August 20                                            Caraquet, New Brunswick, Canada

As promised, at 9:00 AM and high tide, our dock help arrived to help us negotiate the difficult maneuvering required to take our large boat from the restricted dock space.  With his usual calm and skillful piloting, David quickly moved us away from the dock and turned expertly into the large expanse of the St. Lawrence.  The weather was great and we were excited to have a long day of cruising.

The GPS was programmed to take us past the shoals.  I brought in the fenders and knelt down to secure the small ladder we had decided to leave attached to the boat when a tremendous jolt pushed me forward toward the ladder opening.  I grasped the railing and held myself on deck.  A horrible noise indicated we had hit a shoal, not marked and not indicated on the GPS, hidden by the high tide. 

We were immediately aware we had sustained prop damage.  Knowing we had no help at Chandler, we decided to continue our journey.  Our maximum speed was 7 knots without incurring considerable vibration.  David perused our manual and found a shipyard at Caraquet located across the Bay of Chaleurs.  The weather was wonderful and we easily made it to Caraquet.

Our journey was marred by our damage but the excellent weather and beautiful shoreline scenery were pleasant distractions.  We were delighted to see the huge hulk of Perce Rock, a red granite monolith extending far into the water and one of the most photographed sites in Canada. Across from it was the I’lle-Bonaventure, a favorite site for birdwatchers who come to view the huge population of northern gannets and other birds that nest here every summer.

 We could find no information for the Caraquet shipyard so we passed it and continued to the harbor marina, a rustic facility with predominately fishing boats in their docks.  The harbor master saw our boat and told us we were too large to dock there.  I pleaded we had sustained damage and needed to come in.  He graciously came to hold our lines and help us secure our 58’ boat into a dock meant for a 30’ foot vessel.  Hearing our tale of woe, he called the shipyard and made arrangements for us to be there at 8:30 AM to be pulled and have our props replaced with the spares we had on board.

We needed cash to pay the shipyard so we climbed the treacherous ladder from the dock onto the wharf and walked four blocks to the grocery store and the nearest ATM.  Of course, David had to make a long, long stroll through every aisle.  His purchases were limited by the fact we would be carrying everything. o Determined to bring some happiness into this special day of our anniversary, he surprised me with a beautiful bouquet of red roses.  What a guy!!

The wharf, only four feet behind our aft deck, was a popular nocturnal place.  Cars, motorcycles, and bicycles came slowly through the area as the drivers were perusing the boats in the marina and several stopped to inquire about the visitors from Texas.