Killarney to Little Current, Ontario

We left Sportsmen’s Inn on Friday, 3 August, at 6:40 a.m. so that we could be on the water and to our destination in Little Current before the winds were predicted to pick up later in the morning. We arrived at Little Current Marina about 9:30 a.m. While the current was strong, getting the boat docked was nothing like getting into Sportsmen’s Inn on Thursday. However, those boaters who waited later to arrive, had difficulty getting in. We watched from shore as our fellow boaters fought the current and the wind to get to their assigned slip. We are happy to say that everyone got in without causing any damage to their boats or to other boats.

Little Current is located between Goat Island and the northeast tip of Manitoulin Island. It is the largest community on Manitoulin Island, with a population of 1,500.

We spent three nights in Little Current, sightseeing, provisioning, doing boat chores, and having a great time. The town is large enough for several banks, grocery stores, numerous places to eat, and free internet at the bar at Anchor Inn, meaning we can drink a cold beer and have access to free internet at the same time. There are not many of these kinds of places in Canada.

We were in Little Current for their annual Hawberry Festival. Streets were closed and vendors lined the street, selling locally made goods and other assorted stuff. There were bands playing and all sorts of activities to watch. Later in the evening there was a lighted boat parade (no, we didn’t participate) that had the most beautifully decorated boats we have ever seen. After that, came the fireworks. This time though, the fireworks were pretty spectacular.

On Sunday, we were given a free bus tour of Manitoulin Island, compliments of the Little Current Chamber of Commerce. We were driven past the only school on Manitoulin Island, which has only 500 students, and it is a 1 ½ hour trip both ways for a lot of these children to attend school each day. Our next stop was Northern Marina in Kagawong. We met Bob, the owner who did the Great Loop last year.

From here many of us took about a 15 minute walk through the woods to Bridal Veil Falls. We were told the falls were not as pretty this year due to the lack of rain, but we enjoyed going there.

From here, we had lunch alongside the bay on picnic tables. Then it was a short walk to the Ojibwe Cultural Foundation for those who wanted to visit the museum. We then went to Ten Mile Point. The highlight of this stop was the beautiful view of many of the islands that we had already visited or were going to visit once the “Flotilla” came to an end. It was an enjoyable day and, once again, we have Bob and Karen to thank for setting this tour up for us.

Our “Flotilla” came to an end in Little Current, and on Monday morning, 6 August, all of the Loopers moved on, either in small groups or by themselves, to continue on the Great Loop. Along with Mike and Cathy on XPLORER, we decided to go east and see some of the anchorages that we bypassed on the way to Little Current. We had heard that they are spectacular, and we still had time before we need to be in Michigan, so we took off to anchor out in what we are told are some of the most beautiful anchorages in Georgian Bay. Stay tuned…..