Read The Seatrekkers July 29th to August 1

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SEATREKKERS 2006 VOYAGE

July 29 to July 31

Britt, Ontario to Killarney, Ontario

Saturday, July 29 th

Britt, Ontario to Bad River, Ontario

Today was a good travel day. We left the marina in good order on our way to a two-night anchorage in Bad River. We only had to travel 25 miles so we expected it to be an easy day. However, along the way, we encountered some very bad weather mostly rain but also quite a bit of lightning. It was both fascinating and eerie to see the lightning so close to the boats and then the lightning would seem so very far away. There was terrible, loud thunder and plenty of rain. Spooky. But we all kept together, in our line, and made it through without incident. Within a few hours we were back in decent weather—gray skies but no rain. We passed the Bustard Islands where the scenery was beautiful and the waters were open. The rocks are changing colors now—more of a slate gray color—less of the pink. We also continue to see the waterway markings on the rocks—it's actually very natural looking and quite picturesque.

We passed through several distinct waterways including Cunningham's Channel and Roger's Gut. Both areas were very narrow and we needed to follow each other pretty closely. Bob and Karen were giving us specific instructions on where the shallow areas were as they passed from marker to marker. It was very helpful to have them in the front of the line and to benefit from their extensive knowledge of these waters.

While in these waters, I also took some pictures of the flotilla with Ocean Flyer in the line. During different parts of the trip, this flotilla line was pretty amazing to see—especially as we went around corners and through narrow inlets.

When we got into our anchorage spots there were several other boats already anchored. They couldn't figure out what was happening as we lined up for our rafting exercise. By now the rains had cleared and we were left with a dry but overcast afternoon. I took a picture of the stern area of the rafted boats. I was also able to capture the flotilla from afar.

Immediately after everyone got settled, Bob J. came by in his dinghy and offered to take people to the rapids—another spot which is only reachable by dinghy. Our dinghy was still on top of Ocean Flyer and there was no way to get the dinghy down now that we were all rafted (it comes down on the port side and port side only). So…I went with Bob in his dinghy, and Jean hopped into Tom's dinghy from Change of Pace. Chuck hopped in with Denny in his dinghy which left only Karen. Unfortunately, we were unable to find another open dinghy spot so Karen offered to stay behind.

The rapids run would be a great deal of fun. Bob J. loved showing us this part of the Bad River. We went into very shallow, very narrow areas surrounded by rapids. The locals actually use these passages to get around but they're pretty dangerous if you do not know what you're doing. There were danger signs posted everywhere and that's just where Bob took us. We were fortunate that Sue and John with their dog, Lilly, had their still camera and video camera on their dinghy. Their still photos are great.

With the dinghy in full throttle we went up the rapids, against the current until we came to a small resting spot. Sue and John's movie of this part of the trip is exciting.

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Bad Rapids Down Video

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We then turned around completely, and at full throttle went down at great speed. It was wonderful—I was glad that I was in the boat with Bob. Lilly really got into the movie action.

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Bad Rapids Up Video

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Jean and Tom actually decided to go down one of the rapids that Bob had never gone down. Bob mentioned this to everyone and actually recommended that no one should go down those rapids. I immediately knew that Jean and Tom would try it. Off they went in Tom's dinghy and we all waited for them to emerge. A few minutes later they emerged from the passageway. They were both totally soaked and Tom was busily bailing water out of the boat. It seems that the rapids they had come through had a significant drop—almost straight down and that the boat had gotten completely submerged in the process. Tom and Jean were, of course, thrilled that they had taken this new route.

Dinner tonight was Jean's famous shrimp scampi, over whole wheat pasta with garlic bread and a salad.

Sunday, July 30 th

The Fishing Trip on the Bad River

Well….today was one of the best yet—of our entire trip to date. Bob and Karen had arranged a guided fishing trip for anyone who was interested. Jean and I immediately signed up and included Karen and Chuck—we were the first four to sign on. It was scheduled to be four people to a boat plus the guide and the whole day would be spent on the Georgian Bay fishing for pike, bass and pickerel. Bob had described the day as “more than a fishing trip and the ride and scenery would be well worth the fare”. In total there would be twelve ‘loopers' going on the trip—we were excited. At 8:30am and with clear skies we were picked up at Ocean Flyer and learned, much to our pleasant surprise, that we had a much larger boat for the day and that Karen and Bob would be coming with us. This was great news. Our guide was Leon, accompanied by his very able daughter, Ashley. We knew immediately that the day would be just fantastic.

It's difficult to describe how fast Leon's boat moved and the ease with which he handled the boat. We went through very narrow passages at very high speeds and cruised by very large rocks. The boat ride was just amazing.

Leon's lived in this area his whole life and managed the boat with incredible skill. It was clear that he knew the location of every rock and every inlet. He's been ‘guiding' for years and also runs a fishing lodge in this area. Leon was managing all three boats in today's group and his son Chris was one of the other guides. The other guide, Steve, had over fifty years in fishing and guiding experience. We knew that we were in good hands.

When we arrived at our first fishing spot, everyone quickly got settled. I would NOT be fishing—I took Bob at his word that the trip alone was worth it and I announced that I'd be taking pictures and providing ‘color' and humor throughout the day!!!!! Karen K no sooner got her line in the water than she hooked a huge (9 lbs) pike—we were off and running.

Jean soon caught a fish but we let him go due to his size. Karen J then caught a fish and the fun began.

Now every woman had caught a fish and Bob and Chuck had nothing!!!!! Even Leon got into the act of ribbing the men and urging the women on to victory.

As the morning continued Jean caught another fish—but again we let him go due to size. Then Karen J showed her strength. In the space of thirty minutes, Karen caught two MORE good size fish—both pike. We knew that they'd be plenty of fish for a shore lunch.

By this time we were all focused on lunch and getting ready for our wonderful meal which Leon would be cooking. Just then, Chuck announced... “fish on” and we knew that he had caught a good size fish. We headed to lunch with the five fish on board.

Lunch was even more special than we imagined. We arrived at a beautiful area with magnificent views from anywhere on the island.

All three fishing boats hooked up for lunch and we were also joined by some friends of Bob and Karen's. In total, 20 people would be enjoying a fish extravaganza. We arrived on a small rock-filled island complete with a cooking area. Leon quickly brought all fish on shore and lined them up for Karen, Karen and Jean to display.

Leon began with a demonstration of his filleting skills. He showed all of us how to cut, de-bone and fillet a northern pike. This was truly amazing. I took some pictures but they don't show the real action.

Leon had also brought some propane tanks along with him and he quickly started to heat up some pans and oil. The guides from the other two boats, Chris and Steve, immediately started peeling and cutting potatoes (for fries) and dicing some onions. We also had moose kielbasa which was delicious!!!!!

We learned that the other boats had also been successful and that there were many fish ready to be eaten. Denny had even caught a bass!!!!!

The food was great—very light and crisp. The fish was perfectly cooked and the fries and onions and beans were a big hit.

The views from any angle were fantastic as we sat on the rocks and ate lunch. In every direction we saw water, red rocks, trees and birds—quite spectacular. We were sitting in the middle of the pristine Bay, on a tiny island eating fish that we had just caught!!!! Life is better than good.

After lunch we headed out for more fishing—some of us wanted to go ‘napping' but fishing prevailed. With lines back out the fun resumed. We were still razzing the men about the woman's dominance but in the afternoon we weren't getting as many bites.

Then Jean announced “fish on” and brought in a good sized pike. We were off and running again.

The afternoon was just as beautiful as the morning with the added benefit of blue skies and sunshine. The morning had been overcast and grey with some periodic rain. The water here is very clear and very warm and the views are spectacular.

Fish Territory

At about 4pm Leon announced that we'd be heading back to the boats—so Jean's catch was the only afternoon fish. We could see one of the other boats and heard some applause so we knew that some of the guys were also being successful.

We got back to our rafted boats, all three fishing boats together. The group was applauding as we showed our catches of the day. Leon stayed at Bob's boat and filleted all of the freshly caught afternoon fish—it was quite a show for everyone. There was plenty of fish for all of the loopers so the applause continued. It was such a great day!!!!!

Back on Ocean Flyer , we all recapped the day as one of our best. We were all tired from our day on the water and knew that we would sleep well tonight. Later on, we had two more wonderful experiences. A huge turtle came by to say hello and Chuck and Denny went off in Denny's dinghy to take some pictures of a glorious sunset!!!!!!

There was no dinner tonight—we were still very full from our afternoon fish meal!!! We were all in bed early!!!!! Tomorrow we're off to Killarney—the official ending spot of the flotilla and the jump-off port for Karen and Chuck to catch their flight back to Boston.

Monday, July 31st

Bad River, Ontario to Killarney, Ontario

Today's weather was overcast and threatening. The screens on Jean's weather satellite system were showing oncoming thunderstorms with high winds. It was extremely foggy at our anchorage—so much that we couldn't see down the exit passage.

Bob Jantz came by to review the weather info and made a decision that we would all sit tight until the storm passed—probably about noon. At about 1:30pm, when the skies cleared we undid the raft and began the journey to Killarney. We were traveling approximately 45 miles which meant for a long and slow afternoon. There was still some fog in the air so the line actually got splintered into separate sections. Also, Karen and Bob, usually in the lead boat, were back in the pack—as they had waited at the anchorage until all boats had safely unrafted.

On the way out of our Bad River anchorage we passed an inukshuk built by Bernie and Brigitte Kleinselberk, loopers in our flotilla who had completed the 6000-mile loop that day.

Partway through the trip, we came into a wide and deep body of water and Jean broke from the group and took Ocean Flyer at high speed for a few miles. When we then caught up with one of the other groups we decided to keep going at high speed—which meant that we'd be leaving the ‘line' for the rest of the day. We had never done this before but…..it was fun. For a change, it was enjoyable to be free of other boats—especially right in front and right behind you.

The day cleared up nicely—and the scenery was, as usual, spectacular. We went through two very beautiful areas—Beaverstone Bay—a wide area with spectacular scenery and Collins Inlet—a fairly wide channel flanked by large, gorgeous rock walls. Since we were alone, we were able to fully enjoy the beauty of these two sections.

We even passed a section where it looked like tall grass weeds were growing in the water. But we learned from Karen J. that these were actually wild rice plants, growing along the edge of the water.

In these sections, you are struck by the dramatic difference in the topography. We're now in deep and wide channels flanked by high mountains and evergreens.

This waterway continues along with breathtaking views and very different views. We're now beginning to see some houses again—which means you'll see more pictures of houses.

As we approach Killarney, we're also amazed at the color of the water—it's a gorgeous aqua. It's a rich blue green that looks like tropical waters—very pretty.

The topography is such a change from the earlier waters and earlier trees—which were small and based on low rock formations just barely showing out of the water. We thoroughly enjoyed the afternoon and made it to Killarney by 5pm. Jean docked the boat easily although there were high wind gusts and a significant current as we approached the dock.

The community of Killarney is the dividing point between Georgian Bay and the North Channel of Lake Huron. For many years the village was known as Shebahonaning, an Ojibwe name meaning “canoe passage”. The natives who would fish, hunt and trap here lived on what was to become a well traveled route for the voyageurs and explorers from France and England. Fur trade posts were built along Georgian Bay with the Killarney post established in 1820. Why and when the name Shebahonaning was changed to Killarney is unknown.

Most of us from the flotilla ate at a ‘famous' local restaurant—Mr. Perch's. It's an old school bus which has been turned into a great fish restaurant—sitting directly on the water. More grilled pickerel for me and Jean—we'll be ‘fished out' by the end of the trip. I doubt however, that any lunch will ever top the shore lunch we had the day of the fishing trip. The freshness of the fish, the outdoor environment and total afternoon was just too much.

Following this, we all sat on the steps of the Marina's restaurant for our final group picture. Killarney was the ‘official' end of the flotilla trip and Karen and Bob were heading back to Penetang. There were a lot of goodbyes and a lot of people saying ‘let's stay in touch'. We met a lot of good people at both the rendezvous and on the flotilla. We've been with these boaters since the middle of July and have had the opportunity to learn quite a bit about each other. This interaction and camaraderie have been an incredible part of the trip.

We made sure that we got a picture of Karen and Bob—a great couple. We also had a friend take a picture of the two of us to prove to all of you that we're both still alive!!

The only disappointing part of Killarney was that Karen and Chuck would be leaving us here—for their flight back to Boston and then back to Cape Cod. We've loved having them with us—they're both very experienced boaters and they're both a lot of fun.

Now Jean and I are starting the next phase of this trip—the North Channel. For the next two weeks we expect to be anchoring out a lot. This area is famous for its coves and inlets which are perfect for private boating. We've received a ton of recommendations regarding where to stop. So off we go….. this situation means that they'll be another long period between these website updates as we will have limited access to the internet.

It's difficult for us to get pictures of our own boat while underway. Fortunately, one of the other loopers took this picture of Ocean Flyer —pretty nice.

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