THURSDAY JULY 21ST, 2011

Before heading out this morning we went for a bike ride with Dave and Linda Tuls. They know the area well and took us on a scenic route for the out of shape. It is a lovely area and we could see why they keep coming back here. I survived the bike ride and we really enjoyed visiting and spending time with them.

It was a short trip today to De Tour. Only 8 miles. We have started to see Freighters and Lake boats again as De Tour (which in French means “turning point”) is located on the St. Marys River. This river joins Lake Huron so it is known as the turning point to Lake Huron.

This Laker is heading up the St. Marys to Sault Ste. Marie where it will pass through the locks and enter Lake Superior. The other direction would take it into Lake Huron.

We will spend the night at the De Tour Harbor Marina.










A walk down the dock brought us past this U.S. Customs and Border Patrol boat. Check out these bad boys! 1200 horsepower on a rigid inflatable? This would be fun to go for a ride on.










This is the most creative watercraft I have ever seen.
It is a hot tub boat! Complete with motor and
registration so it can go anywhere.



















And yes, it is a “hot” tub. Notice the woodstove door and chimney.  The door to the stove is gold colored and to the left of the base of the stovepipe. We could smell smoldering wood as we got close.
















Glad to see they do have a fire
extinguisher on board.











We walked up town and toured a little museum by the ferry dock. It was hot so we sat in the breeze and watched the ferry unload and load. Ross counted 32 vehicles go on. That included a small semi and a car with a trailer. Those guys know how to pack them on. It was fun watching vehicles come flying down the street at the last minute trying to make the ferry. Most of them made it on, but they filled and pulled away. Leaving the last two cars to wait an hour till their return.

We stopped at the grocery store on the way back to the marina. Ross and I tend to buy box wine while boating so we don’t have to deal with glass bottles. I promise this will be the last time I whine about Canadian prices. A box of the cheapest wine is Canada is around $40 with tax. At this store we bought a quart of milk, a dozen eggs, potato salad, jar of salsa, bag of pretzels, 2 bags of Chex Mix AND a box of wine for a total of $33 bucks and change. God bless America!!!

Close to the marina is this carving from a tree that was struck by lighting in early 2000. It is called the Passage Keeper. The tree itself was referred to as “one of De Tour’s witness trees”. Having absolutely no idea what that meant, I asked the lady at the museum. Well, she had no idea either. So once again the Internet had the answer. Surveyors in the early years used trees to mark corners of sections and quarters. The survey data was carved in to the tree.














We enjoyed dinner on the boat and an colorful sunset.