PARRY SOUND TO SNUG HARBOR – AUG 11 At 9:15 Monday, we left the town of Parry Sound and headed out into the large body of water called Parry Sound. It was very cloudy. It was a great trip across open water because it was smooth, no wind or rain. We arrived at our anchorage behind Chapman Island and Westyle Island near Snug Harbor about 12:00. Undaunted by our last dinghy experience, we could hardly wait to get in the dinghies and go to Gilly’s in Snug Harbor for lunch. Woody and Ken had worked on Woody’s dinghy in Parry Sound and declared it fixed. So with much well-placed confidence, we set out for lunch. It was a pretty ride and the restaurant was cute. Bright colors and the food was very good. We met the young couple, Terry and Sarah, who own it and they told us stories about the people who lived in that area years and years ago. We toured around in our dinghies on the way back to the boat. When we got back to the boat, Ken and Phil got down in the engine room and replaced a bilge pump. The girls played Farkel on our back deck. Barbara and Ken have two beautiful parrots. The Amazon parrot is quite large and a beautiful green with red in his tail and wings. His name is Cody. The other parrot is Yuri, who is grey with red in his tail. They talk and can say many things, as well as mimic bird and animal sounds. Woody and I were sitting on “Barbara’s” back deck, just outside the salon where the birds have their two big cages. One bird, Yuri, was saying “Quack, quack, quack, quack, quack”. Woody said it back to him just as the parrot had said it. This continued back and forth for a while until Woody just said “Quack, quack!” There was dead silence for a few minutes and then we heard the bird laugh and laugh. It was so funny! Woody and I were so surprised and we laughed and laughed, also. Phil taught the bird a whistle that he and his son, Jeff, used to locate each other when Jeff was young and that he and I use sometimes today. Yuri does the whistle a lot. He likes it! Both birds also meow. We ate on our own boats that evening. Phil and I had everyone over for blueberry pie and Barbara’s ice cream. The girls forgot to blow their conch shells at sunset! SNUG HARBOR TO BRITT IN BYNG INLET - AUG 12 Our anchorage was so pretty, we hated to leave. However, at 8:15 on a beautiful blue sky day, we ventured out. “Double SS” and “Harmony” were headed for Britt and a marina. “Barbara” decided to go to an anchorage. Bad River Anchorage We planned to meet again the next day. The water once again was smooth and very little wind. This area can be really tough in bad weather, so we were very blessed to have the calm seas. We arrived and got tied up in a slip by 2:30. Phil went to the engine room and I worked on the internet. We walked to the Little Britt Inn with Woody and Ellen for dinner. It was about a block from the marina and was a lovely, unique restaurant with delicious food. We sat inside on the second floor and the big screened windows were open onto a porch in the treetops. The part of the town of Britt that we got to see is quite small and there was only one marina. Ellen blew her conch at sunset. BRITT TO BUSTARD ISLANDS – AUG 13 On Wednesday, we left Britt. We had a lot of rain and lightening during the night, quite a storm. We were glad we were tied up in a marina. The morning was overcast and the water smooth. The sky and the water in Georgian Bay were the same color and the sky seemed to melt right into the water. It was beautiful. We saw a yacht, “Resolute”, 130 feet long. Quite a boat! The water in this area is well over 100 feet deep. We rendezvoused with Barbara as we approached the Bustard Islands. We arrived in the Bustard Islands and were rafted to the “Mother ship” by 1:00. We anchored near Pearl, Tie and Green Islands. It was a lovely anchorage in a large grouping of islands which are named “The Bustard Islands”. Phil and the others went for a dinghy ride. After they got back, we had our traditional afternoon heavy shower and storm. When it cleared, we had dinner on “Barbara”. Left to right: Barbara, Ken (MV Barbara), Phil, Woody. Ellen (MV Double S), Virginia (MV Harmony) The girls played their conchs at sunset. We set our alarm clocks for 3:00 am because there was a meteorite shower we wanted to see. The climax of the showers was the previous night, but it was cloudy so we all missed it. The next nigt was so clear and the stars so bright. We saw several shooting stars. Today we experimented with fuel consumption. We shut off one engine, traveled at 1700 rpms and 7.3 mph. Ken has a fuel flow meter on “Barbara” and engines just like ours. According to his flow meter, you do not save any fuel by running on one engine because it works harder and consumes the fuel that both engines would be using if you ran the boat on two. Woody still thinks he saves fuel by running on one, so who knows. Perhaps, different engines react to it differently. BUSTARD ISLANDS TO MILL LAKE – AUG 14 Thursday dawned bright, sunny and cool. Yet another sweat shirt day in August! We all sang “Happy Birthday” to Ken. The three of us left through Gun Barrel Channel. We continued on across open smooth water to the Collins Inlet. The entrance is very shallow and we went very slowly. It is, thankfully, a mud bottom, not granite. So, except for a little mud stirred, both “Double SS” and “Harmony” got through safely. Once inside Collins Inlet, it is beautiful, deserted and pristine. There are a few small camps, but no activity. It is heavily forested with cliffs of granite. About half way through Collins Inlet, there is a lake, Mill Lake where we decided to anchor for the night. Just as we got rafted up, there was a terrible storm with lightening, hard rain and hail! We were thankful we had the anchor set and were tied up. We arrived about 3:20 pm. Once again, it was a beautiful anchorage. There were no other boats. Much later, another trawler anchored in Mill Lake, but not near us. Today was a red letter day for us. The odometer turned over 4000 miles. Barbara and Ken put a bottle of champagne on our boat before we left the Bustard Islands this morning. Woody and Ellen came over after the storm and we toasted our voyages and Ken and Barbara. Four thousand miles seems like a very long distance to me! As sunset neared, there was a beautiful rainbow. Ellen blew her conch shell as the sun sank behind the hills. MILL LAKE TO COVERED PORTAGE COVE – AUG 15 We left Mill Lake at 8:30 on a slightly cloudy day with some patches of blue sky. We were in sweat shirts again, as the weather was cool. We reached the end of Collins Inlet at 9:30, a nine mile trip. We were once again the only boats in the Inlet. It was a beautiful trip with the granite rocks and cliffs. I was fairly certain we would see a bear because it was so deserted and forested, but we did not! We came through Killarney, a town that is built along the channel that runs through it. All the businesses have docks. You can tie your boat up at a liquor store, a grocery store or several restaurants, but only for the length of time you shop in their store or eat at their restaurant. All the liquor stores in Canada are owned by the government, which sell liquor, wine and, perhaps, beer. They also own beer stores, which sell only beer. Grocery stores do not sell wine, beer or liquor. We cruised through Killarney, looking for the “old yellow school bus” which we had heard was definitely the place to eat fish. We did not see it. We went on to our anchorage, Covered Portage Cove that the cruising books say is a famous anchorage and so special it should not be missed. What the books say is absolutely correct! It is spectacular and we anchored by white cliffs, either white granite or quartz. We arrived and were rafted with “Double SS” by 11:10am. Shortly thereafter, we got in our dinghies and went back to Killarney to find the “school bus” and have lunch. We tied our dinghy and had to climb the dock to reach the top. There was another dinghy there which was from the yacht, Resolute. We did find “the old yellow school bus”, but it was red, not yellow. We had fish and chips and they were delicious. We wandered through the town and went to the museum, which did not take long. We got back in the dinghies to go back to our boats and tried to stay out of the way of a huge fishing boat, which looked like it took no prisoners! Only moments before this picture was taken Woody and Ellen were unknowingly directly in front of this fishing boat Hanging flower basket at the Killarney museum Typical Killarney fishing boat that uses nets Just after we got back, four identical jet skies drove up to the bottom of the cliff by our boats. There were four young men in their early twenties, in identical short wet suits. It looked like something out of a James Bond movie and they were definitely on a mission. The lead guy tied a line to something on shore and tossed it to the others, who all tied up to him. They started climbing up the side of the cliff through the trees. At least three of them had done it before because there was no hesitation in their climb. When they reached the top, they spent some time discussing something before they started down. The lead guy had a stick that he used to clear out the spider webs as they climbed down the face of the cliff. Some of the areas were so tight they had to squirm through on their stomachs. As soon as they reached the ledge they wanted, the first one, with a loud yell, jumped into the water. The next two followed in turn. The fourth guy was a little apprehensive and it took him longer, but he did jump. As soon as the fourth hit the water, they started swimming for the side of the cliff where their jet skies were tied. Once again they climbed to the top. This time, one went back to the level they jumped from earlier and the other three, after some discussion and rock throwing, jumped from a higher ledge. Once again, as soon as the last one hit the water, they swam to their jet skies. This time they got on them, waved at us, did a couple of fast turns, throwing water high in the air, and were gone. We decided it was a “happening”! Anchored in front of the cliff from which our guys will jump Checking it out!!! One's not so sure! James Bond type vehicles & behavior Scooting through the ledge to get to the jump spot We also had another “happening” while we were in Covered Portage Cove. Woody let Phil cut his hair! Woody said he needed a haircut and there was no barber shop in Killarney. Phil told him he knew how to cut hair and, after much thought and with a lot of trepidation, Woody appeared on our boat, ready for his haircut. There was much fear and a lot of laughter, but everyone seemed satisfied with the result! At sunset, Ellen blew her conch shell. She then taught Phil to do it! COVERED PORTAGE COVE TO BAIE FINE – AUG 16 Saturday was a pretty, sunny and cool day. Phil and Ellen wanted to climb to the top of the cliff to take pictures of the boats. Woody took them to shore in the dinghy. Ellen and Phil climb the same rocks as the boys the day before The boatsat anchor from the top of the rocks This is the small area nestled at the back of our anchorage After they returned, we got everything ready and left our beautiful anchorage about 10:15am. We went about twenty-seven miles and arrived in Baie Fine at the Pool about 1:45. Baie Fine is a ten mile long fjord like lake. It is absolutely beautiful. There are tall, wooded cliffs that seem to fall into the lake. “They” say this is the closest anyone can be to a fjord-like area and still be in North America. The Pool is at the very end of Baie Fine. It is a small pool, totally protected, very tranquil and peaceful. We have heard that Mr. Evinrude of Evinrude Engines once owned the house at the entrance to the Pool. He had a yacht that was 110 feet long and he used to dock it at his house on the Baie Fine side, not the pool. When he died, his widow sold it and bought a yacht that was 130 feet! Evinrude House at Baie Fine between the fjord & the "Pool" “Barbara” came in a little after we did while we were riding around in our dinghies. Later, Barbara, Ken, Ellen and Phil all went hiking. Woody took them to shore in the dinghy and walked a while with them. I stayed on the boat to work on the log. Phil and Ellen took the long way around and hiked a long time. They were really tired when Woody brought them back to the boat. I fixed dinner for Woody, Ellen and Phil and we ate on “Double SS”. "Pool" anchorage from high above on the trail Lake Topaz with swimmers (high above the "Pool" Magical waterfall special to Ellen and Phil who proceeded beyond the group hike There was a double-masted sail boat, “Play Fair”, anchored in the Pool, also. It is a teaching boat for teens. They go for ten days to two weeks, live aboard, learn to sail, learn about living and working on a sail boat, including climbing the mast to furl the sails. At one point, we saw six kids at the top of the mast at the same time, learning to furl the sail. They had their feet on the lines and were hanging onto the crossbeam that holds the sail about forty or fifty feet above the deck. We had the opportunity to watch them for some time and all the kids really seemed to know what to do and when to do it. There were plenty of adults on board and there was a chain of command, just as there would be on a real sailing vessel. They seemed to be busy all the time until everything was done, everything in its place. Then they had free time. Some got to go in the dinghy and some went swimming. "Play Fair" Youngsters on the yardarm furling sai Reflections everywhere Picnic on the rocks across the anchorage Reflections everywhere Ellen, Barbara and Phil blew their conchs at sunset. Phil’s has a tenor sound, Ellen’s is the baritone and Barbara’s is the bass. They sound good together and one of the other boats at anchor in the Pool honked once for them after they were through. We thought it was a gesture of applause and not booing or hissing! BAIE FINE TO LITTLE CURRENT – AUG 17 Before we could leave on Sunday morning, “Barbara” and “Double SS” had to get their anchors up. There is a lot of plant growth under the water, some eight to ten feet tall. When the anchors finally came up they were a mess. They looked like something out of a monster movie –“Monsters of the Pool” would have been a good name. They washed all the mud off and had to pole the weeds off the anchors. It took a long time and was hard work. Ahh…the joys of rafting!! Phil and I watched from our fly bridge. We finally left about 10:05. After carefully going out the narrow entrance/exit, we emerged into Baie Fine. We were once again struck by the beauty of the fjord type area. What a blessing to have been able to see this place… Committee of boats to extract anchor from depths!! Looking toward the open water leading to Little Current We went across some open water, but, thankfully, smooth, and arrived just outside Little Current in time to wait a few minutes for the 1:00 opening of the bridge. We were through the bridge by 1:20 and at Spider Bay Marina in Little Current, tied up by 2:00. Spider Bay Marina --Little Current, Ontario Cruisers Net Party Roy and Margaret Eatons House There is a Cruisers’ Network on the radio, channel 71 that broadcasts out of Little Current. The program broadcasts the national news, the weather and information for cruisers. The man who does this is Roy. He was having a party at 4:30 at his home for cruisers in the area. As soon as we arrived, we prepared what we were taking and left for the party about 4:15. Roy had several friends who gave cruisers rides from the marinas. We had a nice time at the party. Roy and his wife, Margaret, were amazed at the number of people who showed up for the party. There must have been two hundred people there! We got home about 9:00 and we were all six tired! The next morning Phil attended the live broadcast along with Ken and Barbara. We were fasinated by his thoroughness of international coverage. He gathers news from diverse international websites and edits it into a script from which he reads the news. After the broadcasts boaters in the area call in to report their positions and may respond with comments. Those in attendance can leave a burgee to be attached to his wall in the hotel broadcast studio if they desire. I left one for the TMCA (Texas Mariners Association). Phil with Texas Mariners Cruising Association burgee Roy & Margaret Cruisers Net Party Hosts Woody and Barbara "diggin-in" Virginia, Ellen, & Roy discussing his own handiwork (art) Woody & Ellen Chicago Sox vs Cubs fans (World Series stuff) The next morning, Monday morning, we washed and went to the grocery store. Phil and I had met a couple in Kingston, who lived on Manitoulin Island. While we were in Little Current, we contacted them and found that we were very close to where they lived on the island. We planned to meet Nancy and David for a late lunch. He is a retired bee keeper. He has only 60 hives now, but before he retired he had 500 hives. They also make maple syrup. Woody, Ellen, Ken, Barbara, Phil and I went to lunch with them and enjoyed it so much. They are lovely people and were very interesting. We had lunch at the Anchor Restaurant, where the Cruisers’ Net is broadcast from every morning. Nancy and David Kains, Manitoulin Island, Ontario Anchor Restaurant with new friends Roy performs his first radio check of a dingy VHF Another sunset recognized--- Thanks |
Parry Sound to Little Current
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