GOT A LOT ACCOMPLISHED

July 24-25, 2026

Easy morning going through lock 41, down the narrow channel to Lake Simcoe and heading north to the Port of Orillia. We were only staying one night at the marina before moving on, but we had heard good things about the downtown, so got out pretty quickly to investigate. It was an easy walk to Mississaga Street (main downtown area). VERY nice upscale shops, Mariposa market/bakery, quality restaurants, etc. We ate at Pita Pit which sounds kind of grunge, but it was actually pretty good. I spied Becker shoes across the street, so after we ordered I ran across to see if they had any gym shoes. Found a great pair of New Balance! This might not sound like a big deal, but we don’t have access to a car and the marinas where we stay aren’t typically located near a mall or quality stores, so finding a good pair of shoes is actually pretty cool. Howard was looking for protein powder (found it a drug store), so well done us.

I had made a hair appointment for 2:15 p.m. and had to walk there, so I headed out. As we don’t have cell service in Canada (it is VERY expensive), I got turned around and went out of my way to get to the hair salon. I was sweating pretty decently by the time I got there. My hair didn’t look great either, so I am sure Elizabeth was thrilled to see me. She did a good job coloring and cutting my hair, so definitely left a good tip!

Great Loop folks love to meet early for “docktails.” We have had some loopers ask if we wanted to get together at 4:00 p.m.! We aren’t used to this, but try and manage getting together to chat as much as we can. We do tend to see the same people, though it is a continual quest to remember everyone’s name, especially if it has been a few weeks since we have seen them.

All in all, a very productive day!