The Cruising Guide to the Gulf of St. Lawrence
Updates from 2010 and 2011

The Current edition of this guide is the Second Edition, as indicated on the front page and was revised in January 2011.

CAUTION:
A very severe storm in December 2010 resulted in a major rearrangement of coastlines and facilities in the Gulf, particularly on the north and east shores of Prince Edward Island and the north shore of New Brunswick. Details are not yet available and probably won't be until later this year (particularly in the case of depths, realigned channels and so on). If you are planning a trip to the Gulf this year do make sure your sailing directions and charts are updated to reflect latest information - and then try to get local knowledge as far as possible. Many channels will have moved or silted, much damage has been done to port facilities.

Page 12:
To access Radio Aids to Mariners use: http://www.ccg-gcc.gc.ca/eng/ccg/mcts_radio_aids
To access the "Secrets of the Saint Lawrence interactive" use:
http://www.qc.ec.gc.ca/meteo/secrets_stlaurent/cartier_e.htm

Page 13:
The link to the "near equivalent" of the Pilot Charts for the Gulf should be:
http://www.climat-quebec.qc.ca/home.php?id=clim_st_laur&mpn=stati_clim

Thanks to Allen Murphy for the above.

Iles de la Madeleine, page 58

L'Etang-du-Nord during the storm.

Entry Island

The big storm in December exposed an old garbage dump along the shore, resulting in trash being scattered along the beaches. It is unclear when this will be cleared up and how far it will spread. It is also reported that there has been severe erosion close to the harbour.

Mabou, page 69

Jim Evans - 2010: Mabou entrance was well buoyed in 2010 with three pairs of buoys into the entrance from the red-and-white fairway buoy (see above - this is the first pair); there was shallow water on the inside of the turn to port at the second pair of buoys in September 2010. The channel up to the bridge is clearly staked but watch for weed to port on the last part and close to the dock.

The staked channel is close to land on the south side at the bridge; the weed and stakes are clearly seen in the photo above taken from the dock. Dockage (no facilities except shore access) was $20 so we anchored out for a lovely peaceful night.

We left at half ebb into a fresh sou'westerly into moderate overfalls, making a bumpy ride. Mminimum depth was about eight feet in the troughs.

Lennox Passage - Haddock Harbour, south of Glasgow Point

Position 45° 32.6'W, 65° 07.5'W

Jim Evans 2010: I anchored in about 2 fathom mud and rocks, in the lee of the gravel beach, with a breeze to keep the mosquitoes away. Very quiet and scenic, good shelter from south, north and east but wide open to W. This proved a good stopover along the Lennox Passage, not far off route.

Ballantyne's Cove, page 76

Jim Evans 2010: Facilities at Ballantyne's Cove continue to improve for yachtsmen. There are more docks and diesel is now available at the dock.

Buctouche, NB

Buctouche's 2-kilometer boardwalk, popular with tourists and birdwatchers, was destroyed in the storm.

Charlottetown PEI, page 93

Jim Evans 2011: The proposed move of the Yacht Club to a different location has been usurped by waterfront development and it remains in its previous exposed spot. Damage to docks and the few boats that were left in the water occurred again this Fall in a major southwesterly bow. The Club hopes to build a permanent breakwater sometime in the future.

Murray Harbour PEI, page 114

A tractor tows the remains of
the range light away up the beach.

Jim Evans 2011: Buoyage and ranges into Murray Harbour have been changed. The main front range has been replaced. There are now two pairs of red and green buoys before the harbour mouth, then the Machon Point range has been discontinued but replaced by improved channel buoyage. Entrance is quite straightforward to the green buoy turnoff onto the village range; a red with a black/red/black "danger buoy" to the east of it across from the green buoy indicates the "gate" between the shoals.

Jamie Richards' marina has been repaired and will be operating in 2012, although space is likely to be limited.

Jim Evans, January 2010: Although the wharves didn't suffer much (there was some erosion on the north-east side, but the wharf was rebuilt last summer at the north-west end), the front range light (a sturdy wooden structure that's been there for many years) was blown several hundred feet away in the December storm. The channel will doubtless have shifted.

The fixed dock at the marina was wrecked and although owner Jamie Richards intends to operate the marina this year arrangements may be different.

Souris PEI, page 103

Jim Evans 2011: Souris Marina has now obtained a large, graveled space for winter storage with a security fence and water and electric points. There is now much more room for prospective customers for winter storage - I plan to try it next winter. One boat was blown over in a storm this fall in 55+knot winds, apparently due to inadequate jackstands, but adequate spacing between boats meant damage was limited to the fallen boat.

Jim Evans 2010: Souris has become so popular for winter haulout that it is now necessary to book space very early in the year. The marina committee has announced it is trying to obtain more space and put in more fencing to improve security.

Montague PEI, page 109

Jim Evans 2010: Long time harbourmaster Jock Beck has now retired but Montague seems to be continuing its reputation as an excellent port for a stopover and provisioning.

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