July 30th: Beasoleil Island, Georgian Bay

We left the Port Severn Lock and headed into Georgian Bay. It was a beautiful day. Bright blue sky, sunny and comfortable temperatures.







Thanks to the nice boaters who made room for us we had a very nice dock on Beausoleil. Nice view, secluded and close to the hiking trail to Fairy Lake.  The weather was reasonable for a hike especially since a lot of the hike is in the shade.






It's a nice length for a hike, 4 km. The name of the trail is Massasauga, named after the only venomous snake in Georgian Bay. It is a small, shy rattlesnake and is seldom seen. It only bites when startled or threatened and its venom requires immediate medical attention. I hoped to see one, from a safe distance of course, for quite a few years. The trails are fairly open so the chance of startling one is unlikely. Two years ago I was fortunate enough to see one sunning itself on the trail. Very pretty pattern on the snake. It was curled up and then decided to move on. I didn't see any on this hike.

The trail begins through some scenic wetlands. The wetlands are critical to the health of the ecosystem on the island. Fortunately, they are protected.









 After passing through the wetlands the hiking becomes a little more rugged. The  trail leads up out of the woods and on top of granite rock.

Fairy Lake

Fairy Lake Shoreline

The reward at the end of the trail is Fairy Lake. It is only accessible by hiking in and is very peaceful. The Lake is important to environmentalists who monitor the lake and measure the amount of pollutants that end up in the lake. Because the lake is isolated they know all contaminants come through the air.






We left Beausoleil Monday morning and headed to Honey Harbor for breakfast and some supplies. There is a small grocery store that also has an order at the counter breakfast service. It's a fun little place and the western sandwiches are delicious. In the small park out front is a very large Adirondack chair. I could hardly get out of it once I climbed in. Linda chose to pass up the opportunity for a photo in the chair.

After breakfast we went to one of the marinas to get gas and a pumpout. The pumpout was broken. What about the place next door? Their was broken also. :(  Fortunately our holding tank was not that full so we gave up and just got gas.

We were headed to 12 mile Bay to meet up with Cheryl and Peter in Deja Vu. Twelve mile Bay is one of our favorite anchorages and we always have fun with Cheryl and Peter.


Last weeks wildflower: Swamp milkweed distribution from USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database. Description: Swamp milkweed is a native, perennial, wildflower growing three to six feet tall. It gets its common name from its white sap, although it has less sap than many of its relatives.

This blog's wildflower:

July 28th: Big Chute and Port Severn

Thursday morning we left Swift Rapids after going through the first lock of the day. It was a beautiful day for travelling. This part of the Trent is very scenic as you can see from the picture.






We made it to the Big Chute Marina restaurant, in time for breakfast. The plan was to go to breakfast with our new friends, travel across the land on the marine railway, and then stay at the bottom, even though it was a very short cruise day. We wanted to be at Port Severn for the weekend and with the two nights maximum stay, we needed to hold up for a day. Breakfast was great and we once again enjoyed the ride on Big Chute. It is always impressive, especially looking down from the top of the hill.



It was a gorgeous day and we enjoyed watching the boats being transported on the marine railway. I walked up the many stairs to get a picture of the people we met the night before. Its always fun to have a picture of your boat as it is travelling on the railway.






On the way back down I took a picture through a window that overlooks the huge steel drums and cables that operate the railway. I wish there had been a person in the picture for a size perspective. I'd guess the drums are about ten feet in diameter. For more info on Big Chute click here:






Here is a picture of the Big Chute Falls. The railway was designed to allow navigation around the falls. The railway was used instead of a lock because the Park System wanted to prevent the sea lamprey, an invasive species in the Great Lakes, from invading the Trent Canal system.

The next morning we traveled to Port Severn and were able to get our favorite spot right on the wall under a beautiful shade tree. We planned to stay Friday night and Saturday because the weekends are very crowded with numerous boaters. Some know what they are doing and others.....well, not so much.


There is a nice farmer's market stand a short bike ride away. We could always count on them for good sweet corn. I bought 1/2 dozen thinking three ears today and three for tomorrow. There wasn't room in the cooler for the three ears I was saving so I just put them in the shade on the back deck. I know better than to do that over night! When I got up the next morning I found the remains of our corn. We're guessing a raccoon. At least it didn't tear a hole in our door screen trying to get in. That had happened several times in the past.




I noticed Avalon (from Orillia) coming to the lock. They were planning to go on through , not staying over night. The Port Severn Lock is the smallest on the system. The canal heading into the lock on the bottom is pretty narrow. Richard and Terri were checking out the exit path and it looked very narrow. The lock master said, "You can fit through there." With boats tied on both sides it looked quite tight. I got some pictures for Richard and Terri as they successfully navigated the channel.


I took advantage of the shade to wash and wax the boat. I had given it a good scrubbing at Big Chute but didn't have the energy to wax it also. It went pretty easily and Guppy is looking really good. I really hate having the boat looking dirty.






We had noticed when we arrived at Port Severn that the water on the bottom was very high. That means the water in Georgian Bay is very high. If you look closely at the wall in the picture, you'll see that the wall that is usually at least two feet above the water, is now only a few inches above the water. People have to jump out and hold their boats so they don't end up on the concrete.






We waited before leaving Sunday until mid day, hoping a lot of the boat traffic would be gone. Also, we wanted to find a dock on Beausoleil Island. The island is a beautiful Provincial park and is very popular. We passed several completely filled docks and came to one of the last remaining. We decided to drop the anchor and if nothing opened up stay on anchor over night. We wanted to be on a dock because I like to hike on the island. Fortunately, a couple boaters on the dock saw us and moved a couple small boats to make room for us. Very Nice! As we always say, boaters try to take care of each other.


Last blog's wildflower:

 Gaillardia pulchella (firewheel, Indian blanket, Indian blanketflower, or sundance), is a North American species of short-lived perennial or annual flowering plants in the sunflower family. It is native to northern Mexico and the southern and central United States from Arizona to Florida and the Carolinas and north as far as Nebraska. It is also naturalized in scattered locations in other parts of the United States as well as in Quebec and Ontario.

The branching stem of Gaillardia pulchella is hairy and upright, growing to 60 cm (2 ft) tall. The leaves are alternate, mostly basal, 4–8 cm long, with edges smooth to coarsely toothed or lobed. The pinwheel, daisy-likeinflorences are 4–6 cm in diameter, vividly colored with red, orange and yellow. The central disc florets of the flower head tend to be more red-violet, with the outer ray florets being yellow. In one variety, almost the entire flower is red, with only the barest tips of the petals touched with yellow. It blooms practically year-round in some areas, but more typically in summer to early fall.

I believe this is the correct identification but am not certain. There are many different looks to the Blanket Flower. If you have a different identification, let me know!

This week's blog wild flower:

July 26th: On to Swift Rapids and Ooops

I apologize for neglecting to post the wildflower portion of the blog last time.

The last blog's wildflower is the Everlasting Pea.

 Lathyrus latifolius, the perennial peavine, perennial pea, broad-leaved everlasting-pea, or just everlasting pea, is a robust, sprawling perennial in the Pea Family Fabaceae. It is native to Europe but is present on other continents, such as North America and Australia, where it is most often seen along roadsides.



As we were leaving Orillia we spotted Avalon. Avalon was owned by Peggy and Mike, who were our dock neighbors at Banana Bay. A few years ago they sold the boat to Richard and Terri, a very nice couple that we met after they bought the boat and left it at Banana Bay for a while.

We were pleasantly surprised to meet up with them at the Orillia marina. Richard spotted Guppy the night before and knew it was our boat. The question was, "How did they recognize Guppy, since we only had the trawler in Florida?" Turns out they were following our blog and recognized Guppy. They are doing the loop and having a great time. Avalon went to a great couple and I'm sure Mike and Peggy are pleased they are enjoying the boat.



We decided to stop at Big Chief Island on Lake Couchiching. It has a protected anchorage and is a nice place to kayak. As soon as we anchored I went for a very enjoyable kayak ride. I saw an adult Merganser Duck with five small juveniles. They are a lot of fun to watch because they run across the top of the water and also dive under. Close to shore a Kingfisher made it well known that it did not want me there!  We enjoyed a beautiful sunset from inside the boat. Big Chief is a Chippewa owned island and it is un-populated which increases the number of mosquitoes. We closed up before they could sneak up on us.

Little did we know there were other bugs around. When we woke up in the morning we found thousands of little bug shells. They fortunately did not leave marks but they stuck to everything. I don't know what they were and we have not encountered them previously. Hopefully, we won't experience them again. Sure glad we had the screens in.


As we left Big Chief Island we passed an island that cormorants took over. Their droppings, which are very alkaline, fall on the leaves of the trees and kill them. Hate to see them wipe out an island like that but I guess that's nature. We're told that over the long term, 20 to 30 years, the result is nutrients returned to the soil for new growth.

We made it to the Swift Rapids Lock early enough for me to take another kayak ride. The terrain is starting to change, more rocks and less population. The only access to Swift Rapids Lock is by boat, makes it nice and quiet. I included several pictures of my kayak ride. Very peaceful and pretty.

We met another couple at Swift Rapids that was just starting to do the Loop. Very nice people in a trawler similar to ours. We answered a lot of questions and had fun reliving our trips as we discussed  their plans. They decided to join us for breakfast at Big Chuite Marina. We enjoyed another colorful sunset and were prepared to head to Big Chute Marina for breakfast.








This blog's wildflower: 

June 20th: Enjoying the Scottish Festival and Orillia

Saturday arrived with a very pretty day for the Scottish Festival. However, as the morning moved on, it kept getting hotter and hotter. We headed out early to the street for the parade to find seats in the shade. None of us had any Scottish plaids to wear but Linda was ready with her Scottish Festival button on her visor.




By the time the parade started, the temperatures were in the high 80's. Fortunately, we were able to find a spot in the shade.

Steve, Peter and Cheryl

There were numerous Fife and Drum bands (Bagpipe bands as we know them) as well as the usual parade politicians. The bands were each a little different and entertaining.


The Men in Kilts Window Cleaning truck got some laughs. Note the "No Peeking," on the front fender. It is a real company!

The highlight of the festival takes place in the large open area in the park. All of the bands played together for an amazing sound. That's a lot of bagpipes and drums!

The park also features a small train that people can ride on for a small fee. We all enjoyed the festival despite the heat. Cheryl and Peter headed home and we went back to our air conditioned boat.


On the way to our dock I noticed that a water lily had opened up. They are fun to see although they are an invasive species.


Very close to our slip is a gazebo that has a piano open for the public to play. Often, it is little kids pounding on the keys, (future pianists hopefully). But every so often, someone comes by and plays who is very enjoyable to listen to. We have been in this close slip a number of times and have heard a person about our age, play a lot of Beatles Music and other songs from our era. I had hoped he would come by this year and was not disappointed.

He has always been kind of quiet and humble, plays a while and then leaves. This year I went over to the piano and introduced myself. Found out his name is Larry, his father was a classical music pianist but Larry never learned to read notes. He plays by ear! I started asking him to play songs and he could play every one. Not only did he play the song but he could tell me everything about the artist and history of the songs. He has thousands of 45 records in his collection at home. We invited him to the boat and really enjoyed learning a lot about the groups of the 60's and 70's. I told him I wished my brother-in-law Scott could join us. Scott is a music fanatic and I'm certain they would have gone on all night. (Maybe it was good he wasn't here!)

We were still in Orillia Monday so I decided to take a walk up the main street in town. I found the results of the Orillia Downtown bike sculpture competition. There were a lot of creative and fun sculptures. I've included a variety for you.

Orillia City Library

Orillia Library Gardens

I walked by the library that was built a few years ago. It is a wonderful facility. I took the time to walk around the gardens outside and the very open and inviting inside.

That pretty well ended our time in Orillia. We did manage to get one more lunch in at the Chinese Restaurant. We'll be heading into a less populated area so there won't be any Chinese restaurants for a while.

July 18th: On to Orillia and the Scottish Festival.

We left Bolsover Lock and proceeded to Lake Simcoe. The park system is doing an extensive renovation of  the entire Trent Canal. This section leading to Lake Simcoe is having the side wall on the port side rebuilt. It is a massive project. If you look closely you can see a small crane which is placing new rock along the Canal. We appreciate the work being done to keep the canal in good shape.

We made it through the five locks with no delays. Just as we were about to head out of the canal and on to the lake, we suddenly developed a bad vibration. Were we in mud? Did we hit a log? We were already going slow, and the canal really has no place to stop, so we slowly continued until we could pull over.

Happily, when we pulled up the out drive, I found a very tough plastic bag wrapped around the prop. I was able to pull it off and away we went.

Lake Simcoe

Lake Simcoe was next. We picked a great day to cross. The lake was very calm. Two days ago, someone tried to cross and turned back after encountering 4 foot waves.





We arrived in Orillia in early Wednesday afternoon and just relaxed the rest of the day. I picked up Chinese food take out for lunch and all was good. Going through five locks, crossing the lake and getting docked is enough to wear us out, especially because it was very hot!

As we were sitting in the boat Linda, noticed that there were two docks that would be in the shade in the afternoon. I checked at the office and we were able to move. Really good news since we were going to be in Orillia for six days. It made a big difference. We hardly needed to run the air conditioner and could sit comfortably on the fly bridge.

Cheryl's mother, Lois

We were looking forward to meeting Peter, Cheryl and Cheryl's mother, Lois for lunch Thursday. We were fortunate to meet Cheryl's mother, Lois, on one of our Canadian boat trips. She has a great dry sense of humor and doesn't let Peter get away with anything! Well..... almost! :)

We met Peter and Cheryl while doing the loop in 2010 and have been boating on and off with them ever since, both in Florida and Canada. I found this picture from November 3, 2010.

We always enjoy travelling with them. The Chinese lunch and catching up with our friends made for a wonderful day. We even talked Peter and Cheryl into coming Saturday for the Scottish Festival.



Friday we rode our bikes to the Community Center where they serve breakfast. There is a great view overlooking the lake but the food was disappointing.


After breakfast, I rode through Tudhope Park. It is a beautiful park that features the Golden Leaves Sculpture, a tribute to Gordon Lightfoot (he's originally from Orillia). The sculpture is quite interesting. For more information and pictures click here. Gordon Lightfoot Golden Leaves Sculpture



Along the park trail there are quite a few written descriptions of historical facts about Orillia. I included this one about the Ice Industry. I am amazed that in the past, the Ice Houses along the shore could hold 50,000 tons of ice! A great industry for Orillia until refrigeration came along.





There were also several displays describing the fish weirs constructed by the Ojibway 5,000 years ago. It took a while after reading the sign for 5,000 years to sink in. Truly amazing. How do they even find this information?










I continued on the path that runs along the lake. A beautiful ride.

On the West end of the park is a great play area. It has a lot of fun equipment for kids to play on, a nice splash pond and especially a large inflated playground out in the water. The largest I've ever seen. It was great to see it was getting a lot of use. Everything is free, no admission fee.


Last blog's wildflower: Pasture Rose

Pasture Rose

Pasture Rose, Rosa carolina

A somewhat prickly shrub that has upright form but spreads out well. Beautiful pink flower gives way to rose hips that provide food for wildlife. Does well in numerous growing conditions but prefers average moisture in well-drained soil. Attracts pollinators.

This blog's wildflower: (Ignore the Daisies)