Hi there...Ben here in the Georgian Bay,
I thought it was going to be quiet and boring after Sandy and Dimitry left us, because I was missing them, but the past week has been pretty exciting.
It started off calm enough in Orillia, Ontario
where we stayed in a marina and took the usual walks in the park and to the grocery and wine/beer stores. The biggest excitement was that Izzy finally found some Peameal Bacon (special cornmeal coated Canadian bacon) that Jim remembers from his youth in Canada. She has been looking for it in the grocery stores since Montreal. Too late for Jim's visit, but we had sandwiches and thought of him anyway.
I met up with a familiar looking dog in the marina that may have been a cousin of mine. Nice guy.
But the next day the excitement began when we started into the locks again in the rain – this time with thunder and lightening. The Trent Canal was real narrow
and had lots of shallow spots and rocks, so there were many opportunities for excitement. 
One of the locks closed for a while and made us wait until the lightening stopped. Yikes! Never thought of the potential for danger there....but that was okay with me, because we tied up on the “blue line” on the wall next to the lock and Izzy fixed Jeff and me some soup and we relaxed a little out of the rocky channel.That night we stayed at a real tall lock called Swift Rapids. One of the tallest we've been in. This is the view from the top of the lock on the dam side
and down river where we were headed the next morning.
There are fire rings scattered around the park beside the lock, so Jeff and a couple men from the other boats there decided to gather twigs and logs from the mosquito infested woods to build a fire. After a beer or two, the itching seemed to subside for a while. Jeff and Izzy enjoyed the camaraderie of the other boaters, while swapping stories of the Great Circle Loop. I stayed in the boat away from the mosquitoes.
and down river where we were headed the next morning. There are fire rings scattered around the park beside the lock, so Jeff and a couple men from the other boats there decided to gather twigs and logs from the mosquito infested woods to build a fire. After a beer or two, the itching seemed to subside for a while. Jeff and Izzy enjoyed the camaraderie of the other boaters, while swapping stories of the Great Circle Loop. I stayed in the boat away from the mosquitoes.They were talking about the “Big Chute” that we were going to see the next day.
Little did I know that we were actually going to take the boat out of the water on a thing like this...
and then over the road and down a big hill on the other side on railroad tracks like these!
We tied up the Izzy R to a little dock and watched some boats go through the lift so we'd know what to expect. Luckily, a boat just like ours named "Patty Lou" was being lifted out of the water and put on a railroad car. The owners, Doug and Pat, had dinner with us a few nights later and we all shared stories about this crazy ride. Here they are in the back of the lift, and going up the tracks over to the other side.
They were carried up over the road
and down a hill on the other side into the water where they let it loose again to float away. 
Jeff and Izzy were studying the tricky currents at the entrance and the exit and imagining what it would feel like to be on the boat traveling up and out of the water. Pretty soon it was our turn, and we were heading into the railroad car in the “Izzy R” along with three other boats.
We were the biggest one, so we went in last. The lift operators helped maneuver us into the right spot. The water was real clear so the lift opertors could see under us
and they put some big straps under our boat’s belly. In the front
and the back
The railroad car slowly moved up the hill out of the water and carried us up over the road.
Lots of people were following us as we took our trip, and Izzy said it felt strange to have them all looking at our bare bottom. I didn’t think that was a big deal. Jeff was more concerned that our “bottom” might show that we had some missing paint from all the times we’ve rubbed it against the sand and mud.
In a few minutes the whole process was over, and we were again floating in water on the other side of the lift.
Little did I know that we were actually going to take the boat out of the water on a thing like this... and then over the road and down a big hill on the other side on railroad tracks like these!We tied up the Izzy R to a little dock and watched some boats go through the lift so we'd know what to expect. Luckily, a boat just like ours named "Patty Lou" was being lifted out of the water and put on a railroad car. The owners, Doug and Pat, had dinner with us a few nights later and we all shared stories about this crazy ride. Here they are in the back of the lift, and going up the tracks over to the other side. They were carried up over the road and down a hill on the other side into the water where they let it loose again to float away. Jeff and Izzy were studying the tricky currents at the entrance and the exit and imagining what it would feel like to be on the boat traveling up and out of the water. Pretty soon it was our turn, and we were heading into the railroad car in the “Izzy R” along with three other boats. We were the biggest one, so we went in last. The lift operators helped maneuver us into the right spot. The water was real clear so the lift opertors could see under usand they put some big straps under our boat’s belly. In the front and the back The railroad car slowly moved up the hill out of the water and carried us up over the road. Lots of people were following us as we took our trip, and Izzy said it felt strange to have them all looking at our bare bottom. I didn’t think that was a big deal. Jeff was more concerned that our “bottom” might show that we had some missing paint from all the times we’ve rubbed it against the sand and mud.In a few minutes the whole process was over, and we were again floating in water on the other side of the lift.
Time to relax?? Think again…the winds started to pick up and the currents and waves got bigger while the channels got narrower and more twisted. We headed under a bridge with strong currents and the most confusing set of markers we had seen up to this point.
We were now in the Georgian Bay. The confusing markers were taking us in a winding route around rocks...something we got real used to over the next few days.
What the heck?? Which way do we go? Red right? Green right?
Watch out for the rocks on the right!
Then the wind really picked up and there were white caps all around with only 6 ft of water depth. We still had Jeff’s big orange balls hanging off the rails in the front of the boat for the locks. You remember seeing them in the blog from back in Lake Champlain...
Well they began to swing wildly in the wind off the sides of the bow. One of Jeff's big orange balls was hanging right near the window of the front head and started bumping against it, knocking the screen out into the angry water.
Jeff quickly went out to bring his big orange balls back onto the deck, but one of them had already untied itself and had been swept off the rail. Sure enough, it was floating behind us in the choppy channel. We could see its bright orange shape in the distance behind us, so we turned around in the narrow channel hoping no other boat would come our way, and went back to retrieve it.
Jeff maneuvered the boat right up to it, and Izzy tried to grab Jeff's big orange ball with the boat hook, but the wind and current were too fast for her, and she couldn’t get a grasp before it was taken further out of the channel into the rocky water. So we had to wave goodbye to one of Jeff’s big orange balls, and vowed to keep a closer eye on the one he has left on the boat. So for a while Jeff has only one big orange ball. He said he'll order another one so he can have two matching balls again real soon.
We were now in the Georgian Bay. The confusing markers were taking us in a winding route around rocks...something we got real used to over the next few days.What the heck?? Which way do we go? Red right? Green right?Watch out for the rocks on the right! Then the wind really picked up and there were white caps all around with only 6 ft of water depth. We still had Jeff’s big orange balls hanging off the rails in the front of the boat for the locks. You remember seeing them in the blog from back in Lake Champlain... Well they began to swing wildly in the wind off the sides of the bow. One of Jeff's big orange balls was hanging right near the window of the front head and started bumping against it, knocking the screen out into the angry water. Jeff quickly went out to bring his big orange balls back onto the deck, but one of them had already untied itself and had been swept off the rail. Sure enough, it was floating behind us in the choppy channel. We could see its bright orange shape in the distance behind us, so we turned around in the narrow channel hoping no other boat would come our way, and went back to retrieve it. Jeff maneuvered the boat right up to it, and Izzy tried to grab Jeff's big orange ball with the boat hook, but the wind and current were too fast for her, and she couldn’t get a grasp before it was taken further out of the channel into the rocky water. So we had to wave goodbye to one of Jeff’s big orange balls, and vowed to keep a closer eye on the one he has left on the boat. So for a while Jeff has only one big orange ball. He said he'll order another one so he can have two matching balls again real soon. The sun came out the next day and we got an even better view of the underwater rocks that had been terrifing us as we wiggled around them in the channels along the northern shore of the Georgian Bay.
There is a small craft channel on this northern most shore with beautiful scenery and about 6 feet of water depth. Since the water is so clear, we can see the rocks just before we hit them!
Jeff’s target for that night was Frying Pan Island, a small rocky island where there is a famous restaurant called Henry’s Fly In and Dine Fish Restaurant serving big helpings of local pickerel (walleye to us yankees) and lake trout.
The only way to get to Henry’s is by boat or by float plane. We just pulled the Izzy R into a slip and tied up right next to the restaurant, but for $175 you can be picked up in Parry Sound by one of these float planes and taken to Henry’s for dinner and back. Here’s a picture of the plane parked next to us. 
We spent the afternoon exploring the rocky island around their restaurant. This drawing on the granite behind the restaurant looked like something from outerspace, but Jeff said it's a helicopter landing spot.
Later we just relaxed on the dock.
Ah yea, Irvine...I remember that place. Wonder if I'll ever see it again.
Jeff made friends with the owner of Henry’s…his name is Pete. ??
I made friends with some other boaters and got lots of hugs and scratches, especially from the kids and the moms.
The dads usually give me a good rubbing and then a couple of slaps on the side, but they don’t linger with the petting like the kids and moms do. Izzy and Jeff took off their shoes and had wine.
Must be time for the mosquitoes to come out. 
It was a nice day…
With our belly’s full of fish, we left the next day in the sun for a beautiful ride to the Shawanga Inlet. There were lots of rocks and Izzy was busy taking pictures of the scenery with “oooos” and “ahhhhhs”. Sometimes the channel looked quite confusing with the red and green markers going every which way, and making sharp turns that seem impossible in our big boat. Jeff kept a towel handy to put the fire out in Izzy’s hair during those scary times. I’m glad she doesn’t drive when we’re in the rocks…I think she is too. We finally anchored in Hopewell Harbor with another boat named Lady Victoria.
We first met them at the Swift Rapids Lock and the Big Chute Railroad Lift a few days before. We took a dingy ride and invited Vickie and John to come over to our boat for drinks and bring their cute little dog, Bruno. We hit it off just great. Bruno is a great little guy, and I shared treats with him and we became friends. Here he is looking for another cookie from Izzy.
Izzy and Jeff laughed and had fun with Vickie and John too.
That evening Jeff cooked some great lamb chops on the barbecue and we relaxed in the quiet beauty of Hopewell Harbor. I got some “Ol Roy” gravy in my dinner, so it was another good day. Hope I’ll see Bruno again soon.
Love,
Ben
There is a small craft channel on this northern most shore with beautiful scenery and about 6 feet of water depth. Since the water is so clear, we can see the rocks just before we hit them!Jeff’s target for that night was Frying Pan Island, a small rocky island where there is a famous restaurant called Henry’s Fly In and Dine Fish Restaurant serving big helpings of local pickerel (walleye to us yankees) and lake trout.
The only way to get to Henry’s is by boat or by float plane. We just pulled the Izzy R into a slip and tied up right next to the restaurant, but for $175 you can be picked up in Parry Sound by one of these float planes and taken to Henry’s for dinner and back. Here’s a picture of the plane parked next to us. We spent the afternoon exploring the rocky island around their restaurant. This drawing on the granite behind the restaurant looked like something from outerspace, but Jeff said it's a helicopter landing spot.Later we just relaxed on the dock. Ah yea, Irvine...I remember that place. Wonder if I'll ever see it again.Jeff made friends with the owner of Henry’s…his name is Pete. ?? I made friends with some other boaters and got lots of hugs and scratches, especially from the kids and the moms. The dads usually give me a good rubbing and then a couple of slaps on the side, but they don’t linger with the petting like the kids and moms do. Izzy and Jeff took off their shoes and had wine. Must be time for the mosquitoes to come out. It was a nice day…With our belly’s full of fish, we left the next day in the sun for a beautiful ride to the Shawanga Inlet. There were lots of rocks and Izzy was busy taking pictures of the scenery with “oooos” and “ahhhhhs”. Sometimes the channel looked quite confusing with the red and green markers going every which way, and making sharp turns that seem impossible in our big boat. Jeff kept a towel handy to put the fire out in Izzy’s hair during those scary times. I’m glad she doesn’t drive when we’re in the rocks…I think she is too. We finally anchored in Hopewell Harbor with another boat named Lady Victoria.
We first met them at the Swift Rapids Lock and the Big Chute Railroad Lift a few days before. We took a dingy ride and invited Vickie and John to come over to our boat for drinks and bring their cute little dog, Bruno. We hit it off just great. Bruno is a great little guy, and I shared treats with him and we became friends. Here he is looking for another cookie from Izzy. Izzy and Jeff laughed and had fun with Vickie and John too. That evening Jeff cooked some great lamb chops on the barbecue and we relaxed in the quiet beauty of Hopewell Harbor. I got some “Ol Roy” gravy in my dinner, so it was another good day. Hope I’ll see Bruno again soon.Love,
Ben
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