Return to the McCoy Islands
Georgian Bay Sea Kayaking – 2002
Wayne, Desi, Ray, Maria, Jean, Ross, Ellen and Don
Another
summer’s end, another sea kayaking trip to the many islands of Georgian
Bay. We again return to the McCoy Islands, near Killbear Provincial Park, just
north of Parry Sound. Our campsite is an island just off the southwest tip of
Big McCoy. The water levels were low so you could actually walk across to the
main island at some points. This kept the main boaters out of our hair and gave
us our own private docking channel, protected from the wind and waves. And a
busy weekend it turned out to be. The big boats had their deep channels staked
out and the fishing boats were zooming around looking for that special spot.
Who could blame them? We weren’t the only ones out enjoying the hot sunny
days on an extra long weekend.
The
name “Wilderness Adventurers” makes us sound like we’re hard
core travelers, and at times, we are. But this trip has a certain rhythm to
it that is laid back and relaxing. Part of that is due to the camaraderie of
the group. Like-minded people sharing a similar adventure, trading stories of
techniques and gear, trips and homelife, and oh those important recipes! We
all take turns at camp chores and offer a helping hand when needed. (or are
gently reminded).
A good part of this “lazy” weekend is that it was stretched to
4 days. Initially it was to get that great campsite before everyone else arrived,
but there were people who had that idea even before us. Not to worry, we still
found that perfect site. We decided on a base camp, so there was one day traveling
there, one day back, two days to relax and explore, and three full nights of
not moving our tents. People choose to do as much or as little as they wanted.
Our first excursion on the second day was as a big 
group
around both Big and Little McCoy Islands. Several chose to fish, while others
explored and played in the surf.
The extra day gave people a chance to do their own thing – going out
in the big waves by Bernie Island, snorkeling, hiking, reading, and catching
a few zzzz’s. (Ray’s recuperating from catching the “big fish”.
Wayne’s enjoying cooking the “big fish”. You see, teamwork!)
Of course, Mother Nature has her way of giving us a wake up call now and then.
Big wind and big waves made us work hard to make our way home. Which brings
me to another aspect that makes these trips work so well - the planning of logistics
and attention to detail. We included a twoperson kayak into our fleet. While
many people prefer the agility and freedom of a single, a double provides more
stability and is easier to power. This would allow weaker paddlers to keep up
and provided emergency transport in case somebody got sick.
It also provided
an extra large cargo space in the middle – great for larger group gear….and
pretty good storage for whatever's in those coolers too. Maybe that’s
why Ray’s flaked out on a rock and Wayne’s got a big grin! A good
time was had by all!
Thanks Wayne!
Desiree