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Midland Power and Sail Squadron, Founded in 1952 June 2015—Volume 8, Issue 2
P.O. Box 763, Midland, ON L4R 4P4 Newsletter Editor: Sandy Campbell
Finally, it’s late May and we are
earnestly preparing for the
advent of summer and the
boating season. Hurray!
Your Squadron volunteers and
Boating Specialists will be busy
this summer with many safety-
Commander’s Commentary .............................. 1
RVCC offered at Bayport InWater Boat Show ... 1 Upcoming Fall and Winter Courses .................. 3
Water Levels, April 2015 .................................. 3 Midland Squadron’s Facebook Page ................. 4
Navigation Tips................................................. 5
Rendezvous Invitation ...................................... 5 Bridge Officers ................................................. 6
Georgian Bay In-Water Boat Show ................... 6 Byng Inlet to Bad River Cruise/Anchorage ....... 8
2015 Grad Celebration/AGM .......................... 10
Commander’s CommentaryCommander’s Commentary
oriented activities – maybe we’ll
see you at local marinas.
June 6, 7 at Bayport Yachting Center—We are assisting with CPS-ECP Flare Day in co-operation with Bayport and CIL/Orion to collect and dispose of expired flares from local boaters. Recreational Vessel Courtesy Checks—Our
Boating Specialists will be on hand to perform free RVCCs (Recreational Vessel Courtesy Checks). In co-operation with local boaters, our specialists will inspect their vessels for compliance with Transport Canada’s minimum safety equipment requirements.
The CPS-ECP Virtual Trainer will be on hand for boaters to try their skills at boat-handling. The “Simulator” is designed to assist boaters with docking and various boating skills. Check it out and see how you fare.
June 13 at Bayport Yachting Centre: Our Boating Specialists will again be on hand to perform free RVCC (Recreational Vessel
Courtesy Checks). In co-operation with local boaters, our specialists will inspect their vessels for compliance with Transport Canada’s minimum safety equipment requirements.
June 19 – 21 at Henry’s North: This weekend is the squadron rendezvous held on Frying Pan Island at Henry’s in Sans Souci. Some of our attendees arrive Friday night and stay through to Sunday at reduced dockage fees for CPS-ECP members. Saturday afternoon everyone joins in on the “pot-luck nibblies” and refreshments on the dock and/or picnic area. Saturday night squadron members and wives/guests all enjoy a Henry’s North fish dinner.
From your Bridge …. best wishes for a safe and
happy boating season. We look forward to seeing
you on the waters of Southern Georgian Bay.
We’ll be watching for your CPS-ECP flag.
Safe Boating, Noel Campbell, Commander
Throughout the summer we offer
Recreational Vessel Courtesy Check (RVCC)
inspections on an appointment basis.
Just contact Bob LaVictoire at 705-526-9585 for a
mutually agreeable appointment time.
Get a check-up not a ticket!
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Q
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Upcoming Fall & Winter CoursesUpcoming Fall & Winter Courses Presented by your Midland Squadron
Boating Essentials: Boating Essentials:
September September (classroom)(classroom)
Begins in September 2015 at Midland
Secondary School and runs for nine (9)
weeks.
Maritime Radio (VHF) Course Maritime Radio (VHF) Course
(classroom)(classroom)
Begins Monday, April 2016 at Midland
Secondary School.
Please note: Please note:
If we have four students for any offered CPS
Course, we will arrange the course for members
or non-members. Seamanship, Advanced Piloting
(AP), Fundamentals of Weather are just a few
suggestions. Please advise us and we will
accommodate you. Please visit our website at
http://midlandpowerandsail.ca/course-information.html
To complete our pre-registration form (MS
Word document), send it as an attachment in an e-
mail to [email protected] . We will
advise you as soon as the course becomes
available.
Suggested Courses or SeminarsSuggested Courses or Seminars Electronic Navigation Weather RADAR for Pleasure Craft Seamanship, Advanced Piloting, Junior
Navigator
Noel Campbell
Georgian Bay Water LevelsGeorgian Bay Water Levels 25 April 201525 April 2015
Now that lake levels have more or
less reverted to normal values, there
is less pressure on navigators to pay
strong attention to their location.
The prospects continue to be good.
By June the level will likely reach
176.63 m IGLD or 0.63 m above a
chart datum or 2 feet in Imperial
units. So much for a lot of recent
commentary on low lake levels.
After June the normal process is for a slow
decline in level. However, that is not totally
certain. Continued wet weather could raise the
level even more. At the start of the season, the
water usually is quite cold which cools the air over
the lake. For that reason, one should wear a life
jacket around and on the water as surviving a cold
immersion could be a non-starter. Cold air over
the lake makes it essential to have warm clothing
on board.
There is a Squadron rendezvous organised to
go to Henry’s on the weekend of 19th of June. A
great shakedown cruise rewarded with convivial
company at Henry’s. A good way to make sure
that you are ready for the season.
Henry usually gives us a break on docking
charges. Call Bob LaVictoire at 705-526-9585 if
you are interested. Have a great boating season.
Cheers, Mirabile Dictu
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Rendezvous 2015Rendezvous 2015 Our Squadron rendezvous is booked for the June
19 weekend at Henry’s north on Fryingpan Island
in the Sans Souci district. Many boats will arrive
on Friday night to make a weekend out of it, while
others will arrive Saturday morning.
Festivities begin Saturday afternoon with
refreshments and a pot-luck selection of nibblies
Navigation Tips Navigation Tips
By Noel Campbell
During our trips to Killarney, Wiarton, Tobermory
and Parry Sound using the small-craft route, we
found that the helmsman (captain/skipper) has a
very boring and tiring time. The reason I say this
is because you tend to concentrate heavily on the
screen of the chart plotter. You concentrate to
make sure your vessel stays on the “suggested”
course line provided by the chart—the small-craft
route. It makes for a tedious, most unenjoyable
task whereas what you want is a relaxing,
enjoyable view of scenery, other craft and engine
operating parameters.
Additionally, the Coast Guard, in an attempt to
reduce costs yet provide their mandate of safe in-
shore waters, have reduced the number of buoys,
making it difficult to see certain markers (colour
in daylight) as readily as you would like.
On your strip charts, you can pre-plan helpful
aids to help alleviate some of the burden on the
helmsman.
One of the most useful aids I’ve found is to
draw a course line that shows a True and
Magnetic reading from a departure point to a
distant marker buoy over top of the suggested
route. The helmsman can glance periodically at
the compass to confirm the direction and watch to
pick up the buoy in that direction or heading.
There may be a distant range, a high point of
land, or something distinctive on the paper chart
to assist. This helps to get the helmsman looking
out of the boat, rather than on the screen—try it,
you’ll like it! This is a way for the navigator to get
involved too.
Chart 2202, Sheet 2 of 5 Guide to Buoy C127 from Buoy C125 (Superior Shoal)
Chart 2202, Sheet 1 of 5 Guide to Buoy M12 from Whiskey Island
Later, once you get used to your chart plotter,
you can pre-install Way Points and use those as
supplements to your chart plotter.
and snacks. Saturday evening we adjourn to
Henry’s dining area for an ever-popular fish
dinner and prepare for a Georgian Bay sunset.
Sunday morning many depart for other areas
or head for home. Call Bob LaVictoire at 705-
526-9585 to reserve your slip at reduced rates
for CPS-ECP members.
Noel Campbell, Cdr.
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20152015--16 Bridge Officers16 Bridge Officers——Midland Power and Sail SquadronMidland Power and Sail Squadron Commander Noel Campbell (705) 549-5383 [email protected]
Immediate Past Commander Bob LaVictoire (705) 526-9585 [email protected]
Executive Officer Vacant
Secretary Christine Robinson (705) 322-7003 [email protected]
Training Officer Noel Campbell (705) 549-5383 [email protected]
Treasurer Mike Hamilton (705) 528-1397 [email protected]
Public Relations Officer Jim McLarty (705) 549-1334 [email protected]
MAREP Officer Vacant
Membership Murray Lockhart (705) 522-1340 [email protected]
Assistant Training Officers Robert LaVictoire (705) 526-9585 [email protected]
Ken Lockhart (705) 527-7768 [email protected]
Newsletter Editor, Webmaster,
Membership Assistant Sandy Campbell (705) 549-5383 [email protected]
Administrative Officer T. Milne Dick (705) 527-7551 [email protected]
Safe Boating Specialist (RVCC) Bob LaVictoire (705) 526-9585 [email protected]
Training Aids Vacant
Back Row: Bob LaVictoire
Jim McLarty Ken Lockhart
Murray Lockhart Milne Dick
Front: Sandy Campbell,
Noel Campbell, Christine Robinson
Missing from the photo:
Mike Hamilton
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Byng Inlet to Bad River AnchorageByng Inlet to Bad River Anchorage
In the summer of 2008, your Commander, wife
and son tried our first extensive 10-day cruise of
Georgian Bay. Attending the cruise was our
Yorkie, Mugsie. We did this in our son’s Rinker
280 EC, a 31-ft. (length overall) complete with its
single 8.1-litre gas engine stern drive.
The planned holiday included alternate nights on
the hook with the other nights in a marina for
recharging batteries. The plan was to overnight
at Port Rawson, a marina stop at Pengalie Bay, on
to Shoal Narrows, Byng inlet, Bad River, Killarney
and return to Parry Sound, Hope Island, then
home.
After completion of the holiday, friends would
ask us “What was your favorite part of the trip?”
and each of us had a different answer. Mine
would be “the excitement of passing through The
Parting channel at Obstacle Island”. Sandy would
say “the busy and pretty community of Killarney”.
Glenn would say “the windswept islands and
picturesque landscape of the Hangdog Reef near
Pointe au Baril” and Mugsie “enjoyed the
friendliness of the folks and grassy evening walks
at St. Amante’s” at Byng Inlet”. Each to his own, I
guess.
Actually there were so many highlights it’s
difficult to decide on just a few. The Bad River,
Beaverstone Bay, Collins Inlet, Canoe Channel,
Parry Sound, Sans Souci, 12-Mile Bay, Beckwith
Island, Franklin Island.. and on and on…. had
their own special beauty. The weather for that
period was mostly sunny and warm with blue
skies and light winds.
The subject single-day cruise was a highlight,
because of the weather and the typical southern
Georgian Bay scenes of sculptured rock,
windswept pines, pristine blue waters and azure
skies. We left St. Amante’s and proceeded down
the South Channel to meet with the small-craft
route at marker A149 on Chart 2204. Here we
joined the “D” course at the entrance to the
North Channel at Byng Inlet. We followed the
“D” course through Cunningham Channel,
around Cedar Island, Kantos Point and through
Roger’s Gut, passing North of the Churchill
Island Group. We then turned south of Dokes
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Island. Based on the small craft route mileage
markers, we had travelled 17 statute miles at
marker D55.
We had pre-planned to take the alternate “DA”
course for the next 17 nm as we made our way
towards the Bad River Anchorage. The “DA”
course would take us through the Outer Islands
and return to the main “D” course at Buoy D80
just north of the Bustard Islands where the main
outlet of the French River enters G.B. By doing
this we experienced Dore’s Run and the Parting
Channel at Obstacle Island. Here and throughout
our journey, we saw the raw beauty of G.B.:
smooth, sculptured Granite rocks, windswept
pines and island after island nestled in pools of
clean water under clear azure skies. For this
cruise, water depths were reported to be slightly
above chart datum, so, the soundings you read
were what you got. Channels were mostly 10 to
20-feet deep, with some areas getting as low as 5
feet. We conned carefully in these few areas. Our
depth-sounder confirmed most readings. With
the length and width of the Rinker 280, we found
it quite exciting to navigate through the Parting
Channel with a slight wind in the area.
We re-joined the small-craft route at D80,
completing our measured 17-nautical-mile side
trip. You could see the Bustard Island lighthouse
in the distance. On course 253T and prior to
reaching the fairway buoy, we made a sweeping
turn north to course 018T. We attempted to line
up with marker buoys west of Mary Grant Rocks
to join the “DH” course which leads into the Bad
River. There is a poorly visible range which
guides you into the area, and, once visualized, it
will navigate you in nicely. It’s about 4 nm into
the anchorage, but, with care you will enter and
enjoy a peaceful anchorage. Devil’s Door rapids
is close at hand, with lots of interesting islets to
explore by dingy. BE careful, since there are lots
of uncharted low spots to snag your prop.
Noel Campbell, Cdr.
Editor’s Notes:
This Part I of Noel’s story only scratches the surface of that cruising vacation.
Today’s electronic tools like video cameras in cell phones, pocket cameras, and the ultimate travel camera like the Go-Pro, make it so easy to make movies of your cruising adventures in part or in whole. What a great way to spend some time enjoying our various holiday cruises all over again throughout the long, cold, dreary days of winter. With your SMART TV, login to your own free YouTube page where you’ve uploaded your movies/videos or slideshows of still shots directly from your camera or accessed from your PC’s “My Videos” folder.
Thanks to Noel’s practice of keeping a little log book of each day’s cruising adventure details, i.e., the compass course, the markers we passed, the weather conditions, the channel conditions, the sights along the way, departure/ arrival times, helped to make the telling of this story so real and more interesting.
To further capture the details of this story, you’ll want to pull out your charts and follow along.
Be sure to watch for the September True Course
to read about the final leg of the Campbell’s 2008
cruising vacation.
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AGM and Graduation Dinner AGM and Graduation Dinner Our Annual General Meeting was held at the
Olympia Restaurant in the Midland Best Western
on Saturday, May 9, 2015. The meeting went
well, with our new Bridge being sworn in by
District Commander Brian Reis.
In the dining room, we held the Graduation dinner
and awards ceremony.
Graduates were pledged and presented with their
well-earned flags after completing the “Boating
Essentials” course offered this spring.
All enjoyed the food and beverages.
Jim McLarty, our Training Officer, presented a
short “picture show” and narrative of his “Great
Loop” adventure completed last year. Jim sure
has a wonderful way with pictures and the stories
that accompany them.
Thanks to all who attended and helped to
make this graduation a memorable one.
Noel Campbell,
Commander