Tugboat Annie's 2023 Return to the North Channel

When I checked the weather forecast this morning I saw that nothing had changed. It was still supposed to be very windy this afternoon, but nice to travel on Monday and Tuesday. We decided to stay in a dock today. With thoughts of returning to the USA on my mind, I updated the CBP (Customs and Border Patrol) Roam app with our new passport information and Annie's new 2023 Customs Sticker. We plan to check in at Presque Isle where last year were denied entry because CBP could not do a video chat with us due to no cell or wifi service. I hope it's changed in a year.  Scott and Carrie on the steel tug left very quietly and early. We'll miss them. They are the kind of people one describes as "the salt of the earth." Carrie said their anchor dragging incident happened at PIB during the 1812 reenactment. They were anchored by the monument. When they dragged they hit a 42' powerboat, a sailboat and then went aground. They had to be evacuated by the Coast Guard from th

It got cold last night. I found myself reaching for a blanket sometime in the early hours. It was in the low 60's when I got up. I was quite surprised as I was worried about another warm day and whether or not it would be too hot for our planned bike ride. As it turns out it was perfect bike riding weather, cool and sunny.  The cold weather must have motivated me to action. Before Kerry even thought about getting up, I had cleaned all the outside windows and polished our Magma stainless grill. I took time to admire the three hibiscus blooms on Kerry's plant. It is earning itself extra life in Florida when we go as we will take it there and plant it. Kerry got up for tea and for a bike ride. Her motivation increased when neighbor Carrie told her there was a church rummage sale in town. We were off shortly after that. She found a little green plastic dish to hold our jimbo ice in the freezer that she's all excited about.  Then it was time to ride up the big hill surrounding t

It was another peaceful evening and beautiful morning at anchor in Gore Bay. Unfortunately I had to spend more time than I wished dealing with crappy internet while trying to post the blog. And Big Jim was all over me about being late. I still took time to appreciate the nice surroundings.  I called the marina and got a dock assignment. The promise of a pot of hot tea was enough to get Kerry up about 9:30. We sat on the bow at first but it was really hot. Moving to the upper deck gave us shade and a nice breeze. Perfect. We pulled anchor moved to our dock with no issues. The air conditioners went on immediately which may be for the first time since we have been in Canada. We had trouble with the circuit on the pedestal blowing. I finally had to dig out my second 30 amp power cord and plug two cords into the pedestal which solved the problem. It was really hot today, the first truly warm weather we have experienced.  We are docked next to a very nice Ranger Tug, and an older steel Sable

It was obvious we were in a less protected anchorage last night. The wind picked up and we had waves slapping noisily on Annie's hull. Annie must have been rocking and rolling because a lamp I had charging fell over on one roll. The captain of course was sound asleep. Kerry heard the crash and thought something hit us or we went aground. My eyes were still mostly closed as she had me up in the pilot house so quickly to see what was happening. I determined the lamp falling over was the bang, that we were still firmly where we were before, reassured the mate, and went back to bed. The winds calmed at some point and it became very silent and still - very pleasant. The morning was nice. It was good to see the sun after it hide most of yesterday. The batteries were at 67% when I checked, so I turned on the generator, then made coffee and turned on the ice machine.  After coffee I sat outside and finished the novel I have been reading. It was really pleasant. Aiken Island has grown on me

Another peaceful night here in Cleary Cove. And we did not have any mosquitoes inside so closing up Annie early in the evening worked. Lying in bed this morning I decided to move to another anchorage where I can connect to the internet. It’s a shame to leave my favorite anchorage just to get connected, but hey, that’s important to us. Where oh where is my Starlink! I watched a fellow paddle board into the harbor very early this morning. I thought he was going to fish. Instead he went to shore, put a mosquito net over his head and climbed up a little hill, presumably looking for blueberries.   I hope he is not after the patch that the bear wants. He paddled by on his way out and said a big storm is expected this afternoon. The bear must have beaten him to the patch as he said the harvest was not good. I sat on the bow and enjoyed my morning coffee. I could see logs on the bottom and was reminded of the time we pulled a big one up with our anchor chain wrapped around it. I hoped we wou

I was lying in bed last night enjoying watching the mosquitoes flying around the screens trying to get inside to bite us. I do enjoy that for some reason. What a symphony of wings they were providing. Then I realized, “Uh Oh”, there were some inside buzzing us. It took about 20 minutes and 2 zappers but we eliminated the threat. Kerry took 2 bites for the team. I got up early today to try and post the blog. I know that it is a very slow frustrating process here. I had hoped to get it done and then be able to sit outside and enjoy the moment. It did not work out that way, so I sat out anyway while the computer attempted to reach the internet. Big Jim says I need a Starlink, and he is right! Peter came over a little before 9:00 ready for fishing. Of course I prepared a deluxe cappuccino for him. We sat on the bow of Annie and enjoyed our coffee and cappuccino and the scenery. This is my favorite anchorage. Every view is lovely.   I just love the serenity and the setting. Peter said

It was a totally quiet evening except for when a couple of motors started at first light. I was surprised to see the harbor all fogged in. The air is always so quiet and still when fog is present. It's kind of neat actually.  I pulled to the fuel dock about 8:00 thinking I would just have to wait until they opened at 8:30. To my surprise, a young dock attendant was there and serviced us immediately. I let Peter know an he brought Voyager over. We both got a pumpout and were on our way at 8:30. I made a deluxe cappuccino to go for Peter and then enjoyed a little donut while we were at the fuel dock.  The trip to Cleary Cove was 18 miles, and took 2 1/2 hours. The seas were very calm and it was a great ride. No one was in the Cleary Cove anchorage when we arrived - how good does it get! Peter was nervous about coming in so he anchored outside the cove and dingyed in with his depth sounder to see it he wanted to bring Voyager in. He decided that it was too shallow for him, so we were

Out of habit when I get up in the morning I always check the battery condition. They're always perfect when I am plugged in. I guess it would be a big problem if they were not. The weather looks good for today and for the coming 4 days, perfect for our next anchoring expedition.  I was out cleaning Annie's starboard burgundy stripe before 8:00 AM, even before Big Jim could tell me to get my lazy ass out of bed and get the blog posted. It doesn't take long to polish it up. Peter came over for a double cappuccinos when I finished. He was a bit frustrated because his drone software would not let him sign in and he had not yet figured out why. He hopes to get a nice harbor picture. Later in the day he had solved his problem.  Kerry got up at 10:00 to start her slow cooker beef burgundy dinner. I got the bikes ready for a ride while she was preparing our future dinner. We took the island road out to the Janet Head Lighthouse, the second oldest one on Manitoulin Island. It's