Calling All Ontario Members

[canuckmark]

No Title

Well the bride and I got out on couchiching out of port of orillia for what may be the last time this year. Just an outstanding day - weather was perfect, waters calm. We didn't get out much this year for a number of reasons, but today made up for it.

 

[littlerayray]

Glad to hear

 

[cdnNick]

Well, I guess our first boating season is coming to a close. I was calling around looking for storage for the boat and figuring out what we would need to clean the hull once I take it out of the marina. It was lots of fun and we are already looking forward to being able to trailer the boat around to different lakes and rivers next year, instead of being in a marina.

 

[ken51k]

Deleted

 

[Local46er]

Just looking for some info regarding scugog river. How is it to get from scugog to Lindsay. I here there is a lot of debris. I plan on renting a slip this season on scugog only if it is easy access to Lindsay to pick up the Trent.

Thanks.

 

[wrench 3]

Just looking for some info regarding scugog river. How is it to get from scugog to Lindsay. I here there is a lot of debris. I plan on renting a slip this season on scugog only if it is easy access to Lindsay to pick up the Trent.

Thanks.

If your still running the 21 foot cudy cabin you shouldn't have any problems with the Scugog River. I run it all the time with a 26 foot aft cabin and there are quite a lot of 29 foot express cruisers that use it too.
It's 3.5 - 4 feet deep at the mouth of the river but with a mud bottom. The remainder of the river is 6 - 12 feet, but as the charts state "Extreme care should be exercised when navigating outside the buoyed channel". The channel winds around a lot and the GPS tends to be off some of the time. But it is well marked.
I hope this helps.

 

[Local46er]

Yes it do. Thanks again wrench 3.

 

[cdnNick]

No Title

Well that's a wrap for us this season, we are away for thanksgiving next weekend and then the boat goes into storage. We got out onto Mississippi Lake just outside of Ottawa yesterday, it was 6C when we launched and made it up to 13C by lunch time, sunny and no wind. It was really nice to be somewhere new instead of just cruising around the same river. Launching and retrieving for the first time went surprisingly well, it was nice that it wasn't busy so we could take our time.

 

[littlerayray]

Well at least you were dressed appropriately

 

[cdnNick]

I was a bit overdressed, my oldest and I had 6am hockey practice so I never changed out of my long johns. I was a bit warm by the afternoon lol. Better then being frozen.

 

[canuckmark]

Going out after work yesterday was tempting on Couchiching...the lake was like glass (it is rarely THAT calm). So I dropped by the launch I use near my house to take a look - be warned if you plan to go out up this way, water levels are extremely low. That launch and surrounding area is shallow anyway, but the neighbour to the launch just temporarily inherited about 80-100 extra feet of land due to how far out it has gone!

Granted it's only been a handful of years I've been boating up here but it is the lowest I've ever seen. Maybe grandad can comment on Simcoe, or maybe on the guy who put his boat up on the rocks last week!

 

[littlerayray]

Around long sault the water is down a good five feet if not more

 

[Grandad]

Going out after work yesterday was tempting on Couchiching...the lake was like glass (it is rarely THAT calm). So I dropped by the launch I use near my house to take a look - be warned if you plan to go out up this way, water levels are extremely low. That launch and surrounding area is shallow anyway, but the neighbour to the launch just temporarily inherited about 80-100 extra feet of land due to how far out it has gone!

Granted it's only been a handful of years I've been boating up here but it is the lowest I've ever seen. Maybe grandad can comment on Simcoe, or maybe on the guy who put his boat up on the rocks last week!

No Mark, I can't comment on water levels. I don't get out often anymore. Just twice this year. Launched both times into Simcoe at the public ramp near the narrows in Orillia. I added a toilet to the boat 3 years ago and never had a need to use it until our last trip out this year. Now I gotta get it pumped out for the first time this Saturday at the Barrie waterfront before putting her back in storage. At this rate, I really should sell the boat. Maybe in the Spring, we'll see. - Grandad

 

[Grandad]

I thought you guys might find these pictures taken along Lake Erie's shoreline interesting. It's always amazed me just how rough and how quickly conditions can change on the Great Lakes. I realized 45 years ago that I needed a closed bow boat for the places I sometimes would and have visited. I've never boated on an ocean and have sometimes wondered if (barring storms) that the oceans might provide more stable seas. It seems that conditions with short wave periods are the most dangerous (and uncomfortable).

Only once have I experienced large swells that dropped my boat into troughs that I couldn't see out of. That was between Manitoulin Island and the tip of the Bruce Peninsula. Navigating for over 2 hours to a safe harbour was a real challenge, but the 17' closed bow boat (a Winner Eliminator) remained stable as long as I kept the bow trimmed high. Course corrections had to be made each time we crested a wave. Most times, Great Lakes conditions seem to offer lots of opportunities to "stuff" the bow and take on water over the windshield. - Grandad
http://www.buzzfeed.com/craigsilverman/lake-erie-beauty?utm_term=.gt0QagAqn#.qvvKX74zn

 

[wrench 3]

That's quite the picture. I wonder what the actual wave height was?

 

[CraigBarnard]

Speaking of Lake Erie.
My wife wants to visit Pelee Island for a weekend to see wineries etc.
I was thinking of taking our boat and staying at the Marina instead of a motel etc.
Has anyone done something similar?
I am aware its a long diatance from shore and that is a concern.
Our boat is a 1965 Starcraft Chieftain 21' cuddy.

Thanks

 

[cdnNick]

Just got our boat out of storage on Saturday. This is our 2nd year with the boat but the first time we will be trailering it everywhere, wondering what trips others might have planned for this season?

We have been talking about a trip to Bon Echo provincial park on Mazinaw Lake, 1000 Islands area and maybe Lake Champlain in NY or Vermont.

 

[wrench 3]

I'm still hoping to get out to Beausoleil Island but I need to get the breaks working on the trailer if I'm going to bypass Lake Simcoe. Which I need to do if I want the wife to go with me.

 

[Scorpion210]

I'm still hoping to get out to Beausoleil Island but I need to get the breaks working on the trailer if I'm going to bypass Lake Simcoe. Which I need to do if I want the wife to go with me.

I am not sure why people treat Simcoe as if it is impassable. I read it in the Ports books all the time, and in all the blogs of loopers. It rarely is too rough to navigate. If you are coming from the Trent, it is really not long of a distance to get to Orillia. I live on the southern tip of Simcoe in Cooks Bay. I realize that westerly wind coming across the lake might make rough at times coming from the Trent. Just need to pay attention to weather and pick your crossing if you are nervous, but I don't think that it very often becomes impassable. In fact, I have found that Couchiching can get more uncomfortable because of how shallow it is and its long North - South exposure. I think a 2' wave on Couchiching is worse than a 2' wave on Simcoe

BTW - You really should do Beausoliel island. It is a great place to hang out. I have been going for the past few years and tend to hang around there for 5-7 days. Whether we stay in one spot, or move around to the many anchorages. There are also a lot of docking points on the island. It makes for a truly great boating vacation

 

[wrench 3]

Scorpion-
I've been out on Simcoe when you couldn't see the shore from the bottom of the troughs and when it was dead calm. However I made two crossings with the wife that were uncomfortable but safe. Opposite directions on the same trip. We didn't have time to weight for better weather and now I can't get her out there again.