ritchiewith

A trip around the Bay

o Georgian Bay’s coasts, communities, people and their history are begging to be explored. For the early part of my life I was able to soak up the southeastern part of the Bay that way. But by mid-life I was getting frustrated at not knowing, first-hand, the rest of what I privately considered my homeContinue reading “A trip around the Bay”

Catch and release, because you never know…

Does heredity make good anglers? I don’t know if Izaac Walton covered that topic in his fishing bible (The Compleat Angler, of 1653), but the Chisholm boys in the 20th Century cause me to wonder. If it’s true, Steve and Robin Chisholm came by their talent, first, through their father Sandy whom I remember asContinue reading “Catch and release, because you never know…”

The joys of small boats

The wonderful thing about small boats — 18′ or less — is that you can enjoy them in so many ways. And they are so economical compared to the shiny plastic brand name jobs in most marinas. Drop a 10 horsepower (or smaller) outboard motor on a 14′ aluminum boat, get youself a pleasure boatContinue reading “The joys of small boats”

Letting off steam

Back in the logging days on Georgian Bay and around the upper lakes, when the workers were paid off many gravitated to places where they could drink, laugh, and be merry — where there were wine, women and song. Two of the best known destinations were Midland and Parry Sound. Midland’s Dollartown, just east ofContinue reading “Letting off steam”

Houseboats of old

Nowadays the term “houseboat” conjures an image of a set of pontoons with some sort of accommodation on them and pushed by an outboard motor. Over a century ago houseboats were what the name implies: places in which to live on the water. In the late 19th and early 20th Centuries on Georgian Bay, housesContinue reading “Houseboats of old”

Keewatin memories, and a plea to keep her here

Alan Howard, a friendly and loquatious marine enthusiast of Toronto, knew all about the Canadian Pacific white fleet that steamed weekly between Port McNicoll and the Lakehead. In the early Sixties, he and other steam buffs had taken the trip on the almost-twins Keewatin and Assiniboia, as they correctly guessed that the service would soonContinue reading “Keewatin memories, and a plea to keep her here”

More about ice

You may have read the post below about The Iceman. This one is different. It’s about what not to do when dealing with ice on the Bay in the very early spring. It was April in the mid-Sixties and I was living in Midland on the south shore of the Bay. Every year at thatContinue reading “More about ice”

Of unsung heroes

By the time the big launch had crept through the growing darkness past Eshpabekong Island, waves pushed by a strong east wind began to make it roll. Giving a wide berth to a shoal at the north end of Giant’s Tomb Island, the skipper ran south along the boulder beds of the Tomb’s west shore.Continue reading “Of unsung heroes”

Viewing the Bay at its best from a rock camp

This canoe camper captures the gentle and raw nature of Georgian Bay at a season when few, if any, others are about. On Philip Edward Island, despite ice still choking Collins Inlet, he watches myriad early birds returning from migration, sees an otter prowling the rocks, gazes at the spring stars, a “red” moon andContinue reading “Viewing the Bay at its best from a rock camp”

The versatile canoe, and hats off to paddlers

Canoes, despite their fragility, were for centuries an essential and effective means of transportation for indigenous people throughout North America, including Georgian Bay. Before today’s pace of life with pressures and deadlines, travellers could simply pull into shore to shelter until bad weather let up. In the early 17th Century, Wendat (Huron) fishing parties wouldContinue reading “The versatile canoe, and hats off to paddlers”