2018 Great Lakes Rendezvous Day Three

Rendezvous Day Three – Started Off on the Docks with a Big Pot of Coffee and the Best Butter Tarts we’ve ever had –

Baked fresh at Wilkes Bakery, in downtown Orillia, that morning. These tarts are so fresh and buttery,  if you eat one it’s hard to stop! After mingling on the docks with our “sweets,” we reconvened at the Royal Canadian Legion for John and Laurie Gray’s presentation on the Great Loop. The presentation was followed by lunch. There was a huge interest in this presentation by the attendees. Many would like to do the “Loop” on their tugs.

We spent a leisurely afternoon on the docks having a “boat crawl.” This is a voluntary event meant to open your boat for others to see what personal touches or enhancements you’ve made. Or conversely, attendees could visit boats, meet other owners and talk about their current or future boats.

The last official activity of the rendezvous day three was a blindfolded dinghy race

Always fun for those watching, but sometimes frustrating for those taking part. However, rewarding for participants and onlookers, but especially for the winners. We had four brave couples taking part, with each dinghy/paddle board having the blindfolded paddler taking instructions from their sighted partner. The goal was for the navigating team member to direct their blindfolded partner to a halfway point where they turned around to head to the finish line. Todd and Anita from Audrey Rose took home the $100 prize after competing on their paddle board.

We concluded the rendezvous on Sunday, with pizza delivered to us on the dock. Usually, attendance is light on the third day, as many owners had to leave for one reason or another. This created a more intimate gathering for those staying for all three nights.

For Lisa and I, the last day of the rendezvous closes one part of our Canadian adventure. Tomorrow morning we head out on the Trent Severn Waterway with the Rideau Canal and Montreal as our endpoint to our 2018 summer cruising.

Can’t tell you how many times the owners of these two boats, Trilogy and Kismet, have bumped into each other at random docks all over the country. Alabama, Florida, British Columbia, and Washington State are the places that come to mind. Now we can add Ontario to the list. Most of the time, we met John and Laurie Gray by circumstance, not even knowing we were in the same area. Ontario was a touch-and-go situation as the Grays were not sure they could make it to the rendezvous until the last few days, due to their cruise schedule.