go through the locks. They're not hard, and going down is easier than going up.


What else?

[scargo]

Originally Posted by douglas32

Ahoy! Im going to live on 32ft slowly heading to montrel up St. Lawrence river 20 yrs sailing on lake Ont. retired 61 yr old male seeking advice? Never been past 1000 isl.?

You are actually going DOWN the river WITH the current which is easy

You will need a full day to cross from St. Francis lake (Lac St. François in french) to Montreal. Few bridges to open and a few locks. If you buy your locks tickets online you will save some money. Also, the rules of the St Lawrence seaway require a minimum of 2 people on board for the locks.
I did that route many times and sailed up to Nova Scotia and back on a 30 ft. sailboat with a 13hp engine.
I live in Montreal, so let me know if you need more info.

[douglas32]

Thank you so much! New to forum and did knot think anyone would reply so cheerz! I,m planning a trip up st lawrence to at least Montrel but scares the heck outa me! Especially since I may have to solo part of way but I guess I need to have another body for the locks. This will be the biggest trip Ive ever had and I,m very excited! If anyone is interested in coming along let me know?I,m super easy to be with and could use some experience! Adios amigos

[Mike OReilly]

Are you planning on marina hopping your way down, or are you planning to anchor as you go? If the latter, I can tell you where we anchored along the route. Can't tell you much about the marinas, since I never went to any. But you can look at WaterWay Guide here for a lot of info:

https://www.waterwayguide.com/explor...0000002&zoom=8

The currents around Montreal Island can be mighty wicked, and they'll likely be higher this year, but generally the trip is quite easy, and rather picturesque. I'm sure you'll love it.

Check out: Seaway System - Recreational Boating for lots of details, including the Pleasure Craft Guide, which is a must, and how to pre-pay. As scargo says, you'll save $5 off each lock (normally $30 each), but even more importantly, you don't have to stop each time and buy a lock ticket. If the lock is ready (as it sometimes is), you can just glide right in.

And yeah, get yourself a crew member for the locks.

[scargo]

Originally Posted by douglas32

Thank you so much! New to forum and did knot think anyone would reply so cheerz! I,m planning a trip up st lawrence to at least Montrel but scares the heck outa me! Especially since I may have to solo part of way but I guess I need to have another body for the locks. This will be the biggest trip Ive ever had and I,m very excited! If anyone is interested in coming along let me know?I,m super easy to be with and could use some experience! Adios amigos

I am boatless right now, so I would love to do some sailing this summer. Let me know when when you're planning your trip. I can at least do the Cornwall to Montreal part or maybe even from Iroquois, the first lock when coming from lake Ontario. That way you will have a budy for the locks