Day 2-248 to Vermilion for lunch then on to Huron, OH

After four busy days in Lorain, we left about 9:30 am and headed west to Vermilion. The sky had several dark clouds, but they had passed by when we cleared the Lorain Lighthouse. The winds were 5 to 8 mph out in the lake, which meant that the waves were less than 1 foot. It is only 11.3 miles dock to dock for our stop for lunch in Vermillion so we throttled back and enjoyed the scenery along the shore.

After giving us a tour of the Black River on her boat, Ann came along on the trip to Vermilion for lunch. She took a turn at the helm of Lucky Us and did quite well. She plans to join us for a week in northern Michigan so she will get a lot more practice then. 
     Amazingly enough, the Vermilion River flows through the town of the same name and forms a nice harbor for pleasure craft. In the past it also had a fairly large fleet of commercial fishing boats as well. There are beautiful manmade canals that are lined with lovely waterfront homes, and the downtown area has many interesting shops and restaurants.

We had arranged to meet another long time friend (Helen) there for lunch at a waterfront restaurant that is called "Quaker State Lube". The good news was that we got a waterfront table right alongside Lucky Us. That is also the bad news since Lucky Us then blocked most of our view... However, the sky hard cleared, and the temperature was in the low 70s so it was perfect for eating outside. Plus, they had fried Lake Erie Perch on the menu.

In the picture at the left we saying our goodbyes after lunch as Ann was going to go back to Lorain with Helen. Special people, special time with both of them!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We left Vermilion and headed 11.2 miles west to our stop for the day at Huron, Ohio. Huron is more of a commercial port and in the past both coal and flour were shipped out on large freighter.  The picture at the right is the modern automated light at the start of the dredged channel. As the result of urban renewal and a large fire, Huron has a modern waterfront with marinas, 2 motel/hotels and restaurants. We stayed at the Huron Boat Basin, which is owned and operated by the city. In one corner of the marina is a small earthen amphitheater that seats several hundred.

We always check out the local calendar of activities in small towns. Sure enough, there was a play at 8:00 pm at the Huron Playhouse only 3 blocks from the marina. The play was "39 Steps" based on the original book by John Buchanan and a movie by Alfred Hitchcock. The play has some 33 scenes, and it was written so that only four actors play all of the parts. The Huron Playhouse has been around for 66 years, and the summer theater is almost all college students getting experience. You may remember that we went to the musical "Wicked" when we were in New York City, and this is the fifth time that we have gone to a local theater production on our boat trip. All have been well worth while, and they have contributed to the amazing voyage that we are doing.