Inspiring Boating Stories & Travel fun from the Great Lakes and beyond!
Along with travel posts, I also share boat repairs and upgrades, tips and hints.
* Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases via links.
I was recently asked by a viewer of the following video as to how one pays for the use of a mooring ball in the Massasauga Provincial Park.
When tied up to a mooring ball in this area (the Massasauga Provincial Park), payment is made to the Ontario Provincial Park's guys who come by
in a small boat to collect the fees, as well as take away your garbage
for you.
Sometimes, such as in this instance, nobody showed up
when we were there, so we didn't have to pay. Not that that's an issue,
because it's very reasonable, but sometimes they don't have enough time
in the day to drop by every boat at every location. They will also
collect a $10/night fee if your boat is tied to shore anywhere in the
park. And that goes for all the boats who may be tied to shore together.
What I mean is that we have been there with four boats tied
together (us and three friends) with a line running back to shore for
stability. When the Park's guys came by, we all had to pay the
$10/night. Again, we are good with that, because they will take the
garbage away and best of all, tell you where the nicest anchorages are
:-)
Have a look at this video I did from a trip there back in 2009. You'll see what I mean about the boats all tied to shore;
~ Part Four of the Big Boat Delivery HOME From Michigan to Lake Simcoe ~
During our travels of 2010, we were introduced to yet another great anchoring bay on Georgian Bay - this one called Wani Bay, or one of about 218 places on The Bay referred to as Hole In The Wall - but don't look for it on your charts. This is kinda one of those that you have to be 'let in on'.
It's off the beaten track and if one wasn't aware of it's being there, it would most likely be passed right by. When studying it on the charts, I thought there was no way we would be able to fit the big boat in the very tight entrance, but Mr. Von A. assured me we would get in safely (the Water Wings crew had been here before).
Hold on a minute. Before we got there, we had to travel north from Beausoleil Bay. Our initial plan was to spend a night just north of Honey Harbour at an anchorage around the Musquash Channel. There's about a half dozen good places to drop the hook, but all were full. Despite spending a couple of hours driving all through the area, we couldn't find anything and ultimately pressed on northward.
Driving into the Musquash;
Passing by Bone Island. Just to the right of this shot is the last spot we checked out - a small, unnamed bay known as 'Hockey Stick';
North and passing through the 'inside' of Monument Channel;
Monument Channel Video;
So, without any luck at our previous tries, it was suggested we check out a spot he knew called Wani Bay. We did. Here's a whole whack of pics from there;
Anchors set, I just had to take the dingy out to get some pictures of this beautiful spot.
Here's a shot of our backsides, looking westward towards the Small Craft Route (you can't see it from here, but that's where it is);
From the flybridge, again looking westward to the sunset. A peaceful, quiet spot;
Loverly;
Video from the dinghy;
The next day, we went for a dinghy ride over to O'Donnell Point to check out the many, mini islands;
Let's go onto this one. And don't worry, this is public land, so we were allowed to visit.
Cool looking rocks, eh? The moss looking material is actually called 'Lichen' & is a hybrid organism that is sort of a cross between an algae and a fungus.
Whatever it is, it looks neat;
Not wanting to take any chances with the snakes on the island, Anchor Girl elected to stick close to the dingy and the water's edge;
Looking south west to the actual point of O'Donnell Point;
Beautiful, clear water;
Beautiful;
Finishing up our land exploration;
Evening number two at this spot and we were blessed with a spectacular sunset!
Wani video number uno;
This was the view from the boat, looking over to the entrance to this bay. A little intimidating the first time through, but manageable nonetheless. And one more part of the great adventure :-)
Here's a zoomed in shot of the above picture, looking at the opposite side of the channel known as Twelve Mile Bay.
Looks like a Group Of Seven painting to me . . .
Rocks and trees. Pretty rocks;
Yes, I know;
This is what it''s all about, my friends;
Cool shot of the two Rays;
The crews are on deck to enjoy the sunset show;
Pretty.
I should send this photo into the marketing department at Sea Ray;
This is the shot of my boat I was looking for;
More chuckles from the big guy;
Zoomed in to the west from the boat;
Anchor Girl enjoys the view.
And I enjoy mine.
Next time it's up, up and away as we take off on a float plane to see Georgian bay from the air!!
I'm very happy to remind you all that Tuesday marks the first day of winter - the shortest day of the year. Oh goody, you're thinking? YES! From Wednesday onward, the days will be getting longer again and we are only 3 months away to the first day of spring :-)
And not too long until late evening sunsets like this one;
~ Part Four of the Big Boat Delivery HOME From Michigan to Lake Simcoe ~
After safely crossing the western part of Georgian Bay from Tobermory and spending the night in Midland, we moved onto our 'relaxing' portion of the journey - anchoring for a couple of days in Beausoleil Bay.
Anchor Girl was happy to finally have the rough waters behind us and enjoying a restful time at anchor;
A view from the fly bridge deck looking northward towards Chimney Bay;
A zoomed-in shot from the same vantage point. That there would be just about where we were last summer when the anchors let loose. Pretty spot, isn't it?
One of the features I like the most about the new boat is the big, comfortable shower on board that I use regularly. The cool part is that there is an operating porthole in the one in our master bath and it's great to be able to look out across the water while having a shower :-)
Here's a video to give you an idea of what I mean. And don't worry, I'm not actually showering in the clip ;-)
A.G. sitting at the back of the boat whilst I was floating out on the dingy taking some pictures of the boat - and A.G.
This was our very first time at anchor with the Big Boy. That big, 47 pound 'Delta' style anchor and chain rode certainly holds well;
Note the sunshine 'rainbow' in the center of this pic. That was a naturally occurring phenomenon, not just a reflection in the lens. Beautiful;
Same spot, looking back towards the boat;
A panning video of our anchorage and the beautiful summer scenery;
Another wonderful sunset shot;
And another;
One more video, depicting how much the boat was swinging this day;
Nothing like a BBQ on the boat anchored out on the water;
It was nearly a full moon that night, casting it's light across the bay;
The Water Wings crew joined us the next day;
Nice to back up on The Bay, eh guys???
The evening sun glintering (yes, that's a real word) on the water;
Here is is in video form;
Pointing the camera slightly to the right (north-west), brought this lovely site into view;
Again, we have video of this sight;
Meanwhile, Anchor Girl jumps in for a pre-breakfast swim. As for me, I simply turned on the air conditioner on the boat;
Swim all done, A.G. waits for me to finish cooking the breakfast on the BBQ;
After pulling anchor, we headed northward to check out the anchorages in around Bone Island. After touring through that entire area for about two hours, we found all the spots full with boats, so we continued north to another slice of heaven that we were told about. We'll visit that in the next segment;
Closer to the end refers to the fact that this post - reviewing the end of our 2009 holidays - is closer to the end of this years' holidays than last. Oh well. Maybe if I could control all of my long winded stories that always accompany the photos, I could get this done quicker. Probably not though. I have enough I'm working hard on controlling, so one thing at a time.
Our final stay on The Bay was at a mid sized marina in Honey Harbour called Paragon Marina.I took this photo in a vain attempt to capture the feeling of the moment, knowing that the long anticipated holidays were rapidly winding down. I was feeling really good, despite the fact that the highlight of the year was almost over. I only wish I had taken a few more shots here, looking around at the lovely surroundings and the beautiful day - she sure was a nice one;
Right next to the marina is the Honey Harbour town docks, where A.G. & I rowed to to get some supplies. Yes, rowed. That darned Mercury outboard was once again being uncooperative, so it stayed on the dock while we rowed over here. Not too far anyway, only about 1000' or so from where Boogaboo was moored. Hopefully I'll have better luck with the new Yamaha. Funny thing about that deal is that the 'American' Mercury was built in Japan, while the 'Japanese' Yamaha was built in France, of all places.
This is what that looks like;
Saw this sign in the window of a building right beside the town dock and thought you might like to know what the fines are for various infractions;
This plaque is also next to the docks, commemorating the fact that the French explorer Samuel Champlain was the first European to visit this area, 400 years ago.
French explorer. French outboard. I see a pattern developing. Hmmmm. . . .
It was a gorgeous, hot day when we pulled out of Honey Harbour, so we took a slow tour down to Midland Harbour so that Sanja could get a feel for the location and to try her hand at some real navigating. That's right, once again I forced her to use her classroom skills to find our way back to the Potato Island Chanel (most of the way, at least) and lead us out of here. Remember, trust your charts . . .
Too bad you won't get a chance to put both experiences into play this summer, eh Captain? Probably no wonder, traveling with such a tough instructor as me :-)
After a bit of coaching and some help form A.G., we made it to the north cardinal buoy marking the entrance to the Potato Island Channel. Not that I was in any hurry - like I said, this was the very end of our time on The Bay and once through the channel there was only one lock separating us from this body of water.
The audio in this video is muffled by the wind, but you'll get the idea;
It sure was a nicer day coming back through Tug Channel and under the highway 400 overpass than when we came through the other way on the beginning of our voyage - but I'd trade the sunshine for another 3 weeks up here any day;
Anchor Girl waiting to help the approaching SunAria onto the blue line. Or not;
Looking back towards the lock;
Don't worry, I have video, too;
Immediately to the left of the top of the lock is a resort called The Inn At Christie's Mill, where we spent the night, reunited with the Water Wings crew. Yes, we even had dinner reservation there, as well.
After our experience here - even trying to book the slips was a chore - I can highly recommend to NEVER, EVER GO THERE! Being self employed I believe I have a certain sense of customer service. This place doesn't even know the concept and it shows in spades.
After all the crap of checking in and trying to find shore power AND a shower (and ending up going for a swim shower behind the boat), we all headed over to the restaurant for our dinner engagement. Beside a menu that featured such delicacies as 'Loin of Elk', we decided that a walk over the lock to the Rawley Resort was the better option.
If you don't believe me, listen to what these satisfied customers had to say;
All smiles now as the gang heads into the Rawley - conveniently located right across the street form the LCBO;
At last - an enjoyable sit down dinner with our friends to celebrate another GREAT holiday on The Bay!
I know it's hard to take your eyes off the rest of the scenery, but if you look closely at the two mugs at either side of this photo you'll notice that our shirts match the upholstery. What a coincidence. And I thought they were just kidding when they told me to 'get stuffed';
The Maple Leaf gang bid us farewell as pass by.
Looking forward to hooking up with you guys on The Bay in a few short months. Remember - it's 'Point Au Baril or Bust'!!
Looking back to SunAria passing through the Little Chute. And this is a scary spot??
On the blue line waiting for the big water train to take us back to the top of the hill.
Gotta go - my sandwich is coming;
Our final stay for the year would be our first time anchoring at Chief Island on Lake Couchiching. One more spot to put on the list to avoid. Sorry, but I guess we were spoiled with our time at the quiet, natural anchorages of Georgian Bay because the first thing I noticed when we dropped the hook here was the friggen road traffic noise coming from highway 11 across the lake. If I want annoying urban noise on the water, I might as well go to Orillia for the night;
The gals gabbing on the back of the boats.
Tomorrow we'll be home :-(
And that's it.
As the chartplotter witnesses, a round trip (including a second trip to Parry Sound for an emergency pump out) totaling 346.9 statute miles.
For 2010, I hope to add about 50 - 100 miles to that total. . .
Now that we're done with this review, I'd love to hear (read) your comments . . . Otherwise, you'll be doomed to seeing much of the same next winter.
