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Big Current

Big Current

Posted on June 17, 2022June 17, 2022 by Mike

Current on the lake(??) keeps us at the dock for another night.

Posted in Sailing Life, Seamanship, Travel
La Mer Douce

La Mer Douce

Posted on June 5, 2022June 13, 2022 by Mike

“La Mer Douce” (the gentle, or calm, sea) was the name that Samuel de Champlain gave to Georgian Bay. Georgian Bay is large (15,000 km2): two and half times bigger than our past stomping ground the Georgia Strait, nearly as big as Lake Ontario, and certainly could have been named the sixth great lake rather Continue Reading

Posted in Anchorages, Georgian Bay, Sailing Life, Seamanship, Travel
Vancouver BC to Midland ON: 4,100 km

Vancouver BC to Midland ON: 4,100 km

Posted on June 2, 2022June 13, 2022 by Mike

Fifteen days and 4,100km

Posted in Boat Work, Georgian Bay, Marinas, Sailing Life, Travel
The Big Move: 2022 Cruising Plan

The Big Move: 2022 Cruising Plan

Posted on May 16, 2022June 9, 2022 by Mike

It’s a bittersweet night as I write this. Our shipper has moved up our ship date by a week and turned a scramble to get ready into a frenzy. All the scrambling has meant less blog posting than we’d like. The British Columbia coast is so beautiful and we have so many good friends here. Continue Reading

Posted in Boat Work, Marinas, Sailing Life, Travel
Alexander Mackenzie Rock

Alexander Mackenzie Rock

Posted on September 8, 2021January 3, 2022 by Mike

I’m a fan of history – many/most of the books I read and podcasts I listen to are non-fiction and often about history. A number of the Canadian history books I’ve read have been about the fur trade and a few years ago I read Alexander Mackenzie’s book – the Journal of the Voyage to Continue Reading

Posted in Anchorages, Travel

Where Are We Now?

Georgian Bay, Lake Huron, Ontario

Garmin InReach Tracker 

svinnisfree

On the road again (or the sailing equivalent of th On the road again (or the sailing equivalent of that). Left early to get started on a 60mn sail from the west end of Manitoulin all the way to Cove Island which is about 5 miles from Tobermory. South winds today, building to 20kts by mid-day, and dropping again towards evening. But at least the waves have died off from yesterday! Seems like we've only just started our journey, but we're already feeling the need to keep on schedule and get moving.
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#svinnisfree #gozzardyachts #lakehuronsailing #sailinglife #ontariosailing #boatingontario #atlanticbound
Sailing towards the western tip of Manitoulin Isla Sailing towards the western tip of Manitoulin Island. The 25 knot winds from earlier have dropped below 20, but the waves are still averaging 1.5m in height. The combination of lower winds and big waves makes for slow upwind sailing on Innisfree. Feels a bit like being on a giant see-saw!
#sailinglife #northchannelsailing #manitoulinisland #gozzardyachts #gozzard36 #boatingontario #sailingontario
Something left us a present on our anchor chain. N Something left us a present on our anchor chain. Not sure we'd be fit parents for whatever these will grow into!  Anyone know what kind of eggs they might be?
#ontariosailing #northchannel #ontariofishing #anchorsnubber #boatingontario #sailinglife #whatfishisthis
Who needs an alarm clock when there are sandhill c Who needs an alarm clock when there are sandhill cranes in the next bay? I was already making coffee when they started - maybe they were just trying to order a latte? 
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#galleywithaview #morningsatanchor #sandhillcranesofinstagram #boatlife #whalesbackchannel #svinnisfree
The loon is calling and giving us our own personal The loon is calling and giving us our own personal Hinterland Who's Who moment. 
#canadiantv #looncalls #northchannelsailing #svinnisfree #canadianheritage #hinterlandwhoswho
Big waves building from the strong westerly. Stunn Big waves building from the strong westerly. Stunning!
The wind is up and we are having a beautiful sail The wind is up and we are having a beautiful sail from the Benjamins to Lousia Island (or somewhere near there). There is a pale yellow haze over all the land - in the wind, the white pine pollen bursts out of the trees in big puffs, and looks almost like yellow smoke! It also creates a fine layer of dust on every surface (inside and out!), but I guess that's part of the fun of our semi-feral living situation! 😂
#sailinglife #mothernaturewins #svinnisfree #northchannelsailing #boatlife #benjaminislands
The forecasted thunderstorms completely missed us, The forecasted thunderstorms completely missed us, and now the grey day has turned into a beautiful sunny evening in the Benjamin Islands. We are supposed to have hot weather again tomorrow so we will probably go exploring in the kayaks. Seems like a great way to spend the solstice! 
#longestdaysoftheyear #emptyanchorage #northchannelsailing #benjaminislands #svinnisfree #sailinglife #liveaboardlife
There is a tiny swarm of mosquitoes trapped in the There is a tiny swarm of mosquitoes trapped in the dorade vent above where I'm sitting, and I can hear them buzzing madly, trying to escape. The narrow cent amplifies the buzzing so it's almost like they're right in my ear - not quite as loud, but equally crazy-making! Bring on today's thunderstorms already, so it can drive the beasties back into hiding! 🦟
(For non-boaters, a dorade is an air scoop that you can aim into the wind and help bring fresh air into the boat - see photo 2. Because this boat was made in Ontario, even the vent openings have bug screens!)
#gozzardyachts #gozzard36 #mosquitoesareevil #boatlife #ontarioproblems #ihatemosquitos #bugscreens
Gah! Look at all those bugs! This is definitely on Gah! Look at all those bugs! This is definitely on the list of 'things you don't have in BC!' I'm suddenly very happy that my Ontario-made boat has built-in screens on every window and door!
#gozzard36 #gozzardyachts #toomanybugs #ontarioproblems #sailinglife #svinnisfree #whereisthewind
Finally got off the dock a day and a half later th Finally got off the dock a day and a half later than planned - the wind barely dropped below 20 knots for two days! On the plus side, we met some fellow stranded sailors and had a great evening making new friends.
We are now taking a quick evening sail to Clapperton Island - almost 6 knots with only the staysail and a reefed main, 12-15kts of wind. 
#forecastwaswrong #svinnisfree #gozzardyachts #northchannelsailing #sailinglife #boatlife #gozzard36
We didn't leave the dock today - the wind-driven c We didn't leave the dock today - the wind-driven current outside the docks has been so strong that I'm not sure we could've motored against it even if we had tried to leave. It's now almost 10pm and the winds are blowing 30 knots so we've added extra dock lines to keep us in place. Can you hear the howling winds in the video? 
#windwarning #svinnisfree #sailinglife #windstorm #Galleywithaview #atleastwedontgetseasick
This is today's #galleywithaview as we fold the la This is today's #galleywithaview as we fold the laundry and contemplate whether we will leave the dock or stay here and make it a boatwork day. There's a weather warning for wind gusts of 37+ knots on land, which means it's likely higher on the water. One mistake out there could do more damage to the boat than we'll spend on an extra night at the dock... So #boatwork day it is then?
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#sailinglife #sailingrationale #windwarning #littlecurrentswingbridge #svinnisfree #northchannelsailing
Tied up for the night along the wall in Little Cur Tied up for the night along the wall in Little Current alongside @coastguardcan's Samuel Risley... Great Lakes icebreaker!

#greatlakessailing #northchannel #manitoulinisland
We took the kayaks out for a moose hunt yesterday, We took the kayaks out for a moose hunt yesterday, but the moose hadn't read the map, so he didn't appear in the indicated spot. Instead we saw a few deer, lots of beaver lodges and dams, and a giant turtle who cartwheeled off the top of a beaver lodge as we tried to sneak past him (he's the round thing in the middle of the last photo, with his arm sticking up in the air). The skies threatened rain all day, but we stayed dry and even went for a swim when we got back to the boat. 
#killarneypark #deltakayaks #mooseareimaginary
#svinnisfree #sailinglife #turtlesofinstagram
Summer afternoons at anchor... Summer afternoons at anchor...
Wing on wing downwind today along beautiful Baie F Wing on wing downwind today along beautiful Baie Fine.
Thunderstorm roulette: sitting on the patio, tryin Thunderstorm roulette: sitting on the patio, trying to figure out if the storm will hit you, or just go on past. 
#beersonthepatio #friday #killarneyontario #svinnisfree #sailinglife
The sky was on fire tonight from a thunderstorm th The sky was on fire tonight from a thunderstorm that passed by at sunset. I have never seen anything like it! 
#svinnisfree #summerstorms #redskyatnight #thunderstorms #sailinglife #boatlife #gozzard36 #georgianbaysailing #georgianbay
While at anchor this evening, a thunderstorm passe While at anchor this evening, a thunderstorm passed south of us dragging the wind around with it. Makes for a nice semi circle track on the chart plotter.
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