Mischief Managed
Lieutenant Commander
- Joined
- Dec 6, 2005
- Messages
- 1,928
After a lot of contemplation about where to cruise next week, my wife and I have finally settled on Lake Champlain. Our plan is to trailer to Westport, NY (3.5 hours from my home) and launch/park at the public ramp. I already called the town of Westport and leaving my truck and trailer in the lot for multiple days is not a problem. We plan to base out of Westport Marina for a couple of nights while exploring the southern portions of the lake and already have two nights reserved. We hope to hit Fort Ticonderoga, The Lake Champlain Maritime Museum, the falls at Vergennes, Essex, and maybe go as far south at Lock 12. Our next stop will be Burlington for a 1/2 day or so with an overnight at Champlain Marina in Mallets Bay (we already have a reservation). After that, I plan to head north and will be winging it as far as slips go. Worst case,I spend a night or two on the hook, which is pretty cool for a worst case situation and will not be the first time for us... We will eventually make a run back to Westport, load the boat up, and head home.
I know the lake is really low right now, but I have charts (paper and the latest electronic) and have been assured that the marinas of choice have enough water for me. I also know that Champlain can be really choppy, especially with a north wind. The extended forecast is for light wind all next week and we will be heading south on the return leg of our trip so I'm not terribly concerned, worst case is we surf back to the truck. I've also dealt with plenty of nasty chop in the past (most recently a gale warning day on Chesapeake Bay) and my boat does quite well in it.
Any recommendations for places not to miss, sandbars for a nice swim, cool things to see while snorkeling and places to avoid would be most welcome. Also with the lake down so low, is the Westport ramp even usable for 25 foot boat? I have other ramp options...
I know the lake is really low right now, but I have charts (paper and the latest electronic) and have been assured that the marinas of choice have enough water for me. I also know that Champlain can be really choppy, especially with a north wind. The extended forecast is for light wind all next week and we will be heading south on the return leg of our trip so I'm not terribly concerned, worst case is we surf back to the truck. I've also dealt with plenty of nasty chop in the past (most recently a gale warning day on Chesapeake Bay) and my boat does quite well in it.
Any recommendations for places not to miss, sandbars for a nice swim, cool things to see while snorkeling and places to avoid would be most welcome. Also with the lake down so low, is the Westport ramp even usable for 25 foot boat? I have other ramp options...