Walker Bay, Spain Island /Loon Harbour to CPR Slip

July 29, 2023

Monday - July 24.

An 8am start on July 24 had us leaving Walker Bay and motoring (no wind), 15nm (nautical mile) over to the Loon Harbour island chain. We dropped the hook on the SE end of Spain Island a hundred or so yards from a small sauna we'd visited in years past. The structure is very old school with logs and moss chinking, but the stove has been replaced in the last few years and a new rubber skin roof installed, so we were able to have a good sweat. We also dropped the dinghy for a ride over to Swede Island where we saw another bunk house and sauna. The Canadian Park service allows these structures to remain as harbor of refuge and local boaters maintain and keep them tidy.

AndinI at anchor Spain Island
(near Loon Harbour)

Spain Island Sauna

Inside Spain Island Sauna

Swede Island Bunk House
(see sign on door about mining claim)

Inside Swede Island Sauna

Tuesday - Friday - July 25-27.

Another 8am start saw us rounding the northern end of the Loon Harbour chain in a generally NE direction for 20.5nm over to CPR Slip. Our entrance had a little bit of drama. We went aground for the 1^st time with AndinI. The entrance requires a 180 degree turn and you are only about 8-10 feet from shore. We were able to get ourselves off in short order.

CPR Slip has a bit of history. Canadian Pacific Railroad (CPR) mined the area for the unique type of loose gravel found in this area for use as track bed/ballast. Starting in the late 1920's, they built a few cabins here and brought out wealthy guests for fishing trips. The land is now privately owned by a family who allows boaters free access provided the land is maintained and clean. There are two structures – an indoor bunkhouse with screen porch and a wonderful steam bath/sauna. The boaters from Nipigon, Red Rock and Thunder Bay do an amazing job on the upkeep. We made new friends in Diane, Doug, Lynn, Karlo and many more. They shared their local knowledge and wonderful stories.

We spent 3 nights here at the dock. We used this dock time to complete a few projects (sealed window leaks, ran Starlink cable, repairing locker bag (sewing) and Danny installed our new AndinI boat lettering). We explored the area by dinghy visiting Paradise (Island that is), an old fish camp and a lightkeepers grave who died in 1869. The fishing right outside the harbor was excellent and we were lucky enough to catch a lake trout so had a wonderful fish dinner.

On Friday, Doug led us on a hike up the big hillside with amazing views all around. He was a little camera shy, so we didn’t get any photo evidence with him but maybe next time. We had to say our goodbyes to the great folks at CPR around 1pm and we successfully exited the harbor without going aground. The hospitality to us "Americans" will not be forgotten. We also had to say our goodbyes to our great friends Kari and Danny Saathoff on s/v Still Life. We will really cherish our wonderful memories of the trip with them.

We had a nice 13.1nm run over to Woodbine Harbour which only took about 2.5 hours thanks to the nice 10kt breeze on the starboard beam. We finally got to sail a bit on this trip. Woodbine is very secluded, and you don't even see the entrance from the water unless you have a chart.

TTFN