POTW: Ahoy, there be pirates

June 10, 2021

Pirate Ship Jordan Stuart Hendrie, a pro photographer sent along this photo of the pirate ship in Jordan Ontario. Many of us have seen it from the Lake and many more have seen it from the highway.

According to the Niagara Greenbelt website:

"La Grande Hermine" (The Big Weasel) is one of the most recognizable landmarks along the Niagara stretch of the Queen Elizabeth Way. The 140-foot ship was created as a replica of the largest of 3 ships French Explorer Jacques Cartier sailed up the St. Lawrence River. It was originally built in Quebec in 1914 and began its life as a ferry on the St. Lawrence and later became a cargo ship, a floating restaurant, and in 1991 converted to a replica ship.

At one time the vessel was turned into a haunted pirate ship at Halloween to raise money for a hot lunch program for students. The derelict ship's final resting place is the Jordan Harbour just off the western shore of Lake Ontario, between the cities of Hamilton and St. Catharines. This abandoned shipwreck came to the Jordan Harbour in 1997, and was the victim of an arson fire in January of 2003, causing this piece of history to go up in smoke. What's left of the ship remains rusting, damaged and run down, but is still an interesting site to see.

Your Photo of the Week? Yes, we want it and now that boating is ramping up across the country it’s a good opportunity to share some shots.

Our email is This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and please send us your photo. Just put POTW in the subject line. Thanks in advance.

POTW: A Monk and a Pup

Wednesday, 08 November 2017 10:01

This Photo of the Week sequence from Chris Chahley and Kathy Coyle explains the whole boat thing. If you don’t love these shots, the time has come for you to switch to bowling!!!

Ooooh baby - First time on a boat ever!

Tuesday, 25 July 2017 05:54

A dear friend brought her 8 month old daughter aboard my 25 foot keelboat...and baby was right at home! Next...figuring out how to rig up a jolly-jumper!

POTW July 13

Tuesday, 11 July 2017 07:29

This shot came from our ace reporter Johnny G out in Stoney Creek, ON, taken at the Newport YC Canada Day festivities. It says it all!! That’s what a Photo of the Week should...

Photo of the Week goes International!

Tuesday, 20 June 2017 08:20

This week’s POTW comes from across the pond. Who knew we had a European audience

CY Snapshot: 2016 Jeanneau Leader 40 Sea Trial

Monday, 11 July 2016 00:57

Canadian Yachting’s John Armstrong visited Jeanneau Americas office in Annapolis Maryland

CY Snapshots

Sunday, 19 June 2016 22:38

John Armstrong from Canadian Yachting along with Mickey Baratz and John Kozak at the Port Credit Yacht Club's annual Sail Past

CY Virtual Video Boat Tours

Virtual Boat Tours We all love boats and nothing can break us up! So, what better way to spend our time than looking at interesting boats and going aboard in a virtual ride or tour. We have asked our friends at various dealers and manufacturers to help us assemble a one-stop online resource to experience some of the most interesting boats on the market today. Where the CY Team has done a review, we connect you to that expert viewpoint. If you can’t go boating, you can almost experience the thrill via your screen. Not quite the same, but we hope you enjoy our fine tour collection.

Read more about the CY Virtual Boat Tours....................

Boston Whaler 230 Vantage

By Andy Adams

The famous Boston Whaler slogan, “the unsinkable legend” has always expressed a safety promise that from their very beginning, set a Boston Whaler apart from other boats, and it’s clear to me that the designers take this heritage seriously.

The Boston Whaler 230 Vantage maintains the virtues that have made Whalers such an enduring success and now the designers have skillfully captured those virtues in a handsome and somewhat more traditional dual console design.

Boating In the Birthplace of Confederation

Brackley Beach PEI National Park Over the course of four days in September 1864, representatives from Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Newfoundland, Lower Canada (Quebec) and Upper Canada (Ontario) gathered in Charlottetown to discuss the idea of bringing these diverse colonies together and forming a country. These discussions laid the foundation for what ultimately led to the Confederation of Canada in July, 1867.

Today, PEI continues to influence the rest of Canada as a vacation playground, known for its laid-back attitude, carefree pace, remarkable food scene and tremendous recreation opportunities. That’s especially true if you choose to explore the island the old-fashioned way – by boat.

Will Jones and Evan DePaul William Jones and Evan DePaul claimed Canada’s Olympic spot in the 49er by being the top Canadian team at the 2020 World Championships for the class. A highlight in their history together was winning the 2017 World Junior title on home waters in Kingston, Ontario.

The pair is self-driven to work and train hard in this very tough fleet. Sailing the skiff is hard work in itself making the 49er perhaps the most challenging Olympic class. Early in his career, DePaul raced C420s, becoming a top three youth sailor in Canada. He was drawn to the 49er because of the technical aspects involved and the sailing skill required.

Why Use a Boat Broker?

2002 Doral 330 Last summer there was tremendous interest in buying a boat to have fun in the restricted world ofCOVID19. People hauled boats to the end of their driveways with “For Sale” signs. Sailboats and cabin cruisers appeared in Kijiji and Craigs List and it sounds like most were sold to new boaters. But, are they happy owners now?

Last fall we interviewed Rob Hopkins, General Manager at Bayshore Yacht Sales. Bayshore operates at six Georgian Bay marinas and are partnered with Maple Leaf Marinas LP. Rob was quick to agree that web sites like Kijiji can work for boat buyers, especially at the lower price levels for private sellers and buyers looking for a deal.

Ask Andrew: Engine/gasoline fires and other scares

Photo Courtesy of Leslie Harper

Boats aren’t inherently combustible. They aren’t firetraps, and they aren’t any more or less dangerous with respect to fire breaking out than an RV, trailer, car or airplane.

But there are certain ingredients that make fires a potential hazard. And because of this, boaters should be aware of that potential, and take steps to minimize the chances of fire breaking out.

Turn your phone into a castable sonar; STRIKER Cast brings sonar to a mobile device to help anglers find & catch more fish – with & without a boat! Designed for use in freshwater and saltwater (and even for ice fishing), STRIKER Cast delivers excellent sonar performance in both shallow water and deep water.

Anglers can even turn on fish icons to view more realistic images of the fish targets and their depth readings directly in the app, so it’s easy to know exactly where to drop the line.

Cast Off On Saturday, my boat finally splashed. You could tell it was happy and I was too. This has been painful. Nonetheless, I have not yet left the dock nor had a social moment aboard. My excitement has been limited to standing and admiring the scene while thanking the boat gods for vaccines and declining case numbers.

You are likely experiencing something similar as marinas and boat clubs gingerly step forward amid caution and distancing signs. There is a collective sigh of relief heard across the land because the timing of the delayed launch appears to coincide with a national heat wave. It would have been infuriating to sizzle on the hard with the escape boat stuck in its cradle. I’m grateful for getting this far.