8/12/2019

This morning we departed the protected anchorage at Harbor Island and moved south into Lake Huron proper through the De Tour Channel.  The winds had died to almost nothing, and the trip was especially calm because of that.  We are anchored tonight in Government Bay, a very good anchorage off the Upper Peninsula (UP) of Michigan.

De Tour is a small town which hosts the main ferry service to Drummond Island.  We didn’t stop here, but it appeared to be a great little town.  The view down the De Tour Channel is shown in the last two photos below, and these also show the calm sea conditions.

After exiting the De Tour Channel we tried to turn east along the shore of the UP.  Unfortunately we kept seeing fishing nets which impeded our passage.  The photo below shows one of these gill nets, and it is characterized by a large a large float with flags at each end and smaller buoys in between.  These are very difficult to see, just as it is difficult in the photo.  I finally resorted to running the radar, which helped in locating these nets.  When I got frustrated with finding these, and avoiding running over them, we turned and went offshore about three miles.  This seemed to help avoid them.

We are anchored tonight in Government Bay, a great anchorage off a state park near the town of Cedarville.

8/11/2019

Today we departed the Meldrum Bay marina, passed by the rest of Manitoulin and Cockburn Islands, and re-entered US waters on the north side of Drummond Island, Michigan.  We are anchored tonight in a protected cove off Harbor Island.

After we passed the remainder of Manitoulin Island we crossed the Missisagi Strait and passed the north side of Cockburn Island.  This island is more remote than most.  We were surprised to see the town of Tolsmaville with a number of cars parked in the town.  I suspect there is a fish cannery or other small industry in the town.  It was surprising to see so much activity on an island so remote.

After passing Cockburn Island we passed the False Detour Channel and entered US waters on the north side of Drummond Island.  The Customs and Border Protection (CBP) office now has an app for cellphones that enables remote entry.  We had this, and also had all the appropriate permits and licenses.  The CBP officer still wanted a video chat with us, and after answering a few questions she approved our entry.  I got an email with the approval reference number a few minutes later.  It was a good system, and is handy for those entering the country legally.

We are anchored tonight in a small cove at Harbor Island, which is just off Drummond Island.  The wind kicked up later in the afternoon but the cove where we are anchored is well protected from that wind direction.  The last photo below shows the calm water inside the cove, and the disturbed water outside the cove caused by the winds.  The cove is surrounded by wildlife refuge, and except for the mosquitos this is a great anchorage.

8/10/2019

I thought I would begin this post with some charts that show our recent travels and upcoming plans.

The images below are from our navigation system.  This shows the Great Lakes in overview, and the areas we have been cruising in are highlighted.  This image also shows our near term cruising area.  The second image shows Lake Huron with Georgian Bay and the North Channel highlighted.  These are the areas we have been cruising in over the last three weeks.  The third image shows the North Channel in some detail, and our recent movements are highlighted with each movement day in a different color.  Finally the last image shows northwestern Lake Huron where it meets Lakes Michigan and Superior.  This is the area we are moving into.  Our near term goal is to meet Marilou’s brother at St Ignace next week.

Today we departed Gore Bay and moved along the north shore of Manitoulin Island to the town of Meldrum Bay.  The winds were lower than the last couple days, but they were still 10-15 knots directly on our bow.  With our mov3ement through the water at 7-8 knots we had a very chilly wind over the boat.  We elected to run from our lower helm in the saloon to avoid the cold conditions.  The photos below show some of the Manitoulin Island coastline as we passed it.

Tonight we are in Meldrum Bay.  The town consists of the marina, an Inn that has a very good restaurant, and a general store that doubles as the local liquor store.  No churches that we can see, and no other businesses.  This is my kind of place.  Friendly people to be sure.  The marina has about 10 boats in it tonight, and everyone is extremely friendly.

Tomorrow we will move back into the USA.

8/7 – 8/9/2019

We sat at Gore Bay for two days to wait out weather.  The winds were forecast to be 25 kots gusting to 35, and they didn’t disappoint.  The Environment Canada buoy that is north of Gore Bay was registering 1.7 meter (5-6 foot) waves at a 5 second period.  If you have ever been boating you would recognize this as ugly conditions.  Our boat can take it, but we can’t.

Gore Bay is a great small town.  The downtown is two blocks with everything we could wish for in Canada.  We took advantage of the microbrewery, and bought our last Canadian provisions at the farmers market.  But after three nights we were ready to move on.

The photo below shows the marina travelift in Gore Bay.  The water is still 53 inches above datum, and the travelift is on it’s lift well walls with the wheels in the water.  This might get worse if the authorities decide to draw down Lake Superior.

We did have a chance to sample another Canadian delicacy—peameal bacon.  Great Stuff!!!  This is a cut of pork that is brined and then rolled in cornmeal.  It was originally rolled in ground green pea meal, hence it’s name, but since World War I cornmeal has been used.  It is a signature dish in Toronto as a sandwich.  Some people refer to it as Canadian Bacon (as in the pizza topping), but that is not accurate.

8/7/2019

We transited through the passages mentioned in yesterday’s post, and enjoyed the scenery.  We also looked at a few anchorages for future reference.  The winds are forecast to be quite strong over the next two days, so we came to the small town of Gore Bay on Manitoulin Island.  We will stay here three nights, and then assess the weather again.

The Whalesback Channel is an attractive area.  There are high hills (locals call them mountains) at the eastern end of the channel, and above the town of Spanish.  We did not go there, so don’t have any photos.  This area is again dominated by the Canadian Shield with evergreen trees seemingly growing directly out of the rocks.  You can see this in the photos below.

We will be in Gore Bay until the winds calm down, at least three nights.

8/6/2019

We departed the Logan Bay anchorage this morning and wound our way through the Benjamin Islands to a well protected anchorage at Hotham Island.  We the weather today isn’t bad, but this is a good anchorage to know about in case we experience inclement weather in the future.

The transit today was very short, only about 12 miles.  I got a few photos, but in that short a passage there wasn’t much new to put into the blog.  A few photos are below of some of the islands we wound our way through.

The anchorage we are in tonight is very well protected, and the north side of the inlet is First Nation land (what we would call Indian reservation in the US) but the highlight of the day was docktails at a local resident’s house.  They have a seasonal cottage and invite all the boaters in the anchorage to join them each evening at 5:00 for happy hour.  There were seven boats in the anchorage tonight, and all came in their dinghies as you can see in the first photo below.  We knew Dave and Barb Reinken, but otherwise everyone there was a new friend to us.  We and the Reinkens are in the third photo below, and Barb is active in the Defever Cruisers Club, one of the cruising groups that we are members of.

We plan to go through the Little Detroit passage tomorrow, and then through the Whalesback Channel to the western end of the North Channel Area.

8/5/2019

This morning we went back down Baie Fine, then transited the town of Little Current.  We then visited the Benjamin Islands and are anchored tonight in Logan Bay on Clapperton Island.

The trip down Baie Fine was just as pretty as the trip up the fjord.  After exiting the mouth we crossed to the town of Little Current.

There isn’t a good way to avoid going through Little Current except for a very long detour around Manitoulin Island.  The town access is controlled by a swing bridge that opens on the hour for 15 minutes from 7:00 AM to 10:00 PM.  It is big (long) and slow to open, and not a good place to try to hold position waiting for it.  The bridge can be seen at the left of the first photo below.  Boats queue up for the hourly opening as can be seen in the photo.  When we went through at noon today there were 15 boats going in our direction and about 10 boats going the other way.  Just after the bridge are free town docks, but with all the traffic we didn’t want to stop.

Little Current is not a good name for this place.  Depending on the winds there can be 3-4 knots of current through here.  If the wind is strong and from the right direction Lake Huron piles up water on one side or the other, and the result can be a strong current through this narrow spot.  Luckily today the winds were neither strong, nor from a direction that could cause strong current flow.

We then went on to the Benjamin Islands with the intention of anchoring there.  These are attractive anchorages with high rock walls around them, but when we got there we found enough boats to qualify as a minor city as you can see in the photos.  I don’t like cities, so we came back to a secluded cove where we are anchored tonight.  Inclement weather is forecast, which played a role in our decision making.

We are still discussing where to go in the morning.

8/4/2019

Today we departed the Thomas Bay anchorage late in the morning.  We intended to stay in the town of Killarney, but Marilou wasn’t impressed so we went on.  We transited through the Landsdowne Channel and then up Baie Fine, and are anchored tonight near a feature called The Pool.

Killarney was a very short transit from the anchorage.  We had reserved a slip at a marina there, but when we started through the town it didn’t seem as appealing as we expected.  In the second photo below you can see the main part of the town on the right, and George Island on the left.  The main part of the town is accessible via land, and George Island only by boat from there.  There are a number of water taxis provided by the marinas that go the couple hundred feet back and forth, so access isn’t a problem.  The marina offices on the main side of the town generally assign boats to their marina slips on the other side of the waterway, so the taxis are quite handy.  There is even a nightly movie on the George Island side that is projected on a white screen on the shore, and audio is transmitted via marine VHF radio.  A boater’s drive-in theater.

After going through Killarney we went down the Landsdowne Channel.  There are a number of good anchorages here, and it is an attractive area as can be seen in the photos.

We then went up Baie Fine (pronounced Bay Fin) where we spent the night.  This is a long fjord with high walls of granite, quartz and evergreen trees as can be seen in the photos.  It is a very attractive area.  At the end of the fjord is an area called the Pool, which is a deep hole where many boats anchor.  In the pool is the cottage once owned by the Evinrude family (of outboard motor fame).  While it is no longer in their possession it still flies an Evinrude flag as you can see in the photo.

We are anchored tonight in a spot where there are no boats within a couple miles of us.  A peaceful night!

8/2/2019

This morning we left the anchorage at Bad River and moved about 12 miles east on Georgian Bay.  This was our last transit on Georgian Bay, and we will next move into an area called the North Channel.  Along the way today we moved through Beaverstone Bay and Collins Inlet, and are anchored tonight in Thomas Bay.

Beaverstone Bay was a fairly short transit in from the bigger waters on Georgian Bay.  The many small islands gave it a protected feel, and when they sheltered us from the chilly wind we were able to take off our sweatshirts.  It is a very pretty bay with a fair number of cottages around the shores.  For most of this bay the evergreen trees grow right down to the water’s edge as can be seen in the photos below.

After passing a shallow area at the head of Beaverstone bay we moved into Collins Inlet.  This is a long, narrow gorge with deep water and sheer rock walls on the sides for most of it’s length.  We passed one resort and another three or four cottages in the 12 miles we traversed, so it is not highly populated.  There were few boats on the water as this is a fairly remote area.

After passing through Collins Inlet we turned off the main route and wound our way through many rocks to enter Thomas Bay.  This is an anchorage that is praised by many cruisers.  The entrance is narrow as can be seen behind the sailboat in the photo below.  The sides are high, pink granite walls making for an attractive spot.

We may stay here two nights to avoid weekend warrior boat traffic on this upcoming Canadian holiday weekend.

8/1/2019

We departed the Bustards anchorage this morning and continued on through Georgian Bay.  After an hour or so we turned up a side channel to the Bad River, and are in an anchorage there tonight.  There is nothing bad about this place despite its name.

The transit on the lake was uneventful.  After the higher winds of yesterday it was good to have very calm conditions.  The sea was like glass.  We passed along the northern side of the Bustards and saw the string of three lighthouses shown in the photos below.

After a few miles we turned into the Bad River.  This is really an outlet of the French River into Lake Huron.  It is marked by lots of rocks with old glacial scars from the last ice age.  This is a fine anchorage, and there are at least 15 boats in here tonight.  Very well protected from the winds.

Since we stopped early in the day we were able to launch the dinghy and take a side trip up to the French River outflow.  Again, this area is marked by many rocks scarred by glacial activity.  There is an area here frequented by fishermen that purportedly has very good fishing, and is known as Devil’s Door rapids.  There is one channel boats are supposed to use to go up to them, and a separate channel to come back down.  It is too narrow for two boats to pass, so this makes very good sense.  The photos below show several views from this area.  While this is called rapids, it wasn’t really flowing strongly today.  Cell phone service isn’t available here, so the blog posts will be delayed by a few days.

This weekend is a three day weekend for Ontario for a holiday known as Civic Day.  We expect lots of boat traffic, so we will be looking for an anchorage to stay in during the next several days.