GA’n Bay & N.Chan

7/23/18:  The weather forecast changes so often that we can’t keep up with it!  We’ve been staying put, and delaying our plans, trying to avoid big wind and thunderstorms.  But everyday that has been forecasted to be awful has ended up being not so bad.  We finally decided to make a break for it, and just go.  There have been thundershowers forecasted everyday, and they haven’t happened yet, and we need to get moving.  It was a cloudy day, but I think we only got sprinkled on a little bit.  And the wind was not bad at all.  We followed the Small Boat Channel for most of our route today. We had heard that a swing bridge on the southern route to Parry Sound was broken and would not open, so we took the northern route – the long way around.  (After we got there, we found out that the bridge was fixed.  Dangit!)

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7/22/18:  The worst thing to have on a boat, is a schedule.  Always be flexible in case Plan D is needed.  I’m so thankful that our friends are Pacific Northwest boaters, and they completely understand that! Read more →

7/21/18:  Today was forecasted to be windy in the 15 mph + range, so we decided to stay put in our nice little Wani Bay cove.  We’re pretty protected in here.  There were eight boats here last night.  Now it is Saturday, and we watched boat after boat come in and join us. By evening, we had 18 boats… 9 power, and 9 sail.  Almost everybody just dropped a bow anchor to swing with the wind.  There are just 4 that took out a stern anchor or tied to shore.  At least they were near shore so they wouldn’t mess up anybody else’s swing dance! Read more →

7/20/18:  Thursday – Today was forecasted to have some wind in the 15 mph or more range, so we needed to leave Beckwith Island and get back over into the more sheltered areas on the northeast side of Georgian Bay.  The guys looked at the forecast, and I came up with Plans A, B, & C.   Plan A would take us up into the Small Craft Channel to Indian Harbor.  By the way – the Small Craft Channel is a route that weaves it’s way through the 30,000 islands region of Georgian Bay (seriously – that is what this area is called).  In some places it is very narrow.  This area is all granite rock, and parts of the channel are not recommended for boats over 40’ in length.  A lot of loopers don’t even do the channel, but stay in the big deep water to transit Georgian Bay from south to north.  But the real beauty of this region is getting INTO it and discovering the little bays and channels.  Without hitting the granite.    Check out the beautiful blue color of the water as we crossed the big lake!

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7/19/18:  Today was forecasted to be sunny, warm, and calm, with calm overnight winds.  Sounded like a great time to go anchor out in “Canada’s Caribbean”.  I had read and heard that Hope, Beckwith, & Christian Islands, and Giant’s Tomb all had nice clear water and BEACHES!  In fact, the dock hands at Queen’s Cove said that these are their favorite places to go.  These islands are a little bit out of the way if you want to just cruise the Small Craft Channel through Georgian Bay, so most loopers don’t make the side trip.  Well, we like side trips, and we like beaches, so … let’s go!  This was our route from Ojibway Bay to Beckwith Island.  To continue the Small Craft Channel, we would have gone northwest on the yellow line, but we have plenty of time to get back on course.  The green line was our route – out west. We had to back track to get around Beausoliel and into a good navigable track.

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7/18/18: Wednesday.  We woke up to a nice cool sunny calm morning. Ahh!  Such a nice calm day after yesterday’s wind!  We weren’t in a big hurry since we weren’t going to go very far today.  Rick fixed us a nice breakfast, and we enjoyed a second cup of coffee.  Then we began our leisurely stroll to Beausoliel Island.  I had picked out a bay where we could either set an anchor, or if there was room, there was a Parks Canada dock that is able to accommodate several large boats.  The temperature should be in the low 70’s, and not much wind.  Good day Queen’s Cove!

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