Double take at Meyer’s Pier

Twins Janeen and Jen—or is it Jen and Janeen—help make Meyer's Pier Marina a swell place to stay on a cruise of Bay of Quinte. Click on any image in TomCat Tales for an enlarged view and slide show.

As we pulled into Meyer’s Pier Marina in Belleville last week for a pump-out and ice, we could see that the dock attendants were easy to spot: They all wore bright yellow shirts. Very helpful.

The Captain asked the young woman who took our lines with a cheery smile for her name. “Janeen” came the reply. Another young woman came up to help with the pump-out. When the Captain asked for her name, she replied “Jen.” The Captain looked up, recognized her and said, “Didn’t you just say your name was Janeen?” He looked back and forth from one to the other. “Wait a sec, are you twins?” Yes, they were. And very helpful.

When we came back a week later for fuel and to hunker down for the approaching storm front, we did another double-take. Down the dock from us was another catamaran with the brand name TomCat, albeit a sailing cat. She looked like a fast, comfortable cruising boat, a bit beamier and longer than our TomCat 24. With the help of Google, we learned it was a TomCat 9.7 built in Canada: http://www.tomcatboats.com/

Once we docked, we realized there was still another TomCat in the marina, this one a tiny perfect houseboat called Tom-Kat.

We have to rank Meyer’s Pier right up there with Fraser Park Marina in Trenton in terms of friendly, helpful service. Meyer’s Pier also sells ice at the fuel dock/pump out station, has clean washrooms and showers, and is a short walk from Boathouse Restaurant and The Beer Store, and only about 15 minutes to the nearest store for re-provisioning, a price-friendly Giant Tiger. A short cab ride will bring you to Kalay’s Seafood Restaurant and l’Auberge de France.

But—and here comes the BUT—the overnight dockage fee is $1.60, the most expensive we encountered on this cruise, yet the WiFi is totally useless. Slower than even an old dial-up connection, and we’re just across the fairway from the marina office. We quickly gave up on the WiFi and tethered to the Internet with our iPhone when needed.

In the 21st century, if you’re going to charge a top rate for dockage, you must provide at least adequate WiFi.

After Labour Day, the marina is open 9:00 to 5:00 but it's closed Tuesday and Wednesday until Thanksgiving weekend. The adjacent Pier BBQ & Patio is already closed for the season. Meyer’s Pier is the most expensive marina we have encountered on this cruise, so good thing the service was exemplary.

Ice $3.10 (cubes or blocks) Pump-out $18.60 Gasoline fuel $1.50 Slips $1.60 per foot WiFi free but terminally slow!!! Laundry $1.25 wash/dry

The least expensive is Tip of the Bay Marina in Picton Harbour:

Ice $2.50 (cubes or blocks) Pump-out $14.60 Picton Harbour Marina (adjacent to Tip of the Bay) Gasoline fuel $1.45 Picton Harbour Marina Slip $1.25 per foot WiFi not available No laundry but there is a Laundromat about a 10-minute walk.

Courteous marina staff like Sarah on the fuel dock, and Matt, missing from photos, make Meyer's Pier one the friendliest marinas on the Bay of Quinte. But the WiFi service sucks.