Lake Erie Connector vs. Northern Tier

[Monk]

I will be going from Illinois to Maine this summer via the Northern Tier, but I was wondering if anyone has done the Lake Erie connector.  I believe there is a ferry in Sandusky,OH that stops through Pelee Island and continues to Canada. It looks as though the lake erie connector would be shorter but there is a chance we would have to stay on Pelee Island for a night and lose some riding time.  Roughly how expensive is that ferry? Any thoughts on this would be greatly helpful.  Thanks much

[destination]

It looks like the ferry cost is: 13.75 per adult one way. Found info here:

http://www.ontarioferries.com/jii/english/schedule_fares.html#fares