Leaving St Jean sur Richelieu and the Chambly Canal behind, we head south on the Richelieu River. Here the river is about 1000 feet wide with homes on both sides of the river.
After traveling 3-4 miles, the shores are less developed with farmland behind the riverfront homes that are more scattered along the shore.
We came to Ile aux Noie and chose the eastern route around the island. Since it is Saturday, we saw lots of smaller motorboats with families and also fishermen enjoying this beautiful day. On Ile aux Noie southern most end is Fort Lennox, built between 1819-1828 to protect the river from American invasion.
The elevated south portion of the Ile aux Noie made for a perfect strategic location for a fort. Originally the French built a fort in 1759 to protect the colony of New France. In 1760, the British captured the fort in the Seven Years War. (That was the war that ending having Canada ceded to the British. ) In 1775, American colonist took possession of the fort during its efforts to gain independence from the British. In 1776, the Americans left the fort and the British refortified the structure which saw action in the War of 1812. The fort we see today was constructed of stone in 1819 and was used until 1870.
We had wanted to stop, but the fort site was closed for major renovation, so I’ll have to resort to photos from the internet as ours from shore, show mostly trees.
Further south we passed the last Island and last bridge in Canada. Was a bit sad to leave Canada, but also exciting to begin the next leg of our trip on Lake Champlain.
But first we must clear US Customs at Rouses Point, NY. Having entered all our data into the CBPRoam app, we applied online to return to the US. And they approved us- they let anyone back into the States!
Was interesting that the Border Patrol office was in a trailer next to the docks.
Just before The Customs dock, we saw the remains of Fort Montgomery which was built in 1844 by the Americans to protect the border. The fort never saw military action. After 1970, the fort was removed from public access and is left to the elements.
We now enter Lake Champlain, discovered by Samuel de Champlain in 1609 and you can see he named it after himself. The Lake separates the states of Vermont from New York. It is 120 miles long and 12 miles at its widest section. The average depth is 64 feet. There are 587 miles of shoreline and the lakes has 71 islands. During the French and Indian Wars, the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812, the lake played crucial roles militarily and as a vital trade route.
The view opens up as the lake widens to see Mount Trembleau on the Vermont side and the Adirondack Mountains on the New York side in the distance. This section of the lake is about 3 miles wide, both shores are forested, except for a few small towns and farms interspersed with cottages.
The next section of the lake contains the Ile La Motte, a very large large island on the Vermont side. We will travel around the southern end of the island and turn north to anchor in Pelots Bay. The island reveals layers of rocks on the shore and is heavily forested. There are some homes and a small marina also on the island.
As we turn around the island the remains of the old railroad tracks and bridge come into view. The bridge span has been removed which allows us to enter the protected Carry Bay and Pelots Bay. We put down the anchor in 10 feet of water with 10 other boats.
Later we launched the dinghy to explore this part of Champlain Lake. We first went to the nearby North Hero Marina and enjoyed fish and chips and left our waitress with a list of cities on the west coast of Florida to explore. We then got some gas for the dinghy and took off to walk the beach at North Hero Park and then climb on Cloak Island. Always fun to explore!
Also had a nice sunset!
