GL: Loop advice received

[Lawrence Zeitlin]

Yesterday I asked:

A former colleague of mine from the UK has requested my advice on a
 > Loop excursion. He will be in the US for three months next summer.  
His
 > son will lend him his Albin 27 and has agreed to trailer it to the
 > starting point and pick it up from the end point.
 >
 > I seek the list's advice on the most interesting three month section
 > of the Loop.

Many thanks to the list. In less than 24 hours I have received 14  
fairly detailed replies. That's a very good response rate. If a mail  
order firm could do that, it would make millions.

The general consensus seems to be that the Northeast portion of the  
Loop is the most interesting and scenic. The favorite cruising area  
seems to be Georgian Bay, followed by Lake Champlain, the Lake  
Michigan area, the Hudson Valley and the Finger Lakes. The furthest  
south anyone suggested was Chesapeake Bay. Since the trip will take  
place in the summer, there were specific warnings against the Florida  
area during hurricane season. Anyway it is too hot in an Albin 27  
without air conditioning.

Some doubts were expressed about the seaworthiness of the Albin 27 in  
venturing into big water along the Jersey Shore or crossing Lake  
Ontario. Also if my former colleague is up to heavy weather boat  
handling. Not to worry on that score. He was the head of the School of  
Ocean Sciences at the Univ. of Wales-Bangor and has spent thousands of  
hours at sea on various relatively small research vessels. He is  
curious about the reputed bad storms on the Great Lakes but I told him  
that he will probably be disappointed since they don't usually happen  
in the summer. I don't know for sure if the Albin 27 will be up to it  
but since I cruised most of the same waters in a 23' sailboat the  
Albin should be OK.

The son and owner of the boat is an Assistant Professor at Cornell  
Univ. in Ithaca. I will follow the advice of the list and suggest that  
my friend pick up the boat in Ithaca and cruise Lake Cayuga with  
frequent side trips to the wineries, then take the Erie Canal to  
Oswego, cross Lake Ontario, take the Canadian canals to Georgian Bay,  
soak up the beauty then backtrack on the canals to Lake Ontario. From  
there he should travel down the St. Lawrence, stopping in Kingston and  
the Thousand Islands, then to the Richeleu Canal and down to Lake  
Champlain. From there he can take the Champlain Canal to the Hudson  
and travel its length to Haverstraw Bay. That's where I live. If he  
has time he can visit NYC and enjoy the fleshpots while his wife  
bankrupts him by shopping. The son can pick the boat up at his own  
convenience and either trail or sail it back to Ithaca.

But the responses evoked my curiosity. No one seemed to recommend any  
waters west of Lake Michigan. No mention of the rivers connecting to  
the Gulf. No mention of the Big Bend, the Keys, or the southern  
portion of the ICW. Do most Loopers simply endure these sections so  
they can get to the interesting parts? Is it like those opera records  
they used to advertise on TV? Just the best solos and arias with all  
the uninteresting parts left out.

Am I missing something?

Larry Z