One Week In the Thirty Thousand

Before Bob and I brought our sailboat to Georgian Bay, we had little experience with or knowledge of the Bay. We had visited Penetanguishene and Midland and spent a few days at a lodge near Honey Harbour but that was about it. Should I admit that when someone mentioned the Thirty Thousand Islands, I thought she had misspoken and was talking about the Thousand Islands (as in Lake Ontario)? By the time we were preparing to sail across the Bay to the east side and the home of the Thirty Thousand Islands, we were better informed although still not sure what to expect. Now, from our limited vantage point after a week of poking about, we've experienced an area similar to the Thousand Islands but with more of everything: more islands, more anchorages, more and bigger park islands where you can anchor and find a place to hike, a more beautiful, more varied landscape and clearer, cleaner water. However, there is also more opportunity for hitting a rock, grounding your boat on a rock ledge and any other rock encounter you might imagine.

"Fairy" Trail at Frying Pan Bay

 The small craft channel which weaves it's way through the islands is marked by red and green channel markers and leads you through safe water. The zigs and zags of the channels are more frequent and the routes more circuitous than we've experienced elsewhere - in the Thousand Islands, on the St. Lawrence and all down through the Intracoastal Waterway. There's an intensity of focus required here. On our first day in the channel, we traveled only half a day - but there were high winds and in places open to the Bay, the waves hitting our boat were rather large - all of which added to the challenge. A couple of near mistakes made us acutely aware of possibilities for error - a kind of a trial by fire.

Fairy Lake, Beausoleil Island

On the next day,we traveled another short distance from the safe haven of our small marina to our first anchorage in the Thirty Thousand. We chose Frying Pan Bay because we had passed it the day before and it was easy to get to! We learned later that Frying Pan was one several anchorages on the perimeter of Beausoleil, the largest island in the Georgian Bay National Park system. We anchored in the small well protected bay and dinghied in to explore. We found outhouses (good to have!), receptacles for garbage and recyclables and a well marked system of hiking trails leading in various directions. We chose the "Fairy" trail and walked through a wooded area and then over rock outcroppings eventually ending up at Fairy Lake. The trail continued but since we didn't have a map, we decided to retrace our steps. A couple of days later, we returned to the island, this time with the Fletchers, and anchored further south at Cedar Springs, a much larger anchorage and home to the centre for the Georgian Bay National Park. Here, we were able to get a map that showed the many anchorages and hiking trails around the island There are also camp grounds and small cottages, newly built and available for rent.

David and Linda Fletcher

After rough weather on the Bay kept our friends, David and Linda, from meeting up with us, we finally resolved to rendezvous at "Methodist". Bob thought we were going to Methodist Island near Port McNicholl. David had intended that we meet at Methodist Point on the mainland coast north west of Penetanguishene. There followed a day of miscommunications which had Bob and I confused about where one could possibly anchor at Methodist Island and David and Linda wondering why we would suggest an alternate anchorage (at Beausoleil) which made their sailing day even longer. Even after the Fletchers arrived, anchored and were sitting in our cockpit having a drink with us, it took a while to unravel the web of misunderstandings. We had been confusing each other all day with strange communications. The fortunate part of it all was that we were now located very close to Penetang and Discovery Harbour where we would anchor the next day and go ashore to have dinner and attend the theater - something the Fletchers suggested and arranged for us.

The night we went to the theatre, we returned to our boat in our dinghy to find Sea Change secured to one of two power boats rafted together. The owners of the two boats told us that just before the theatre performance ended, they heard our boat knocking against theirs. We apologized and proceded to pull up our anchor along with a bushel of weed. We anchored again and had to pull up the anchor again - and Bob again cleaned still more weed off the chain - in the dark! Finally we put the anchor down and it grabbed. It was a tense time for me manoeuvering the boat in the dark and taking care to avoid other boats and shallow water at the edges of the bay. After it was all over, when Bob had a moment to think, he began to wonder how we could have dragged into boats that were in front of us. We looked back to where the two boats now sat. They were no longer in their original position but were sitting where we had been anchored. In other words, it was they who had dragged anchor (one anchor for the two boats) and it was they who had bumped into us. We had a short conversation with the captains the next day. Bob explained that we had 80 feet of chain down and had been dug in. When I noted the quick defensiveness of the two men, under my breath, I told Bob, "Don't say any more".  There was no winning an argument on this one. When we pulled away later - on our way finally to the now infamous, anchorage at Methodist Point - one of the two boats was re-anchoring "to better face the sun", they told Linda - but we couldn't help but wonder if they had finally looked around and noticed how far they down the bay they had traveled during the night!
 

A quiet morning at Methodist Bay

We last visited with  Linda and David while anchored at Methodist Point - a large anchorage on the edge of the Awenda Provincial Park. Thanks to the Fletchers we had experienced new anchorages and done something we would never have thought to do - anchored our boat and gone to see some great musical theatre.

Marguerite, Art and their grandson, Evan

The marina here at Penetang, where we have a dock and where we'll leave our boat this winter, has supplied us with a barbecue and a picnic table. Today our friends Art and Marguerite drove over from Midland to take us to lunch after which they drove us around to buy groceries, a propane tank and a fake wasp nest - in prep for our children's visit this weekend.  After the weekend, we'll have a very short visit at home. (Sean and Michelle will drive us back.)  We'll return with a car and then head out sailing to meet up with the Goodyears and hopefully also the Fletchers and to see more of the Thirty Thousand.

Hike at Cedar Spring on Beausoleil Island

Long Time - No Internet! (Killarney and Covered Portage Cove)

We've been a long time without WiFi or at least without a sustained signal and time to write email and post to the blog.

The night before we left Tobermory, we changed our plans (we sailors seem to do that a lot!) and decided to continue on with the Goodyears for a taste of the North Channel. The next day we sailed with them to Club Island where we anchored for the night. Our destination the following day was an anchorage in Covered Portage Cove off of Killarney Bay. To get to the Bay, we would be traversing a narrow channel between George Island and the mainland and would be passing the town of Killarney which is spread along the northern shore of the channel. As we were nearing Killarney, Warren hailed us on the VHF and asked if we would like to stop there for lunch at Herbert's (famous) Fish and Chips (AKA Herbert's Fisheries' Mister Perch). Mister Perch is run out of an old bus and there are picnic tables set up nearby overlooking the channel and beside a public "dock" (actually a rough timbered wall). After some hunting about, we located the dock and tied up. Sandcastle arrived soon after. Once tied up, it appeared that no one cared how long we stayed so we ate our lunch - stuffed ourselves, that is, with a big order of fish and chips - and then visited the small grocery store, the bakery and Herbert's fresh fish counter.

An hour after leaving the town, we were anchored in Covered Portage Cove surrounded by the beauty and drama of chiseled stone rising out of the water and covered with stands of tall fir and pine. To get there, we'd passed through a larger outer bay where several boats were anchored and then gone through a narrow shallow cut into the also very shallow cove. Sandcastle had preceded us, testing out the depths with their more shallow draft keel and calling out depths to us over the VHF. We hunted around for somewhere with "enough" water, but settled, at last, for anchoring in about 5 feet - with our 4'10' keel! In Big Tub at Tobermory, we anchored for 2 days in 38' of water. Fortunately, both Sandcastle and Sea Change carry lots of anchor chain and rode. What a contrast to this low water spot! On the other hand the cove is protected from virtually all sides and our anchor easily sank into the mushy mud bottom. We were secure.

What a beautiful spot! We hiked up to the top of the promontory and looked down on our tiny boats below. We picked sweet wild blueberries and back at the boat we went swimming off the side of the boat. The water was cool but once in it felt good enough to stay. It's wonderful to swim in clean clear water where on a calm day you can see to the bottom at 10 feet or more.

Our weather this past while has a fall feel to it. The wind is cool even on the warm days and temps are falling low at night. In preparation for our aborted sailing trip to Nova Scotia, Warren installed an Espar heater in Sandcastle. Little did he know how glad he and Karen would be to have it while Sandcastle sat at anchor in the North Channel!

We left the Goodyears in Covered Portage Cove and started south. The first night we anchored near the tip of the Bruce Peninsula and then, to take advantage of calm water and favourable weather, we crossed Georgian Bay to Sans Souci on the east side of the Bay. So - we're now in the "30 Thousand Islands". To be sure, we are finding this maize of rocks and small and big islands a bit intimating. "No room for error" warns our Georgian Bay Ports book. We'll get used to it - eventually....

Tomorrow, we are sailing to an anchorage further south where we meet up with our friends David and Linda Fletcher on their sailboat, Camp David.

Anchored in Big Tub Bay, Tobermory!

On our last evening in Goderich, we checked all of our various sources of weather information (the weather channel on VHF, general weather websites and websites with wind and wave height info). For the following two days, wind would be coming from the south and wave height would be modest to manageable. On Monday, winds would be light; on Tuesday, winds and wave height would build until mid-day and then decrease. It sounded like a go to us. The next day we set out, bypassed Kincardine and went straight to Port Elgin (some motoring, some sailing - 57 nm); on Tuesday, we motor-sailed to the top of the Bruce Peninsula, around the tip, through the Hurd Straight and into Tobermory where we anchored in Big Tub Bay for the night (56 nm). I can remember the days when a marathon sailing day for me was 40 nm: 56 and 57 nm may not sound like much but by sailboat it's a more than respectable distance to travel in a day.

Looking back as we round the corner into Big Tub Bay.
Here at last!

We've phoned into the marina at Tobermory. They're full - likely due to poor weather predicted for today. We're happy to hang on the hook for another night as we're well protected in this long and narrow bay - the scenery is pleasant - in spite of tour boats passing by to the site of an underground wreck at the end of the bay - and we're enjoying the fresh smell of evergreens on each side of the water. This afternoon we'll take our dinghies into town (weather permitting!), have a look around and talk about our plans for the next few days. The Goodyears are going into the North Channel for a week or so. We intend to start south into the Thirty Thousand Islands of Georgian Bay. As part of our "wintering over" package, we have the use of a dock at the Beacon Cove Marina in Penetanguishene and we'll be meeting our kids there in a couple of weeks.

Goderich

Karen and city planted flower triangle sitting in the middle of a Goderich residential street.

 Our last night in Bayfield, we not only discussed how far we would go the following day, but would we leave at all. Yesterday was predicted to be sunny with moderate NW winds. The problem was wave height - 1 to 1 1/2 metres. We paused to convert that into feet - kinda high! We resolved to start out for Goderich, about 10 miles north, and if the conditions were more favourable than predicted (better wind direction, smaller waves), we would keep going the 40 miles to our preferred destination, Kincardine.

When we started out, it immediately became clear that the ride was too uncomfortable to continue for 40 miles - Goderich it would be. Bob called the Goodyears on the VHF and asked them whether or not they thought we should continue to Kindardine. "We want to stop at Goderich," said Warren. Bob had a smile a mile wide on his face when he asked Warren, "Did you say that you want to keep going?" "No," said Warren - now in a definite very articulated voice "We do not want to keep going". "Oh," Bob went on, "I'm kind of tempted to go on. You get used to the wave action - it kind of lulls you to sleep."  There was no reply to that. Then it was back to channel 16 for both. (For the non boaters, channel 16 is the calling channel. Conversations are conducted on other channels.) A few minutes later, we heard Karen calling us. Bob switched up one to 17 as requested and the conversation continued,  "We don't want to hold you back," said Karen, "It's OK with us if you keep going but we won't be going on."  "No," said Bob, reverting to one of his favourite lines when teasing, "we'll be going to Goderich too, but Carole, she's kind of tempted to keep going."

As pretty as Bayfield is, we're glad to be in Goderich. We've cut 2 hours off the "jump" to Kincardine and there's lots to do here - a town centre within walking distance where there's a farmer's market on Saturday, a great used book store, a good meat shop and a place for Bob and Warren to get their hair cut. Maitland Valley marina, where we're staying, is a well protected oasis of calm. The sailors and cruisers on the dock have been exceptionally welcoming and friendly and are a great source of information about the lake and the North Channel. Yesterday afternoon we borrowed the 2007 Suburban truck available for visitors. If no one else is using it, they give you the keys and off you go. Warren and Karen took the Suburban this morning to attend the Sunday Fireman's Breakfast. This afternoon we're to going to the Sunday flea market and then, following a tour pamphlet, we'll go walk around to see historic homes and buildings. Goderich is an attractively designed and vibrant town.

We came up the river on the right to get to the marina; the Sifto Salt Plant is on the left.

About now - what we've learned about Lake Huron: the prevailing winds are from the NW. How did we not know this? Waves are at their highest on the east side of the lake (where we are): they build as the west winds move across the lake. Since we're going north, frequent north winds are not advantageous, to say the least, but more significantly, winds out of the west have translated into lumpy seas. When we were sitting at picnic tables lined up for dinner last night and visiting with resident boaters, one of them told us that on Lake Huron, we wouldn't see the calm seas with the fair winds that we sometimes experience on Lake Ontario.  (Oh ---- well, that puts a different light on things and will have to be factored into our decisions hence forth!)

Tomorrow we set out again - to Kincardine - I think.  ;-)

Lake Huron Sailing

The beach near our boat. Lake Huron's water is a lovely blue.

At the Sarnia Yacht Club we sat down with the Goodyears to discuss the next day's destination. 32 miles would bring us to Grand Bend; 45, to Bayfield. Later when Bob went to have a shower, he talked to someone who used to belong to the Grand Bend Yacht Club (the only place to stay there). The water is usually shallow, he told Bob, and is too often less than the 6 feet they claim. Since our keel is 5'10", that wasn't encouraging news. The recommendation was to go to Bayfield - "a straight shot" from Sarnia. So even though we'd had a rather long and tiring day the day before, Bob and I decided that it was best to go the 45nm to Bayfield - weather permitting. We weren't sure if the Goodyears would want to go so far so soon but we offered to wait at Bayfield for them if they wanted to do the shorter sail.

It was fairly bumpy out there but a NW wind from 15 to 20 knots allowed us to sail and make good time for the first few hours until it dwindled and then died. Karen and Warren had decided to follow and so joined us in another less than comfortable sail. The going was easier than on the day we left Put-In-Bay but, even so, I have to say that 8 hours of being tossed around is tiring and leaves us worn out. Is it our age? Couldn't be!


Our reward for making the longer sail was arriving in beautiful Bayfield. I think that this is one of the nicest ports that we've been in anywhere. The marina's river location is picturesque and peaceful and the main street of the village, which is a short walk from our boat, is wide and lined with tall old growth trees. There are quaint little stores and good restaurants - many just a little "unique". There's also a quite beautiful sandy beach just around the corner from where we're docked. We've staying for two nights and we'll definitely stop on our way back in 2015.


Not sure how far we'll go tomorrow. It all depends on what it's like when we get "out there".