Rotten Row's Boating Blog

Working On It

2012-01-28T10:55:00.001-05:00

Fear not, my regular visitors, as I am working on another substantial post with lots of still pictures and lots of moving ones, too.

Until then, here's a little taste of what's coming up;

SUNSETS . . . .

SUMMER SCENES . . . .

BEAUTIFUL EVENINGS . . .

SWIMMING DEAR . . . ?

Looky Here

2012-01-20T17:42:00.001-05:00

You like the new look of the Blog?
Good;-)
I wanted to give it a bit more contrast, so the pictures stick out a bit more.
As well, I made the whole thing a little wider so I could post the videos a bit bigger. For the time I put into those things, I wanted to be able to present them well. And for the 18% of the viewers who are stuck in the 90's with 800 x 600 pixel screen resolutions, too bad, so sad :-)

ALSO, remember that the videos can all be seen in HD resolution. All ya gotta do is click on the little round icon (it kinda looks like a ship's wheel) at the bottom right of the YouTube player once the video has started to select a higher setting. The basic or default view is quite low, so if you have a decent monitor, click it up to 720 for a sharper looking video.

This is what I'm speaking of - a trip to the marina to check up on the boats and enjoy a sunny winter day;

'Mo Videos

2012-01-19T23:08:00.002-05:00

I got a couple more videos I wanted to share with you. Don't worry, I'm working on another full fleged update with photographs, for those of you who are video-viewing challenged.
You know who you are ;-)

First one is the last one. The last boat run of the 2011 season, that is. Wevvy had to run some fuel stabilizer through the engines, so we tagged along for one (sniff) last (sniff, sniff) boat ride for the year. Phenomenal conditions, too;

On that very same weekend, Wevvy & I took the cars out for a little play time;

Not only is this next one fun & quick, the song I found to go allong with it is neat - a new one that I'd never heard before. It's a toe tapper, for sure;

Last one today has nothing to do with boats/boating directly, just a neat bit of underwater 'fishing'. You might say another toe tapper, as the little buggers were snapping at my feet. HA!

Canada Day Weekend

2012-01-15T14:56:00.002-05:00

Here's way too many pics from our July 1st long weekend away at one of the locks. A nice get away close to home. And now that we are even closer, we hope to do some more & farther traveling back this way through the Trent Severn Waterway.

This is what we woke up to on the morning that we headed out from the marina - the boat + dock + pretty much everything else was covered with Shad Flies (May Flies);

Approaching the eastern portion of the Trent Severn Waterway, close to Gamebridge. If you look really close, you can see a bit of the blue swing bridge that we cross by car on the way to our marina;

Lock #39 - 'Portage Lock' , our home for the next few days;

WAIT! I have a truly mind blowing video of our passage through here that you won't wanna miss!

Anchor Girl getting the lines ready;

A look eastward from the top of the lock, towards Lake Simcoe. You can see how the locks are in close proximity along this stretch;

Looks like we got a great parking spot;

This is what the grounds look like. As I mentioned in the above video, the entire Waterway is operated by Parks Canada and, therefore, we can enjoy a park like setting at many of the locks. The ones in this area are particularly appealing as the have limited road access, keeping the road/car traffic to a minimum;

The cruise boat 'Kawartha Voyageur' passed through on day one. That big boat was built to fit in the smallest lock that it passes through. The tighter locks it passes through are accommodated by the fact that the bow section is hinged so that it can fold up, making room for the boat to get into a lock like this one;

Here she is exiting at the bottom;

Once again, I have MORE MIND BLOWING VIDEO to share of this monumental event;

Waiting at the bottom we have the 'Poker Sticks' & 'Sand Dollar' crews;

This was the first time for these guys to pass through this way;

They decided to continue on to attempt an overnight at Coboconk, on Balsam Lake. Ultimately, they ended up staying at the Kirkfield Liftlock;

Good time for a brief snooze. Ya, it was REALLY brief, as my first mate wouldn't stop bugging me;

This is one of my favorite photos of the summer of '11;

Nice spot;

Another look east;

A quiet evening;

The following day, Jim & Marg returned with Bill & Joan to spend some time here.
Here's Jimmy & I doing our best figuring out how to put his bug tent together;

Still working on it . . .

At least our fumbling around with the thing provided some entertainment for Bill & Joan;

TADA! We got it;

Just before the lock closed for the day, these guys moved their boats from the bottom to the top for the night;

This boat 'Life Is Short' was behind us. These folks have taken them words to heart and 'did the Loop' - all 6000+ miles of it - in this vessel a few years back.
Here's a LINK to their web site, if you would like to read about their adventure.
Good for them!!

BBQ time;

A nice evening;

This was the first time using the recently installed fire pit. They even sell firewood at the lock;

Jimmy kicking back to enjoy the fire - and maybe even an evening cocktail or two ;-)

Sunday morning and time to head home. Here the three of us in the lock;

'Poker Sticks' splashing through the waves on Simcoe. It doesn't look too rough in this photo, but we were having some waves break spray right up to the flybridge;

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

As we had such an enjoyable time on the long weekend, we decided to head back the following weekend, this time spending a night at Lock #40. The 'Docked Wages' crew were able to join us, as well;

Yaaaaaa!

There wasn't enough room at the top of the lock, so Boogaboo stayed tied up at the bottom side;

A final look out the side of Boogaboo . . .

Another Boating Year :-)

2012-01-08T20:10:00.001-05:00

2011 certainly ended well and 2012 has so far stayed in step, with really good weather - from a boater's point of view;-) I'm liking it and with the Boat Show starting at the end of the week, that can only mean that we are just about half way through & things should be heading in the right direction in no time. And by 'right direction', I'm saying 'back on the water';
(Thanks to the '"Overdoo' crew for snapping this beauty shot of us on the Severn River last summer!)

And, speaking of being back on the water, I put together this video of SWEET SUMMERTIME clips, set to a great SUMMERTIME song. Hope you enjoy it!

Another Year . . .

2011-12-12T22:02:00.000-05:00

2011 certainly brought some dramatic changes to the Boogaboo Crew, and that of our family and friends. Focusing on the positive, the best thing that came from our boating year was the move to a new marina and the fact that many of our boating buddies were able to join us.

Not to sound like a broken record, but I continue to be very busy with 'Work' work and haven't done as many updates as I would have liked to, but at least I've gotten quite a few videos posted and I'd like to share some of the newest ones with you. If you see anything you like, please leave a message on the LogBook. Not sure if that thing is still working? Seems to be pretty quiet over there these days, weeks and months. . .

Any ways, in no particular order, let's go boating;

First one is a seven minute full ride onto, over (down) and off the Big Chute Marine Railway (taken on our way to Georgian Bay this summer);

And, now it's time to go back up (taken on our way back from The Bay at the end of our holidays). Quick note that this was the very first time we were able to drive right up to the carriage without having to wait at the blue line;

Now let's take Boogaboo over to the gas dock for a pump out and back to the slip. Very dramaitc, I know ;-)

Now, let's pick up the pace a bit and let them horses fly across Parry Sound. I hope I don't mess my hair up ;-)

Since I didn't mess my hair up on that last one, maybe it's time to get it wet with a swim in Chicken Bay;

Here's a gale warning report from the end of September. How'd you like to be in the forecasted THIRTEEN FOOT waves?

More to come . . . .

Moon River Falls

2011-11-27T17:27:00.001-05:00

Another day that we were at Henry's with the big boat, we took an all day dingy adventure tour to the Moon River Falls. This is something we tried to get to a few years back (twice) with the 'Water Wings' & 'Sunaria' crews, but fate held us back and the trip never happened.

So fast forward to 2011 and another attempt. I'm happy to report that not only were we successful, but I have a bunch-o-photos and video to share with you :-)

Beleive it or not, but the round trip was 30 miles, so we had to make a pit stop at Woods Bay Marina on the way down for a fuel top up. As a matter of fact, I was a little concerned that our on board fuel tank wouldn't be able to get us there, so before leaving I 'borrowed' a small gas can at LeBlanc's (on the same island as Henry's) to fill and have as a spare for the trip. And when I say 'borrowed', I really meant 'rented' to the tune of $20. Plus fuel to fill it.
Note to self: bring small gas can from home to have for trips such as this. Believe it ;-)

A shot of the docks at Woods Bay. Almost all small, outboard powered boats here for the local cottagers. Biggest ship in port that day was a 340 Sundancer;

The store at the marina sold fuel, some groceries and the all important LCBO wares. Probably why it was so busy this day;

Not sure if this was a bad omen or not, but we spotted this turkey vulture on shore as we were making the final approach to the falls area;

Here we are. A popular spot for folks to dingy to;

Wow! Sure was a pretty sight;

This shot looks like a Group of Seven painting. I mentioned to Anchor Girl that this setting looked almost like someone built this to look as pretty as possible. I think 'someone' did and it was put there for us to enjoy.
Thank you.

Nice shorts buddy;

Pretty, eh?
Don't be afraid to leave your comments on the Log Book. I think that thing is still working . . . .

Preparing to get some really cool underwater videos to share with you;

Like a little kid playing in the water;

Here's the dingy where we parked it on the rocks. As you can see, we had to pull it up on the rock shelf to leave it while walking around. When it came time to leave, we had to work out our quick exit, as there was lots of big rocks just under the surface behind the boat. So the plan was for A.G. to push the dingy back while I dropped the motor and started it.
All good until she shoved us off and jumped into the boat - WITHOUT SITTING DOWN! Of course, I was looking back to get the outboard in the water and start it. When I pulled the cord, she was still leaning into the boat and - you guessed it - got the full force of the back of my hand right in her face!!
S M A C K !!!!!! Right in the kisser :-)
I guess that vulture we saw earlier was a bad omen (for her at least). . .

Here's some wonderful and masterfully edited video of the Falls;

Heading back to the big boat, we spotted a young bear swimming across one of the channels. You can see it here in front of a Sea Ray. I was in radio communication with the folks on the boat to make sure he saw it and didn't hit it or startle it any more than it probably already was;

Here's one last photo we got of it before a couple of jerks raced up to within a 100' of it, full speed ahead in a centre console fishing boat to grab some photos. Fortunately the fuzzy little guy was able to get to shore and quickly disappear into the brush before those goofs got right up to it;

Back at the Boogaboo boat for a lovely evening on The Bay;

Sea Ray Plant Tour

2011-11-19T19:42:00.001-05:00

At long last, I'm finally gonna post some photos & video from our tour of the Palm Coast Sea Ray manufacturing plant we took back in February when we were in Florida. When we were in Florida?!?!? The Sea Ray plant tour was the whole inspiration for the trip to begin with - I kid you not!

So, Mr. Harbour Master, here are the photos you requested.

Told you I was there;

This was so cool, the folks at the plant knew we were coming & had this welcome ready for us - that's 'Commodore Frankie & Anchor Girl', in case you can't read it through the Florida sunshine glare;

It was neat to see how all the components of the inside were put in place before the upper deck was installed;

Here we see the interior walls being put together. I was impressed to see that they built all the cabinetry and did all the upholstery right on site. I always figured they would bring those components in from outside suppliers.
No, I wasn't taking notes, just listening;

The engine bay with all the systems in place for a big Sundancer;

Here's the upper deck section ready to be 'married' to the hull in the previous picture;

A finished Sundancer, ready for final rigging;

This is Shawn Wilson, who was good enough to take us on a 1-1/2 tour of the ENTIRE plant. He is the guy to contact at Sea Ray for any technical support or insights, as he has been working with them for 25 years in the manufacturing side and can come up with part numbers by wrote & has an encyclopedic recall of the boats, hulls, engines and parts right down to special clips that hold down trim!
In this shot, Shawn was just looking back to make sure I wasn't taking any spy photos of hull #1 of the newest 450 Sedan Bridge (the current designation for our Boogaboo boat) before it reached the market;

This is the final station before the boats go in the water, where the boats are gone over by white clad specialists who make sure there are no scratches or other blemishes - including touching up the bottom coat paint.
Again, I was very impressed with the attention to detail and quality put into a mass production boat. I guess that's one reason that Sea Ray was able to weather the economic melt down in the US boating market, as well the support of long term, die hard Sea Ray owners like my wife ;-)

The last part of the process is an in water test of EVERY boat that they produce, complete with a Mercruiser technician diling in the power plants. After that, it's a shake down cruise on Florida's Inter Coastal Waterway to make sure everything is ship-shape.
And yes, they actually pay people to do this kind of thing. Did I mention this is in Florida??

Video time;

The Waubuno - A History Lesson

2011-11-19T17:42:00.001-05:00

WAKE UP! We haven't even started with the history lesson and some of you are already nodding off . Stay with me, this is gonna be fun ;-)

For this year's Georgian Bay summer holiday review, I figured we'd look mostly at places that we visited for the first time, as I know you don't want/need to see all of the same old, same old. Right?

That is, unless I got some particularly nice shots at Henry's again that are simply too nice to pass up. Or Parry Sound. Well, you get the idea. . .

So, since we are already on the subject of Henry's World Famous Fish Restaurant, when we were there this year for a few days, we took a dingy ride over to Wreck Island to check out the remains of the wreck of the side paddle wheel ship, 'Waubuno', which was lost in a gale on the night of November 22, 1879.
The significance of that date is two-fold, as it's 132nd anniversary is only days away (from the date of this posting) and the 22nd of November is also the date that President Johnathan Fitzgerald Kennedy was assassinated.

We're going to start with this historical plaque which is actually located in Parry Sound, well north of the wreck site. The reason for this is that the the Waubuno had been heading for Parry Sound on it's fateful last journey when it was lost;

This anchor from vessel is located next to the historical plaque in the park, which is ironically in a place called 'Anchor Park'! How cool is that, that they were able to find a park with a a name that suited the anchor / Anchor Park relationship ;-)

On to the wreck site. Another bit of irony for those of you taking notes - the wreck is actually just off of 'Bradden Island', which is right beside Wreck Island;

Here's a shot of the remains from the surface;

Here's a long shot of the resting place, showing how close it is to shore. The red circle is where the bow of the boat is - the only part of the boat that is sticking out above the water's surface;

I was amazed to see how much has survived after 130 + years;

Looking back westward from the wreck site towards the open Bay, one can see the two giant rocks that protect the remains from the full fury of Georgian Bay.
So, how did it get here, you ask? Remember that the water level has dropped roughly five feet (!!) in the past 20 - 25 years, and the gale that caused it's demise would have resulted in a storm surge of three or more feet, so the ship would have been able to easily clear (or be pounded on) those rocks back in the day;

More cool shots;

The bow of the ship, currently above the surface level;

The keel of the ship;

Here's some really cool underwater video;

Edmund Fitzgerald Anniversary

2011-11-10T21:54:00.001-05:00

Just a quick note that today (November 10) marks the 35th anniversary of the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald - an event made infamous by the song by Gordon Lightfoot. The song somehhow always reminds me of Georgian Bay. . . Wonder why that is?

Here's a cool compilation video I found of the event, with Gordon providing the haunting musical accompaniment;

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Speaking of shipwrecks and Georgian Bay, there is another upcoming anniversary - that of the loss of 'The Wabano'. In the next couple of weeks I'll be putting up some cool underwater video I took when Anchor Girl & I visited the resting place of the ship, back on our summer holidays.

In the meantime, here's a couple of still shots that I grabbed from said video;

Redneck Turkey(s)

2011-11-06T19:12:00.000-05:00

Howdy, folks!

Before we start with this overdue posting, I wanted to point out a new feature on the Blog. Now, to see the photos in their full, expanded size, just click on any one of them and they will show up 'over' the page, with the rest as click-able thumbnails across the bottom of the page. Check it out - it's a neat little bonus, courtesy those smart folks at Google.

This year's Thanksgiving long weekend couldn't have been better, with weather that would rival any summer long weekend, any year! Four days of incredible conditions made for one of the best wrap up weekends ever. And to top off the wonderful weather, we were able to give thanks over a Deep-Fried Turkey dinner, get in a last run with a trip to Orillia for lunch and take the car out for it's own, *unique* cruise ;-)

Friday evening at the slip. Did I mention we are very happy here?

Wevvy showed up with his 'NoGo', ready to play;

Lovely fall evening colours over the water;

A video of the deep frying of the soon to be deep fried turkey;

Late afternoon on Saturday, we sat down to turkey dinner #1 of the weekend;

How's the bird, Bill?

Even the 'Five O'clock Somewhere' bird was ready to party;

After dinner, we all went for a stroll to the beach;

On the way, we took in the water reflecting the sun on the trees in the distance;

What a sight at the beach! Dead calm water on Lake Simcoe and a spectacular setting sun!

What did I tell ya . . .

Our walk to the beach video;

Everybody smile & wave!

Gorgeous;

On Sunday, we all piled aboard Boogaboo for the last run of the season;

Heading out of the marina, we passed by our friends Joe & Tracey, coming in from their dingy ride out on the lake;

A stern (but fair) shot leaving the breakwaters of Lagoon City;

The gals enjoy the view from the bow as we head through the Narrows;

Here's 5+ minutes of the trip on video, courtesy of the guy with all the cameras;

Boogaboo IV makes it's first stop at the Port of Orillia;

Perhaps it's because we hadn't visited this place in a couple of years, or maybe it's because we've visited so many other new places, but this spot used to be allot more appealing. Now it's starting to look really run down;

What a great, slow afternoon cruise back;

One last look back from the helm at Lake Simcoe for the 2011 season;

Taking her back into our home port;

Monday morning fog made for some pretty pictures. And no, it wasn't tire smoke from burn outs. That would be later in the day ;-)

Looking back from the flybridge;

Can you see the seagull on the post?

We went over to the gas dock with Wevvy for his last pump out. Afterwards, we went out for a quick rip on the lake;

Joe & Tracey brought their boat over for the last pump out as well;

Looking eastward from the gas dock, we see the main office/washrooms/hot tub with restaurant on the second floor;

Ron & Moe were out in the old Boogaboo boat at anchor for the last time, enjoying the final days of the season. It was so warm that the kids were even in swimming - and this was October!

See you on the water next year . . .

2011 Haulout :-(

2011-11-06T15:44:00.001-05:00

Yes, it's that sad time of the year again, with Boogaboo IV being hauled a few short weeks ago.

The positive side is that I am content in the knowledge that the boat is somewhere that the the staff actually care about it and will keep tabs on things during the off season. That, and I have access to both shore power AND warm, clean washroom facilities all winter :-) And, the office is open all year, so if I need some parts, etc., in a hurry, it's available. Plus, Steve, the service manager, was good enough to place the boat close to the road and office, as well as a working shore power outlet. That's a good thing.

It was WAY less stressful having the boat come out of the water and set in place by way of travel lift, as opposed to the tight launch ramp and precarious truck/trailer system used in the last marina;

Boogaboo resting at it's off season location (right next to that beautiful Challenger, which will not be spending the season there);

Some uneventful video of the haul out event;

Gettin' Better All The Time!

2011-09-23T09:55:00.000-04:00

Thanks for the latest comments on the Log Book! I guess we'll be seeing you guys next year eh, Commander Riker ;-) And PARKER! I thought you guys were out of boating all together - we never saw you once after the spring at the marina :-( So, you're going back (again) to Keswick with Getaway? I bet John is going to LOVE to have Diane back again, eh? And yes, Gary, I'll have LOTS of videos coming - as soon as the boat is out of the water . . .

As I compose this posting on the last day of summer 2011, I find myself not so much looking back, but forward. Yes, we had great weather this summer - no complaints here - but I'm happy for a couple of reasons that we are in the 'here and now'.

This past spring brought really close to home one more reminder of how short this plane of existence is, with a difficult loss that made me reevaluate a lot of things, including our short time of summer and the thing we enjoy the most - our boating time. To that end, both Anchor Girl and I have taken pretty much every Friday off of work with most weekends starting Thursday evening aboard Boogaboo. Hey, we even spent a few Sunday nights on board & I don't regret the 4:45 am Monday morning alarm clock wake ups. And you know what? Despite the reduced hours at work and having to compress my business in to 4 days, you'd think it would be a bit of a struggle, but it's surprisingly easy. As easy as an attitude adjustment.

And things are only getting better :-)

Better in the fact that we are now enjoying a marina where we feel truly relaxed and welcome. As you read in my last post, I was forced to leave our last marina and the weeks and months leading up to that were far from relaxing. It's sad that we went from feeling 'at home' with the previous marina owners to feeling like, well, disrespected (to say the least) by the new so called 'management' of the facility. It sucked and I was actively looking for at least winter storage for the boat, as I didn't want to be held hostage once our boat came out of the water.

So, here we are, content to be in our new home. Too bad it didn't happen earlier.

A couple of weeks ago, we celebrated Anchor Girl's 50th birthday at the boat with a last minute dinner at one of the local restaurants. Here's AG & Sylvie getting ready to head on over to the Harbour Inn, located right in Lagoon City;

A quick look across the water from our slip. Sure was a beautiful evening;

Jim & Marg, as well as Wevvy, Sylvie and Jason joined us for the evening.
(The dinner was Sylvie's idea. Seemed I was a little preoccupied with Anchor Girl's surprise present and didn't have anything else set up for the Big 5-0);

Awe, the happy couple;

The singing of 'Happy Birthday' indicated to her that something special - CAKE - was on it's way;

Save a big piece for me!

To help celebrate, the owner of the restaurant sent us over a tray of flaming Zambuka - on the house;

Being in the spirit, a usually abstaining Wevvy helped himself to a couple of shots of the spirits;

The next day, me & Wevvy concocted a cover story to head out for a few hours while we dropped off her old car and picked up her birthday surprise. Look at that, it even matches the Boogaboo boat ;-)

Anchor Girl toasts her new ride;

This video shows the pick up, and delivery of the car to a suprised, shocked and very happy birthday girl (not to mention a little bit of 'play time' with the car before I got it to her ;-)

The Big City

2011-09-14T22:33:00.000-04:00

After a long break from the Blog, I wanted to give you all a quick update on what's recently happened with the Boogaboo Crew. In case you missed it (or was looking for us), I was 'asked to leave' - along with Boogaboo IV - our former dockage at Everglades Marina by the management :-(

Too bad, so sad.

But that's not all, folks. I'm not even allowed to step back on the marina property. Geez, you'd think I did something really horrible, or was behind with my account, or pissed off the neighbors, or abused the facilities, or threatened someone, or broke something, or played my stereo too loud, or sped the boat through the marina, or made too much dust in the car, or used too much water, or flushed the toilets too much. . . Nope, non of the above. Huh.

Best of luck to those of you who are still there.

I don't have time to bore you with all the details right now, other than to say we are VERY HAPPY to finally be in Lagoon City Marina :-)

Boogaboo in the new slip;

Still Boating

2011-06-22T21:58:00.000-04:00

Ya, it has been awhile since the last post, but we're still here. In fact, we've been able to add quite a few Fridays to the weekends so far this season and head up to the boat on Thursday evenings :-)

Makin' the most of the boating dream . . .

Here's a video of our first dingy ride of the season. It's a bit shaky at first, as I had the camera mounted right on the outboard. We topped out at 20 MPH with the two of us aboard!

Back On The Water

2011-05-11T22:37:00.000-04:00

Care to go for a fifteen minute boat ride with me? Ya, that means 15 minutes of boating video I took last weekend . . .

Let's go over to the gas docks for a pump out and a quick spin on the lake to check out all the systems. Then it's back to the slip for another clean landing. I sure am having fun driving that big boy.

Don't worry, I didn't include the clip of me crawling around the engine room while we were under way - although the shot of the spinning shafts was quite exciting ;-)

Here we go;

Splish - Splash

2011-05-11T05:55:00.000-04:00

After three weeks of launching, it looks like pretty much all of the boats are now in the water, except for a few late stragglers. And all that BEFORE the May 2-4 long weekend . . . ;-)

Here's a dramatic and very well edited video of two particular boats being launched and parked in their new slips - all set to an appropriate soundtrack (you can close the ads that pop up in this one by clicking the little 'X' at the top, right hand corner of the ad);

That Shrinking Feeling

2011-04-27T21:24:00.000-04:00

Here's a video of the exciting shrink wrap removal from Boogaboo, a couple of weeks back. But more on that in a moment . . .

The boat was launched last week and Anchor Girl & I spent most of the weekend aboard, cleaning and putting stuff away. It was a bit of a hiccup at first, as our new docks hadn't got the shore power hooked up right away, but we were happy to get full juice late on Friday afternoon.

That was the good part.

I had an 'interesting' talk with one of the new owners this past Monday to see when we could expect to see the gas dock - specifically the pump out - available. Without going into the specifics of the un- f****ing believable reply I got, let me just say that all of us 'guests' of the marina should check to see what services AND WHEN we should expect with the new team in place. I was NOT happy with both what I was told and the way I was told. That's right, my friends - TOLD!

Now I know who owns the marina, the docks and the electricity. Because I was told.

Not to fear, I've already received assurance that Lagoon City Marina WILL be open this weekend to provide full service to all boaters.

On to the video;

No Shoes, No Shirt, No Problems :-)

2011-03-28T21:22:00.001-04:00

As we are still suffering through the LAST bit of winter's cold, I felt inspired to put together some warming clips of tropical Florida to heat things up!

This is a compilation of some video I took down in Fort Lauderdale in February. And yes, those are private boats you are seeing. . .

Home Again

2011-03-26T14:30:00.001-04:00

May I present the final part of our Great Adventure, delivering our new boat home from Michigan to Lake Simcoe in Ontario, Canada.

I know it's only taken me the whole winter to get it posted, but this was the hardest part of the trip - actually getting home and calling it a day. I tell ya, when we did get back to our marina and eventually left for home (our house, that is), it sure was tough. After dreaming, hoping, working for and finally realizing the dream - not to mention the fun and excitement of driving the Big Boy nearly 700 miles all the way from another country, through mostly brand new waters to us - it was difficult to walk away :-(

But, go home we did. After all, that was the point of the trip, right?

See, I feel better about it already :-)

Leaving our anchorage of the previous two nights, we were back on the main Small Craft Route heading south.
Here is 'Water Wings' approaching the turn at O'Donnell Point in the clear morning sunshine. What a beautiful day;

Rounding the big marker on the point of O'Donnell Point;

On the way down, we took a little side trip through a place called 'Indian Harbour' to see what it looked like. Very pretty with the rocks on shore being very smooth as they rise out of the water;

The route is very well marked, but, as with any ventures on the water, one must be careful to stay on the correct path.
A couple we know from our marina had been coming to this very spot for a number of years but ended up hitting bottom here two seasons ago. When I say hit bottom, I mean they hit with such force that one outdrive was badly damaged and the other one was sheared completely off!! The result? An abbreviated holiday and a $12,000 insurance claim. . .

This guy is known as 'The Hitchhiker';

The 'Big Boy' on The Bay;

The Picnic Island store at Honey Harbour can mean only one thing - we are close to the end of our time on Georgian Bay for another year :-(

If we study this photo closely, two things become apparent; First, we can see the highway 69 bridge in the distance making this the approach to the first lock of the Trent Severn Waterway at Port Severn.
Second, we can see the anxious look of trepidation on the face of my lovely wife who is not looking forward to taking this big boat through ANY lock for the first time.
Can't imagine why. . .

Oh ya, this is why.
Clearly, the up-bound channel to the lock under the bridge is very narrow and the current that tends to push the boat's bow from side to side is always a treat.
You'll be happy to learn that I managed to stay on course through here, but landing the boat on the lock wall didn't go quite as smoothly. The result was a HIGHLY animated 'discussion' between the Captain and First Mate.
I swear that the lock walls are still ringing!

Fast forward two hours and we are quietly, calmly secured to the dock at the five star Rawley Resort (and they even let people like us in);

Anchor Girl patiently wates for me to get a shot of our boats;

Walking over to the restaurant for dinner;

Say "CHEESE!"

Mmmmmm, desert time;

You don't wanna mess with this guy's cake ;-)

'Boogaboo IV' climbs aboard the Big Chute Marine Railway for the very first time;

With the boats all settled in, the big machine starts it's upward trek;

Geez, it almost looks like I ain't got no pants on;

I know that there's allot of boaters who are apprehensive of going over 'The Chute', but after passing through all but one of the 43 locks on the Trent Severn Waterway, I can tell you that this one is by far the easiest and least stressful of them all.
For those of you who haven't seen my previous posts of this technological wonder, here's the view from inside the boat, as we travel up the hill;

And, as yet another bonus feature, some video of our ride;

Looking back;

And a zoomed in shot of the Water Wings crew waiting on the blue line for their turn;

The next lock is Swift Rapids, which has the highest average 'lift' of 47' (the distance that the boats are lifted or lowered) of any of the conventional locks on the system;

Passing through the MacDonald Cut;

Next stop is the last lock before home;

'Boogaboo IV' & 'Water Wings' inside of Lock #42 (Couchiching Lock);

Our home for the night, on the blue line;

The entire crew of 'Docked Wages' had coem up for the night & met us here;

The three boats on the wall;

Wevvy & Jason come over to take a peek at the new boat;

Jason entertains us with one of his fishing stories;

Final day on the water for this trip as we pass through The Narrows, between Lakes Couchiching and Simcoe;

Crossing over the lake to our home port, Lake Simcoe gives the Big Boy an appropriate welcome;

Arriving at the gas dock to see where they was gonna put us. Ultimately, we ended up docking right here for the balance of the season while the marina operators figurred out what to do with us.
I know some of you probably had a few ideas of your own, but . . .
To top things off, the 'Docked Wages' crew were in the midst of upgrading to a much bigger boat and needed a place to keep it as well. . .

The chartplotter shows the final tally of 662.4 statute miles traveled on this great adventure;

Home.
Total Trip Time: 25 days
Total Distance Covered: 662.4 Miles
Fuel Consumed: Don't Ask
Result: A Dream Come True!!

Now, all we need is a new slip . . .

Homeward Bound

2011-03-19T21:21:00.001-04:00

Hey! What's happen to the Rotten Row site?!?!?

Well, I've noticed that most of you visit this Blog by clicking on the link from the RottenRow.ca site, but, as you must be well aware by now, there ain't nothing new going up there.

ALL the newest stuff happens here. So, I simply made it so you are redirected to this place when attempting to visit RottenRow.ca.

Don't worry, the old site is still there. If you want top delve into the past fun, just follow the new link at the top of this page. . . .

Happy first day of Spring!!!

Another winter has come & gone, I'm happy to report :-)

This is the next to last posting from our Big Adventure, one that took us and our new Sea Ray Sedan Bridge from Michigan to Lake Simcoe over a three and half week period of traveling the waterways . . .

After spending a couple of days at Big Sound Marina in Parry Sound, we headed back southward with the 'Water Wings' & 'Maple Leaf' crews.

This is the Coast Guard station at Parry Sound, located immediately to the north of Big Sound Marina;

When visiting Parry Sound (the town), there are two routes one can take to get there. The most direct one when coming from the south (the one we have taken these past few seasons) is South Channel. The other route rounds the north side of Parry Island and leads through Parry Sound (the body of water).
This would be the first time taking the Parry Sound/body of water route for the Boogaboo crew. I don't mean to sound like a highly seasoned traveler, but when captain Von Analus referred to the Sound as 'Big Water', we were somewhat taken aback by that pronouncement. After crossing both Lake Huron and the main part of Georgian Bay, this was akin to a day on Cooks Bay :-) Deep, yes, but BIG, not really.

Snapped this photo at the top end of the Sound (that's Killbear Provincial Park towards the top right corner) at 1:22 pm. Clear and sunny - with some ground level clouds in the distance;

This was taken at 1:36 p.m., a mere 14 minutes later and that ground level cloud has presented itself as full on fog. These are the types of conditions that warrant that new chartplotter I got to replace the old, unreliable Raytheon unit that came with the boat;

Like I always say, it's all good so long as I can see Analus's behind.
So to speak ;-)

These guys popped out of the fog right in front of us;

Things are clearing now as we head into a beautiful stretch called Long Sault;

Clear, sunny and hot for the rest of the trip southward;

As I mentioned in the previous post, the Georgian Queen caught up to us at this point. We were wondering how far it could proceed along this path, as the charts indicated some tight and winding passages ahead of us.
Ultimately, it turned of the route we followed and stayed more out on the open Bay. Good thing, too, as we were traveling slower & he would have been right up to us in no time;

Here's a series of shots taken through Long Sault. A really pretty passage!

:-)

Looks pretty narrow, eh?

Try it with a 14'-3" beam ;-)

:-)

As were on our way down, captain Analus decided he would try to get as close to the port hand markers as possible with his dingy in tow. Something about the running joke that if one isn't sure where to go, the best bet is to 'stay close to the green ones'. So, he did;

Four hours later, we decided to pull back into Wani Bay for the night, as the Maple Leaf crew had not got to experience this slice of heaven - and their batteries were still giving them troubles.
At least we know that this place is Number One with Analus;

I'll toast to that!
I tell ya, there's nothing like an ice cold beer after a day of traveling on the water;

Another beautiful sunset to cap off the day;

Look - over there . . .

Miss Ellie heads to the bow of Maple Leaf to enjoy the evening sky;

Looks like we're still Number One :-)

Yes, I do have a thing for sun sets . . .
Wow;

I don't recall what song was playing, but it looks like the three of us at least knew the chorus;

Last year, we got a new camera so that Anchor Girl could capture (amongst all the other beautiful shots) some close up photos of the Loons we see along the way.
Here's a couple of really good, clear ones she got while we were here;

This one, too;

Everyone's taking a mid day swim;

And I'm just enjoying the lovely scenery ;-)

Unfortunately, the Maple Leaf had to leave before the rest of us to get back home in the U.S., as they had learned a few days before that their garage back home had a small fire & they were anxious to get back to see the extent of the damage;

Later that afternoon, Anchor Girl & I took the dingy for a tour around some of the micro bays in the area to check out the scenery. We eneded up finding our way into a great little bay that I figurred we could easily get the Big Boy into for an anchroage & wonderred why nobody else was anchoring in there.
On the way out (through a different path) we spotted this sign. Pretty much tells the storey;

Take a look at this rock we saw on the way back to our boats. Looks like any other rock one would see on The Bay, right?
Look closer;

Don't that look like a cartoon duck that was painted on the rock? It wasn't - just a natural fault line shaped like it;

Now, THIS is what a real duck on a rock looks like;

Another inspirational view for the Group Of Seven artists;

That afternoon we spotted a C-130 Hercules search and rescue plane flying low and slow overhead. That's what these guys on deck were looking at - along with pretty much everyone else in this bay;

Seems the Coast Guard got a report of a cruiser on fire in the area of Starvation Bay, which was no more than a kilometre north of us;

Here's some video from the dramatic air search for the vessel;

Evening presented us with DEAD CALM waters.
A great opportunity to see all of the stuff going on below the surface. I didn't get a photo or any video of it, but Analus & I saw a Loon 'flying' through the water right behind the boats. Ya, Anchor Girl was sitting on the swim platform and the thing darted within inches of her feet, but she missed seeing it. A very cool experience!
Take a look at how far along you can see the stern anchor line;

What is Analus looking for?

He's looking for another one of these big monsters!
This catfish must have been 3' long with a girth of at least 10"!

Video of the GIANT fish.
Sort of;

Not wanting to miss an opportunity of letting the Big One get away, Analus quickly got into the dingy for a few casts. Seems those big old fish are a bit smarter, as he only snagged a little guy;

Our last evening at anchor for our holidays :-(
It sure is a wonderful experience to spend a few days and nights at anchor in a spot like this - close to nature, no traffic sounds and lots of . . . . great memories.
One of those great memories for me is to relive the wonderment of being able to hit a switch to fire up the genny (it exhausts underwater and is very quiet as to not disturb the neighbors) and be able to use ALL the the systems on board;

Next time we get 'Boogaboo IV' to it's new home on Lake Simcoe.

Mega Yachts Of The Rich & Famous

2011-03-18T19:19:00.001-04:00

When we were in Fort Lauderdale a few weeks ago, we happened to run into non other than Robin Leach, checking out some of the never ending supply of mega yachts in that town. Here's a fascinating video interview I got with him ;-)

Come Fly With Me

2011-03-08T22:41:00.002-05:00

Thanks to all the recent comments on the Log Book!

Good to hear from you all - even you folks that I have yet to meet in person :-)

Keep 'em coming . . .

Glad to see that this weekend we go back to Daylight Savings Time and enjoy longer days again. Sure is going to be nice to have sun past 7:00.

The countdown clock is telling me that we aren't much more than a month away from Re-Launch.

WOO-HOO ! ! ! !

Ya, it's been awhile since my last 'big' posting, so I'm making it up to you with more than 50 photos and nearly 30 minutes of video. Now you know why these things take me so darn long :-)

After a couple of nights in Wani Bay, we continued northward to Henry's Restaurant and a little surprise I had waiting for Von Analus.

Here's a shot of the morning we pulled anchor;

But before we go on to Henry's, I have a couple of videos I wanted to share that I took of the spectacular sunset & captured from the dingy while on Wani Bay.
Listen to Analus commenting on how he had this bay built just for me. . . What a nice guy :-)

Look at that sky!!

Henry's is located on Frying Pan Island and on the south east approach to the island is a store/fuel dock called LeBlancs. Here we are, topping off the tanks.
I'd like to thank Mr. Analus for his help with me learning the new boat and being there as an extra set of hands on docks like this and an extra set of eyes when under way;

We're baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack;

OF course, they parked us right next to our sister ship, so I was obliged to compare notes with the crew of 400 Sedan, 'D ' N ' R';

A look back off our stern at the - you guessed it - rocks and trees.
Beautiful;

Secure on the docks at Henry's for the night . . . Or two;

Boogaboo, Water Wings and Maple Leaf;

Scotty (Captain Butterball) arrived just in time to leave the waterways and hit the airways.
Yes, that's a video camera that I'm holding. I have a 13 minute video compilation of our flight that is posted below these next few photos;

The boys are ready to take off on a flight over the Small Craft Route!

Of course, before departure we had to sign our lives away and absolve Georgian Bay Airways of liability if the flight ended badly. I wonder if that form would survive, if things were to go really bad;

Buckle Up;

The ladies seeing us off;

Taxiing away from the dock;

And we're off!

Take a close look at this photo and you can see the markers in the water.
This is Starvation Bay & one can see how close you are to the rocks lurking just below the surface while transiting this area. Be sure to watch your charts;

This is looking east, up Twelve Mile Bay. Wani Bay is is just about a mile up;

Wani Bay. We had been anchored here only a few hours before & now we are flying over it.
Pretty cool;

A close up of our anchorage at Wani, tucked in behind that tiny island at the top;

Lots of rocks and stuff to avoid, eh?
Ya, ALL of them!

Our docks at Henry's;

Snug Harbour Lighthouse;

This is the 550 passenger Island Queen cruise ship, which comes out of Parry Sound. We would end up being followed by this vessel - the largest cruise ship in Canada - later on our trip through this very picturesque passage;

The Captain of Water Wings earns his air wings;

The Small Craft Route looking north with Frying Pan Island to the left (west);

Check out these next two phots.
This first one is taken from 'far away', showing all the hazards to cruise around;

And this next one is 'close in' of the lead boat in the above photo;

Echo Bay;

I believe this is just entering into Long Sault, west of Parry Sound;

O'Donnell Point (you can see the big lighted marker (center left);

Big David Bay;

Le Blancs;

Those two guys. The one on the right just acts like a little boy some times . . .

One last pass over Henry's before bringing it in for a landing.
See the plane's shadow?

Splash Down!

WOW - what a blast! Now, as promised here's the 13 minute & 48 second video compilation of the take off, flight and bouncy landing.
Hold on to you hats, folks;

Safely back on the ground, it was time for a cold drink in the hot sunshine;

OK, so it was quite hot & Captain Butterball may have had one or three too many right after the plane ride;

Ya, he was flying again in no time;

Here's a video of the two days here. You'll see the effects of those drinks that Scotty had in rapid succession;

Analus checking out Mr. Burke's Brackets;

Scotty seams to be in better shape now after his swim;

On the morning of the second day, we were all preparing to leave with the Maple Leaf pulling out off the docks first.
Problem.
Turns out the shaft came right out of the carrier and he lost all thrust control of the boat. Good thing they were still close enough to the dock to throw a line and get pulled back in safely.
So, we spent the balance of that day repairing it, including multiple dives to slide out and re set the drive shaft. A fun thing to do in 8' of water, on a floating dock;

Von Analus preps the shaft dog for the reassembly;

Ultimately, the boat was able to carry on, but we ended staying an extra night at Henry's.
Not a bad prospect - I'd be happy to spend two or three days here anytime!

Especially with my new boat ;-)

We treated ourselves to dinner at the restaurant one evening.
Here, Analus takes his turn signing their Guest Book;

The next day Anchor Girl & I headed up to Parry Sound to do some shopping - our first major one since getting into Canada. Remember that this was already week two for us on our big adventure.

Passing through Two Mile Narrows.
But Paul, you must be thinking, these two shots show you heading OUT of Parry Sound. What's up with that?
Well, the day after we got there, we started to head back to the Sans Souci area to once agian hook up with the Water Wings/Maple Leaf crews and check out another anchorage. Alas, as it always seams to be in boating, the best laid plans don't always pan out. We had anticipated stopping by LeBlancs for a pump out , but their system was down. So, we spun the boat back around and headed back to Parry Sound for the second time on this trip.
Why does this sound like our 2009 trip up this way . . .?

A really neat shot of Water Wings coming into the harbour as a float plane lands seemingly right in front of the boat;

Nice docks here - and LOTS of water pressure!

Water Wings and the Maple Leaf;

A look to the east from our boat;

Loose something down there, Scotty?

I got this shot from the fly-bridge. Another fantastic sunset!

This was the moring we were leaving Parry Sound (for the last time in 2010).
Kinda looks like we got some fog rolling in . . . . .

Next time we head south through a new route of the Long Sault and a return anchorage at Wani Bay before taking the Big Boy to it's new home on Lake Simcoe.

A Ray Of Sunshine

2011-02-27T15:40:00.001-05:00

Paul - when are we gonna see the next update on this site?

Soon :-)

Ya, you've heard it before, but I have been REALLY busy with work - so much so that a well desrved break was in order! So, what better than to head down for some sun rays and Sea Rays in hot southern Florida and walks along the beach? I'll tell you. How about a week on the beach PLUS a guided tour of the Sea Ray manufacturing plant to see where my boat was built?!?!?

So we did. And it was great!!! Lots of pics and videos of the BIG boats down there to follow.

Soon. . .

And you're gonna get a real kick out of the welcome they had prepared for us when we arrived here :-)

A New Bay

2011-01-29T21:27:00.009-05:00

~ 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 kinda 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 Analus assured me we would go (the Water Wings crew had been here before).

I had a request to show where this place is located (exactly), so I'm re-posting the Google map of our delivery route from Michigan to home waters. This anchorage is shown on the map with - what else - an anchor icon :-) Use the zoom tools at the top left hand corner of the map to see everything up close, OR, click on this link 'Sea Ray 400 Sedan Delivery Route'. to really have fun with it. That'sa right, maps ARE fun. . .

View Sea Ray 400 Sedan Delivery Route in a larger map

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, Von Analus 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 dinky;

The next day, we went for a dinky ride over to O'Donnell Point to check out the many, mini islands;

Let's go onto this one;

Cool looking rocks, eh? The moss looking material is actually called 'Lichen' & is a hybrid organism that is sort of a cross between an algea 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;

If you ask Mr. Analus, he'll probably tell you that he left a little part of him behind here.
Must be something about long dinky rides . . .

Evening two 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 managable 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 . . .

More video.
You're welcome;

Yes, Wevvy, this is the channel where we talked you into the bigger boat ;-)

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;

Don't remember the joke, but Analus seems in a jokular mood;

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!!

Back On The Bay

2010-12-20T22:23:00.001-05:00

~ Long(er) Days ~

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;

Speaking of long days, I'm happy to be blessed with lots of work in my business right now and have been traveling out of town to do it. So, the 'Paul, you have too much time on your hands' days are extremely few and far between - not even any time to do our own home improvement projects.
That said, I won't be putting a Year End Video together for the 2010 season. Instead, I'm trying to include more video clips here on the site, as there ain't gonna be any DVD production this year . . .

~ Pearls Of Wisdom ~

It's good to see non other than Commander Dom back on the Logbook.

It was only a couple of weeks ago that I was reading through the archived logbook and I was thinking that the captain of the Gothic Pearl was one of the top contributors back in the day. . . .

For those of you who have forgotten, the Gothic Pearl was a once proud, classic vessel from the days of wood - and fun. Ahh yes, how many times did I hear Dom's voice ringing in my ears with tails of boating adventures, anchoring out on the open lake and travels to distant points & ports.

Maybe this year we'll see the old Garlic Pillow once again plying the waters and, perhaps, leading the way to new, un-found boating destinations???

Besides, it's been awhile since I've seen any UFO's (not since last summer, anyway).

~ Boat Show ~

What's the best thing to happen in January? The Toronto International Boat Show!

This year it's on from January 8th to 16th. Looking forward to it, as I got a big list of 'essentials' for the big boat ;-)

~ 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 - without me yelling at her ;-)

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, eh?

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;

The next morning, Mr. Von Analus sits back to enjoy the beginnings of a hot, sunny summer day;

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 Analus told us about. We'll visit that in the next segment;

Tim's Passing

2010-12-03T20:05:00.000-05:00

It saddens me to learn that Tim passed away a couple of weeks ago.

I only knew Tim as the marina 'Big Guy', the go-to man if there was something you needed - or needed done, but I know that here are many there who knew him as a good friend. Always quick with a smile or chuckle, he was a good guy to deal with. . .

If you wish to leave a message, an online book of condolences has been set up at Adams Funeral Home.

Around The Cape

2010-11-27T22:21:00.006-05:00

Part Three of the Big Boat Delivery HOME From Michigan to Lake Simcoe

After departing Kincardine, we headed northward across the last half of our time on Lake Huron. To clarify, that would be the last time this time.
Another 80 miles of open water traveling brought us to our turning point at Cape Hurd. This is where Georgian Bay begins - or ends, depending on your orientation - and Lake Huron (proper) is left behind;

Video taken just before rounding 'Cape Hurd';

Video of us passing through 'Devils' Island Channel' - leaving Lake Huron and coming onto Georgian Bay and passing dangerously close to the North Channel ;-)

Upon arriving at Tobermory, we found out that there were no more empty slips available and that we would have to raft off one of the tour boats already tied to the wall. The only catch was that if said boat was to head out, we would have to untie from him, drive out into the harbour, allow him to leave, tie up to the wall ourselves and wait for him to return, upon which redoing that sequence again in reverse.
Well, my approach and docking was not the most stress free, considering the traffic, congestion and strong winds, so I asked the dock attendant is there was any chance of us NOT having to be subject to that scenario. Thing was, that after more than five hours on the water, I was looking forward to relaxing with an ice cold beer or two which meant I wasn't going to be doing any more driving that day. Fortunately, we got word that the tour boat was planing to stay put for the rest of the day and the following one, so we could look forward to some down time.

I took this clip of the Blue Heron cruse boat - one of the many - coming back into Little Tub Harbour.This 'glass bottom' boat takes passengers out to see some of the many wrecks lying on the bottom in the area, as well as a tour of Flower Pot Island;

Here's a look out of our port hind quarter. Tobermory is the only spot in the area for boaters to re-provision and has pretty much everything one would need, including a full Foodland grocery store, laundry mat, boating supplies (we picked up our Canadian bow flag here) as well as a liquor store and fuel dock.
Beyond that, there is a launch ramp and is ground zero for tour and dive boats, as well as the many private vessels that come and go and, of course, the overnighting transients, such as ourselves;

Here's a shot of Boogaboo tied up alongside the steel hulled tour/dive boat that was our companion for two days and nights. I'm glad he was tied well to the dock as we would have some really high winds the second evening we were here;

Looking north east from the town docks. I tell ya, this place is not one for the faint of heart to get into for the first time, but I guess that's part of the adventure. And it keeps the blood pumping ;-)

Here's something from this same spot, just looking around;

I went for a walk up to see the 'Chi-Cheemaun', a car and passenger ferry that runs between Tobermory and Manitoulin Island.To give you an idea of the scale of this vessel, it is capable of carrying up to 638 passengers and 143 cars. That is a big boat;

Yes, this big boat is big enough to carry a full sized tractor-trailer;

The 'Cheech';

Here's a look at one of the great lakes fishing boats in the area. This is similar to the one we encountered on Lake Huron when we came upon the unexpected fishing nets out in the middle of nowhere;

Anchor Girl looking forward to doing some shopping - and picking up that Canadian Flag for the boat;

OK, so I just had to throw in another picture of my new boat. Don't groan about it just yet - there's gonna be a few more before we are done with this thing;

Another look from the bridge. The sail boat in front of us had put up all these pennants on his mast, but I'm not sure of the significance. Any ideas?

A busy day on the water. Boats were continuously coming and going from this SUPER busy, congested port;

Here's another panning shot I took of the harbour from one of the finger docks. Little Tub Harbour is oriented along a mostly north/south line, affording it some protection from the prevailing north-west winds. Given the force of these winds, sometimes that protection is quite limited. The last night we were here, the winds were blowing very strong from that same north-westerly direction and the fetch was funneled down into the harhour. Fortunately for us, the brunt of the waves produced didn't get to us, but the boats on the floating finger docks in the distance were moving a solid 4' up and down. The result of that was the boats tied up to them being flung up and down along with them! There's no way that the occupants on board any of those boats would have been able to sleep that night!!

On our way. Another beautiful, sunny morning as we leave our berth and head over to the requisite fill up at the gas dock. Thankfully, the high winds from the night before have subsided - but the resulting swells on The Bay haven't;

I had to share this one with you we saw here. What do you think of the bright yellow canvas? Buddy must have got a deal on the material or something;

A parting shot of the Chi-Cheemaun as we leave Little Tub Harbour and get back onto Georgian Bay;

Here is the Big Tub Lighthouse, marking safe passage into Tobermory;

Just beyond Tobermory sits 'Flower Pot Island' with it's world renowned formations;

Here's a more close in view. We took, or at least attempted to take a number of photos of these unique formations, but the rolling waves were rocking us so much it was difficult to get a clear shot. As a result these two were the best we were able to get;

The video offers a bit of insight to the rocking and rolling we witnessed. The really cool part is that despite how close in to shore we got, the water was still over 300' deep!

On our way, cruising eastward toward or destination of Midland at 3300 RPM, doing 22 MPH (statute) in 392 feet of water!

This was the deepest I was able to record at that speed - 462.7 feet! How cool is that?!?

Today's' final photo & video clip were taken just after rounding Hope Island and passing by Beckwith Island.
As I've said a few times before, the photos and videos don't capture the size of the waves, but I must say that this leg of the trip was the roughest, as we were taking the waves on the port beam all the way from Owen Sound to this turning point;

Here's some very moving pictures from here. Note the comments from myself about the "one foot waves . ." we were going through. Anchor Girl follows that up when I loose my footing shortly afterward ;-)

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I'd like to publicly thank my lovely wife for not only supporting me on the whole boat buying adventure, but for making this trip both a possibility and a reality.

For those of you who aren't aware, driving on the boat - any boat - in rough conditions is, ah, well, shall I say 'stressful' for Anchor Girl and there was more than one time on the trip up to this point when we found ourselves in some pretty big stuff. For me it's all part of the adventure but I was deeply aware of how uncomfortable some of the journey was and made every effort to overcome that part.

Again, thank you my dear for your enduring help, understanding and patience.

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Next time, we get to set the hook and anchor out for a few peaceful days and nights in Beausoeil Bay and are joined by the crew of 'Water Wings'.

:-)

Big Water

2010-11-13T18:57:00.002-05:00

Part Three of the Big Boat Delivery HOME to Canada

Before I begin this segment, let's start with a Google Map of our route from our point of departure in Michigan to Midland on Georgian Bay. The different coloured lines represent each leg of the journey and the pins being the overnight dockages.
Once we got into Midland and familiar waters, we continued on with our summer holidays with trips going as far north as Parry Sound and then back south to the Trent Severn Waterway, onto Lake Simcoe and home.
Remember, kids - you can zoom in/out and around this map;

View Sea Ray 400 Sedan Delivery Route in a larger map

Departure day from Sarnia Bay Marina. A good looking day, on a good looking boat with a GREAT looking first mate ;-)

These next two shots were taken by the crew of the aforementioned 'Plan B'.
The boat looks nice except for those black streaks on the hull, a result of the new black dock lines bleeding. . .

Insight; I've saved a boating magazine since 2007 that has a 'for sale' ad for a similar model to this boat & I've been hanging on to it as inspiration. The ad shows the boat on the water with a lady crew member on the bow while it's underway. A great boating shot.
Well, here I am - my boat, my very attractive lady crew mate and a sunny summer day on the water. . . .

That's what I call a dream come true, my friends!!!

Thanks again for sending me these pics, Glen :-)

Video from the fly bridge;

Exiting the marina and back on our way northbound for the last part on the St. Clair River;

This would be the final great lakes freighter we would pass by on this voyage;

Approaching the Bluewater Bridge. This is the bridge that joins the Canadian side of the river to the American side. Ya, we spent allot of time waiting to cross the border into the States on that bridge on the many trips we took to see/buy/take possession of the boat. I tell you, it was quite a bit of work to make the deal all come together - but it was exhilarating, exhausting and inspirational - and well worth it!!

Some video of the approach to the bridge, complete with commentary from yours truly ;-)

The lighthouse on the U.S. (Port Huron) side. Yes, it's the very same we took pictures of from the bridge on the road trips to see the boat & would be the first of many we would pass on this journey;

On Lake Huron. I've heard the term 'Big Water' used by my fellow boaters, but nothing we've experienced compares to heading out onto a body of water that stretches for hundreds of miles before you.
One is privy to many emotions, to say the least;

To keep everyone traveling (with pink toe polish) aboard 'Boogaboo IV' as happy as possible, I took a route that at least kept us within view of land;

A zoomed in shot passing by Goderich and the Sifto Salt Mines operations located there.
Note also the electrical generation windmills on shore. There are many of those things - 200+ in this region;

Just before Goderich, we unexpectedly came upon a series of small, bobbing buoys in what appeared to be the middle of nowhere. Good thing my eyeballs were on the ball, as the buoys came upon us without warning.
I suspected they were marking fishing nets and shortly afterward, spotted this commercial fishing boat well off in the distance.
A little disconcerting initially, to say the least, as this was something that I had totally NOT anticipated;

Some video of me talking about what we saw.
Note also the bounce we experienced at slower speeds. Although the video doesn't quite capture the essence of the water conditions, we were running through solid 5' - 6' swells and they picked up to 6' - 7 footers the next day. Remember that this is taken from roughly 12' above the waters' surface on the bridge, making it hard to get a feel for.
You'll get a better representation of what I'm talking about when we come to the Flower Pot Island clip. . . .Stay tuned . . .

103 mile non-stop crossing of Lake Huron. Watch the video;

Safely in Kincardine Marina on yet another glorious day.
I hadn't even got the boat into the slip here when a Canada Customs officer came over - and waited at the end of the dock - to talk to me. Seems they are continuously looking for out of province registration numbers on the hulls (note the Michigan registration or 'MC Numbers' on Boogaboo). Those fellows roam around from marina to marina to check to make sure everything is in order - proper checking into the country, vessel registrations, taxes paid - you know, the important stuff.
This wouldn't be the last time we were to be questioned by Custom's guys either, as we would meet up with their compatriots again in Parry Sound;

A shot of the marina from the bridge, looking out on to Lake Huron. Can you see the Big Boy in the distance?

The Kincardine Lighthouse - this shot taken from the road bridge next top the marina.
We took a stroll for a bite to eat and were impressed by this neat, clean & well preserved old town;

The view from the boat, looking north east across the marina. Another spectacular day;

Here's a close up shot of the lighthouse from our vantage point;

Anchor Girl relaxing after another long day on the water and walk around town;

. . . And myself, relaxing in my own, unique way - capping off the day. HA!

Here is the storey of the 'Phantom', as told on the Kincardine Scottish Piper Band web site. . .
Way back in 1856, on a cold, October day, a small vessel left the Port of Goderich carrying a family from the Isle of Skye, Scotland. It was the final leg of a journey for the immigrant family that intended to farm at Penetangore (now Kincardine).

The weather was cloudy with a light breeze out of the southwest when the vessel left Goderich. But as the boat approached Point Clark, the sky turned black and a cold wind started to blow out of the west making for heavier and heavier seas.

As the vessel slowly beat its way north, late afternoon turned to dusk and the captain feared he would not find Penetangore in the dark.

Donald Sinclair, fearing for his family, went down into the hold and fetched his pipes. He prayed for safe passage and then played a lament. The sound of the pipes carried across the water to Penetangore where another piper heard the rich sound. The settler on shore retrieved his pipes and played another lament in return, just as the sky suddenly cleared in the west and the sun set beneath the cold waters.

The captain, knowing he had to be near Penetangore, headed for the drone of the bagpipes and eventually made his way into the harbour.

For many years after the narrow escape, Donald Sinclair often went down to the harbour to play the pipes at dusk. They say it was a way to remember his good fortune and to remind others of the power of the pipes. And it's in the memory of Donald Sinclair that the Kincardine Scottish has decided to play at dusk atop the lighthouse on sunny summer evenings. The piper will only appear when the sun sets and will pipe the sun down.

As good fortune would have it, we were lucky enough to witness the 'Phantom' playing on a perfect summer evening. Here's some video of that event, including a panning shot of the marina and the sun setting over Lake Huron;

A look from the bridge towards Lake Huron and the setting sun;

Beautiful . . .

Next time we cross the last half of Lake Huron and enter onto Georgian Bay & Tobermory.

And Away We Go!

2010-10-31T21:08:00.007-04:00

Part two of the big boat delivery to C A N A D A :-)

Day one on the water and we have left Mac Ray Harbor in Michigan and are on our way to Sarnia in Ontario. What was expected to be a five hour trip up the St. Clair River turned out to be an eight hour grand tour UP and then partially DOWN, back UP and then part way back DOWN and then finally all the way UP the river to our next port of call at Sarnia. More on that later in this post . . .

Sunday morning, we cast off our lines (and left the crappy ones behind) from Mac Ray and were off on the first leg of the trip. After a slight delay and talk with (and a ticket from) the local constabulary, we stopped in for some cheap American gas before heading out onto Lake St. Clair. You will be happy to learn that the same gas we were paying $1.23 for at our home port was had for $0.89/litre Canadian with the exchange. As you can imagine, I squeezed as much into the tanks as they would hold!

A parting shot of Mac Ray as we are on our way across Lake St. Clair;

Here's a video review of our excitement with the water cops;

The captain checking the gauges and chartplotter. If you notice the depth finder is showing only 10.4 feet of water below the keel. I was sure to plot a route before heading out onto the lake, as this was pretty much the deepest part of the lake and I wanted to follow the deepest part possible;

A zoomed in shot looking south west. That is the Windsor/Detroit skyline off in the distance;

This big, permanent marker shows the outer edge of the shipping channel that cuts through Lake St.Clair. This channel has a minimum depth of 28' allowing safe passage for the great lakes ships that pass this way from Lake Huron to the north (via the St. Clair River) and onto (or from) the Detroit River and Lake Erie to the south.. This perspective is looking roughly south east;

Now safely in the channel, I swung the Big Boy hard to port and northbound towards the St. Clair River. Yes, many of these photos look very similar, but I just want to convey the beauty of the aquamarine blue waters. Anchor Girl & I both commented continuously on this part of the trip on how blue the water was!

Some video from this spot;

Coming onto the river proper, we spotted these boats along the sandy shoreline;

Closer up, we could see that most were actually beached on the sand bar;

Continuing along, we came upon a neat row of waterfront houses that looked like they had a southern inspiration;

These places looked like they would be at home in the Florida Keys - and gave an exotic feel to our trip!

This marker looked more like a miniature lighthouse;

More beautiful blue water. The sad part is that the beauty of the water masks all the pollution (heavy metals, etc.) that lie on the bottom from more than 100 years of industrial outflows from both sides of the border;

Boogaboo IV cruising on plane at only 13 MPH - and you can't beat that fllybridge view!

When we first passed this large factory type building, I mistakenly surmised it was some sort of smelter, but it is actually a coal fired hydro electric power plant, owned by Detroit Edison;

Closer inspection revealed a large ship offloading coal. We would end up passing this vessel twice - and following it once. . . Stay tuned;

Just north of the electric power plant, we were stopped by this US Coast Guard vessel. No, I wasn't in trouble again with the water cops ;-) Apparently there was a race on the river with go-fast boats and they had part of it closed to traffic :-(
So, we were informed that the race was supposed to end in about an hour from that point and our options while waiting were to drift, set an anchor or just drive around to pass the time. Considering the flow of the current, my unfamiliarity with the shore conditions (where we would have to anchor close to) and not really wanting to shut down the boat, I decided our best bet would be to simply turn around and head south for about a half hour cruise, then spin back northbound to return in an hour.
The other option - or so the Coast Guard had in mind at this time - would be to follow a ship that might pass this way. The theory was that they would suspend the boat race to let the BIG boats pass and us little ones could merely follow through. Well, that was what we were told, anyway. . .

Given the fact that we were now just cruising s l o w l y along, we had a chance to study the shoreline better. One neat thing we discovered is that there is a car ferry that crosses to and from Ontario/Michigan, complete with Customs clearing on both sides.
This runs from the villages of Sombra, Ontario to Marine City, Michigan;

Being the observant person that I am, I noticed the name on the big ship at the electric plant when we passed it on our southbound cruise as 'Indiana Harbor'. I then heard it call a securitie on the radio warning that it was leaving it's berth and moving out into river traffic. So, I spooled the twin 454's up to catch up to him - remembering that he was facing north and hoping he would continue north and provide our 'escort' through the boat race;

The chartplotter shows us roughly 1 mile behind him traveling at just over 23 mph to catch up;

The chase is on!
Check out the comparative size of the cruisers passing by this behemoth;

Wow! The 'Indian Harbor' is exactly 1000' long, has a beam of105' and is powered by four, 3500 horsepower engines!
How many times have YOU boated in the company of One Thousand Foot ships??
Way Cool!

Video of this encounter;

Catching up with the Big BIG Boy;

Alas, despite our anticipation of moving forward on our trip, the powers that be decided NOT to let the small boats follow the ship through the race course and we were forced to once again turn around for another southbound tour of the St. Clair River.
At least we got to see some more big ships up close and personal;

One of the times we passed by the power plant,the sun was just in the right spot in the sky to get these two neat shots - the first one looking like a lit candle;

Next one captured the sun right behind the largest stack;

Some more ships passing by each other;

Some video of these same ships passing - three at once;

Fast forward to the next day & we are at Sarnia Bay Marina. What, no photos of the big arrival and acing the very first stern in docking of the Sedan Bridge? Nope. By the time we finally got through the race course, it was getting late & we just wanted to get into the marina. Besides, by the time we got there, it was actually after their closing time, but the staff was good enough to make sure we got in and secured before they left.
Ultimately, by the time we got into the marina, called into Canada Customs to report back into the country, hoof it over to the border crossing to pay the tax on the boat (remember we were importing the vessel into the country) and back to the boat, it was about 10:30. A quick shower and a cold drink and our event filled day wrapped up around midnight.
Here is a look at our overnight slip at the marina.

Our stop in Sarnia proved to be a serendipitous encounter. This lovely Sea Ray, 'Plan B', a 40' Sundancer is owned by none other than Anchor Girl's cousin Glen and his wife, Natalie. One of those things you could have never planed for, they were on thier way south to Lake Erie for their holidays and were spending the night at Sarnia Bay Marina. Glen actually helped us into the slip, having no idea we were the owners of the boat he was helping in and we didn't realize what was going on until I jumped on the dock to secure the lines and thank him. What a fun shock that was when the light bulbs finally went off!

Next time, we cross the vast expanse of Lake Huron and visit Kincardine

where we encounter a real, live 'Phantom' . . .

New Wages

2010-10-24T19:19:00.001-04:00

So, do you like the new look for the Blog? I figured it was time for a refresh and this design won. Let us all know what you think about it on the Log Book. . .

Speaking of new things, here's a couple of pics of the new 'Docked Wages' on the water - coming over to the gas dock for one of the last pump out's of the 2010 season. And what a magnificent day it was;

And one with yours truly taking some video;

And while we're at it, why don't we take a look at that very same video;

2 Tickets To Paradise

2010-10-17T21:54:00.008-04:00

Can it be that time already? The end of another great boating season - and one with many changes for this boater!!

Yes, the Big Boy was hauled out yesterday and parked on land for the off season :-( Now, I know I've told you this before, but I FIRMLY believe that everything happens for a reason and all one need do is to look for the signs - they are as clear as a road sign, or a something written on a piece of paper. Case in point being our acquisition of the new boat. Just meant to be. . .

I won't bore you with ALL of the signs that pointed to us getting that boat, but I will share this little bit of irony; the first time I drove that boat (on my own) it was windy as hell & I got a ticket. The last time I drove the boat (this season) it was windy as hell & I got a ticket. That's Good Karma, man . . . Ya, nothing like fighting with 25,000 pounds of boat flying sideways down the river in a 25 knot wind, eh Kevin?

The Big Boy getting up on the trailer;

Out of the water for 2010;

Video of the Big Boy coming out. And, ahh, the remark from Ross in the background is in reference to the boat's backside, not mine. Right, Rossco?

Firmly parked and going nowhere - until we figure out where our slip will be for the 2011 season. The gas dock was entertaining (except for the run in with the Trojan), but it will be nice to have a place to call home & adequate shore power.
Ticket #2 was received this day when my truck was parked in a no parking zone (look REALLY close & you'll see the ticket on the truck's windshield). You think that the Town of Georgina ticket police might have clued into the fact that there was precious little space to park with the big truck taking all the boats out . . .

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Ok, now on to the story of Ticket #1 . . .

Our story begins on a long stretch of southwestern Ontario known as Highway #402, a highway that takes one through to Sarnia and the Bluewater Bridge and onward to the state of Michigan;

A timely shot as we crossed the border. Wasn't too hard to do, as the traffic was moving at a snail's pace;

Here's a montage of two photos taken while waiting on the bridge. The boats driving by are actually one - the same boat driving by taken a few seconds apart. The lighthouse to the left would be the first of many we would pass by on our adventure. The view to the left is the seemingly endless waters of Lake Huron. Note the ships approaching from the north well of in the distance (at the top right hand corner). These would the first of many ships we would pass on our adventure.
Note also the difference in the water colours - the darker blue is the shipping channel dredged to a minimum of 28' deep. Some researchers looking into why the levels of Lake Huron/Georgian Bay/St. Clair & Lake Michigan have dropped so dramatically over the past 20 years or so is that this same channel has caused the water to flow through much more quickly than nature had carved, resulting in the 'souring' of the St. Clair River and the subsequent increase of water outflow through it;

The destination - Mac Ray Harbor in Harrison Township, Michigan. No, we didn't drive 450 km just to get a photo of me in front of this Sea Ray Blvd sign - although that was SO COOL - we actually came to see & buy the boat of my dreams, a 1997 Sea Ray 400 Sedan Bridge.
What's the deal with the street sign, you are asking yourself? Well, let me indulge your curiosity. The 'Ray' in MacRay Harbour was none other than the recently deceased Connie Ray ('C' Ray - get it?), the founder of Sea Ray boats.

Did I mention the term 'adventure'? Yes I did.
The whole boat searching/buying/delivering experience was nothing short of an adventure of a lifetime! For those uninitiated in the viewing public, I have dreamed about getting this boat for over five years and to have it actually come true was a gift. The way we went about making it all come together was truly an adventure!!!

Here sits the future 'Boogaboo IV' in it's former owner's slip;

Another shot of the boat with the the other ones that made the whole thing possible.
The seller of our boat (to the right) bought his buddy's Sea Ray 390 Aft Cabin (the green arrow). Buddy then bought the boat beside him, a Sea Ray 480 Aft Cabin (the purple arrow). That guy was actually the previous owner of our new boat (the yellow arrow).
And to follow along the Karma theme, the fellow who bought our 300 Sundancer also has a Sea Ray. So, it's the story of the FIVE Rays;

As soon as the boat became ours, it was moved to another slip in the marina. This time it was in a covered slip - but nothing like we've seen in these parts. These are serious covered slips;

Check it out. These boat houses are all concrete construction complete with electrically operated garage doors.

Notice how low the water level is - testament to how much things have changed since this marina was built in the mid-80's;

Looking back to the opposite side of this boathouse, you can see the natural gas fired radiant heating elements mounted to the ceiling. That's right, heated slips. What they do in the winter is close the garage doors, add some winter extensions to them that reach right to the bottom of the canal and crank up the heat. The boats berthed here spend the winter in the water!

How much, you ask? Try $10,000 USD - just for the winter. Ya Baby!

Here I am warshing the boat of all the spider poop. Ya, Pefferlaw has birds, this place has spiders. Lots and lots of them.
I also discovered that this big boat takes a lot longer to wash than the old one. Note the TWO beers on the dock ;-)

I wanted to share this view (taken on our 2nd road trip to Michigan) to point out the challenge I had when we left the marina. To depart, I would have to take the boat out straight into a channel that wasn't much wider than the boat's length, make a hard 90 degree turn, then another to head onto Lake St. Clair.
Problem was that the wind was blowing really hard down the main channel and it was the first time for me maneuvering the boat.
The result was too much over correcting (and throttle) on my part. Oh ya, there was three cops in a sheriff's boat watching this all going down and they weren't impressed.
THAT was ticket #1 :-(

Our third and final road trip to Michigan was to take the last truckload of stuff to the boat and actually bring the boat home. Harbor Master Dave was good enough to offer his services as return driver for my truck and became the very first official guest aboard Boogaboo IV! A fun night on the boat complete with take out dinner and lots of cold American beer ;-)

Here's a video of Dave & I firing up the engines and checking out the engine room. Check out the expression on my face when the engines rumble to life. Like a little boy and his new toy;

The last full day in Michigan and we've got pretty much everything stowed away but there's one final job for me to do before departing - put the new name on the boat.
The few days we were there it was really hot and humid. That's why this photo looks somewhat fuzzy as the camera had been in the air conditioned cabin and the lens condensated when Anchor Girl brought it out;

Yes, that's much better;

Saturday evening and the skies cleared and the humidity lifted. A nice time to take a walk around to check the marina out and locate the all important gas dock ;-)

A look back at the boat house (and A. G. running back to get her sun glasses);

One of about 8 channels of boat slips - sorry 'boat wells', as they call them down there;

Yet another look. If you are a fan of Sea Ray's, this is the place to go - the joint is choke full o' Rays;

Looking down the channel that divides MacRay from Belle Maer Harbor;

Video taken from the gas dock showing the scope of the marina;

Another view of both MacRay Harbor & the equally huge marina across the channel - Belle Maer Harbor;

I took this inside the gas bar store. Look close & you'll see ice cold beer and coolers!

I thought this was a pretty shot of Old Glory;

Two photos meshed together to provide a panorama of the slips closest to the lake. The building in the background is the main club house/restaurant and swimming pool;

A look along the waterfront at the marina;

An overhead look at MacRay Harbor. The blue star represents the slip we were housed in and the point of our departure. The purple line, the route taken out to the lake. The red star is where the sheriff's boat was ideling and I got nailed for throwing off a large wake D'oh!

One last night in the good ol' U.S. of A. and a check of the dash and electronics before we begin our 600+ mile trek home;

Next time - we head off on to Lake St. Clair, the St. Clair River and onto Sarnia. With lots of Big Ships!!

:-)

Sunset On Summer

2010-09-22T12:40:00.000-04:00

As the sun sets on the Summer of 2010 & I thought a couple of sunset photos would be appropriate - and M A Y B E renew some interest in this site. . . . ?

A lovely view from Beausoleil Bay on the first night at anchor aboard the Big Boy;

And a shot of the sun going down along side the Pefferlaw River, both reflecting it's radiance on Boogaboo IV and the fact that my first season with the new boat is coming too quickly to a close;

Big Boy's Home

2010-08-09T19:34:00.000-04:00

The 'Big Boy' is safely in Canadian waters & Anchor Girl & I are continuing to enjoy and learn all about the new boat. In a word, I can best describe it as 'AWESOME'!!!!!

As of today, we've put a total of 525 miles on it so far (we are currently in Parry Sound) and you don't want to know how much gas through it ;-) Oh well, we're only this way (life) once and it has been an ADVENTURE!!! The things we've seen and places we've been, including both Lake - and - River St.Clair and a BIG trek across Lake Huron and the big waters of Georgian Bay with stops in Sarnia, Kincardine, Tobermory, and Midland - not to mention a side trip to Flower Pot Island and more than one encounter with the boys from Canada Customs :-) And the fun continues as we enjoy our time on The Bay with our friends from Water Wings and the Maple Leaf, as well as all the new folks we meet along the way.

As for our little run in with the water cops from Michigan's own Macoumb County Sheriffs Department, the ensuing investigation and subsequent ticket/fine, well that's a story for another day . . . .

Here's Number Four at anchor in yet another gorgeous slice of heaven on Georgian Bay known as "Hole In The Wall"

Sea Ray Blvd

2010-07-07T23:01:00.000-04:00

I went all the way to Michigan and all I got was this stupid sign;

Maybe I'll bring something a little bit more substantial next time I go ;-)

The First Of Many

2010-06-03T07:30:00.000-04:00

What another great weekend on the water! That's two for two, my friends. A pleasant change from last year - like 180 degrees different. . .

Anchor Girl & I took advantage of the weather forecast on Friday evening to anchor out on the water for the first overnight of the year. Well, it started off good; with dead calm conditions;

Anchor Girl relaxing for the evening;

The first sunset shot from on the water of the year - and what a beuty it was;

Alas, our night was cut short by increasing winds and pounding waves, so we pulled anchor around 3:30 am and made a very slow cruise back to the more comfortable docks. Not wanting to disturb our fellow boaters, we elected to tie up to the gas docks for the rest of the night. A bit different to wake up in an open slip at our own marina - It's a nice view from out here on the water, actually. Got me thinking - no bird poop out here, no worrying about dropping the antennae every time we come back to the dock and season long outside views. Hmmmm . . .

Sunday we went back out for a GLORIOUS day on the water! Perfect conditions allowed for some boat washing and polishing, too. With the day being so hot, Sanja & I decided it was a good time to jump in for the first swim of the year. Really cold at first, but a welcome refreshment later in the day as it got really hot out in the sunshine;

2nd Ride For 2010

2010-05-07T07:15:00.001-04:00

The past weekend ended up turning out better than forecast, with the sun making an appearance on Sunday - just long enough to relax with some canvas watching, I mean washing on the deck. And thankfully Boogaboo got back in the water on Saturday quickly after the unexpected re haul out and shifter repairs. Ahh, I'll be sure to look a little closer next time I put the drives on . . .

So, besides the ride to the launch ramp, we were able to get out on the lake for a little cruise up towards Thorah Island and do a first of the year shake down cruise. All is operating well from idle up to go fast speed;

Also, this just in; I am having the firewood delivered on Saturday morning, so dress warm for the stacking party! I hope we do it right!!

Back At The Cottage :-)

2010-04-29T22:44:00.001-04:00

After the long winter break, it sure was great to be back for another season!! As much as it was a sad time on the final weekend of '09, it was even more exiting and full of anticipation to be returning on Fridays again. Too bad I was too tired on this first Friday to join in at the fire. . . Just tired - not mad at anybody ;-)

After getting most of the stuff back on the boat and stowed away, Anchor Girl got the inside of Boogaboo all spiffed up and I got the heavy grime off the outside. Now all I gotta do is get both engines to go into forward gear. D'oh!

Well, at least the new dinky motor is running well and performing as expected. Just couldn't wait get it on (the motor, that is) and try it out. Unlike it's owner, this thing is very quiet and smooth running;

The crowd gathers down by the river to see all the exciting action;

Graham & I checking our portable radios. Funny thing was that if I got into trouble, how was the radio gonna be of any help :-)

As I wanted to see how the motor would perform with two people in the dinky, Anchor Girl 'volunteered' Sonia to go for ride with me. The result was that the thing gets up on plane with no effort at all - just what I was after. In fact, much like it's owner, I had to actually back off the throttle to maintain control;

Saturday night's fire. Alas, nobody wanted to stay up with me at the fire much past 10:00. Seems all the excitement of the first weekend might have been a bit much for everyone. Or something like that;

The very first official sunset of the 'On Water' season. I'm certainly looking forward to many, many more of these. It's gonna be a great year. C'mon FRIDAY!!

Splish Splash

2010-04-22T22:08:00.000-04:00

And just like that, another boating season is upon us. Most of us were in this past Tuesday, April 20th - the earliest in all the years we've been coming here ;-) Brings back that special Friday feeling again, eh?

Yup.

Here's this years' Welcome Back video;

Closer To The End

2010-04-16T21:13:00.005-04:00

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.

HA HA!

:- - - - - )

Open Water

2010-04-03T19:47:00.001-04:00

This morning when we left the house the bay still had quite a bit of ice on it. When we got home, it was all open water. That is so cool! I also saw the first motor boat driving out from Crate's tonight, as well.

And if you think that is cool, I talked to Tim at the marina on the way out of there today and he confirmed that the boats will start going in the water on the 19th - a week earlier than anticipated!!

Plus, if you think all of that was pretty cool, I'm happy to inform you that this posting was done using my new iPhone :-) You knows what that means? I can now bore you all with my words of inspiration from anywhere at any time! You think you saw enough of Georgian Bay last year?

Grass Fire - Call 911!

2010-03-30T07:17:00.000-04:00

We took a quick drive along the lake on Sunday to see what the ice conditions were. so far, the big lake looks pretty much the same as Cooks Bay, with some open water close to shore, but the rest one big sheet of ice.All except for around Virginia Beach.

Here's a look at the Georgina Island ferry returning to shore with a bunch or fare paying customers. We had spotted this guy earlier from the back at Sibbald's Point Park, where it looked like he was stuck in the ice. I am guessing it's till too thick to run directly through, so the captain had to kinda maneuver his way back and forth to break it up as he went along. With the little bit of wind, the ice was closing right back in behind him, so there was no real 'path' left in his wake;

On the way back home, we encountered a fire truck on highway #48 right at Virginia Beach heading from Pefferlaw way. We ended up following him all the way back to Keswick where we all came upon this grass fire. Hey Sanja, isn't this where you were supposed to jump in with the call?

Surprise, surprise, I even got it on video. Aren't you glad I always have my camera with me?

Gilman Bay - Next Part From The Last

2010-03-22T22:07:00.000-04:00

It's Sunday evening as I prepare this update and as I cast my sight out through the living room window and onto Lake Simcoe, I remark to Anchor Girl how lovely the bright sunshine looks. I follow that with the observation that it's now 6:45 and, despite the cloudy weekend, the '7:00 Sunday Rule' appears to be back for another year. . .

Or is it?

An article in the local newspaper today refereed to the summer weather prognostication by Dave Phillips (the Environment Canada guy). In it, he states that his predictions for the upcoming summer is - wait for it - the triple HHH's. Hot Hazy & Humid. In other words, a traditional Southern Ontario summer! And I'm happy to compare that with my own outlook for a hot, sunny and dry boating season. so, let's get on with it. Only wet's our appetites for a return trip to The Bay and further adventures!!!

BRING IT ON!!

**************************

Tonight's review of our time at Gilman Bay represents the last couple of days there and the tail end (sniff, sniff) of our summer holidays '09. I think I might have already mentioned it before, but our overall boating experiences for the 2009 season could be best described as 'Change of Plans'. Every time we hoped to go some place, it seemed that for some reason we ended up somewhere else. To this day, I'm sure there was some Greater Power guiding us - and Gilman Bay was by no means an exception. . .

Before we jump into this portion of the stay, I wanted to share a video clip I took of one Mr. Analus & I, late in the night. Not too much to see - due to the darkness part, but the ever insightful cometary is something not to be missed. Actually, Wevvy was with us for awhile on this particular night. Remember the 30 minute phone call, reliving the adventures of your first trip to the locks that weekend, buddy??

This first photo shows only Two Rays at the anchorage, as A.G. and I had to briefly depart their company and head all the way back to Parry Sound for an emergency pump out. To get there, fix the problem and return was a six hour round trip! Oh well, at least it gave our traveling companions some quiet time away from the Commodore. Not to mention the fresh air;

This is the 'parting shot' of Glen Burney Marina in Parry Sound, where not only did I have to work on the boat's plumbing, but the actual pump out plumbing at the gas dock, too. Good thing I'm not afraid to get my hands dirty;

Another unique Georgian Bay cruising view - The Georgian Queen cruise ship. Here on it's way back to it's home port of Parry Sound;

Analus' evening swim shower;

The next morning started off a little overcast - but the moon still came out;

A shot of our stern view at the this anchorage. No matter how many pictures I took looking this way, I don't think I was able to capture the beauty of the rock ledge that is here. In person, the moss growing between the cracks in the rocks was beautiful. I think so, anyway;

The morning's weather didn't start off too promising, but after discussing our options for perhaps traveling to another destination, we decided to take the dinkies for an extended trip up the Moon River to a place called Woods Bay for a look see instead of leaving this anchorage;

Analus gets the Grand reading for the trip. And the sun was starting to make an appearance;

On our way - pants optional;

Our first stop was a popular anchorage area of the Massasagua called Port Rawson Bay. This is where many of the bigger boats come. One of the unique features of this spot is that the park has installed a few floating mooring balls in the bay to tie up to;

Onward and down the Moon River. Last winter, I sort of discovered this area while doing our planing for the our holiday cruising grounds. The Moon River and into Woods Bay in this area is on the navigation charts, but there are no depth soundings. After some creative searching and a couple of springtime phone calls, I learned that, despite motoring 'blind', one would be able to safely navigate a larger vessel through here. This is why we were checking it out on the dinkies. Glad we did, as this was yet another special place to find, visit and carry as a life long memory;

Turns out the reports are correct and that one can get through here. We were also lucky enough to have gotten a line drawn on our Parks map by one of the rangers when they came by to pick up our garbage a few nights earlier.
"Just follow the line and don't blame me if you hit bottom. . ." I think were the words he said when he handed the map back to me;

This cool little cabin came with an interesting bit of history and unique view on the other side of it;

According to the story we heard is that this was some sort of lodge that had burned down years earlier, leaving only the sizable chimney and most of the foundation. Apparently the old gut who owned it had begun to rebuild bu passed away and it's stayed pretty much in this state ever since;

I knew where we were - I had a map;

Pulling back into our anchorage after our 3-1/2 hour voyage of discovery. And to quote Mr. Paul Von B, it was indeed an amazing place;

Ahhhhh, I love summer and boating!!!!!!!

So, the working plan was to leave Gilman Bay the next morning and take the big boats down the Moon River into Woods Bay for some time there, with the intention of visiting the Moon River Falls on the dinkies. That was my original inspiration to visit this area - see the falls. Well, for the second time on this trip, we were unable to get see them, as we left the next morning after the big Keswick storm on this night. Long story;

Here's our friends from Parks Canada to collect our mooring fee - Kevin (driving), Tanner (on the bow) and the young lady accompanying them this trip who's name I can't recall right now.

Tanner takes one of my RottenRow.ca business cards. Wonder if he ever visited the site?

Departure day. Cloudy, but no too much fog as we head out of the bay. Yet;

A nice, slow, winding cruise past all the small islands of the Moon River Basin back to the Small Craft Route;

And then the fog set in;

Can you say Pea Soup?

Look really closely at this shot and you'll see SunAria disappearing in the fog - and she was only about 200' behind us at this point;

After getting turned around a full 180 degrees (me) and needing some chill time after the ordeal, I decided to head into Henry's Restaurant (which was close by) for awhile to wait for the fog to dissapate. After waiting about an hour and a half, we were safely back on our way.
The Water Wings captain, on the other hand, decided to press on and make the top part of the trip down to Honey Harbour in the thick of it. Next time you see Billie Sue, ask her what she felt about that fun voyage;

Coming up, it's the trip back home. Not sure if I really want to relive that part of the holidays. I mean, who wants to go home after a great holiday? We'll see . . .

Na-Na-Na-Na Hey, Hey, Hey, Goodbye!

2010-03-19T19:29:00.002-04:00

As reported earlier, the ice is now gone from the Pefferlaw River!! Still some ice under the boats, but that should be cleared out by next week. Sure is good to see the open water again :-)

Today (Friday) marks the very last day of winter and SPRINGTIME officially starts at 1:32 pm, Eastern Standard Time on Saturday, which as everybody knows, is otherwise known as the spring equinox. The equinox is when the sun is directly over the equator, continuing it's northern march towards the first day of summer. For those of you at home who are keeping score, summer is now only three months away. Wow, time really does fly - less than 18 weeks until our summer holidays!!. So, to paraphrase those immortal words of the band 'Steam', we can bid farewell to winter and kiss him goodbye!

Here's some pics I took on Thursday afternoon. Don't nobody tell my customers I was at the cottage during the day . . .

Ain't that a pretty sight?

Yep, all open along the river;

Analus gets the final bit of tweaking done to his outdrives before the final bit of ice is gone completely;

Don't worry, my noisy friends are back in full strength too;

The first 'Official' on-water sunset photo of the 2010 season & you saw it here first;

And you just knew you wouldn't get away without being forced to endure yet another, boring video;

And thanks for the comment on the new dinky motor, Wevvy. Just what my wife needs, eh?
.

Late Snow

2010-03-13T21:38:00.000-05:00

I hope everyone has enjoyed the beautiful weather as much as I have. Man, I've been working outside for the past three weeks and for the past two of them, most days have been in just a tee-shirt - and McLovin it! I even have a sunburn on my red neck and ears :-) And this is March?!?! Keep it coming!

Here's a quick on water update taken along the shores of Lake Simcoe in north Keswick, at my current place of work. Towards the end of the clip you'll see a glimpse of the small cottage I'm building for my customers'. Well, half of it anyways. I'll be sure to share a look at it again when we get the second story built;

Now, I don't want to bring you down, but I have a video clip that I took last April 11th that should snap us all back to the reality that we can expect at least one more dumping of snow before we call winter 'done'. Remeber, this one was taken LAST YEAR, in April;

First BBQ For 2010

2010-03-08T17:50:00.000-05:00

As you have most likely already surmised from the title, we had the first BBQ of the 2010 season at the Cottage on Sunday. Hoo-Ha!! The weather was fantastic, the sun was shining and it was great to be back at the boat for another year!! If the weatherman is right, it looks like we'll be seeing some open water this weekend, so the out drives are going back on Boogaboo on Saturday.

As for the other water toy, I'll probably have to wait a couple more weeks to get in my first speed run - I meant to say, test run ;-)

The girls get cooking;

The last reminder of winter get's melting;

:-)

For The Birds

2010-03-06T20:18:00.010-05:00

Still suffering from cabin fever, I thought that a road trip was in order last Sunday (Feb 28th), so we headed up north for another Georgian Bay tour. This time we made a circle around the west side Lake Simcoe, up to Midland and Penataguishene, returning through Orillia and down the east side of the lake and home.

Actually, the previous Sunday afternoon we went east - up to the cottage for a quick pop in and then continued north to Lagoon City, with a quick stopover at Lock #41 (Gamebridge), so we'll be starting with that stuff.

I herewith submit the following report;

As the title of this post implies, things were going to the birds around our place. Anchor Girl had been bringing a couple of young cockatiels home on the weekends from the pet store where she works. Seems the boss wasn't going to be in the store and A.G. didn't trust the kids working there to remember to watch them, so we were surrogates for the time being. I never thought I'd take to birds, per se, but these two (especially the one with the grey feathers) were allot of fun. Amazing the personalities of these little creatures. And they love people, especially perching on your head for a walk around the house - even if it is a square head :-)

Onward and upward. The second stop of the day was at lock #41, Gamebridge. This one is right off of highway #12, so it's easy to get to for a look;

As you can see, the bottom side blue line walls are getting some substantial repairs, most likely as a result of the $63,000,000 that the federal government has pledged in capital improvements to the system over the next five years;

A couple of sunny, albeit winter time pics from Lagoon City Marina;

This is our usual haunt when we are up there for the long weekend specials;

Here's a video clip with me commenting on the fact that it's the first time we've been able to drive in there during the winter;

That was from two weeks ago. Let's see what the Boogaboo Crew did last weekend (for those of you who are still awake)

Last Sunday's adventure took us up firstly to Midland and then on to Penatangueshene. This was taken at the Penatang Town Docks and is a shot of the local tour boat 'Georgian Queen';

Next, we have another big old boat that was tied to the same dock (you can see the bow of 'Georgian Queen' to the left of this shot) and frozen in for the winter. I talked to to some guy who was aboard the big blue vessel who said he lived on it on the weekends to do work for the owner. As he told me, the owner bought it as a partially sunken derelict in Hamilton 16 years before and has been restoring it ever since. Ya, I had a boat like that once, too. I got smart and dumped it.

As you can see behind the blue one, there was a third vessel frozen in along side of this dock. I guess they all got a special rate for the winter ;-)

Here's one I took for a certain someone I know, but I think he spells his name with an 'I';

Not to be outdone with all the frozen boats in Penatang, the Port of Orillia is hosting it's own 'We'll store your boat for the winter' special promotion, as well;

Video to go along with the above photo. Try this one on the 720 HD setting to get a cool view of the falling snow in this highly zoomed clip;

To finish things up, we made a stop at The Narrows to take a look at the open water passing by. Just to clarify, it was more like I took a look at the passing waters at The Narrows while A.G. elected to stay in the warm cabin of the truck while I played.
Either way, it sure is a great feeling to be close to the open water after seeing the frozen stuff from our front window every day;

This big guy and his mate were there to keep an eye on me;

Finally, not to be outdone by the docks a Penatanguishene and Orillia, Crothers Marina has also decided to get into the obviously lucrative business of offering in-water docking for the winter months.

And to think that the rest of us dummies have been wasting our money all these years by having our boats actually taken out of water each fall. Now THAT'S for the birds;

Here's some boring video I shot at The Narrows. Try to stay A-Wake;

Finally, here's a clip I found purely by chance on YouTube of one of the last trains to go over the swing bridge at The Narrows before it was taken out of commission;

~ Coming up next - Gilman Bay, Part 2 ~

Gilman Bay - One Part Of More Than One

2010-02-26T20:28:00.000-05:00

After spending two days in Parry Sound waiting for the winds to die down, we were all off to a completly new destination - Gilman Bay.
Yes, it was nice to have two days of showering in a real, warm water shower at the marina (instead of the Bay swim showers) for a change, but also nice to getting out to rough it. And by roughing it, I mean having pretty much every comfort of home on the boat except hot showers ;-)

This is the Rose Point swing bridge which is just before/after Parry Sound, when coming through South Chanel. It operates every hour, on the hour throughout the day for those vessels too big to pass under it. It's owned and operated by the First Nations peoples of Parry Island;

Some pretty scenery along South Chanel as we head back to the main Small Craft Route - about 12 miles each way;

Traveling past Henry's Restaurant, southbound;

Boogaboo & the Maple Leaf made a quick pit stop at LeBlancs store for ice cream;

Ok, so I admit it. Maybe this wasn't one of my best conceived plans, but Anchor Girl was able to successfully pass over the ice cream cones to the waiting Water Wings crew in a busy, tight harbour, just off the Small Craft Route, in a strong breeze. Not to mention it was melting fast - all over the boat;

Back on our way and heading into brand new territory of the Moon Islands to discover the beauty and serenity of this area;

Here's a great shot of the Maple Leaf and Boogaboo as we cruised towards Gilman Bay. Ellie took this shot using Sanja's camera while aboard SunAria for the trip in;

Here's another, taken a short time later;

Anchor Girl enjoys the scenic ride in;

Now here's a cool sequence of photos, all taken within seconds of each other, just after we got secured at the anchorage - from two different cameras. And guess what? Not one of them was mine.

The first one Anchor Girl took looking towards our neighbor's boats;

And then a quick look over to yours truly (complete with big, toothy smile), enjoying the first ice cold one of the day;

Finally, one that Sanja took looking back towards me standing there with my beer and smiling mug;

I know I say it allot, but this truly is a beautiful spot. I hope to visit it again one day;

Video of our anchorage;

A long shot of our boats nestled in close to Moon Island. And you know what? Even from this vantage point, I still don't see that elevator on the island . . .

Always trying to help out, C.F. gets to work on retrieving a leader and lure from the Maple Bud's outboard prop;

Here's poor Billi Sue having a 'Pugsley moment' after not seeing the little guy (no, Wevvy, I'm talking about the OTHER little guy) for a week. Feeling sorry, I took over Wilbur and Festsquirrel as surrogate Pugsley's;

Vote Renzi!

Man - how nice is this?!?!?

Thank you.

The Maple Leaf had to take off early and head back to Port Severn for a crew exchange.No problem, as we simply untied their boat, let them out and pulled Water Wings and SunAria back together. Easy as apple pie with ice cream;

See you, Miss Ellie! We'll meet you guys back in Port Severn in a few days!!

All eyes on the Commodore as I retrieve Water Wings' dinky. For some strange reason, it seemed to have come dislodged from the side of Boogaboo, where it had been previously firmly attached. Good thing someone noticed drifting away;

A lovely evening shot, overlooking the Three Ray's bows;

As Mr. Von Analus goes sleepy-sleepy for the night, we leave Gilman Bay with dreams of the next installment of this heavenly spot;

Broken Into Boats

2010-02-26T19:07:00.002-05:00

In case you missed it, a large number of boats were broken into at the cottage at some point this week. I am knowing it was this week, because we were up there on Sunday afternoon, and all was good.

The sad news is that it appears that about 15 - 20 of the first boats along 'B' Chanel have been hit, with reports that not only did the little shits break and enter, but also discharged some fire extinguishers inside the boats to really f*** things up.

The more positive news is that it looks like the boats beyond that haven't been touched. Yet. Further news has it that 'C' channel got hit last weekend.

Here's a couiple of pictures taken today, around 5:30. The first one shows one of the boats' shrink wrap having been cut back to gain access;

Your commodore - on scene & on the job!

An onsite video report:

Some happier news is that I hope to be getting a summertime post up here later tonight . . .

2010 Firewood

2010-02-26T14:36:00.000-05:00

I have made arrangements for the first load of firewood for the upcoming season & have a half cord standing by for delivery. It's already bought and paid for with the total being $210. So, if anyone wants to share in the cost, please make a note of it on the Logbook. That way, everyone else who is interested in putting in some cash can see what the amount will be - assuming we split it evenly.

No pun on the split part - the wood has been already.

As mentioned, it's just a phone call away and I expect that we can get it in April, maybe the weekend before the boats are expected to go in the water. . .