We went to the Keg on Tuesday night to celebrate the new props with Tim and Suzie. On our way back to the marina, we saw this cruise ship docked in the harbour.

On Wednesday morning we  headed out towards  Rossport.   We went the 100 miles, and arrived at 4:00, just in time for Andy’s virtual doctor’s appointment.  Once it was complete, Andy did the usually engine and fuel checks.  He noticed three things of concern,  there was a diesel fuel smell, he had encountered a few issues with steering, while we were enroute and noticed the transmission fluid on the Port engine was low.  He also noticed that we had used more fuel than was typical with the old props. We had a sleepless night, and in the morning, started to make a few inquiries.  The additional fuel usage, was due to the slightly different sized props.  So, we called ahead to Wawa, to find out if we could get diesel there, as we had in 2019.  Andy learned that the Michipicoten river was very silted this year, as there was no spring run-off—so obtaining fuel there was not an option. Andy called Chris, who lives in Rossport, and was the person that pulled us off the shoal on August 7^th, Chris agreed to take Andy to Schreiber to get some more transmission fluid.  We also called McKellar marine in Thunder Bay to find out if there was an option to be pulled out there for the winter.  After much discussion, we decided that this was likely our best option.  Around 1:00 , we decided to start heading back to Thunder Bay again. We had completed all but 70 miles of the circle tour– just couldn’t get passed Rossport.

We were amongst islands, so were fairly sheltered, but as we got into more open water, we found that there were 3 foot plus waves, hitting us on the beam.  We went about 12 miles and pulled into a secure anchorage on Simpson Island- called Woodbine harbour. 

We joined another  boat that was already anchored there.    On Friday morning, we left the anchorage and returned to the open water,  but it had not settled at all,  there were still 3 to 5 foot waves- so we returned back into the anchorage.  We spent part of the day, adding a tinting film to the front wind shield sections.

We also began packing up items, that needed to be put away for the winter or taken back to Winnipeg. On Saturday, the wind and waves had subsided, we ventured out, continuing our trip westward.  We had first thought we would anchor in the Loon Islands, but continued on  and ended up at Tee Harbour, which is part of Sibley peninsula (the sleeping giant), having gone 70 miles.  We tied off to a Mooring Ball.  We thought we would be protected as south winds were predicted, but once again we were bounced a little by swells. The cruise ship which we had seen earlier in the week, was still in the area- taking people to Silver islet, which was nearby.

On Sunday we left Tee harbour and travelled 20 miles to Prince Arthur Landing.  We tied up in Tim’s spot, as we knew he was away at Thompson Island.

On Monday morning, we contacted McKellar marine and found out that we couldn’t actually stay on the boat there—so we decided to stay at the Landing one more night in order to pack up everything before moving the boat there.  We also moved up our rental car to Tuesday at noon, from Wednesday.   Since Tim was returning, we asked to stay another night, and  had to move to Pier 2.  When we plugged in there, we kept tripping the breaker, so yet another issue.  We hadn’t had this problem at any of the 4 other slips we had stayed at in this marina, so we are hoping it’s a marina issue and not our boat’s issue—yet something else for McKellar’s to look at.

On Tuesday, August 20^th, we left Port Arthur Landing and travelled to  the McKellar River and to the boat yard. 

Due to silting in the river, there were spots, where we had less than 4 feet,  but the channel was very well marked.  We arrived at 10:30 and were tied up.  We met with the owner, and technician.    Around 11:00, Tim arrived and drove us to Enterprise to pick up our rental.

By 1:30, we had packed everything we needed to take back to Winnipeg, as well as the damaged props into the Ford Escape.  We then went to Teresa and Maureen’s place, where we were going to spend the night.  We arrived at their place before they did, as they were on their way back from Ottawa.  We decided to leave a box of chemicals and cleaning products along with another bag in their basement, to be retrieved in the spring.  We also left a plug in freezer with the contents of our boat freezer, which we will pick up on our return trip.  Andy cooked up some pickerel and it was enjoyed by everyone.  In the morning, we left and headed East.  We need to take the props to Kawartha props in Buckhorn for repair, and also retrieve our car which we left there in early June. 

We drove as far as Sault Ste Marie, and booked into the Water Tower hotel.  We met Pat and Marcia there for dinner and drinks in the bar as well as a visit. The next day we continued Eastward, arriving  at Buckhorn Yacht Harbour just before 3:00.  The props were dropped off and the car retrieved.  I was now given the task of driving—something I had done very little of in the past, as the Captain prefers to drive.  We left and headed up to Bancroft to spend a couple nights with Brian and Helen.  And yes, we did have Kawartha Ice Cream—can’t miss out on that opportunity!  On Saturday morning, we started back in a Westward direction, with Andy in the lead in the rental, and me following in our car. 

We  used the headphones/wife-savers which we typically use on the boat for communicating when docking.  We chose to take the northern route, going through North Bay, as the highway is divided for more of the trip with very little  construction.  We passed through Sudbury and Nairn Centre, and then were brought to an abrupt stoppage in traffic.  There was an accident somewhere near McKerrow, in 1 ½ hours we moved a total of 5 Km.  Once we got to Jacklin Road, we were able to detour around the accident site.  We arrived in the Sault  just before 6 pm and checked into our hotel.  On checking the 511 website, we learned that the highway had not re-opened until 5:45,  so we were very glad that we had found the detour. After eating we watched football on TV. 

In the morning, we left and gassed up before heading out for Thunder Bay.  Highways in north western Ontario, have lots of hills and curves—at times it felt like I was on a roller coaster—very different being a passenger vs the driver—but I survived.  Thankfully there were lots of passing lanes, and I had the captain leading the way.  We arrived at our hotel around 3:00—we had originally planned to stay with Teresa and Maureen, however they  were ill with Covid.

On Monday morning, we returned the rental and I gladly turned over driving the car to Andy.  We went out to McKellar’s Marine Centre, and Andy talked to Jeff the mechanic. 

The boat was still in the water, Jeff thought he had found the source of the diesel smell- as there  was a crack in the exhaust pipe.  We picked out a couple of items we had forgot on the boat.  I included the picture of the conservation boat for Jack– who wants to be a conservation officer– look what you could be driving! We stopped at Teresa’s, wearing masks and picked up the items that we had left there.  Then we hit the road headed for Manitoba and home.  There was a fair bit of traffic on the road, and several accidents—we saw 2 semis in the ditch , as well as a couple other vehicles.  I was happy to not be driving.   We arrived home around 4:00, and unloaded the car.  

Since being home, we have gone golfing, resumed apartment activities, like crochet group and games night.  We are now planning for our trip to Ireland next month.  We will drive back to Toronto to catch our flight, so that we can pick up our refurbished props and return them to Thunder Bay to be put on the boat before the spring launch.

We will get to spend some more time on the Canadian side of Lake Superior, before completing our circle tour next summer.