Montague Harbour, on Galliano Island, is part of the Gulf Islands.

When we left Sidney, we had one more day to explore before we met up with the Ranger Tug group (sixty-some Ranger Tugs and Cutwater boats) to begin our cruise to Desolation Sound. So we left Sidney for Montague Harbour on Galliano Island part of the Gulf Islands. There is a Provincial Park in Montague Harbour which offers campsites, a dinghy dock, hiking trails, a bakery on the shore, and mooring balls – we picked up one of the thirty-odd mooring balls available in the harbor.

We’d heard from a friend of ours that the thing to do when mooring in  Montague Harbor is to take the bus up to the Hummingbird Pub on Galliano Island. Because the pub is up a ways from the harbor they have a bus that will pick up boaters from the harbor to get to the pub. What they hadn’t told us was that, although the restaurant has good service and very good food, the real treat was not necessarily the restaurant itself, it turned out the bus ride was the thing we must do.

As we entered the bus we had not the slightest clue what was in store for us. A few minutes after we were seated and the bus was slowly winding up the slope of the island. We thought it was just another folksy bus ride with a little local commentary from the bus driver until Tommy Transit (a retired Vancouver bus driver) turned on the music, a Van Morrison song, Bright Side of the Road, and started handing out instruments to the passengers, a tambourine got passed over our heads along with a few other percussion instruments, Tommy himself held drumsticks which he used on the steering wheel and two symbols that were attached above his seat above the window. Before long we were all singing, playing instruments, clapping, and having a merry good time. It was good, unexpected fun….the kind we love to stumble into.

We had to take this shot of the boaters’ designated garbage area, located on the shore, for our friend Herb who recently told us of a run-in he had with a local who admonished him for putting his dog’s poop in a garbage can on shore, so he took it back a little confused because he thought he was doing the right thing. Apparently, several people had the same run in and someone has now put a special garbage can in that spot just for dog poop. However now garbage itself is not allowed. We thought the signs were interesting and it looks like someone had a good sense of humor when they left a bag of garbage hanging on the sign that clearly states that NOT ANY GARBAGE is to be left here.

We didn’t know about the bakery (below) that sits at the shore’s entrance to the harbor until we were returning from the restaurant.

The post Swinging and Singing in Montague Harbour, Canada appeared first on Trailer Trawler Life Blog – Cruising USA & Canada.

Dinner in the marina tonight with friends Scott and Cyndi Perkins, on Chip Ahoy. It’s always a pleasure to bump into this couple whom we met on our first Great Loop boat trip in 2006. Also from Michigan, Scott and Cyndi sail down Florida’s West Coast to the Keys every winter. Cyndi is a talented writer/editor (Cyndi has also written chapter’s in both of our books When the Water Calls and Women On Board Cruising). Scott is a gifted musician and performer.

Click on the CD covers below to read more about and listen to some of Scott’s excellent boating music.

Ships & Giggles

Tiller Dreams

Palm Trees in Da Keweenaw

Bits & Pieces

Long-time guitarist, singer, songwriter, sound man, and sailor Scott Perkins took inspiration for “Ships & Giggles,” (above-left) his fourth CD, from the sea, specifically his freshwater to saltwater travels aboard the 32-foot DownEast sailing vessel Chip Ahoy.

All of the songs are original tunes. Some arrived organically, during travels on the Gulf of Mexico down to Key West. Other songs were “born” some time ago and now arrive fully evolved on “Ships & Giggles.” “Check out when you’re through” was written 30 years ago in a Milwaukee hotel room; recently rediscovered in one of Scott’s blue composition notebooks aboard Chip Ahoy, it became one of his favorites on the CD, thanks to the addition of keyboards by Paul “Fergie” Keranen.

As he makes his way through Jimmy Buffett country, performing in southern Florida and the Keys, Scott is quite frequently compared to Buffett. “The comparison is flattering, but when people ask me who I sound like or play like, I have to say that I mostly sound like – myself,” says Scott.

The post Dining in the Keys with Crew of Chip Ahoy appeared first on Trailer Trawler Life Blog – Cruising USA & Canada.