Our friends chartered a 32 foot sailboat with a Captain. The captain was a great guy (Mike Young of 30,000 Islands Sailing Adventures). He knew what he was doing and was very easy going. He had no problem with Road Trip tagging along.

 

We left Killbear Marina last Sunday afternoon and sailed to Hopewell Bay. We dropped anchor, rafted up, and fixed some drinks for happy hour.
Cindy and I cooked the first night and everyone enjoyed the chicken kabobs.

 

The next day the water on the open bay was very rough so we took the small craft route (which included some rather exciting excursions out to open water) to a small cove in Charles Inlet where we were alone. Dinner was great (cheeseburgers in paradise). We had a party every night.

 

Due to numerous requests, here is a picture of me on the trip. Cindy took this picture and thought I looked "cute."



Of course the scenery was beautiful. This is the Pte. au Baril lighthouse going by on the right.

 

The next evening was spent in the Bustard Islands. Not long after we began our Happy Hour, a nearby boat whistled at us to be quiet. I guess we were being rowdy.

 

We observed a beautiful sunset. Dinner by Jeff and Julia, salmon for everyone else and pork cutlets for Rob. Delicious! One of us had warned Captain Mike that Cindy might insist on some concrete goals for the trip. Sure enough, that evening she took charge and insisted we plan out exactly what we were going to do. I think Captain Mike actually got a charge out of her.

 

At the various anchorages, those with no nerve endings in their skin took refreshing baths in the bay.

 

We did not get in too much sailing due to wind conditions, but when we did, it was very picturesque.

 

And so we advanced on Killarney, a small hamlet in the north of Lake Huron's Georgian Bay. It is a delightful place with a liquor store with its own dock (pictured). We experienced a night of wonderful entertainment by local talent (Andy Lowe) at the Killarney Mountain Lodge. At the end of the evening, he came over to our table and recited a hilarious couplet, "Albert and the Slag Pool," a rhyme about a young boy's misadventures in Sudbury, a nearby northern Canadian town.

 

The next day we took Road Trip on a short excursion to a local highlight, Covered Portage cove, which has a high stone cliff above it. Our friends took the dingy to shore and hiked to the top. If you look closely, you can see them waving at us. The MacGregor in the foreground is from Montreal. It is a family of four on a two week sailing vacation.

 

After our look around the Killarney area, we started back to Parry Sound. On the next to last day, we stopped for lunch at the historic Ojibway Lodge (Built in 1906).

 

The last night we spent in a small bay on the west side of Franklin Island. This is quite near the cottage (10 miles) so we can go back there often. We shared the anchorage with a huge Loon. The last day we returned to Killbear Marina and said good-bye to Captain Mike. He was great and we hope he had as good a time as we did.