8/17 - Charlevoix

We took the advice from some boaters we met at Beaver Island and went to Charlevoix. After passing the bascule bridge,

we pulled into the municipal marina. 

The staff here was super friendly and helpful. The downtown area is cute with various boutiquey clothes shops and fudge stores. 

We went to the restaurant at Grey Gables  Inn  

and had a wonderful dinner from their small plates menu. 

8/11-13 - Mackinac.

From Drummond we sailed to Mackinaw City and stayed at the state marina. It's new and a short ferry ride to Mackinac Island. 

Mackinac Island is unique in that no motor vehicles are allowed. Only bikes or horse drawn carriages 

We went to the fort and toured the various buildings. They've done a great job to show the living conditions from the 1880s. 

We then went to the Grand Hotel for dinner. 

The hotel boasts the world's longest veranda (660')

The dinner was fabulous. 

8/10/13 - All downhill from here

At 11:57 am we were at at the nothern-most part of  our Great Loop trip.  From this point on we are heading south to hopefully warmer climes.  (It was in the upper 40s/lower 50s last night)

I

So after 47 days, 865.4 nautical miles, 106 locks and countless new friends made, we re-entered the U.S. at 2pm today.
All of the photos we took and posted fail to truly convey the beauty of the areas we travelled through.
Words cannot express the thanks and admiration for the many people who gave us help and valuable information along the way. We do plan to come back to Canada and continue our adventure

8/9-10/13 - Meldrum Bay

The Meldrum Bay Inn. We had dinner there on our last night in Canada. We had great pan fried whitefish and Pan Asian Shimp-Crab cakes. The bumbleberry pie was incredible. We plan to come here soon.

Meldrum Bay Harbor

July 30 - Georgian Bay: Bone Island

Our  first night in Georgian Bay. We had heard so much about the beauty and solitude.

Right about beauty...solitude is another matter. 

There was only 1 other boat when we anchored in Hockey Stick Cove. By nightfall there were 11 including us. 

June 28-29 - Montreal

It was foggy and overcast at the start of our trip down the St Lawrence Seaway. It took us about 7 hours to make it to Longeueil, a town across the seaway from Montreal. 

Incredibly we made it for the start of Montreal's Jazz Festival. We got seats at restaurant that was next to one of the outdoor venues and had a decadent lunch with music. 

We brefriended  Marie Claude who is the proprietor of Creme de la Creme. In addition to great food..p

August 5 - Killarney

We got to the end of Georgian Bay when we pulled into the Killarney Mountain Lodge marina. The town itself is fairly small and the lodge is a throwback to the 1950s.

We had a super dinner of fish and chips. That's about the I ly thing they serve out of the converted bus. (They also have fresh  fish off the boat that they will pack in ice for you cooler.)

August 3 - Another Georgian Bay sunset

Today's sunset is from Sandy Bay near Britt. 

August 2 - Georgian Bay

Some people ask, "what makes Georgian Bay attractive"?  I think it is the raw beauty of rock and tree. 

August 2 - 1000+ miles

Today we hit a key milestone we've traveled 1,000+ nautical miles. It has taken us 62 days, going through 117 locks, etc. to get here. 

So 1000 down. Another 4000-5000 more to go. 

July 28-29 Port Severn

We stayed at the Seaport Upper Port Severn for 2 nights. For us this was a dream. They actually delivered a hot breakfast with a copy of the Toronto Star to our boat. 

August 1 - Snug Harbor

Wow. We are now starting our 3rd month on the Loop. Today we are on a small cove called Snug Harbor. 

The voyage along Georgian Bay continues. 

July 31 - Frying Pan Island

Originally we were going to go to Port Rawson, a very remote cove about 5 miles of the channel. Because we got a late start, we decided to stay the night on Frying Pan Island. Glad we did. 

This place is famous for its only restaurant; Henry's Fish Restaurant.

(You don't go the for the burgers). The two featured fishes are perch and pickerel. You can get them either pan fried or battered and deep fried. 

We had both fishes pan fried. This was after a great smoked fish appetizer. 

If we come again, it would be by seaplane. Yes, seaplane. While there 2 planes landed, had dinner and them left. Cool!

July 27 - Severen Falls

After leaving Orillia, we planned to stay at the top of Lock 43 (Swift Rapids). But an approaching storm convinced to move on. We overnighted on the public dock and had dinner at the Riverhouse Restaurant. 

On to the Big Chute!

July 28 - The Big Chute

There is one part of the Trent-Severen where one has to "portage" ones boat down a 58 foot slope. To do this, you need to load you boat into a submerged rail car that has slings. 

Slings are then placed underneath and then the car is then makes it way over a road and the down the hill. 

It is a bit disconcerting to look over the side and see land instead of water.

Definitely an "A" ticket ride.