Midland through Covered Portage

Kim’s Korner:

While at Beausoleil Island, David looked at the alternator which was only putting out about 11 volts. The alternator had been worked on in Jacksonville and the installation had been poorly done as David found un-crimped connections which had come loose the day we left Jacksonville. He looked it over again while here and found a wire that needed some tightening. Since an electrician was coming to look at another boat, David had him look at the alternator and since we had an old spare as well, he took that to check it out to see if it would work or what it would take to make it work.

We moved to Bay Port Yacht Center in Midland while we waited for the alternator. Guess what? The alternator put out about 14 volts that day – coincidence? While we waited for the electrician and our spare alternator, we had a new town to explore. We enjoyed fantastic ribs at Dillon’s Wood-Fired Pizza with Anne and Tim before they left the next morning – we would catch up with them at some point. We also had a delicious dinner at The Explorers Café during our stay. Midland is known for their murals – the worlds largest is there painted on the side of grain silos in the harbor – very neat! We biked on the Trans-Canadian Trail again and after some really big hills ended up in Penetanguishene, another interesting town on the Georgian Bay.

The electrician returned with a newly refurbished alternator since the old one was no good. The next day, we left for the Ladas Bay anchorage. The Georgian Bay is just gorgeous! The rocks turned to calico – black, orange, and white and have ridges in them from the glaciers that formed them. When the sun comes out, the water is clear and blue.

Our friends, Bob and Gail, on The Good Life happened to contact us and we realized we were very close to one another so they came to the same anchorage. We hadn’t seen them since the Statue of Liberty. At Ladas Bay and then Hopewell Bay the following night, we explored in our dinghies, had dinner and played chicken foot – it was good to catch up with them. I saw a loon land very close to us and Gail got some amazing pictures of it! We visited Henry’s Fish Camp for pan-fried pickerel and haddock. Henry’s is world famous and can only be reached by water or air. We were lucky enough to see a seaplane takeoff while there.

At Eureka Point anchorage, we caught back up with Ivanhoe as well as the other boats we’ve been with on and off since we entered Canada. We dinghied over to Ojibway Hotel, an old historic hotel that is open 70 days a year, for ice cream, walking trails and a few groceries. We returned here several times while we were waiting out the rain.

We finally got to use our kayaks! It’s been since January since we last used them due to the fact there really hasn’t been any opportunities to use them. If the weather is good, we are usually moving with Overtime. If the weather is bad, the weather is bad for kayaking as well. At least the kayaks are up out of our way so it isn’t like we are tripping over them all the time. What a place to get to use them – the Georgian Bay! David located what he called “The Land that Time Forgot”. I thought he was crazy as you had to paddle thru grass and lilies but it was beautiful once you got through all that! And just a little buggy. We also paddled over to what the locals call “The Hole in the Wall” – a narrow channel that small boats can use where locals gather on two very small beaches and jump off the cliffs into the water.

We moved to the Bustard Islands and anchored for two nights, again waiting for the rain and winds to pass. This anchorage is another beautiful setting with a dozen boats anchored here. David had to do a “Mediterranean style anchorage” here where he dropped anchor and then tied the rear of the boat to a tree to keep the boat from swinging 360 degrees, allowing more boats to anchor in an area. After a dinghy ride to explore the immediate area, we enjoyed dinghy-tails (tying all our dinghies together) with other boaters.

After 8 nights at anchorages, we headed to the Sportsman Inn Marina in Killarney to provision before heading out again. On the way, we passed through Beaverton Bay and Collins Inlet which were absolutely beautiful! I took so many pictures – sorry for them all – and I didn’t include a fraction of them. Killarney, originally known as Shebahonaning (“narrow channel”), is indeed a narrow short channel that is bustling with boats, sailboats, dinghies, kayaks, sea planes and helicopters. To provision, we used our dinghy to tie up to the docks of the different stores where we needed to go. Such a different world than I am accustomed to!

The next day, we headed to beautiful Covered Portage Cove for two nights of anchoring. We hiked to the top of the cliffs where a gorgeous view awaited us. The water is an emerald green. We picked wild blueberries, swam and hiked up the other side the second day to an observation deck which overlooked the cove as well. This has been our favorite anchorage so far.

I almost forgot – the alternator is still putting out 14 volts. It must have been the wire that David tightened.

Pictures:
20170716 Midland
20170719 Ladas Bay, The Archipelago, Ontario
20170720 Hopewell Bay, The Archipelago, Ontario
20170721 Eureka Point, The Archipelago, Ontario
20170725 Bustard Islands, Ontario
20170727 Killarney Ontario
20170728 Covered Portage Cove Anchorage