Collins Inlet, Keyhole Island

The water level is a foot below last year and we felt we pushed through the mud through the East entrance to the Collins Inlet last year, so we decided to enter from the west. Quite a bit of additional mileage, but who needs to run aground. (We ran aground and managed to escape in Harrisville).

The wind was really blowing and again, safe harbor was an issue. After anchoring in Mill Lake, we brought up the anchor and moved to the area around Keyhole Island. Everyone else had the same idea. We managed to find a safe anchorage and stayed for two days.

Finding an easy landing spot for the boys is always a consideration. The rocks, when wet, are extremely slippery and we found an island where Buddy could run free and burn off some energy.

The rock was so different in this area. The boys found plenty of interesting smells to sniff.

Notice the water line on the rocks. Significant in the last few years.

What happened to this poor tree?

The granite here is extremely colorful.

Bustard Islands, Whoa Baby!

Last year we anchored in the Bustard Islands and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. We planned to cruise up the Gun Barrel into the harbor, but decided to travel a bit farther south (east) on the small boat channel and enter between two islands. Worked great.

When we entered the harbor, there were only two boats! Last year there were many more. Both were anchored and secured "med mooring style" to the wall. Mediterranean mooring means tying to the rocks on shore. In this case, both were secured by their sterns.

We found a great spot, anchored and tied to the trees on the stone wall. What fun!

Classic Bustard Islands.

Note the choices into the bay. Any of the entries requires great attention to detail.

Jim is headed to shore to tie our first line to a tree.

A curious mink critiques Jim's style.

The Kings, Sydney, Phillip, Corey and Dave became great friends through our adventure. BooBoo is exhibiting his extraordinary ball skills. Buddy doesn't think they are so hot.

Buddy gives a demonstration of the Olympic style of ball playing.

Love that moss! Such incredible natural color.

Sydney is showing BooBoo how he could jump into the water and retrieve the ball. BooBoo is explaining that he is not a Retriever, but a Pomeranian.

The wind piped up and now Jim is tying the second line to shore. We now have two stern lines tied to trees and an anchor securing the boat.

Much advice being given by the experts from the stern.

As the wind clocked and increased, the Kings decided to leave. Half an hour later they were back, looking for safety. By then we were feeling the push toward the rocks and were attempting to move to a safer spot.

We decided the best course of action was to assist each other in our attempt at safety. Exhale was anchored in the middle of the bay and Dave and Jim each had a dinghy to tie lines. Dave anchored, Exhale, and brought one line to shore, which he tied to a tree. Meanwhile, Jim acted as a tow boat and kept power on the hull to hold us off the rocks. I brought up the anchor, released and threw the two stern lines and gunned it to safety. Jim and Dave then set second lines and we maneuvered to raft to Exhale. What an adventure! What a great time (afterward) we had with the Kings.

Corey, Grandma Irene, Sydney, Phillip and Dave King.

A special bond was formed between BooBoo and Sydney.

Dave, took our picture, sans the boys.

Couldn't leave this page without a shot of Dave climbing the trees. He wisely tied the lines high up on the tree to minimize chafing on the lines. Bad news was he was barefoot! Yeow!

Pointe au Baril, Britt, only a Stop, but Great Cottage Area

Britt is a very small town, composed of two restaurants and two marinas. If you need to do laundry, this is your stop. You won't be tempted to do anything else, because there isn't anything else to do! No Internet, so you don't have to worry about your blog.

Pointe au Baril lighthouse.

Entering the Bay.

Buddy has not a worry and Boo, looks a bit tense, but he feels safer with Buddy next to him.

I see these coming my way.

Here is "the Barrel"!

Many nice cottages in this area. Nice toys.

Important to know how to have fun!

A picture from last year. This is what we miss - our traveling companions. Kate and Greg from Grianen. Finished the Loop and now are living in NJ and FL.

Stairs and Eureka Island Away

A friend from the Great Lakes Rendezvous who lives near Parry Sound divulged his favorite anchorage to us. This anchorage was first on our list. The depths are not on the chart, but he assured us, depth was no issue. Another great resource is the Great Lakes Cruising Club. We pulled up their info and they showed plenty of water as well.

Jim is comparing the information from the Great Lakes Cruising Club to the chart.

The chart showed a wreck. Yeah, I guess!

No this is not a postcard! This is Hole in the Wall at Eureka Island!

The look on Jim's face is priceless. Maybe someday he will take a picture of me with his camera, but that would mean he would have to bring his camera with us on our adventures.

We were looking for the Ojibway Club. Could not find it, until we found it! Hotel was built in 1906 and closed in 1962. The cottagers bought the property and run it as a non-profit.

I have more pictures, I just can't find them right now. I am on a roll, so maybe I'll post more later...if I find the pictures.

Hopewell Bay, Safe Hideaway

We cruised into Hopewell Bay with two boats anchored. Narrow, which is never a favorite. Anchoring is an art and science with a ton of luck in between. We carefully anchored in the middle of the narrow space, noting the rocks behind us. Soon one of the boats left and we looked at each other - we liked that spot better. Moving!

Except the "more secure" spot was too shallow. We screamed some "kind" words at each other and moved back to our original anchorage. Pretty place, might as well enjoy it!

Always vigilant, Jim dates everything and reviews all points of the engine room before every cruise.

The boys are vigilant too. They love the dinghy rides and adventures to islands at each stop. We haven't seen any rattle snakes yet, but we did see a small, striped water snake. All four of us jumped back away from him!

Buddy and Jim are always looking for something new. They found this tree on a rock. So much of the landscape has changed with the low water.

Our house and our car.

Regatta Bay, Franklin Island

This blog is not going well. Pictures and captions disappear. It can't be me can it? I replace the pictures and again they disappear.  GRRRRRR!

Peaceful, protected, gorgeous. Two days at Regatta Bay was not enough time to enjoy grandeur of the rocks, evergreens and sunsets.

Most of the rock is smooth, but on other islands, the rock has huge ridges, sometimes in more than one direction.

Booboo loves playing ball with Buddy, but he isn't sure about the "water" part. Getting wet is for Labradors.

Thank goodness, a rock!

Off for an excursion to Snug Harbor. Too shallow for the boat, but we were told by a friend from Orangeville, ON that the restaurant was worth the travel.

The base of the restaurant is a cabin. Upstairs the restaurant is gorgeous. Unfortunately, I forgot to take a picture.

Do you think we could take advantage of the grants that flash on our computer and ask how old we are? It's never too late to go back to college. We could become geologists! Crawdad Rock Specialists.....

Most islands are made of smooth huge rocks. Other islands have huge ruts, sometimes running in more than one direction.

The boys say "HI"!



Kilcoursie Bay, Killbear Provincial Park

Getting back on the water again feels great, but we had not cruised for a few weeks. Between the Grand Banks Rendezvous and the bicycle trip to Vermont and Montreal and the trip home seemed like a very long time.

First stop, Kilcoursie Bay a short distance from Parry Sound. The Bay has a spectacular beach all around the bay with a campground and public beaches. We found a number of boats already anchored in the expansive harbor. An island in the middle of the Bay offered more protection if we were able to tuck Crawdad behind it, but with so many occupants already enjoying the view, the outside worked fine for us. We dropped the dinghy and the boys were ready to hit the beaches!

See this mud hole? Doesn't it look inviting? I asked Jim to go in with me, but Buddy was the only boy who wanted to go in.

This is what we could have looked like. My skin could have used some work.....

You are lucky I don't post most of the pictures I take of the rocks. The pink granite is gorgeous with the delicate green lichen.

A peaceful anchorage in Kilcoursie Bay. With little wind for the night, we anchored well away from the crowd.

Bet there are a few sailors out there who will recognize this boat. Can you see the number? They sailed within 5 feet of Crawdad.  Of course I didn't shoot quickly enough.