Day 12, Saturday July 17, 2010

Chatsworth ON. Canada to Perry Sound, ON    

Indirect Miles: 159

Total Miles to Date: 1728

Road Trip Around The               

            UPPER GREAT LAKES....

Come back to this site often and ride along with me around the Upper Great Lakes.

New photos will be posted every day or two..

All Photography by Ken Stewart © copyright 2010

Today I left my parking spot at my friend’s 100 acre century old farm in Chatsworth Ontario, and headed East to the shore of Georgian Bay, and eventually traversed the shoreline roads to the town of Perry Sound for the night. The town is about half way around the bay.

My trip took me through a number of small towns of this area that could be dubbed ‘Ontario’s playground’.

Known by the locals as “cottage country”, it is so popular in fact that the government built a 130 mile 4 lane expressway from Toronto to Perry Sound just to help solve the very heavy traffic, created by the thousands of city dwellers on their weekend and summer vacation flights to the lakes and beaches for a bit of R and R.

One of the most popular places for young people is Wasaga Beach. The beaches are jammed with cottages, condo’s, ‘surf shops’ teenagers, and beach umbrellas for the entire summer.

Other area’s around the bay are more ‘laid back’  with most of the smaller lakes lined with family cottages, boat docks and marina’s.

Boating is extremely popular throughout the area. In fact there are a series of rivers and canals that connect many of the smaller lakes, so that a boater could go from Georgian Bay to Lake Ontario with out ever having to hit dry land, except in one area... But that problem has been solved with the ‘one-of-a-kind’ marine railway, known as the Big Chute.

Chatsworth, ON

Perry Sound, ON

It was difficult for me to leave the farm, but as I took to the highways past the sky slopes of Blue Mountain and the waterfront beaches of the western shores of Georgian Bay I found another ‘favorite’ spot to park the camper, fix lunch and enjoy the view at Northwinds Beach, near Craigleith.

Wasaga Beach

One of the most popular places for young people. The beaches are jammed with cottages, condo’s, ‘surf shops’ teenagers, and beach umbrellas for the entire summer.

Midland, Ontario

Where a huge chromed Canadian Goose dominates the waterfront located at the end of the main street, and is with-in feet of the docks where 550 foot lake-boats transfer their cargos.

A boater could go from Georgian Bay to Lake Ontario with out ever having to hit dry land, except in one area...

But that problem has been solved with the ‘one-of-a-kind’ marine railway, known as the Big Chute.

The marine railway bypasses this former waterfalls by taking boats up to 100 feet in length, and up to 24 feet wide on a dry dock type submersible carriage 748 feet, up and down a steep incline, from one lake to the next. The carriage uses steel cables wound on huge drums to accomplish the 10 minute traverse.