Cruising the North Shore of Georgian Bay

The North Channel, north of Manotoulin Island is regarded as one of the best cruising grounds in the world.  The north shore of Georgian Bay, east of Manotoulin Island is also exceptional.  There are thousands of islands and shoals so the cruising is often more open rather than through the channels, but the bays and inlets are far more complex and offer some incredibly sheltered anchorages.  Often we push up a channel and tie off to shore .  After a windy day out on the lake this feels about as cozy

Strawberry Island Lighthouse

There are still some lighthouses on Georgian Bay.  This one on Strawberry Island is just east of Little Current.

Not far away is the charming village of Kilarney where there are still working fishing boats and a number of lodges.

Little Current

Little Current is the name of the channel and town whcich separate the North Channel of Lake Huron from Georgian Bay.  The name describes the interesting hydraulic effect here, where there can be a current from either direction due to wind, and differing atmospheric pressures and consequently surface elevations on Lake Huron and Georgian Bay.  This is called a seiche effect (or sometimes a slosh effect) and is similar to hurricane storm surges on ocean coastlines in that the surface of the water tilts.  On the Great lakes this can work back and forth as it settles to equilibrium.

There is a large swing bridge (112m span) which opens on the hour to allow large sail boats to pass.  It was built in 1913 as a rail bridge but now serves as a one lane road access to Manitoulin Island.  Seldom have we arrived on time for the bridge opening and usually tie up at the town docks for a few minutes to pump out the holding tank, take on fuel and inevitably a dash to the liquor store.  Rob, who gets called Wally by most of the boaters, from Wally's boat service even recognizes us our penchant fro sailing through the bridge passage.

Northwest ready for winter

This time of year most recreational boats along the North Channel have been pulled out of the water for the season.  This steel trawler must have started out in life as a working boat, and has a few dents in her hull to prove it. I'm guessing its has been serving as someone's 'cottage' in it's senior years.  As far as Northwest and her owner are concerned the gales of November are free to come early.

They use a travel lift in the Gore Bay harbour, which is a wheeled frame with slings to pick up the boat and manoeuvre between the quay and storage yard.  As a result,  owners leave the masts up all year on sailboats, so haul out and launch are a quick job.

Covered Portage Cove

Covered Portage Cove is one of the most protected harbours on Georgian Bay.  It is only a few miles from Kilarney and is a pool about 400m across protected by 60m high cliffs on three sides.  A classic 'huricane hole'. Mid summer it can be a crowded anchorage, but the night we pulled in, in mid September, there was only one other boat  'on the hook'.