Didn't get much sailing in this summer, but LAST summer (having just completed an overseas teaching contract) I snuck off for a long trip into Ontario with my brother's Phoenix III, designed by Ross Lillistone. With a lot of time available, I figured I could pre-extend my planned Georgian Bay cruise (A Phoenix III in Georgian Bay) with a side trip to Lake Nipigon, a large lake (60 miles x 40 miles or so) just north of Lake Superior.
An article about my Lake Nipigon cruise was published in the Feb 2015 digital issue of Small Boats Monthly and, with their kind permission, I'm posting a thread about the trip now in case anyone's interested.
Here's an overview of the lake to orient those not familiar with the area:
My Google Earth exploration showed lots of islands, fairly remote, and very little development--just my kind of cruising ground (I hoped). The northern edge of the lake was just above 50 degrees of latitude, which would make this the farthest north I'd ever sailed (translation: I packed a head net and planned to use it).
I turned off the main highway just west of the town of Nipigon, and headed in to the south end of the lake where my map showed a couple of boat ramps (I purchased the map at Chaltrek in Thunder Bay, a shop that sells a strange mix of paddling gear, mining supplies, and prospecting equipment--but it was about the only map of the lake I could find anywhere; there are no official charts except a few to detail small harbors).
Forty miles or so of secondary roads:
and I was at the south end of the lake. The first ramp near dam didn't allow camping, so I drove 10 miles farther to the South Bay boat ramp to launch:
(A busy place, Lake Nipigon...)
Edit to add: that land visible across the lake is not the opposite shore; those are only the nearest of many, many uninhabited islands scattered around the lake. It's a big lake, especially in a little boat).
More to come.