Indian River and the NC Yacht Club
Underway a bit before I expected, I proceeded to look for a place to put in and pick up my boat co-owner and his wife so they could enjoy the North Channel for a couple of days. My first stop was the North Channel Yacht Club.
The North Channel Yacht Club was another reminder of just how remote the area where I was. The boats that belonged to the yacht club were primarily 22 to 25 feet long. No wonder they stared so astonished when I would arrive, solo, in a 34 footer with a dingy on the back making a total overal length of about 40 feet.
Rather than a crane common to yacht clubs in Michigan, they pulled their boats from the water with a little rail system. It was pretty cool really, very humble. About the sailing.
There was a keeper who I think lived there, and I asked if he had fuel. He explained that the gas tanks had just been dug up to update them to current environmental standards. But he asked if I had gas cans. I said yes. I was carrying three 6 gallon gas cans as auxilliary fuel. The tank on the Tartan only held 20 gallons or so, but depending on conditions I used less than a gallon per hour. He said “Well, take my car….” He handed me the keys to a Pontiac with over 100,00 km on it. No shocks. Worn shocks would be an insult to shocks, this car had no shocks. I thought as I tried to get up to the highway speed to get to the gas station that I was taking my life in my hands. It didn’t help that the speedometer read a number like 85 (km/hr). But I survived, filled my has cans, and filled his tank as well before returning.
I then called my partner to tell him where I’d be. I had a calling card (US) but it needed a touch tone phone to put in the code and the payphone I was at had only a rotary dial. So I called the operator and explained my problem. She asked if I had a Canada calling card, no US. I explained I needed a touch tone entry of numbers. I’ll never forget she said “But sir, all I have is a rotary dial.” Now that is remote. I placed the call collect.
I then went to blind river for the night. A great facility, built with the help of the Provincial government. I was able to walk to a grocery store and also hang out in the second story of the building and take in the scenery.
My log for the day reads:
- the Muse9/4/92 - Blind River Marina - 12 NM (12:05 - 14:40), Winds 5 SE
Tags: North Channel
