Georgian Bay

Sunday, August 11 - Friday, August 16, 2013

Georgian Bay Ports
Image From boatinggeorgianbay.com

Irish Attitude left Port Severn at 9:30 and completed our last lock of our adventure known as the America's Great Loop. We entered Georgian Bay with our travel boats and good friends aboard Journey and Harmony. Mike and I have traveled with Margi, Rick, Janet and Bob since Cape May, N.J. Georgian Bay is a large body of water (nearly as large as Lake Ontario) and the magenta lines branch out like limbs on a tree. Close attention to buoys is important or you could find yourself following another route. Luckily, our Garmin chart plotter is operating again as we are traveling in coastal waters. (Interior waterways were not included in our 'chip'.) 

We discussed the general route we wanted to take and agreed to head north along the eastern rim. There is much to see and it is understandable how boaters can spend the summer exploring Georgian Bay. The summer travel season was delayed due to damaging spring floods in upstate New York. Many of our Looper friends are Canadians and we had hoped to visit with them on their home waters. Mark and Jo aboard Truant are from Penetanguishene and Bernie and Don aboard Snow Cat are from Tobermory at the tip of Bruce Peninsula. It would have been fun to catch up with them. As we approached our destination for the night I recalled Mike and Mundy from Done Dreamin said they spent their summers boating in this area.We had  traveled down the rivers together. The last time we saw them was at Ponta Gorda, FL! I text messaged Mundy that we would be spending the night near San Souci at Henry's Fish Restaurant and Marina on Frying Pan Island. Unbelievably they were anchored out only 5 miles away!  Shortly after we arrived Mundy pulled up in their dinghy. She said Mike would be bringing their in (northern) trawler for the night. Great! Now we can take our time catching up and enjoy our fish dinners. Pickerel, I learned is the same as Walleye (my favorite!) Mike ordered perch. 

Cairns Are Stone Piles Used as Route Markers by the Locals

3 Homes Built on a Rocky Island. Building Materials Would
Have to be Delivered By Boat or Barge. Expensive!

Rugged Beauty

Channel Marker

Henry's, A Popular Landmark for Loopers

A Sea Plane Lands Behind Harmony and Journey

Mundy Follows Bob....Watch Your Footing!

Mike Pulls In Aboard Their Canadian Home 

Rick, Margi, Bob and Janet
Mike, Me, Mundy and Mike

Fly and Dine

Taking Notes as Mike Shares His Local Knowledge

At 9:30 a.m. we said good-bye to our friends Mike and Mundy. They shared some of their favorite anchorages; now we just have to locate the little gems. Some of the best cruising in the world can be found in this area of 30,000 Islands. This is the largest chain of islands in the world! It is said to have more anchorages then a boater could visit in a lifetime. Mundy had told us that one of the criteria that defines an island is it has has at least 3 trees. I asked her what they were called if there were no trees. "A Rock!", she answered. First up was Snug Harbor thirty miles away. Journey secured their anchor first then Irish Attitude. A sailboat was also anchored here. Harmony tried a few spots but did not feel comfortable with their attempts and opted to anchor in another spot. If you are not comfortable, you don't sleep. It's that simple! Now we had a destination for our dinghy ride.

What a View

 Every Day Is Filled With Twists and Turns

Yellow Moss or Fungus Cover Some of the Rocks

Lighthouse on Snug Island

Weststyle Island -  Entrance to Anchorage

Colors Swirl Through the Rock Creating a Unique Beauty

No Sandy Beach Here

A Rock Even Rick Liked

Harmony Found an Anchorage Nearby

I Need a Wider Tree!

The Guys Check Out Bob's Porta Boat and Electric Motor

Tuesday was not a good travel day due to high winds and area storms. This anchorage is protected from all directions making it the perfect place to wait it out. It was nice having Margi and Rick so close. Margi text Janet and they were faring well. After completing some boat chores we spent time hanging out on Journey. With no electricity to connect to we ran the generator a few times a day to keep the batteries charged. The sun came out but the wind kept up so we decided to stay put Wednesday too. Harmony chose to move on. They planned to take the narrower, inside route. Journey, with a 18.5 ft beam had had enough of narrow. We agreed to travel with them across more open waters to reach the North Channel. The 4 of us did some more exploring on the neighboring islands.

Crystal Clear Waters

Pinkish Rocks Common in Canadian Shield

The North Entrance to the Anchorage 

One of the 30,000 Islands

Rick and Mike Explore Franklin Island

Can You Spot the Snake? Margi Could!

Wednesday, August 14, 2013 - One year ago Mike and I left our home port in Bay City, MI aboard Irish Attitude heading for adventure on the America's Great Loop! Janet and Bob were not there to celebrate this milestone but Rick and Margi joined us for dinner. We motored our dinghy a 1/2 mile away to Gilly's Snug Harbor Restaurant.  From the outside it did not look that impressive. The interior was casual but the menu was anything but plain. Every dish had a unique flair and flavor. Great Food, Great friends, Great Year!

Gilly's Snug Harbor Restaurant (from their web page)

Thursday we pulled out and followed the interior, small boat route until Pointe au Baril (pronounced barrel).We planned to enter the open water at that point and head for Britt. After sticking our nose out we and radioed back to Journey that there were 4-5 footers in the bay. They had already begun to turn around! We spent hours, literally, searching for an anchorage.We made a few attempts but one boat or the other did not get a good hold. Nearby marinas were for smaller boats . The few anchorages on Active Captain required some back tracking. Most of them offered wind protect in all but a southerly wind.... guess which direction the wind was that day! By the time we arrived everyone was exhausted. Scouting anchorages took us out of our comfort zone because we had to motor outside the buoys, breaking a cardinal rule! Thankfully, directions and comments on Active Captain made it easier. We tried more than one before moving on. We ended up south of Hopewell Bay. Not at a marked anchorage (as they were full) but tucked behind a small, unnamed island with a house on it. Mike used both a bow and stern anchor. He used the dinghy to transfer our stern anchor ashore and secured it on land. It was a very long day but we would sleep soundly!

Lighthouse at Porte au Baril (the bay did not appear to be rough, yet!)

Anchors were hoisted in time for a 7:30 departure. We would give the Georgian Bay crossing another attempt today. What a difference! The water had barely a ripple. With good luck on our side we decided to skip Britt and head for Killareny instead. The only other time we repeated our route was when we returned from a side trip to Chattanooga and that was planned. Oh well, I was able to snap better pictures this time.

Island's Name in Paint?

Old Monument Honoring Champlain

Much Calmer Today!

Barrel on Hilltop????

*"Pointe au Baril was named after the barrel on the point that originally (1870s) marked the treacherous entry to the main channel from the open water of Georgian Bay. As the story goes, early fur traders from  Pentanguishene lost a canoe near the point. Their canoe included a barrel of whiskey that was found by stranded traders the next spring. After a drinking spree the barrel was left on the point as a beacon. French mariners were soon calling it Pointe au Baril. Later this marker was improved to include a lantern in the barrel that would be lit by the first fisherman returning inland to light the way for the rest of the boats." *en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pointe_au_Baril,_Ontario

Treacherous Indeed! Those Are Rocks, Not A Waves

Smooth as Glass!

Our timing couldn't have been better. As we neared the Killarney channel we spotted Harmony having recently emerged from the inland route. As if we had never split up, our trio of boats pulled into Killarney Mountain Lodge and Marina. Killarney is the eastern entrance to our next adventure.... the North Channel.