We’ve been out of touch with the Internet world since we were up in Killarney. I probably should have setup my 3G modem before we left but I hadn’t bothered and we were quite happy with the break from technology. All of that being said is to cover up for any gaff’s I make with this and the next few posts… neglected experiences, people and disjointed thoughts are a result of my poor memory.
Killarney is a quaint and pretty little town; They claim the population is 454, but I’m sure when the boating season is here that number more than doubles. It was quite a busy little channel with fishing boats, pleasure craft and tenders plying to and fro. As we approached the Sportsman’s Inn, we saw Lyre at rest right ahead of our assigned slip! ha! Looks like we took different routes with different schedules and yet still randomly ended up at the same place. Sportsman’s Inn which had very professional staff and excellent facilities; It was finally nice to see the dock hands run for the boats and then know what to do with the lines once they were received. Not only that, but the washrooms and showers were constantly being cleaned, there was a restaurant that delivered pizza to our boat as well as bar and hotel – both of which we did not utilize. Once again, I neglected to take a photo.
Down the street lay the rest of the town; Not much to it and the few stores they had were extremely expensive. But first we must talk about the fish & chips shop… of which I did not take a photo. Right out front of the fishery is a converted bus that now serves as the local fish & chips shop. The fish wasn’t battered, like Captain Highliner, but had just a dusting before being deep fried. Their claim of “Best Georgian Bay White Fish” may be justified. It was really good! (… even though I did end up having a few stomach issues after eating more than my fair share.) After having a nice fish & chips dinner we wandered back to the Inn where we invited Betsy and Darwin (Lyre) to share wine on our boat. They brought with them a special bottle of wine from Spain that was just excellent – very dry, just my style but a little much for Feng.
We had decided to outfit in Killarney before our week away so we stayed an extra night; This was both a good and bad decision. We definitely needed to outfit and taking an extra day allowed me to get a few chores done but the supplies were criminally expensive. We visited the rigging shop, grocery (if you can call it that) store as well as made a few stops at the ice cream / family restaurant for snacks. Then down to chores…
The toilet water pump was working but intermittently would lose it’s suction, needing a full priming before it would go again. The flaky nature was a bit frustrating although more of a nuisance than a real problem. It needed a new gasket – a simple rubber cut out that was priced at over $22, and a full maintenance kit was $89. What?! $89??? Really now. Instead, I purchased a new, upgraded pump for $109. MSRP $89. *sigh* the middle-of-nowhere premium was paid in full. I set to work replacing the toilet’s water pump and the task was simple. 6 bolts, sprayed with a bit of shit (dammit, that WASN”T supposed to happen!!!) and then bolt it back in place. Yes, I really was sprayed and Feng nearly puked. After that, I discovered the clamp between the toilet discharge hose wasn’t properly seated so I recut the hose and re-clamped it. It still wouldn’t seal quite right so I made my own seal out of electrical tape which seems to have done the job. Two chores done. On to unclogging the ice box drain… Designers of sailboats usually consider access to critical bits and pieces but wouldn’t you know it that the clog in the hose was precisely where it couldn’t be reached?? Right. Some environment-killing Liquid Plumber later and about 1.5 hours of snaking coat hanger through the pipe we now have a trickle of drainage. All we need, but at least it’s moving. That’s it, 3 chores and I’m spent.
We went through our checklist and made sure we had everything we needed for a week in the wilderness… fly swatters? check. Food? check. All systems go? check. With that, we relaxed for the evening with pizza and fish & chips on the boat and waited to set out early.
I finally snapped a few quick pictures of Betsy and Darwin leaving on Lyre… unfortunately, the photos didn’t turn out well. I’ll post them but please don’t shoot the photographer.
Darwin backs Lyre out of a difficult spot! Expertise is shown.
Darwin waves goodbye after a good visit. Betsy looks after the foredeck.