Leg 20 of our 2022 cruise up north
(to read about Leg 19, The Bustards to Deadbolt via the Collins Inlet, click here)
Yesterday was pretty rainy, so we stayed put and cleaned, swam, and SUPed.
Today, however, we had several unexpected nice surprises!
Since the rain was mostly done by morning, our plan was to head over to Killarney around noon, get a slip at a marina, and enjoy a nice dinner ashore. I had noticed in a Great Lakes Cruising Club Harbor Report a mention of going for a hike along the Chikanishing River, which lies just over a mile from here by dinghy. I had almost forgotten about it, but Kristin mentioned it after breakfast and we decided to hike first before heading to Killarney. I’m glad she remembered it!
As we left the boat, we swung the swim ladder up to make it harder for creatures (like bears) to climb aboard Priorities in our absence. Kristin had just made a bunch of bacon this morning, and we could smell it outside the boat. Even though we knew bears lived around here I didn’t think much of it. We hadn’t seen a bear ever in several seasons of cruising the North Channel.
About 1.2 miles west of Deadbolt Island (or 1.5 miles west of nearby Keyhole Island) is the mouth of the Chikanishing River. A short dinghy ride up the river leads to the Chikanishing Access Point, a launch site for kayakers, canoes, and other small boats in the Killarney Provincial Park. At this site is also the beginning of the Chikanishing Trail, which runs about two miles round trip along the river and out to the Collins Inlet amongst more wonderful scenery. Since it’s part of the Provincial Park, it’s well marked enough that following the trail is not too hard.
We spent several hours exploring along the trail. The skies cleared, making it super pretty and worth the trip. And to think we passed it by so many times in the past!
Eventually we got back to the boat and weighed anchor to head over to Killarney.
Shortly after getting the anchor aboard, Kristin spotted a bear swimming from Deadbolt Island to the mainland! It was kinda far away, but we finally saw a bear on our trip! It swam directly for the campsite that was still occupied by the large group that had been there two days earlier when we arrived. As we passed the site, their stuff was there, but I didn’t see any people (or the bear). I then noticed a bunch of people were still on Deadbolt, where the bear had just left from! They didn’t seem to be looking for help, though.
We sailed and motored the 6 miles to Killarney in light winds. We didn’t make reservations anywhere since it’s getting late in the season, but the marinas were pretty full. Eventually we found a slip on the George Island side of the Sportsman’s Inn. Killarney lies along the north shore of the Killarney Channel, the south side of which is formed by George Island. The Sportsman’s Inn has slips on both sides of the channel… we have to take a tiny ferry (named Tinkerbell… get it?) to get to Killarney from here. It sounds tricky, but it’s actually really charming.
Dinner was harder to get without reservations than anticipated as well. We ended up eating at the bar of the Sportsman’s Inn, but their food was much better than we expected! A nice surprise again!
Tonight there’s a music festival at the Inn. It’s loud, but the music is kinda good. Hopefully it doesn’t run too late.