Kagawong and Harbour Island
July 2-4
JUST FOR YOUR INFORMATION – Any story that starts – “We were out bear hunting and …” is probably a great story.
Sailed from Gore Bay to Kagawong a distance of about 17 miles. Sailing into Mudge Bay is not as hard as it used to be as the water is up 5 or more feet from the charts meaning the rocks are less of a danger to sailors but you still need to be careful and watch the channel markers and the maps.
At the base of the by is the tiny village of Kagawong. I would say the village is off the beaten path but it is only off the beaten path if you come by water. There is a marina with fuel and pump outs but the docks are old and there is no power to the docks.
Kagawong is famous for a couple of things – the pulp mill in town was built to make pulp for Sears and Roebucks, catalogs and Daniel Dodge of the Dodge automobile family accidentally blew himself up here on his honeymoon.
It is also famous for the nearby Bridal Veil Falls.
We chose to anchor for a couple of nights in the bay which was calm and glassy all the time we were there. The marina store has ice cream and pop so we were good and the public restrooms are just a short walk away.
A mile east of the village is Bridal Veil Falls on the Kagawong River. The water falls 10 meters over a rocky ledge and forms a pool at the bottom perfect for swimming. Hundreds of visitors a day come to swim at the falls and take pictures. A temporary business district has formed by the parking lot with businesses offering food, tee shirts and ice cream at the detriment of the businesses in the village.
In the village is a large candy shop, a chocolatier, an African import store and a small convenience store which has a few items and is run by a gentleman who appears to be blind but friendly none the less. We bought bread and a few other staples from him.
There is a Big Game Board Park on the east side of the village where one can play chess, checkers and tic-tac-toe with very large pieces on large boards.
Good farmers market on Wednesday mornings and a really nice history museum.
Again, art is everywhere – in the river, on shore along the boardwalks, everywhere and it takes time to slow down enough to look and find.Farmers and craft market on Wednesday at the village pavilion. July 4 was the first day and while there were lots of craft vendors only a couple of farm vendors and all they had was lettuce which we bought for a salad tonight. Also bought cheese biscuits and a personal pecan pie.
July 4
We headed to Harbiour Island north of Kagawong to anchor for the night. Harbour Island (not to be confused with Harbor Island - different spelling - north of Drummond Island). The island is famous for the multiple-times failed lodge and resort which was built on the island in the 1930s for what was hoped to be a get-a-way for the very rich. Turns out that hours by car followed by a lot of time on the water by boat to get there isn't a good combination for success. The resort has been abandoned for years but a new island owner hopes to start bringing it back to life in the next year.
We anchored east of the island near Clapperton Island which is hope to a First Nation camp.
The water was 75 degrees and we went swimming several times. The area is so far from civilization that you can see stars one never thought possible.