Rocky Islands August 10 - 12

From Penetang Harbour, we headed NW past Beausoil Island which is a very popular hiking and camping area. The conditions were terrible with rain, fog, and lightning in the distance. We thought about going back but decided to push on through and soon the storm passed although it was overcast all day. This area had numerous rocky islands.










The rock structures on many of the islands were fascinating with some of the sediment layers dissolved away leaving lines and swirls in the rocks bordering the shorelines.

Our goal was an anchorage off Twelve Mile Bay that Jim Borden had recommended. We passed through a narrow opening into a large pool (probably less than 1/8 mile in diameter). We explored the SE corner but a fellow boater called to us and recommended a different spot since we had gotten close to a large rock just below the water. We anchored among about 8 boats and were later joined by others for a total of 15 boats in this pool. The friendly boater Lindy, brought his Waverunner over to converse. I discovered he had been a Canadian Superbike racer many years ago.

The next morning the fog was thick. We elected to stay put for the day which allowed me to change generator oil and do some other maintenance tasks. So on the 11th we started back on the small boat channel that is indicated on the Canadian Charts and is the "lifeline" that leads us through these treacherous surroundings. We anchored one night at Regatta Bay where we got down the dinghy to go to the town of Snug Harbor for ice cream cones and did some exploring. The next day we passed by this lighthouse at Pointe au Baril.

Just after the lighthouse we saw a sign that indicated that this barrel was famous (which partially explained why there was a historical marker note on the charts.) The sign says " The site of the original barrel denoting safe passage through turbulent waters." I had never heard of using a barrel for this but apparently it was done here.

This was also where we left the main small boat channel and went out into Georgian Bay on an alternate channel to avoid a very narrow passage at Hangdog Channel (not recommended for boats over 40 ft.) After 7-8 miles we rejoined the normal small boat channel. I found two or three places where my 2009 Navionics charts (that I purchased for my Raymarine C-120 chart plotter before I left) were more accurate than the older electronic charts that I had been given to use on my Coastal Explorer software on my laptop. The Canadian Coast Guard moved the channels and markers a few years ago, so you had to pay close attention to where you were going.

The rock formations are starting to show more color. Many were reddish. These were in Bad River which is the site of our next adventure.