Friends return from two-month Newfoundland voyage

WELLINGTON NORTH – For some people, retirement means slowing down, sleeping in and trying to forget what it was like to work. 

But for two Wellington North men, retirement looks a little different.

Instead of settling into leisurely mornings and quiet afternoons, Albert Eschlboeck of Clifford and a friend from Mount Forest elected to take to the sea and climbed aboard a sailboat set for Newfoundland. 

The journey began two years ago when Eschlboeck purchased a boat in Leamington.

“I bought it for a retirement project, it’s a project boat, basically,” said Eschlboeck.

The Clifford native and his wife Darlene have been visiting Newfoundland for quite some time as the couple purchased a cabin there years ago. 

“Well, 18 years ago, my wife bought a little summer house out in Newfoundland. And I go out there every year for four weeks, six weeks in the summer for a holiday,” said Eschlboeck.

“And so I said, you know something, I’m gonna take a trip one day ... I’ll take a trip with the boat out there.

“And I always follow people, you know, journeys around the world and seeing places. 

“So I thought, you know, I think that would be a good thing to do too.”

With the idea in mind, Eschlboeck and his friend  met for coffee and both decided to make it a reality. 

Both men are experienced sailors and have spent plenty of time on the water throughout their lives. 

The trip began in Port Elgin on June 1, where the duo set sail for their destination. 

From there they sailed to Goderich, encountering their first taste of rough waters – something they would encounter time and time again as the trip wore on. 

The duo would also encounter many boat-related issues along their journey.  

From Goderich they traveled to Sarnia, sailed down the St. Clair River into Lake St. Clair, before heading down through the Detroit River into Lake Erie to visit Pelee Island.

Following their stop in Pelee Island, on day four of the trip, they traveled to Erieau where they spent a full day docked waiting for poor weather to subside. 

Day eight saw them reach Port Colborne, where an extra day was spent doing repairs on the boat.

Once the vessel was in good working order again, they set sail through the Welland Canal, across Lake Ontario, to Toronto where they encountered more mechanical issues with the boat. 

“We went up to Toronto and did some repair on the boat. We were there four days because it was a Friday afternoon and we couldn’t get parts any more, so we had to wait until Monday,” said Eschlboeck.

“And by the time Monday night came, they finally had the part we needed… so we were there in Toronto four days, just to fix the drive.”

The duo disembarked from Toronto on day 16 of the trip, and made their way to Port Cobourg, where they stayed three days due to weather conditions. 

Then they sailed to the opening of the St. Lawrence River – making a few stops along the way, before traveling down to Montreal.

From there they traveled to Quebec City and up to the Rivière Saguenay and to Baie Comeau on day 29. 

Days 30 to 32 were spent in Baie Comeau. The duo attempted to set sail again on day 31 but was ambushed by a severe thunderstorm that sent them off course.

“What happened [was] we left Baie Comeau at 12pm to make a run for Sept-Îles,” states a Facebook post made by Eschlboeck.

“We [got] a surprise at 11pm [with] lightning on the horizon [and] the wind picked up pretty hefty [and] the rain started, and we got [drenched] after an hour and a half.”

“We ended four and a half hours back towards where we started after a long night and 24 hours later we still didn’t get to our planned destination.” 

Following one day at port, the duo reached Sept-Îles on day 34, where they spent two days at port. 

Day 48 saw the team arrive at Flowers Cove in Newfoundland, having made a few stops along the way. 

Following a few more sight seeing stops, they concluded their adventure at Wild Cove in Newfoundland on July 27 before driving back to Ontario and arriving at their respective homes on Aug. 9. 

Recounting their adventure, the pair couldn’t help but share many encounters with a variety of marine wildlife, including dolphins, beluga whales, minke whales, humpback whales and even a shark. 

“There was a bunch of dolphins swimming with the boat,” said Eschlboeck, “and they [the friend] said, ‘Oh, there comes another one.’”

“And we’re looking, and I just put my phone back in my pocket after I took a video of the dolphin. And I said, ‘That’s not a dolphin. That’s a shark.’ It was about seven or eight feet with a mouth full of teeth. It was a mako.”

Reflecting on the trip, Eschlboeck said he wished he had started travelling and embarking on adventures when he was younger instead of working for material things. 

“We work so much in our life just to get to material things we don’t need instead of enjoying life,” said Eschlboeck.

While the trip had its fair share of patience-trying moments, the pair say they are not opposed to embarking on another adventure, granted they get the boat fixed up sometime soon. 

Those interested in more photos from the journey can visit Albert Eschlboeck’s Facebook page.