Growing up in Newfoundland meant that you spent a good portion of your childhood in a boat. A career with the Water Survey of Canada meant that you also spent a significant amount of time in a boat. In the 1990s, we sometimes sailed with friends who had sailboats. In those days we were busy with jobs and playing golf, but by the mid-1990s our interest in sailing and sailboats reached a new high. We started taking boating courses and looking at the listings of “boats for sale”.

In the fall of 1998, we became the proud owners of a C&C 27, a 27 foot sloop named Déjà vu. For the next few years we sailed Déjà vu on Lake Ontario and thoroughly enjoyed it.

In the spring of 2002, “Deja vu” sailed down the St. Lawrence River, visiting Montreal, Quebec City, the Gaspé, the Magdalen Islands, Cape Breton Island and the west coast of Newfoundland.

In September of 2002, “Deja vu” returned to Lake Ontario via the St. Lawrence River.

s/v Deja Vu

In 2004, we upsized to a Niagara 35, a 35 foot sloop built by Hinterhoeller Yachts of St. Catharines, Ontario, which would become the sailing vessel “Gallivanting”.

s/v Gallivanting

By the spring of 2007, the wonderful memories of that most excellent summer of cruising had produced the urge to do it again.

During the winter of 2007/2008, plans were made to again cruise down the St. Lawrence in the springtime.

In the summer of 2008, we visited; the Saguenay Fiord, the Gaspé, Prince Edward Island, the Bras d’Or Lakes and the west Coast of Newfoundland. A log/blog of the summer of 2008 can be found at: Gallivanting 2008.

Cruising

Based on our visit to Western Newfoundland in the summer of 2008, a piece was put together for an issue of The Port Hole, which is the official publication of the Canadian Power and Sail Squadron and is published quarterly as an insert in Canadian Yachting Magazine.
The piece, entitled “Sailing along the French Shore” was published in the 2009 Fall issue of Canadian Yachting Magazine.
The original, unedited version can be found at: Sailing along the French Shore.

On the Hook

Gallivanting was hauled out for the winter in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

Following launch in the spring of 2009, Gallivanting cruised down the Southern shore of Nova Scotia and crossed the Gulf of Maine to the United States. The summer of 2009 was spent cruising down the coast of New England to New York City.

In September of 2009, we returned to Lake Ontario via the Hudson River and the New York Canal System.

Close Hauled

In 2011, together with a couple of friends, we chartered a 39 foot sailboat out of Athens, Greece and sailed southeast through the cyclades to the Greek Island of Santorini. Sailing into the Santorini caldera was a very special experience.

In 2011, we sailed Gallivanting up to Northern Lake Huron in Ontario, Canada, where we spent the next 5 summers. The North Channel ranks as one of the best fresh water sailing places in the world.

A description, including photos can be found at: Gallivanting 2011-2015.

Although we had sailed to Newfoundland twice, we had not circumnavigated the island. In 2016, we started planning for a full circumnavigation of the island of Newfoundland.

 

Circumnavigating Newfoundland


In the Spring of 2017, Gallivanting set sail from Toronto for the East Coast of Canada. By early July, we were sailing up the west coast of Newfoundland and heading for Red Bay in Southern Labrador. From Red Bay, we headed east across the Straits of Belle Isle and down the Northeast coast of Newfoundland.

By the end of August, we were sailing in Conception Bay, near St. John’s on the East coast of the island, where we hauled out for the winter.

In June of 2018, we launched Gallivanting and headed down the southern shore, around Cape Race and along the the south coast of Newfoundland. We visited many isolated outports, where the connection with the rest of world is by water. We also took a time out in the french islands of Saint Pierre and Miquelon.

Our arrival in Port aux Basques, marked the completion of a full circumnavigation of the island of Newfoundland. Despite growing up in Newfoundland, I significantly expanded my knowledge and appreciation of the island, it’s people, it’s history and it’s culture.

In September of 2018, Gallivanting was again lifted out of the water in Sydney, Nova Scotia.

It’s May 2019 and spring is slow to arrive in Eastern Canada. Despite the weather, a road trip to Sydney, Nova Scotia is planned for June.

2019 gets off to slow start. It is July 20th by the time we depart Dobson Yacht Club.

We then sailed down the southern shore of Nova Scotia, with stops in Mushaboom, Halifax, Chester, Le Have River, Shelburne and Pubnico.

On august 4th, we set sail for Maine and leisurely sailed down the New England coast.

After a brief stop in New York, we headed up the Hudson River to Albany. With our mast on the deck, we transited the Erie and Oswego canals. We entered Lake Ontario at Oswego and headed north to Kingston. From kingston, we headed west through Adolphus Reach and the Murray canal, entering Lake Ontario again on September 13th.

After 3 years, 3 months, we returned safely to Lakeshore Yacht Club near Toronto. For more, visit: Gallivanting 2019

What's on the Shelf?