Baie Fine, Ontario

Our long awaited trip to the Georgian Bay came to an end on Wednesday, August 22 as we left Killarney (population 600!) to begin our passage through the North Channel.

It is a long strip of water that runs for 70 miles east-west from Killarney to Thessalon, Ontario.  The channel’s waters are relatively quiet because Manitoulin Island protects the northern coast of Ontario from the wilder waters of Lake Huron.  The North Channel has some of the oldest rocks  in the world with many of them over 3 billion years old!  It is far less developed than Georgian Bay with fewer and smaller villages and only occasional cottages scattered here and there.  We made a leisurely departure from Killarney Mountain Marina because we had a relatively short cruise to the amazing Baie Fine.  The day was quite cool in the low 70’s and windy but we spent most of the cruise on an inside passage.  

We crossed Fraser Bay to get to the long narrow passageway that led to an outstandingly beautiful cove.  The passage was narrow and lined with white quartz cliffs and fir trees on both sides.  It is reported to be the closest thing to a fjord in North America.  It was so dramatic that Lynn spent much of the seven mile passage standing on the bow soaking in the incredible scenery. 

When we arrived at the “pool” (the end of the passageway leads to a cove), we found six boats already anchored there.  Some were tied up to trees and we decided to go in as far as we could and set the anchor.  The fellow in the sailboat closest to us dinghied over to advise us to tie up our stern to a tree which we gladly did. 

Then we took the dinghy to a small dock that led to trails in the surrounding parkland.  We hiked to a famous watering hole on Topaz Lake.  It was stunningly dramatic - a small lake with turquoise water surrounded by huge rocky outcroppings and forested shores.  If it was just a little warmer, we would have gone swimming in the crystal clear waters.  A few people were hanging out on rocks and a couple of young men were jumping into the water from high cliffs on the nearby shore.  We stayed for awhile enjoying the outstanding scenery - one of the prettiest places we’ve been on this whole trip!

We then hiked to another lake, Artists Lake - also pretty but filled with marsh weeds and nowhere near as nice as Topaz. 

Back at Zendo, three folks who we met at the lake responded to our invitation to come by and see Zendo as they were interested in buying a trawler.  Two of them were from Deerfield Beach, FL and the others on the boat were from the Midwest and had sailed these waters before.  We had a nice visit and later on just relaxed in the quiet of this anchorage and basked in the beauty of a magnificent sunset. 

Killarney, Ontario

We woke up by 5:30 on Tuesday, August 21 so we could leave early due to the weather forecast.  We wanted to make it to either an anchorage or all the way to Killarney if we could.  That way we would be in a good place when the higher winds that were forecasted for the following day occur.  It turned out that our night on anchor was very calm. We climbed onto the dinghy to to untie the two lines that secured us to the shore and pulled anchor by 6:45.

We headed across Lake Huron and had a very bouncy ride for the first hour until we could make a turn and have the waves on our quarter.  During this rough passage, the table in the saloon toppled over even though it was secured by bungee cords and the oven door flew open and all the pans tumbled out.  (We hadn’t secured things as well as we should have). Georgio was very uncomfortable and had two accidents probably because it was too rough for him to make it to the litter box in time.  Lynn held him closely during much of this passage. 

Finally, after about two hours we entered the inside passage of Beaverstone Bay and a most beautiful portion of our journey.  There was negligible boat traffic and very few cottages lining these shores.  We passed a couple of lovely anchorages we could have chosen to stay at but we pushed on. 

We cruised on to Killarney which meant crossing one more short section of open water which we did in 30 minutes without any trauma.  We arrived at Killarney Mountain Marina by noon. This was a very attractive resort-style marina that looked a little like a mini Montebello but we actually liked it better - it was more casual and laid back.

We walked around the grounds and into the the tiny town of Killarney where we stopped at a fish and chips joint for lunch.  We sat out on a picnic table overlooking another marina and as we were finishing it started to sprinkle.

Upon returning to Zendo, Lynn walked up to the local laundromat to wash the towel that Georgio peed on.  There was a free laundry at the marina but only one washer and three people were already lined up to use it. It was a very rainy afternoon.

We had originally made dinner reservation at the marina’s restaurant but we didn’t care for its ambiance so we cancelled and Lynn made a delicious dinner of sausage and peppers with the unique lamb-rosemary sausage Jonny had purchased at the butcher in Toronto.  Jonny did some more trip planning and after dinner we walked up to the marina’s attractive cocktail lounge to hear a singer who has a big following in this part of Canada. He was actually very entertaining singing mostly songs made popular by Canadians.  It was definitely a fun evening.  The lounge was designed around a huge central open fireplace but it was prohibited from being used because of the forest fires that have hit this part of the country this summer.  Fortunately for us they have abated enough so we are not prevented from seeing areas we had planned to visit.

Pearl Island, Ontario

We left our lovely anchorage at Snug Harbor at 9 a.m. on Monday, August 20 so we could get in a full day of travel. We had a great day of cruising. One of the highlights was going through Hang Dog Channel.  The marina manager from Bay Port had discouraged (particularly large boat) cruisers from taking that route because it is so narrow and there are so many rocks and sharp turns.  Of course, that was an invitation to Jonny so we took that route and we’re glad we did!  It was quite spectacular with gorgeous rock formations everywhere. All the twists and turns made it more fun and interesting.

As we consulted the weather we decided to bypass Wright’s Marina to get further since the weather over the next two days was going to deteriorate.  So we continued on until 4:30 where we cruised through the Bustard Islands which had been closed due to the forest fires this summer.  Lucky for us this passage has reopened and there was little evidence of the fires from our vantage point.

We chose a beautiful anchorage in a cove with other boats and just a few cottages.  After we set the anchor, the couple aboard a trawler anchored in the next cove dinghied over to greet us.  They told us that they had started to anchor in the spot we were in but the  locals had advised them not to because when the weather turns, the wind funnels in off the lake down Gunbarrel Channel into the anchorage. 

Reluctantly, given the local knowledge and even though our weather review didn’t show wind coming from that direction, we moved further into a narrow channel where we set the anchor again.  However, we were now concerned that we were too close to the very rocky shoreline.   So Jonny decided to tie off the stern of the boat to a tree on shore (he had been wanting to do this ever since we arrived in the Georgian Bay)!  Some areas where we’ve been cruising actually have rings drilled into the boulders on shore so boats can tie up to them.  We looked for some nearby rings but didn’t find any, so we just used trees.  It took us three tries with two sets of lines running from the stern to two trees on shore.

Finally, by 6:30 (two hours later) we relaxed with some adult beverages and had dinner.  The setting was absolutely beautiful.  We were only ten feet from the rocky coastline but we were securely anchored in place in case the winds came whistling through (not likely to happen). It was profoundly quiet and just wonderful!

We went to bed early because we wanted to leave the next morning at the crack of dawn.  We would be crossing a big corner of Lake Huron and the forecast called for rain and higher winds the following day.  We wanted to get as close to Killarney as we could so we could stay at a marina if we were held up by weather for a day.

Snug Harbor, Ontario

We were anxious to see if the engine started when we woke up on Sunday August 19.  Fortunately, it did and it sounded great!  We were very happy and greatly relieved to have finally corrected the problem.  Jonny went to pay our marina bill while Lynn exercised and got ready to push off.  After a quick pump-out, we were on our way by 9.  At first we thought we would take the quicker outside route and we did for awhile and then we switched to the small boat channel, a more interesting and beautiful route. Even though it was Sunday, there was not a lot of boat traffic.  We cruised through gorgeous rocky scenery with interesting markers and cottages scattered here and there.  This contemporary style was the exception.

Lynn rocked out to Aretha Franklin for much of the cruise. Hail to the Queen of Soul who sadly just entered a new realm of of the divine!

We decided to anchor at Snug Harbor so we could take the new dinghy for a spin and eat at Gilly’s, a well known fish restaurant that many people have recommended to us.  We needed to arrive fairly early because they stop serving at 6 p.m. And there is always a wait to get in.  Lynn called them to see about dockage and to let them know we were coming.  

Our anchorage was in a small harbor with some cottages but also stretches of undeveloped boulder-strewn coastline.  Our friend Dwayne had entered a review of this anchorage in the Active Captain website so we knew it would be good.  It was also a little further off the small boat channel and we thought the alternative anchorage we were considering might be likely to get more crowded as evening approached. It had one sailboat in it when we passed and the one we chose had none.

Jonny went for a bracing swim while Lynn updated the blog.  Then we scrambled aboard the dinghy so as not to be late to Gilly’s.  When we arrived, a sign was posted saying that they had stopped seating for dinner.  Lynn appealed this dictum by reminding them that she had called earlier to let them know we were coming.  They kindly acquiesced and we sat on their porch with a refreshing cocktail to wait for our table.

Our wait was a short one and we proceeded to enjoy a very good dinner.  The restaurant was much nicer than what we expected. Instead of the typical very casual fish camp type restaurant, this one was nicely decorated in simple clean white board and batten motif. It reminded us of one of our favorite restaurants to in Ponte Vedra, the Palm Valley Fish Camp.  We enjoyed our meals of local fish so much so that we even made room for their homemade peach pie for dessert (Jonny’s favorite).

Our dinghy is proving to be a very good purchase as we used it to comfortably explore the bay where we were anchored staying high and dry and cruising faster and more comfortably than in our old dinghy.

Midland, Ontario 2nd stay

The first thing we did on Thursday, August 16 was to try out our new dinghy by taking it for a spin around this pretty anchorage.  The dinghy is great and Jonny is one happy guy!

His happiness was shattered a few minutes later when Zendo’s engine wouldn’t start as we were ready to leave!  It turned over once and then died.  Even with all the work that was done with the fuel leak the day before which we thought had corrected the problem!  Jonny proceeded to bleed the engine again and we tried starting it several times.  No luck.  He called the mechanic from the day before and they tried a few more things.  Nothing. The owner of the marina was looking at options including who might be able to tow us all the way back to Midland, if necessary.  Jonny called Sea Tow to see if they could be used given the fact that we were in Canada and not the U.S.  He also talked to a local tow guy who talked him through a different procedure using the lift pump to bleed the engine. It worked! But because the cause of the problem had not been determined, we weren’t confident about continuing our journey and decided to go back to Bay Port Marina in Midland where there were sufficient resources and a very helpful marina manager. 

Finally at 12:30 we raised the anchor and took off for the four hour trip back to Midland.  We traveled on the outside route.  Though not as scenic, we made slightly better time and as the Sea Tow guy told us, we would be more easily accessible to them should anything happen along the way! Thankfully, we had smooth sailing on a nice, though somewhat cloudy day. We returned to the same dock slip and shortly after we settled in, it started to pour rain.  We had arrived just in time!

Jonny decided to cap the vacuum guage line that he had disconnected a few days earlier thinking that doing so might get to the root of the problem.  In the meantime, he had been noticing that our new refrigerator was not working properly so he contacted a refrigeration mechanic to come by the next  morning to see if he could fix it. We stayed in that night, a little discouraged but hopeful that we could leave the next day.

The next day was also our 32nd wedding anniversary!  We spent the bulk of it on boat chores and of course hosting the refrigerator mechanic.  He was successful in his efforts.  Apparently, our new appliance was from a bad year and the company that made it provides new parts to correct the problem.  Unfortunately, the dealer we bought it from did a funky job installing it and didn’t follow the proper procedures that would have corrected the problem from the start. 

Lynn kept busy cleaning Zendo including all the interior woodwork and wood floors since the carpet was rolled up to be able to access the engine room. After the repairs were completed, Jonny tried the engine twice and it started which was a good sign, but we wanted to have a full overnight as our problems had occurred when the boat sits overnight.  Jonny went to get a haircut and we caught up with Stephanie by phone.  We had a lovely anniversary dinner at the Explorer’s Cafe’ where we had eaten the week before.

Walking back to the marina we saw the tail end of the annual tugboat parade which reminded us of the Christmas boat parades in Florida.

We were ready to take off on Saturday, August 18 but when Jonny started the engine it died after 30 seconds and wouldn’t start again.  A mechanic came by at 8 a.m. It turned out the vacuum gauge wasn’t the issue. They bled the engine, tried starting it a couple of times and the mechanic, after listening very carefully to the engine sounds, determined that the problem was not air in the engine.  He diagnosed it as a poor connection to the injector pump solenoid.  He replaced it with a $2 part and it started right up!  We asked him to come back at 4:30 to check again.  

In the meantime, we went for a lovely bike ride along a wooded path that lined the coast from one end of town to the other. 

From there we went into Midland where a cool tugboat festival was taking place.

This little guy was Lynn’s favorite!

There were all kinds of exhibits including some interesting wildlife creatures. 

We treated ourselves to ice cream cones, bought the local butter tarts and stopped for coffee at Jonny’s favorite coffee shop (he actually had one after nine days here)!

When the mechanic returned at 4:30, thankfully, the engine started right up.  But the real proof would be whether it would start the next morning. So Lynn made dinner - chicken a la Nonna and the homemade pasta we had frozen from the Italian market in Montreal along with purple (!) green beans from the Midland farmer’s market (that turned green upon cooking).   Delicious and lots of leftovers!  We entertained ourselves that evening by watching two episodes of the excellent British series, Dancing on the Edge, that Andy had lent us for the trip.  We are ready to move on from Midland and its murals, nice town that it is!