NOTE: If there are no pictures it is because I ran out of
time in the short Internet opportunity in Killarney! I will load them later. We
have some beautiful photos to share!
Our journey today was advertised as a short 25 miles. Turns
out it was 41 miles. We left at about 12pm after filling water tanks and
getting a pump out. Weather was clear, not very windy and a balmy 70 degrees,
maybe more because the sun was out. We are finally losing that chill in the
bones.
Bill and Eve also filled up their water tanks after us. We
waited with Miss Nancy for Just BilEve at the mouth of Georgian Bay then we all
motored out to find Dust Cutter somewhere in Georgian Bay. This is where we got
a little messed up. Since the group separated and only Dust Cutter knew where
we were going we had a little trouble. Finally we figured out where we needed
to go, entered the coordinates in the Garmin and headed out. We found them
finally and coordinated our way into the correct location.
Mad River has a
series of chutes and rapids with a nice anchoring pool at the end of the
channel. You have to pick your way carefully around rocks and shallows to get
to the anchoring spot but it is a great spot for dinghies.
We rafted off Just BilEve rafted off of Dust Cutter in the
rented trawler. It took about 3 hours to
accomplish the anchoring and rafting. I suspect we will anchor by ourselves
next time like Miss Nancy did. It is just too complicated. We particularly
annoyed the other folks already anchored by our antics.
We said hello to another looper, Serendipity, from South
Carolina, nice folks who just started in April. They asked if we had advice. We
responded just to relax and have fun!!
We ran the chutes. Our dinghy sure can scoot with just 2
people on board. It was so beautiful back there! On our way back to the boat we
saw Paul and Maeo on the rocks! They swam over!! The water is not as cold as we
thought. Hard to believe since the winter was so long and cold.
We ate on our own boats the first night of anchoring. I
thought we would have joined together for dinner but we did not.
The next day we slept in then went out about 11am with a
small lunch for a dinghy ride around. We were searching for the back way around
the chute when we knicked the prop on a rock and came back towards the boats.
We were a little concerned that the other boats might leave while we were gone
so we didn’t want to go to far away. Besides we couldn’t find the back way
around the rapid.
On the way back to the boats we noticed a fender stuck under
the swim platform. We left this particular fender attached to the anchor line
but the anchor lines were all messed up under the boat. It took about an hour
but Paul and Kermit with a little help from Dave figured it out. Paul went in
the water with a mask and cut the line off that fender, releasing the anchor
line from around the trim tabs. We snugged up the anchor line and all was well
again. It kind of reminded me of that time on the Mississippi when One
September’s anchor line got tangled around his props. In that case the entire
group helped fix the problem. In this case just our crew and Dave helped. I
guess it is just different.
We stayed a second night in Mad River because it was so beautiful.
We did a little more dinghy riding but since all four of us were in the same
dinghy we couldn’t go so fast. We decided to find the route around the rapids
to the back pools. We found the route but got stuck in the rocks, dinging the
dinghy prop a little. Not too bad but it scared us so we moved back into the
main channel and explored the area around the boats a little more.
The crew of Good Karma is rationing water so we decided to
jump in behind the boat for a quick bath. It was not as cold as we though!!
About 65 to 70 degrees. We brought the shampoo and cleaned up a bit. Everyone
on the other boats was shocked at this but we had a blast. They had their
cameras out to record our craziness.
We hosted dinner on our boat again – an effort to support
camaraderie. Everyone brought a dish and
a bottle for a good time! Eve served walleye nuggets from the fish Bill caught
that afternoon.
When we woke up the next morning almost everyone was gone.
We lifted anchor at about 9:45 and wandered over to the Collins Inlet. The
other day we entered all coordinates and routes for the remainder of the trip
so Kermit would not feel so alone as a Captain. This made the trip to Collins
Inlet and Mill Lake so much less stressful.
When we arrived at Mill Lake we let down the dinghies and
went exploring. We found an old camp for sale just at the head of a little
waterfall used by the old owner for hydropower. Bill and Eve fished everywhere.
We stopped for ice at a hunting camp. I also got my lab fix since they had
three labs (2 black and 1 yellow) and a puppy German shepherd with the biggest
ears I’ve ever seen!
After we returned to the boat, Julie and Ron came over to
share the beautiful quart they picked up on the shore. We will bring this back
for a garden marker. Paul and Maeo went out again on their dinghy alone zipping
around for about an hour in the late afternoon.
Dinner on our own boats. We cooked a pork tenderloin on the
grill on the swim platform. We would never have been able to grill on the old
Good Karma. Maeo made a rice dish out of our leftover rice. Everything was
tasty!
After dinner Kermit and Paul went over to Just BilEve to see
if they could help fix the transmission. Each of our boats are having little
problems, mostly because all the boats are new to us boats. It takes a while to
get the kinks out.
We have not seen any critters. Not any at all except the
rear end of that bear in the dump. We are starting to think there is something
wrong. Also no eagles, only vultures, sea gulls, and cormorants.
We have a poltergeist on board. Paul’s book, Maeo’s tea, and
the grocery list are all missing. The book and tea cup reappeared in a
different spot but the grocery list is still missing. We have named the
poltergeist Fred. We hope he is a nice spirit.
This morning we left Mill Lake for an inside passage to
Killarney. We plan to stop for groceries and get more water then progress a few
miles to Collins Inlet.
This morning we are hearing Margaret’s radio broadcast for
Loopers from Little Current. We are hearing bunches of people in Covered
Portage, our next stop. I mean there are at least a dozen headed that way.
We
are now in the middle of loopers in the North Channel. I hope we can meet some
in Covered Portage so we can have a dinghy round up or something like that.
Tentatively we are scheduled to have sloppy Joes on Miss
Nancy along with our naming celebration. More to follow later.
Here is our schedule:
·
7/21 to Covered Portage Cover to anchor out
(with a bunch of loopers we hope!)
·
7/22 to the Pool at Baie Fine to anchor out
·
7/23 to Little Current ONT – this will be our
next opportunity to get Internet access
·
7/24 to South Benjamin Island to anchor out
·
7/25 to Kagawon off Manitoulin Island to visit
Bridal Vale Falls. This will be a marina stop – another chance for Internet
·
7/26 we head to Little Current then Tobermory
then head home. Our target is to be home around 8/1 weekend, weather
permitting!
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