Tuesday July 9: The BEST Kayaking ..... EVER!

 Today was cloudy again with a chance of rain so we decided to stay put and take advantage of what the Bruce Peninsula has to offer in this area. Steve had decided to hike the 3 km or so to the end of bay – following the Bruce Trail. He was just about to leave when we both came to the same conclusion: we really should kayak along the cliffs since the water was SO calm. So we did.

It was definitely the right decision!

Steve set out ahead as we both figured he's kayak farther than I would anyway. I prepared for the journey well: bottle of water, camera in a waterproof bag and a line! This would be used to tie to Steve's kayak in case I was overambitious in my paddling :-)

What an amazing place. The water is crystal clear and the bottom covered with huge boulders that fell from the cliffs. It was just crazy great.

It was hard to get a handle on how high these cliffs really were.

There were a number of rock/cliff climbers around that helped give a perspective to the size and height of this shoreline. In the picture on the left, circled in red is a climber that is hanging off of one of the peaks. In the right picture there are two climbers – circled in red. I have to say that is something I never, ever thought about doing even when I was able to!

There were a number of areas where there were small passages that were easily accessible by kayak only (well, canoe, I'm sure). Really fun.

Steve was waiting for the small bass to come out from under the rocks – they weren't hard to see :-)

Time to head back. The marina is in this picture – a bit left of center. Get out the towing line!

No problem, really, but I had to measure the distance when we got back: a bit over 3 miles round trip. Probably the farthest I've ever kayaked. But simply the best. Sadly though there are no fish to see (except for the bass) so I guess we're spoiled by the reefs in Florida and it's huge numbers of colorful saltwater fish.

We did stop at the huge rocks whose sides formed a neat little cavern – it had a little cave way back in it. No way was I going in there though. Who knows when it's going to cave in, right?

The day was not all play as the teak work was calling. Steve taped off the rest of it and I put the first of 3 coats on the wood. It is going to look SO MUCH better. Well worth the time Steve spent removing the varnish and cleaning and sanding it to prepare for painting with Cetol. This is the same finish we use on the trawler and have found it holds up better than anything else we've tried.

The bay was calm again in the evening. It's such a pretty place.

We waited at the viewing area to see the cliffs turn pink in the sunset but sadly it didn't happen. Just too many clouds. The cliffs face west so in theory when the sun is setting it shines on the cliffs. Maybe tomorrow night …..

Spotted in the harbor here: the Rebecca Lynn :-)

Monday July 8: Lion's Head

 Snyder Bay was like a mill pond when we left early in the morning yesterday. Again there was no wind and no waves.

And no visible sunrise this morning as the clouds were low - producing a very hazy look to the bay and the surrounding shorelines.

The waters of Georgian Bay were calm - but the two foot rollers that were coming sideways were not a lot of fun. They just shove this little boat all over the place! Time to cruise.

We made our way a short 14 miles to Lion's Head - a small town on the Bruce Peninsula. Apparently the 'lion's head' has long since fallen away but it was easy to see how this cliff could be a lion with it's paws extended.

The Bruce Peninsula itself is a rather small part of the Niagara Escarpment that runs from upstate New York north and west as you can see on the picture to the left. It of course include Niagara Falls for which the escarpment is named.

We are slowly making our way northwest along the piece circled in yellow.

As we moved closer and closer to the harbor, the views of the cliffs just got better and better!

The pictures of course just don't do justice to the height of these cliffs. The trees are covering the rock debris that has fallen from the face of the cliffs over the years. The size of the fallen rocks are just incredible!

Not long after we arrived, the fog/clouds (not sure what it actually is) came rolling into the harbor - sure glad we were able to see the cliffs as we came in because no way would they visible from the water now!

Priority? Lunch - or late breakfast - whatever you want to call it. We found a small cafe that advertised vegan dishes so we though we needed to check it out. Steve ended up with a veggie wrap and I ended up with one of my favorites: mashed potatoes!

A continued shopping trip to the hardware store and the grocery store for some replenishing of the snack foods on board (crackers and humus, fruit and cereal) and we were good to go.

The harbor reminds Steve very much of the Pacific Northwest around Vancouver. Clear water, small towns and no touristy feel at all.










There were even some young ducks in the harbor that were swimming near the boat!

We were hoping the clouds would dissipate in time for the sun to set on the cliffs (apparently it's quite the sight) but it wasn't going to happen.

There was a break in the clouds that did let some of the sunset through though so at least there was that :-)

Tomorrow: may stay, may go ....

Sunday July 7: Sydney Bay – It's All About the View

The evening before we left Meaford gave us yet another really nice sunset. The rain came and went on Friday so we had decided to just spend another day. It's a great little town!

Saturday the rains had passed and the sun was out when we left the harbor. Hot in the sun but pleasant in the shade. A good day to travel.

The travel plan was to go the 40 miles to what appeared on the charts to be a very protected anchorage. It was 5 miles back to Sydney Bay but it was definitely worth it! This side of Georgian Bay is so different than the eastern shoreline with it's rocks and sparse tree cover.

Instead the shoreline is very high cliffs with forests at the lower levels along the water. I think we saw a total of 5 boats while traveling – and it was a beautiful day with light winds. Where is everyone???

The winds eventually died totally in the late afternoon. This is a great anchorage!

A seagull swam over to see what was up – Steve had tried his luck at fishing (no takers) and the gull maybe thought he might get lucky.

The night could not have been any quieter with no wind so there were no slapping waves. A good night's sleep :-)

But the best part was the sunrise this morning – or actually the pre-sunrise. It was so totally amazing. It wasn't until later in the day that I realized those really neat looking clouds meant it was going to be a cloudy, overcast, rainy day all day today! We just will stay put then.

Steve stayed up until the sun was actually seen – I was back to bed and sleeping by then. So I missed the sun rise and the sun shining on the cliffs in front of the boat. What an incredible view :-)

And to start the day right, scrambled egg whites with mushrooms and spinach. It's going to be a good day ….

Tomorrow we'll move on to Lion's Head assuming the weather is good!

Friday July 5: Plan C - Meaford!

After a last breakfast with Peter and Cheryl Wednesday morning, we finally departed Midland under sunny skies with Cheryl waving us off.

The murals on the old grainery - so unique to Midland - are such a landmark entering or leaving the Midland harbor.

Our plan was to spend a couple of days around the islands north of Midland and then move on to the western shore to a couple of small towns. Plans in the sand!

The day quickly turned hazy but it was still possible to see the rock islands that dot the east side of Georgian Bay.

Traveling about 20 miles took us to the northernmost island on the tip of Midland Bay to the island called Hope Island. Reviews indicated that if we squinted we would think we were in the Caribbean. I don't think the person who wrote that has never been to the Caribbean :-) But it was a very nice place anchor and the water was definitely crystal clear with the bottom easily visible at a depth of 11 feet. Steve kayaked - I again felt a need to stay aboard to repel any pirates that might be around the area. Thankfully, none were spotted :-)

The sunset was great. The night was not. We knew the winds were going to come in from the S but light winds so we didn't feel it would be an issue.

Man, is this boat noisy in a wind! Water slapping everywhere - guess we sort of forgot about that.

Finally I got up and just slept on the dinette. I didn't like not being able to see the water (on the trawler all I have to do is look out my little porthole :-) ).

In the end a peaceful night but not until I decided that we really weren't going anywhere! Somehow Steve managed to get sleep in even though he stayed in the lower bunk.

Thursday morning was very cloudy with rain coming in sporatically. I think I moved from the flybridge to down below to drive 3 different times.

Let's hear it for the easily mobile GPS chartplotter so I can see where it is we are supposed to be going!!!

Twenty miles across the Nottawasaga Bay and we were on the west side of Georgian Bay. Largest body of water we've crossed in quite some time as the intercoastal waterways aren't anywhere near this large.

Steve spent the time crossing working on the teak again. Last of the really messy jobs of stripping the varnish.

We entered the harbor at Meaford late in the day. Definitely we were ready to be tied to a dock for a day :-0

Bikes off first - a quick ride around town next. Had to check out places for breakfast, groceries, etc. Really a nice little town!





I really like the welcome center for the town - the apple!

The harbor area is so well done with much public access to the lake and lots of lake views.

The sunset was spectacular ... again. The harbor has giant rock walls (both the wall and the rocks are giant!) and it was fun to walk along the rocks out to the point to view the sunset.

No worries - it was a very careful walk for both of us but especially for me. Who needs a broken leg at this point, right?











Just to give an idea of the size of the breakwalls around the marina on which we were walking, check the picture above right. One of the guys at the marina here said that in a really bad north wind, the waves break over the top of the wall ......  And I thought Cleveland got some large waves over it's breakwall (which is no where near as tall as this one!).

We liked it so well here we stayed another day :-) Out for breakfast and lunch (just helping the local economy) and a nice ride along the Georgian Trail.

Tomorrow: heading north toward Cape Croker to what should be a nice quiet anchorage :-)

Tuesday July 2: Time to Move On

Yesterday was July 1st: Canada Day! It's much like our celebration of the 4th of July - often complete with parades, parties and fireworks.

The parade was fun but of course it was the bagpipes that I really enjoyed.

And Peter was just being Peter (with the Shriners) on his little motor scooter.

But really, we've got to move on! This is been a really good stop - both workwise and funwise. The time we were able to spend with Peter and Cheryl has been fun - as it always is no matter what the setting or the situation.

The plan is to head around the western edge of Georgian Bay as Steve in particular has always wanted to go to Tobermory. We hear the water is cold, clear and deep. From there we'll continue north to Killarny and the start of the North Channel.

At a leisurely pace and with good weather, we'll be there in a week and a half.

One of these days, Deja Vu will be in the water and we can travel with Peter and Cheryl again!