Day 47 - Collins Inlet
Today we crossed into new waters, heading east out of Killarney. Captain and I were up and moving at a good hour and by 8:30am I had successfully let go of our mooring ball. The kids still fast asleep, enjoying the cooler air that allows them to sleep under blankets to shield them from mosquitoes.
Captain and I glided past the Killarney Lighthouse at the east end of the Killarney Channel and followed the coast of the mainland Canada for just a few miles before I waked the kids. We weren’t going far today, and instead of the destination being the goal it was the cruise, Collins Inlet.
Collins Inlet stretches about 10 miles and separates the mainland from Philip Edward Island. It is at the edge of the Canadian Shield and Greenville Front, a massive fault line that creates a narrow, well protected passage with towering rocks on both sides. We have never taken Ciara down an inlet before and we were not disappointed!
Being a narrow passage, this wasn’t going to be a sailing day, so we cruised down the passage as it got narrower and narrower. Even over our motor I could hear chickadees and other birds chirping ashore, something we NEVER hear because we never cruise near shore. Kona, who usually spends our moving days lying on the cockpit had joined us at the bow (!) with her nose smelling the forest and fauna ashore. We enjoyed looking at the few camps set along the shores and tried to find some really old Ojibwe rock paintings which we missed. They are not very well preserved or marked and we were still on a large boat that couldn’t really get close enough to examen and look.
About 2/3 of the way through the inlet it lets out into an inland lake, Mill Lake. My heart stopped. Being on a “large” boat on a “small” lake was a magical experience. It almost didn’t feel right. The lake is dotted with islands and feels like a water playground made for fisherman and nature lovers alike. I was very tempted to drop anchor there for the night and just soak in the beauty. However, it was only 11am. Captain wanted to take Ciara all the way to the end of the inlet so after touring around on Mill Lake we turned north back to finish the cruise. There was the slightest wind so Captain pulled out the jib and we ghosted along Mill Lake at 1knot without the engine. The kids and I pulled out art supplies and hung out on deck with Captain as we watched the world go by. The weather was just perfect, not too cold, not too hot. Just right.
We pulled back the jib and finished up Colin’s inlet in about 30 minutes. The inlet takes a sharp turn to the south at the end with a very narrow marked channel. Water levels are low this year and the charts said 6 feet at the shallows. Friends on Kim’s Komfort, who we met at the pool, had texted me saying they reviewed their trip log and recorded 6.3 as the shallowest they saw. For us that was too close for comfort as we draw 6ft. Being in no mood to bottom out our boat we made a U-Turn and enjoyed the round trip through the inlet.
We decided to head almost all the way back to Killarney for the evening and drop anchor at an anchorage called Key Hole or a new place I had found on the chart called Thomas Bay. There was a hike we could access with our dinghy from either one and that is what I, the navigator, wanted to do.
Key Hole is just at the very mouth of Collins inlet. We were going to go through and look at it on our way to Thomas thinking if we didn’t like a Thomas we could come back, it was only 3pm. As we approached Key Hole we saw a familiar dinghy coming out to greet us. I could see their beautiful red trawler anchored off in the distance. Terry and Randy from Hogsbreath came up to greet us. They asked if we were staying here and we said “here or Thomas”. They advised us that Thomas is beautiful but someone had recently bought land in the bay and built a house and we’re not friendly to the boaters nor polite by blasting music all the time. They mentioned they were gathering all the boats in the anchorage for “rock-tails” and that was all the data collection we needed for our choice.
We set our anchor and relaxed for a bit before we headed to shore around 4:30. Cory and I managed to lift our new motor and get it on board the dinghy to Captain. It is rather heavy and with limited deck space it is quite the operation to set up. We will be making some adjustments to Ciara over the winter to make having this upgrade easier by adding a small crane and probably a stern rail (finally). It’s a little sad as we have avoided messing with the original lines of Ciara’s design but we really need this rail so we can hang not only this motor but also life saving apparatus’ that are currently not in live saving locations.
We loaded everyone and headed to shore. It was the first time Bert, Dani and Kona got to feel the speed of our new engine. Kona didn’t know what to do. 5 knots is fast compared to the 2 knots electric motor did, but not enough for us to get on up on plane.
Everyone was already on shore with drinks and snack. Kona immediately found a stick asked whomever she could find to throw it for her all while ignoring the food that was right at her nose. It’s always a joy to see her have some impeccable manners.
Captain went to use his chainsaw and cut wood while Cory and Bert gathered tinder. We had hopes of a fire later in the evening. Dani sat on the rocks and enjoyed the view while I chatted with Terri and made new friends and played fetch.
Dani would end up slipping on the slick rocks. Taking the fall on their elbow and hip. We all heard it. There were tears but we got some ice and a whole lot of attention from the other boat moms/nurses. I think they will feel that for a few days, but ok.
Everyone headed back early evening for dinners and said their good nights. We made freeze dried Cheesy potato bacon soup that was amazing. After Last Post, Dani and I set to our task of dishes while Captain took Cory and Bert out on the dinghy to teach them how to use the new motos since they have their boaters’ licenses. They had a blast zooming around and learning how to beach and land with the new motor. Dani and were not quick enough to shut the doors and the mosquitoes came in force as the sun set. By the time everyone was back on board the idea of a campfire and smores was gone because of said mosquitoes. We all hung out in the saloon for a bit and said our goodnights around 11.
As for first mate we are officially now at our turn around point. There is a little more we are going to try and do here before we head west as we need to have the kids back in Madison in two weeks (give or take a day). Weather has me all tied up in knots as I now get to thread the needle on when and how we move to get home without finding ourselves in unideal conditions in the middle of the big lakes. The North Channel spoils us greatly with the protection of big seas. I’m a little tired of being the wake up marshal and the doer of things, but I suppose most mom’s of teenagers feel like that at home on a daily basis as well! Captain and I will be spending a lifetime up here enjoying the beauty of the land, the waters and the people and can’t wait to return, for all I can do now is soak up the week or so we have left in these waters as we head west and make notes for where we want to explore next time.
