… in advance of a pleasant sail up the east side of the bay.
Prior to departure we re-tied the trampolines, stretching them tighter, with less sag. But then as we were heading out of the harbor, one of the lines I had secured came loose, causing Mimi, who was sitting on a tramp, to go for a swim. Mea culpa, but good practice, with the only loss being Mimi’s favorite hat and one hearing aid. Good sport as always, Mimi dried off, climbed aboard, and said, “okay, shove off.”
…aka old stump.
Late afternoon sit at the Zen spot, with a view towards the village and marina.
And last night’s cooking during the power outage—after the propane problem got figured out. (Nice to have a backup.)
Power out for about 6 hours, from 5 to 11 p.m.. But we did get a good amount of rain.
Hors d’oeuvres this evening on the Pinebox deck!
Heavy rumbles still rolling around the bay, even as the front has passed. Or is that the Manitou reminding us of who’s in charge? Power out, of course, as is standard with any respectable storm. Will we be cooking on the griddle? Pinebox is getting the full Manitoulin experience in just two days.
Ride today, on my old bike, to the marina and back. Fun. Reminiscent of years past. Even made it up the big hill, though I do miss my ebike.
And, below, a shot of the new revetment between the marina and the church.
After a 10 day drive from south Texas.
About midnight…
…a rustling in the trees and then the sound of surf, building to the roar of waves breaking on rocks. Bay has been a maelstrom ever since. Cool, with a little rain, which feels good after all the heat.
No thought of swimming, however, since our swim cushion raft dragged it’s heavy anchor all the way to the Pinebox beach.
Mimi is baking brownies to warm the house.
…no, not us—the boulders below.
And even farther below…
Made and brought here by ice about 10,000 years ago, and then rearranged by ice last winter.
Weather not much good for sailing, but perfect for swimming. We are looking forward to a little variation on the theme of sunny, hot, humid, and still.
…atop a white pine.
Long morning kayak led to the eagle. Afternoon sail to Sandy Beach. Impromptu pizza dinner with Bob and Wendy back at our place.
…to drop off a water sample, and pick up a few groceries. Afternoon Windride and swim. Settling in.
As I dropped off our sample at 11:30 a.m. I was informed that samples are now accepted only between 1 and 4 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday. The lady was kind enough to accept my sample anyway, an hour and a half too early.
Another wildlife mystery…who made these? Could it be Tamia?
…right outside the Pinebox deck?
Seems recent to us, but we have seen no other sign of bear.
Errands, chores, but mostly rowing/paddling (to Sandy Beach) and swimming. Long evening meeting with the Whitewater Urban Forestry Commission—virtually.
The Windrider is in and rigged and looking good.
Photo by Sue
Of course, neither outboard would start, though each was winterized by Berry boats, though of course that was two (or three) years ago. (I suppose that if you sit neglected for such a long time the get up and go, goes.) As a result, today’s sail was powered by paddle and wind, which is more fun.
The mast-raising a-frame gin-pole made by Bob Habes’ friend worked perfectly. Easy up and (presumably) easy down. So easy, in fact, that even one person could do it, though it was good to have Wolf helping as we learned. The device is now loaned to Wolf and Patrick as an inducement to the their WR17 in the water.
Waiting for a full moon to rise over the bay, about 8:30 local time.
The moon was late, and then less than resplendent. Too much haze on the horizon.
So, a photo from last night will have to do.
In other news, here are a few shots of the griddle finally back in action.
Thyme, oregano, sage, and basil—all home grown…the basil from Whitewater and everything else from the overgrown Kagawong driveway bed.
…better go swimming.
Too warm for anything resembling work. We did go to Gore Bay to retrieve a block-and-tackle from Heliotrope, which will be needed to operate the new Windrider mast stepping device given to us by Habes’ friend Terry. Along the way we stopped at Burt farm (adding several items to the cooler), and then quick trips through Steel Hardware and Valumart.
The Gore Bay Friday farmer’s market is no more. (Killed by Kagawong?) But, Purvis Fishery is still vending from their truck, now parked back in the mid-town parking lot—so whitefish on the menu tonight (likely caught in Mudge Bay).
In other news, Split Rail Brewery seems to be doing a land-office business, right off Heliotrope’s pulpit. And the new chocolate factory, next door (where Mark’s partner works) seems to be thriving. (We bought another Bean to Bar.) Although the marina seems to be quite busy, Ken says that CYC is hanging on by a thread without American customers.
And, to get to the block-and-tackle out of Heliotrope, we had to joust our way through another wasp nest!
Give wasps a year and they’ll take…over.
First chance to tote garbage in many moons, and delightful as ever. On the plus side, Dennis is still the proprietor.
Sue did more beach cleanup and visited Murray and Elaine, while I wrastled with equipment, and took a nap. At this point, almost all mechanical and electronic devices are more or less working.
Wednesday is market day, and oh my. More people than on a busy day in Minocqua. Kagawong has been gentrified, and is very much on the map. Falls at capacity, too.
Photo does not do justice to the size of the crowd. We had to snap it on the go as there was no place to park.
But all is quiet on Serendipity.
Today’s big project was the Windrider. After work (mostly Sue) we went for a water walk, which is what old people are supposed to do. From our truncated pier we head out to chest depth and then walk along the boulders over to Tyson’s, and then back home along the newly renovated trail. Beats power washing.
Sunny, hot, humid, and calm. As we were water walking we saw Lollipop out for a sail.
Work ‘till you drip, swim ‘till you’re cool. Then repeat as necessary.
Calm and quiet morning. Actually, very quiet—no sound whatsoever, which takes some getting used to.
Our remodeled water’s edge. High water and moving ice have given us a new look. I rather like it.
Nothing like an early morning paddle and row, as long as it is followed by a swim.
Two tanks of chainsaw gas to chop away from the pump house to Tyson’s, mostly the new lot. Skeletal cedars leaning away from land, and numerous ninebark killed by the high water, making for an unsightly and very tangled mess. While I did the sawing, Sue did the dragging, which is ever so much harder.
Sue raked the just-graded lane, and improved it some, but she started from a seriously bumpy opening position. Then we re-established the lakefront path to Tyson’s. Time, high water, ice, along with growing and dying vegetation, made the old ways impassable.
Purvis fish tug in Our bay. The whitefish at the market will be rather local.
Our sandy beach. The grains are just a little larger.
One of Sue’s tortes, this one peach/plum.
Sun and wind today, with warming, after a night that made a light blanket feel friendly. Lots of poplar lopping, weed killing, and other bits of delayed maintenance. With the ladder attached at an unfamiliar place, we even took a long walk off our short pier. (Some photos by Sue. )
…water reconnected, 4 sections of pier put out, dozens of trips up to the garage and back, and then dinner at Ellen’s, among other things. In other words, a fine bit of exercise, making bed look quite attractive.
Made it. And everything looking good. No Vianet yet, but will try more of a write up later.
Easy drive. We are getting close to the border. Lots of memories, not all of them great. I keep wondering where Pax is.
