The sunset in Honey Harbour was our introduction to the Georgian Bay. The next photo is this morning in Beaverstone Bay Inlet, Burnt Island anchorage. Rich and Reggie are out for Reggie's walk. Reggie is not pleased that there is not grass! It's hard to see with the photo so small but Crazy Eights is at anchor in the background.
This area is quite amazing and beautiful. Granite rocks and islands are everywhere - thus the name, "Land of Thirty Thousand Islands." There are many summer cottages which is a bit hard to understand, given the short summer season and the cost of maintaining them the remainder of the year. It's hard to imagine what the area looks like in just a few months from now in winter season.
One feels a little bit like a pioneer through much of our travels this week. You see a few other boats but the area is so large and there are many routes that it's not uncommon to go for hours without seeing another boat. Last night we were the only boat in the anchorage but then an hour later another boat came.
We had a mechanical malfunction on the boat on Thursday last week that required being hauled out of the water in Britt. As it turned out, parts cost was negligible but labor was the majority of the bill. Wright's Marina couldn't have been nicer or fairer in pricing. So that put us behind four days in our schedule. Our buddy boat waited a couple of days but then moved on. Hopefully, we'll catch up with them again in Lake Michigan. It was pretty comforting when something went wrong to have a buddy boat turn back to see if they could assist.
Rich diagnosed the problem quickly, not knowing why it happened but could see why we lost our steering on the port engine. Maneuverability is greatly reduced when you can only run on one engine. We "limped" into the marina/boat yard for haulout.
So that was fixed and we were underway again yesterday. When we got to our anchorage about 6 PM, the generator would not keep running. This is critical so that we can keep our freezer full of meat and the refrigerator cold. Our boat is all electric. Last night was cheese, crackers and fruit for dinner. We would've been able to grill out, but no oven, microwave or stove. Add a glass a wine & all was well!
Today we ordered a new small motor that runs the generator and if FedEx carries through, we hope to have it in a couple of days and Rich can install that.
The Canadian folks that we've met have been just super. They're always willing to lend a helping hand and give us some local tips for travel or eating. We highly recommend that you consider the Trent-Severn Waterway and Georgian Bay for your travel plans.
So all that to say, we're doing just great. If you don't hear anything for another week, don't panic. This next leg, The North Channel, is the area that is the most remote. I don't know if I'll even have Verizon phone coverage.
So until next time, greetings to all from the Crazy Eights crew!
