July 24 – 28 Happy Birthday, Captain Pat! –  July 26 We are in Drummond Island – back in the USA. We had planned to head to Sault Ste. Marie in Ontario for Captain Pat’s birthday. But that wasn’t meant to be. Tuesday, July 25, we have the Drummond Island marina mechanics on board to…

July 22 – July 23 We have two stops enroute to Drummond Island – an anchorage at East Grant Island and a marina at Blind River. East and West Grant Islands lie in the middle of the western end of the North Channel. The Grants are open, rocky islands some distance from more hospitable spots.…

Nature trail, chocolates, and deer! We arrive Gore Bay July 18 and plan to stay three nights. What a great stop for transient boaters. It is at the end of a V-shaped, two-mile deep inlet set into the north shore of Manitoulin Island. The marina can accommodate 157 boats at the floating finger docks. The…

July 15 – 17, 2023 We leave Kagawong to anchor at Croker Island. We find a nice spot – or so we think. As evening approaches Captain Pat is not feeling good about the wind situation. We pull up anchor and move to a more protected cove. The spot we have selected is by three…

Captain Pat’s original Great Loop plans included a stop in Sault St. Marie, in Lake Superior. He’s always wanted to dip his toes in Lake Superior, supposedly the coldest waters in the Great Lakes. Lake Superior is aptly named because it is superior in size and depth. All the other four Great Lakes would fit…

July 12 – 14 Kagawong gets its name from an Ojibwa word that means “where mists rise from the falling waters,” a reference to its Bridal Veil Falls. Kagawong is one of those North Channel towns described in our previous blog – once a bustling commercial center that now relies on tourism. In the early…

Heywood Island – July 11, 2023 Cruising the North Channel The Captain wants to cruise the North Channel, and that is what we are doing. It’s July 11 and we are heading for Heywood Island in Browning Cove. During our 7.5 hour, 47.6 nautical miles, we do not see one boat – not one –…

Sunday, July 9, we departed Hope Island headed for Tobermory. Per Nebo we traveled 8.5 hours, 69.3 nautical miles. This was a long day for Captain Pat. Nebo is a specialized GPS device powered by the boat’s batteries and communicates with its own SIM. Family and friends download the free app and can follow Sunshine’s…

Captain Pat has put together our travel plan for the next two weeks. Of course the timeline is contingent upon weather and other calamities. We’ve learned to remain flexible. “We are in no rush.” Above you can see our plan mapped out on the Navionics software. It starts at Tobermory (bottom right) and ends at…

Saturday, July 8, we finally depart Penetanguishene for our Great Loop journey! It is not without some trial and tribulation. Everything is finished on the boat. Or so we thought. The new water pump installed, the solar panels working, the electronics, Nebo. We are all excited to leave Friday, July 7. I pass Aaron, our…