'Chuting' to Georgian Bay

Hello cruise-mates,

In 9 days since our last installment, we've anchored out every night, passed over the Big Chute, left the Trent-Severn Waterway, entered Georgian Bay, and enjoyed the hospitality of Loopers who have a cottage here on Georgian Bay, and who loaned us a car for a Walmart run. :)

Before getting to this marina, we also nearly exhausted our water supply, accumulated lots of trash, and spent as much as (gulp!) $5.40/gallon on gas. So tonight we are at St. Amant's Marina in Britt ON, enjoying all the
marina benefits: electricity, water, laundry, and WIFI so we can be in contact with you.

You can tell by the number of pictures I'm including that the Big Chute impressed us: both it's construction, mechanics, view, and function.
It was built to complete the canal until a lock could be built at this site, but when the value of hydroelectric power was realized and the threat of some species being introduced into the lake systems above this area, the Chute stayed and has been expanded through the years.


Basically it's an expanded open RR car which
travels over this hill, carrying boats up and down. Kinda ugly, isn't it? The boats enter the 'car' and are picked up slightly be straps. Then the 'car' moves out of the water and carries the boat(s) to the other side.


We arrived on the up side the night before in time to watch several boats go through, just to get the hang of it. (And to either dispel or intensify our fears.) The next morning we were up early to watch new friends Bob and Charlotte travel through --headed downstream -- on their 47' Bayliner...






Here it is moving in to pick up another boat,
and below is the view from the top of the hill, with the chute 'car' behind us.


We also spent some time at the displays and at the former hydroelectric turbines... thinking of our Jeff and how his company (AEP) deals with electric power.




Finally it was our turn, so Shingebiss started in (so Nan didn't have the front view... whew!).


They were able to take both our boats at the same time, with Eschaton hanging out over the back some. The workers position the slings for maximum balance and to protect your props.

The guy told Nan they hadn't dropped a boat that day... but that wasn't real comforting, since we were only the second load of the day. Hmmm.



Lastly, you'll see a picture of the Chute as we drove away. Quite a feat... and maybe something Illinois should consider in light of the Asian carp problems??


Since this was a Saturday, we saw more and more boats of all kinds and sizes as we approached the lock at Severn, which is the busiest and the smallest. Severn is the gateway from the T-S to Georgian Bay, and everyone wants transit, so we

waited 2 hours for passage. Because the lock is small, it carries only one 'large' boat at a time, and fills in with smaller runabouts.

The lock workers run it well and somehow remain in good spirits. For them too, with the hand-operated locks, its very much a physical day, and operated almost solely by women at this one.

Next we entered Georgian Bay, with tight turns, narrowly marked channels, and still more traffic.


We had heard about beautiful Beausoleil Bay, so we headed there for an evening anchorage.


Words can't describe how popular this is with Canadian boaters: suffice it to say we could count up to 100 boats anchoring in any direction we looked.

Despite that, we found an anchorage between two small (privately owned) islands, and rafted up.



We were eager to hike, so the next morning we headed off to a trailhead area dock, only to find it closed. The sign convinced us not to go further, and other boaters told us a mother and cubs had been sighted. (Durn, I erased the sign. That's why it's at the top of the page.)


We headed off to another trailhead landing site (do the bears know where one trail area begins and ends???) and spent 3 hours hiking a woodsy trail that gave us great views of the western side of that island and the larger Georgian Bay.


You can see that the scenery is great. Some of you may be noticing how much it resembles the coast of Maine... just without the salt in the water.


When we got back, many boats were headed home... leaving us with less than 25 in sight. Almost seemed deserted.






The next morning, in cloudy skies, we headed out... through narrow channels (between the green and red) as in this pict.

Some of the narrow places aren't marked with buoys, but their very design says 'stay in the middle and hold your breath.'


We were very fortunate to be included in time ashore with Liz and Steve on Shingebiss at the summer home of completed Loopers Peter and Didi on an island just north of Snug Harbor and the town of Parry Sound. Liz and Steve had encountered them several times on the Loop, and we shared a courtesy car with them way back in Demopolis.

Their cottage overlooks the channel, and sits on a peninsula so that they have a boat dock on a narrow channel that runs behind the house. It is not accessible by car, so they have to arrive by boat, leaving their car at the marina in Snug Harbor.


They treated us to a wonderful meal and great hospitality, including the car usage for a Walmart trip the next morning. We were anchored in Regatta Bay, directly across from their home.


Leaving there, we moved on to Bayfield Harbor, a good jumping off point for an exposed section of Georgian Bay. We had to wait until this morning to 'jump' because of strong winds.

In the meantime, we dinghied around the coves,

(see the pictures of some of the scenery) and went ashore to walk. As often happens, we found ice cream, even in a pretty rural area.

This picnic table was the perfect spot to enjoy it!


Although the sun was bright and the sky a beautiful blue, we waited for the right wave conditions. That's a big thing about cruising: waiting for the right timing, no matter what you think your schedule is!



Lastly here you'll see a picture of our 2 boats and as you compare the bows, you'll see why they can take higher waves than we can. Having said that, the Eschaton has done and continues to do well at this cruising adventure.

We find that although we're loving Ontario and Georgian Bay, we're starting to count the miles (about 200) until we are back in USA waters. Gas prices for one thing. And better phone and wifi access. So far, BTW, we've come 3740 miles since leaving Cuba Landing in October.


We love getting your comments, either on the blog or as emails, and are so glad you're making this trip with us.


So, till we next have wifi and can send the next installment: be safe, know God is with you, and keep in touch. nan and jack

Oh, and thanks to Jeff for keeping up with the map showing our locations. :)