Completing Another "Big Water"

It may be cold, but the sunsets have been spectacular.

Sunset over Big Sound Marina and Parry Sound on July 16

We left Big Sound Marina at 6 a.m. on Thursday morning (July 17), hoping to be able to do a long, one-day crossing of Georgian Bay (70 miles) to Killarney.  The wind and weather forecasts were promising, but as we left the protection of the coastal islands we discovered that Canadian maritime forecasting could be just as misleading as American maritime forecasting.  Although the waves were a bit larger than forecast, they weren't terribly huge--maybe 2-3 feet--but with our intended direction of travel they were hitting us abeam, making for an uncomfortable ride. We didn't want to deal with that for 7 hours, so we did an about-face and proceeded to the alternate small craft channel. Our destination for the day then became the town of Britt, formerly a sawmill town about 5 miles inland from the Georgian Bay on the Byng Inlet.  Getting there required us to go out in Georgian Bay and deal with the waves for a couple of hours, but that was a lot better than 7 hours. And then it was a pleasant ride down the protected Byng Inlet.

Boathouse on Byng Inlet near Britt

We're still in "cottage country"

Here's hoping they have air mattresses for their sleeping bags

There were quite a few "loopers" in the two marinas in Britt, all of us getting out of the wind and waves on the Georgian Bay. "Happy Hour" discussions included the weather and cruising plans.

Another early morning on Friday (July 18)--a 6:30 a.m. start in our second attempt to cross Georgian Bay. This time we cruised with Loopers on M/V Lindy and M/V Sanctuary. Although not absolutely necessary, there is a comfort factor in having other boaters close at hand when making the big water crossings. And there might be a bit of "misery loves company" as well. The first hour out of the Byng Inlet was "rocky and rolly", but the water settled down as we proceeded and it turned out to be a pretty good day for crossing Georgian Bay. Because we were now further north our open water crossing was only about 40 miles or so. Considering how much I love "Big Water" (not), it was a relief to enter the channel leading to the town of Killarney.

Lighthouse at the entrance
 to the Killarney channel

The ever-present rocks in this part of the world

Killarney used to be operated as a fish camp by a company out of Detroit, Michigan, and wasn't incorporated as a town until 1999. Prior to 1962 the only way to access Killarney was by water transport. We stayed at the Sportsman's Inn Marina on the main channel, conveniently located close to the (one) main street and its attractions, and within biking distance of the lighthouse.

The main attraction (for us) of downtown Killarney-
the place for ice cream cones

Taking a selfie by the
Killarney lighthouse

Pat on the rocks by the Killarney lighthouse

Life is simpler in this part of the world--one of the attractions in the evening was the "Boat-In Theatre" sponsored by the Sportsmans Inn & Marina. 

Boat-In Theatre at the Sportsmans Inn & Marina

Sorry to say, we were too tired after a couple of early mornings and long cruising days to enjoy the movie.

Today we cut ourselves some slack and limited our cruising to 23 miles.  We are now officially off Georgian Bay and are spending the evening in what is considered the first town of the eastern end of the North Channel, Little Current. The town is located on Manitoulin Island, which is the largest freshwater island in the world and separates the North Channel from Lake Huron proper. 

Swing bridge to enter Little Current

Way too convenient--located at the Little Current
 Town Dock--fish & chips and ice cream

We are hoping to take advantage of what is supposed to be good weather over the next few days to make our way west along the northern shore of Manitoulin Island and cross back into the United States at Drummond Island, Michigan on Tuesday, July 22.