“The North Channel is the body of water along the north shore of Lake Huron, in the Canadian province of Ontario and the state of Michigan in the United States of America. It stretches approximately 160 nautical miles (300 km) and is bordered on the east by Georgian Bay, on the west by the St. Marys River, to the north by the eastern Algoma District and part of the Sudbury District, and to the south by the islands of Manitoulin, Cockburn, Drummond and St. Joseph. At its widest point it is over 30 km (20 miles) wide.” (wikipedia)
In the summer of 2024, we spent nearly 2 months touring the beautiful North Channel. This sailing trip helped us learning what it is like to live on a 36’ sailboat for an extended period of time.
Part 1: Hamilton to Killarney
This is Part 1 of our 56 days sailing trip in the summer of 2024. It recorded our journey from our home port Hamilton to the east entrance of North Channel. We travelled 510.26 nautical miles in 10 days.
On July 4 2024, my partner Gino and I departed from Harbour West Marina in Hamilton, sailed east to Port Dalhousie on Lake Ontario; went through 8 locks on Welland Cannal and arrived on Lake Erie. We then sailed across Lake Erie from east to west in 31 hours, arrived Scudders Marina on Pelee Island on July 8th 2024. We sailed north from there, went through Detroit River to Lakeview Park Marina at Windsor Ontario. We took advantage of the convenience of the large city, picked up boat parts we ordered from Amazon and had some groceries delivered to the marina. Our next leg is the longest of the whole trip. We sailed non-stop across the heart shaped Lake Saint Clair, continued north through the St. Clair River and came out at Sarnia to get on Lake Huron. Then we sailed straight north to the east entrance of North Channel – Killarney Ontario. We sailed 238 nautical miles, 55 hours on this leg.
(The map is best viewed in full screen mode. Zoom in and click on the camera icons to see our pictures along the track. The pictures are shown at the locations they were taken. Zoom really close to see more pictures.)
Part 2: Killarney to Meldrum Bay and back
We spent the next 30 days explore the North Channel. Our first stop was Covered Portage Cove, 3.1 NM from Killarey Mountain Lodge. We started early in the morning (just before 7:00 AM). It didn’t take us long to get there. The light morning fog pulled a mysterious cover on the cove. As we motored into the cove, the signature northern granite rocky shoreline started to appear through the mist. I was in awe. If there is heaven, this must be what it feels like.
Over the next 30 days, this feeling of awe repeated many times. If it weren’t for the many photos Gino took remineded me I was really there, I would have questioned if I mixed dreams with reality.
We made stops at a few anchroages: the famous “The Pool” at the end of Baie Fine, South Benjamin Island, Eagle Island, Moiles Island, Croker Island, Vidal Bay. Because of the time limit, the west most point we reached is Meldrum Bay, where we surprisedly found the best Cell signal among all the places we traveled on the North Channel this trip. It is also a point of entry for boaters from the US. We resupplied our boat with fresh fruit and vegetables at Little Current and Gore Bay. We loved the smoked fish from Purvish Fisheries!
(The map is best viewed in full screen mode. Zoom in and click on the camera icons to see our pictures along the track. The pictures are shown at the locations they were taken. Zoom really close to see more pictures.)
Part 3: Home bound
When living on the water, weather has a much bigger impact on our life than on the land. In the mid August, the weather started to look more unstable. Reluctantly, we started to make our way back towards home. We went back the same way as we came. And we were glad we left plenty of time. On August 28th, we arrived at our home port Hamilton. After spending 56 days on the water, we had to regain our land legs and get back to our normal life. But something has changed in us for ever.
(The map is best viewed in full screen mode. Zoom in and click on the camera icons to see our pictures along the track. The pictures are shown at the locations they were taken. Zoom really close to see more pictures.)