NATURE IS NICE, NOW BRING ME A GIN AND TONIC

August 14-16, 2026

There is something about going from very rustic to having servers bringing you cocktails. We went to Killarney Mountain Lodge for a couple of nights. They really pack in the boats on their docks. We had a boat behind us and two boats to our left. This is seasonal work for them so they take full advantage of docking as many boats as they can.

Killarney not only docks boats, but they dock planes as well.

Biggest paddle ever created. Mike Ranta created this paddle which weighs 22,000 pounds, spans 110.5 feet in length and is 17 feet in width. Mike dedicated “The Big Dipper” to those who have served Canada.

Mike Ranta - creator of the biggest paddle.

I am not a fan of lots of human contact. I like seclusion, but there is something to be said for being in the middle of mayhem. We were next to a boat with two boys ages 9 and 12. We went out for a walk and when we came back they were sitting on the dock looking into the water. We asked if they were okay and they said, “We lost one of our bikes into the water.” The kids were creative enough to have contacted a local scuba diver and he was going to come and pull out the bike. We asked where they parents were and they said, “We don’t know where they are.” About 20 minutes later the parents show up and the boys tell them the whole story. Initially, the parents think they are lying, but realization hits them as the boys continue to look down in the water. Friends of the parents who have a boat near by go back and get their tender anchor. He puts the anchor into the water and pulls the bike up. The boys bike off to let the scuba diver know he isn’t needed anymore. It was a pretty hilarious situation with a happy ending, though those boys looked like this was a pretty typical day for them.

The weather got really bad on August 15 (Saturday) but Bella and I endeavored on through the rain to walk to the Killarney Northwest Lighthouse. It was initially a lot of fun as we headed down “Bail Out Road” toward the lighthouse. We had a great walk along the granite rocks and watched as a boat rounded the corner, heading into the Killarney marina.

Bad weather as we were walking to the lighthouse.

Wouldn’t want to be this guy.

Killarney Northwest Lighthouse.

Once we got to the lighthouse and turned around, the rain started to get really bad. By the time I got back to Killarney, we were absolutely soaked. Getting back on the boat, I took off all of my clothes and took a shower. Bella needed a good towel dry, but she seemed pretty happy considering she was off the leash most of the walk. It is fun to walk in the rain, just probably not as long or as drenching of a rain as we got. Ha!

Howie and I did head up to the bar and had a nice cocktail before dinner.

Killarney Mountain Lodge

Headed out the next morning at 7:30 a.m., we were looking forward to anchoring near Baie Fine and “the pool.”