Voyages of Ocean Explorer

2001 - To St. Lawrence River & Back

Introduction

 

 

     In the spring and summer of 2001 my wife, Donna, and I voyaged 2,450 nautical miles with Ocean Explorer from its homeport of Manitowoc, Wisconsin through Lake Michigan, Lake Huron, the St. Clair River, Lake St. Clair, the Detroit River, Lake Erie, the Welland Canal, and Lake Ontario to the upper St. Lawrence River and back.  This adventure commenced on May 18 and was completed on August 2.

     During that time we kept in contact with family and friends via e-mail utilizing a ham radio (ICOM 706 MKIIG, SCS PTC IIe modem, ICOM AH-4 tuner, and backstay antenna), a low-end Dell laptop computer, and the Airmail program for PACTOR II.  Communication was carried out with a variety of land-based ham hobbyists who have set up their equipment in order to act as intermediaries between maritime (and other) mobiles and the Internet.

     In addition to our personal communications, we sent a periodic description of our travels to a list of friends and family who had expressed an interest in vicariously sharing our trip.  This ham radio log was sent every couple of days.

     Our ham radio log is presented to you for two reasons.  The first is because Donna and I believe that it is an interesting account of an unusually extensive voyage within the confines of the Great Lakes and their associated Great Rivers.  We also feel that it is a way to present to others a form of communication that is not commonly used on the Great Lakes.

     Should any reader have an interest in ham radio based e-mail communication, please see the Appendix of Useful Websites on the contents page.

    I should note that Donna took the photos and I did the writing.  We hope you will enjoy it.

 

 

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