Day 4: Sightseeing around Manitoulin Island

Day 4: At Dock in Meldrum Bay, Manitoulin Island

Weather: Alternating cloudy/sunny, warm (very hot - according to the islanders)

Bart taking a nap after a long night of catching bugs

Monday morning we were planning on running to town (Gore Bay) with Lloyd to pick up the part we thought we needed to fix the boat. Our spirits were high as we waited for Lloyd, and we spent some time hanging out with our visitors; a racing pigeon (Almond) and a bat (Bart). Dana couldn't get over how cute Bart was as he clung to the side of our canvas and slept!

Cruising the countryside with Lloyd

The trip to Gore Bay turned into an all day Manitoulin Island adventure with Lloyd as our tour guide. We were very grateful to see ports we had wanted to visit like Gore Bay, Kagawong (Bridal Veil Falls) and Little Current since we were losing a few days due to boat problems.

Bridal Veil Falls

Lloyd narrated our journey through the countryside of Manitoulin all the way to Gore Bay where we realized we would have to order one of the two parts we needed to get Seapickle running again.Lloyd offered to bring us back tomorrow to pick up the ordered part. After running a few errands while in town we continued on with our Island adventure and stopped at Bridal Veil Falls!

 

Downtown Little Current

Little Current swing bridge. The only link to the mainland

Next stop was Little Current, which is considered the capital of Manitoulin Island and the home of fellow GLCC member Roy Eaton who broadcasts The Cruisers Net on VHF channel 71 every morning at 9.

Lake Huron Fish & Chips

Delicious!!

Providence Beach

Next stop was the shores of Lake Huron in the little town of Providence. After working up an appetite, we decided to try Lake Huron Fish & Chips for lunch.This was also the first time Dana tried poutine, which is french fries covered in gravy and cheese...it is now one of her favorite things to eat and she's searching for a good recipe if you have one :-) The fish here was simply amazing and we haven't stopped thinking about it since. We have a feeling it's going to be hard to find fish & chips this good back home. After our lunch we decided we couldn't visit the Lake Huron side without dipping our feet in the water so we drove to a nice little beach a few blocks from the resturaunt

Driving through Manitoulin Island countryside

Cook's Bay in Bayfield Sound - deserted except for few deer

We got back just in time for another gorgeous sunset. We've realized that although we aren't where we should be according to our itinerary, we might have ended up where we needed to be. It's the people we have met and become friends here that in some ways make our breakdown a good thing. When we first got towed into Meldrum Bay, we thought it was the worst possible place to break down due to a lack of mechanical services, but after meeting wonderful people like Peggy the harbormaster, Shirin and Elena, and especially Lloyd we've realized Meldrum Bay's biggest asset is it's wonderful people!

The end to another perfect day on Manitoulin

Day 3: Relaxing in Meldrum Bay

Day 3: At port in Meldrum Bay

Weather: Cloudy in the am, bright sunny & hot in afternoon

 Meldrum Bay turned out to be a great port to get "stuck" in for awhile. The water was beautiful and crystal-clear and we enjoyed jumping off the end of the pier, swimming and floating around on our new floats. I also found a nice rock to spend a few hours reading on while Ben socialized around the marina (typical of us) :-)

We walked up for croissants at the Country Store, owned by Elena. Elena runs the Country Store, while her mom Shirin runs the Meldrum Bay Inn next door. After explaining our situation to them, they were both very helpful and encouraging in keeping our spirits up! Shirin made some phone calls for us to try to find someone in town to help, and she put us in contact with Lloyd - the go-to guy in town for problems.

 Ben heading off with Lloyd in his golf cart to check for parts at his house. Lloyd generously offered to drive us to Gore Bay to get the part we needed on Monday. Gore Bay is about a 35 mile drive..

 It would be impossible to give credit to everyone that helped us out along the way. We were very fortunate. Pictured above are Skip & Margo on "Jonah" who lent us their test-meter. You can check out their blog at www.thatsaborre.blogspot.com.

After lunch (chili and delicious poppyseed bread from Shirin), we took off to explore the town and check out the Net Shed Museum, full of historic information about Meldrum Bay and local shipwrecks. There we met Gavin, a almost tenth grader, who is the ONLY kid in Meldrum Bay!

 And adding to the list of those who helped us out, we have to mention our Sea Ray friends from Midland, ON on Georgian Bay. Keith & Louise on Riverwalk and Bill & Trisha on Sapphire. They were headed to the US, so they gave us all their meat and produce that they couldn't take with! We were able to feast for days! Thanks guys!

Now we just wait and see if the part we need is available in Gore Bay in the morning.

Day 2 - Harbor Island, MI to Meldrum Bay, ON

Day 2: Harbor Island, Mi to Meldrum Bay, ON - approx 35 miles

Weather: Rainy, choppy 1-2ft, SE winds

  Still anchored at Harbor Island, we made omelettes & toast for breakfast on the camp stove, and planned out our route (note: on the map we're pointing to Gore Bay, our intended destination)

 We followed the GLCC directions to get away from the islands and into the North Channel, soon crossing into Canada! Winds were out of the southeast and were often gusty, especially near the False Detour & Mississagi channels. Waves at this point were approx. 3ft and we slowed our cruise down.

 Once the winds slowed down a bit, we got back on plane only to have the boat abruptly stop as we looked at eachother in shock. We tried starting back up and checked everything out, but the engine had died and we were floating just north of Meldrum Bay & Vidal Island. We have tow insurance through Boat US, but they don't have anyone in Canada to tow, so we would have to pay out of pocket (possibly in the thousands) and get reimbursed when we returned. This wasn't really an option for us, so we called the Canadian Coast Guard (out of Thunder Bay) on the radio. The woman who responded was super-friendly and helpful, and issued an alert to boaters that we needed assistance.

 And so Seapickle began her first tow experience, when we were aided by Tom & Elaine on "Boundless" out of Sarasota, FL. They were approx. 4 miles east when they heard the call, and were headed to Meldrum Bay for the night, so they were happy to help and we were extremely grateful! They towed us into Meldrum Bay Marina and we tied up at the fuel dock, aided by harbor master Peggy who enlisted the help of a dingy to get us into a slip for the night (and possibly longer). Ben had to stay on the boat for a bit while I checked into Canadian Customs using the phone inside the marina office, but we were quickly cleared and settled in to figure out our situation.

Ben was able to narrow the problem down to the ignition coil, and given that it was Saturday evening, we had no choice but to enjoy our stay in Meldrum Bay and make the best of it! Our best bet at this point was to see if we could borrow someone's car on Monday and head into Gore Bay to look for parts. It didn't help that we had NO phone signal or internet access, and the nearest town was 30 miles away! 

Since we decided to make the best of things, Tom & Elaine were generous to invite us for cocktails on their boat "Boundless" (pictured above) and to dinner at the Meldrum Bay Inn down the street! Dinner was wonderful, and we were feeling that maybe everything would be ok after all.

But all in all, Meldrum Bay was not a bad place to be "stuck."

North Channel Cruise 2012 - Day 1 Home to Harbor Island, MI

Day 1: Portage, IN trailer to DeTour, MI - approx. 430 miles (9 hours)

           DeTour, MI boat to Harbor Island, MI - approx 5 miles

Weather: Sunny & Hot, light southwest winds

After all the planning & preparation, and on about 2 hours of sleep, we woke up the first day of our North Channel trip at 3am to get ready to trailer Seapickle 430 miles to DeTour, Michigan to begin our adventure! We left the house at about 4am, and had the trailer hooked up and were on the road by 5:30am. The tow went very smoothly and besides being very tired, we arrived safely in DeTour Village at about 2:30pm EST. 

The best part of the tow was crossing the Mackinac Bridge. We went under the bridge on Seapickle back in 2010, so it was very exciting to see it from another vantage point towing Seapickle behind us! Ben was a little nervous about this portion of the tow, but it ended up being no big deal.

Soon after we pulled into the DeTour boat launch, Todd from Passage Boat Works (where we would be storing our truck & trailer) arrived and helped us to launch, and then drove the truck over to store indoors at his shop! This might have been one of the easiest launches we've had yet! 

After a quick stop for ice & water at the DeTour Village Marina, we took off for our first anchorage- Harbor Island, MI. Just about 5 miles North of DeTour.

Using the GLCC directions & harbor report, we were able to locate the anchorage very easily.

Captain Ben chose a cozy little anchorage protected from the south winds in about 4 ft of water with a seaweed & mud bottom. We spent a little while relaxing and organizing the boat, and then Ben made a delicious dinner of filet mignon, grilled mushrooms & teriyaki noodles. We enjoyed our first dinner of vacation with our North Channel drink "Captain's Cream Soda."

After dinner we explored the island in the kayak, hiking a bit onshore and checking out the rocks on fossil beach. We followed an arrow made of rocks up into the island for a ways, but had to turn back because it was close to sunset and we had heard stories of the awful mosquitos in the North Channel! 

Back at the boat we tried to stay up late to watch the stars come out, but when it still wasn't fully dark at 10:30pm, we gave in and went to bed! We still couldn't believe we had made it to the North Channel after so long of dreaming of it!