Previous Post: Kayaking Georgian Bay – Intro: Killarney To Snug Harbour

• Table of Contents:
• The Maps
• Topo Canada 1:50000
• Unlostify Killarney and French River maps
• Chrismar Franklin, Minks, and McCoys Map
• Logistics: Shuttle Arrangements
• To The Chikanishing Put-In
• Day 1: From Chikanishing to Solomons Island
• Day 2: From Solomons I. To the East Side of Grondine Point
• Ongoing Wikwemikong Land Claims Negotiations

Other posts – 

• Days 3 & 4  Point Grondine To The Bustards’ Tanvat I. To S of Byng Inlet
• Days 5 & 6  S of Byng Inlet To Hangdog I. Channel To Garland I. (Minks)
• Days 7 & 8  Garland Island to Franklin Island To Snug Harbour

The Maps:

This was one of those trips where I was a passenger and not the organizer!   Rick had his laminated collection of Natural Resources Canada 1:50,000 topos and even some marine charts. They were annotated with all sorts of notes prompted by a dozen previous trips on the northeast shore of Georgian Bay.

1. Natural Resources Canada Topos:

These are the NRC topos you need for the Chikanishing to Snug Harbour route.  Just click here to access the particular map file (pdf or tif) from the Govt of Canada website, using the folder info below. Or just click on the map name and download a smaller  jpg file from my WordPress site:

• 041 I 03 Lake Panache   
• 041 H 14 Collins Inlet  
• 041 H 15 Key Harbour
• 041 H 10 Naiscoot River
• 041 H 09 Pointe au Baril Station
• 041 H 08 Parry Sound

Since the Federal Government is not in the map printing business anymore, there are private enterprises that do the job.  $20. a sheet (they use plastic now)  is a typical price.

Or you can do the printing yourself.  Often you only need a small section of the entire map sheet.  Put the various pages you print inside a map case or a large or extra-large clear plastic Ziploc bag. It is easy to make two copies of the map set – one in your dry bag just in case and one in your map case in the canoe or kayak for daily use.  One notable thing the topos lack is campsite information.  You’ll need to turn to the following sources for that!

2. Unlostify Maps:

For the first four days of the trip – down to Key Harbour – you can make use of the Unlostify Maps for Killarney and French River.  Buy the hard copy maps if you want – they are very useful and informative and they have campsites indicated.

If you only need the small section of the map on Georgian Bay for your kayak trip, download the free digital version and print off what you need yourself.  Click here for the relevant map from the Unlostify website –

Killarney  To download scroll down to the bottom and press ACCEPT!

French River   To download scroll down and press ACCEPT!

3. The Adventure Map: Franklin, Minks, & McCoys

Another useful map is the Chrismar Adventure Map pictured to the right – Franklin, Minks, and McCoys.  It would cover the last couple of days of the trip and, like the Unlostify maps, it provides campsite locations, as well as other interesting bits of info.

At $14. a plasticized copy, the map is an excellent investment!  In any case, there is not a digitalized copy available. Click on the title above to see how to order – or check out a MEC outlet.

My posts also provide information on where we camped each night.

Smartphone GPS Capability: 

You should also consider bringing your smartphone along thanks to its GPS capability.  With David Crawshay’s Topo Canada app and the required topos installed on your iPhone, you would have instant confirmation of your location on those occasions when you are just not sure where you are. This is something that may happen as you paddle through a maze of channels and islands. The android world also has map apps that would be useful to have.

A smartphone screen is certainly much larger than that of a dedicated GPS device.  That makes it more useful in providing more context as to your location.  However, leaving your iPhone on all day would eat up battery like crazy compared to a dedicated Garmin device like the eTrex 20 or the Oregon 450 I have.

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The Logistics: Shuttle Arrangements

Unless your trip is a loop and you paddle your way back to where you started, the biggest logistical issue is getting back to your vehicle!  The two basic options are :

• Jockeying cars so that one is at each end. It is an inexpensive solution but it can be a bit of a downer at the end of a trip.  Cost: time. In our case, 5 to 6 hours of driving.
• arranging a shuttle. On the plus side,  it eliminates the drive back to the put-in to retrieve the vehicle.  Cost: money. In our case, $650.!

We decided to go with the shuttle option and turned to White Squall for rental and shuttle service.

White Squall:

Update: Until 2020 White Squall rented kayaks and canoes out of their Paddling Center on Cole Lake north of Parry Sound. That outlet closed this spring.   They now just run the Parry Sound store and sell but do not rent kayaks or canoes.  Get in touch with White Squall to find out more: 705 746-4936    info@whitesquall.com

For this trip (2017) I rented a Boreal Designs composite sea kayak for eight days at $42. a day. Given the length of the rental, I got a bit of a discount.  White Squall also provided a shuttle service. This included the use of their vehicle to transport the three kayaks.  Using your own vehicle and having the shuttle driver drive it back to the endpoint would presumably cost a bit less.  The cost for us: $650. shared by the three of us.  With the Paddling Center closing, I think the shuttle service is also gone.

Other Rental/Shuttle Options:

1. Swift Georgian Bay Outlet

If a rental is what you need, the Swift Waubaushene outlet off Hwy 400 is an excellent alternative thanks to their large selection.  Click on the header to access their website.

2. Killarney Outfitters

Another option is Killarney Outfitters right near the put-in at Chikanishing! They rent canoes and kayaks and would be able to arrange a shuttle of your vehicle down to Snug Harbour or wherever you choose to exit. Click on the header to access their website.

3. Gilly’s Marina at Snug Harbour

Possible Alternative Shuttle Option –  Gilly’s Marina may be able to provide a shuttle driver that would drive up with you to the Chikanishing put-in and then drive your vehicle back to Snug Harbour.  It would take about 5 hours of the driver’s time. 

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To The Chikanishing Put-In

To make sure we’d get to White Squall early, we had driven up from Toronto to  Ken’s family cottage on Victoria Harbour the night before.  We were treated to the warm glow of sunset as we sat on the patio. Unfortunately, the weather forecast for the next day called for major rainfall at least until the early afternoon.

Before getting to White Squall the next morning we drove through a torrential downpour or two and watched another one from the Jolly Roger restaurant just south of Parry Sound where we had stopped for breakfast. After that it seemed to clear up a bit – but not completely.

We got to the now-closed Cole Lake White Squall Center just north of Parry Sound around 9:30 or so. My rental kayak was already on their vehicle when we arrived.

After loading the other two onto the White Squall truck, the driver followed our two vehicles to Snug Harbour.

We had arranged with the folks at Gilly’s Marina at Snug Harbour to leave our cars in their parking lot, paying $7.50 a day for the nine days we figured it might take us to paddle back to Snug Harbour from our Chikanishing put-in point.

After we dropped off the two vehicles at the marina, we hopped into the White Squall truck and headed up to Chikanishing. It was our shuttle driver’s last day on the job. There was lots of anticipation all around!

• We briefed him on our route down the coast
• He filled us in on his upcoming move out west to Kamloops and his first year in the Outdoor Education program at Thompson Rivers University.

All in all, it took four hours after heading for Snug Harbour from the White Squall Center to get to Chikanishing and the put-in.

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Day 1: From Chikanishing Creek To Solomons Island

The Chikanishing Creek Road turn-off from Highway 637 is just 1.4 kilometers past the Killarney Park Info Center. It ends in the large parking lot pictured in the satellite image below. It is a popular parking spot for kayakers and canoeists off on their Georgian Bay paddle trip. (It costs $14.50 a day to park there; you pay at the Park office.) We drove to the grassy area just above the put-in and within a half-hour were ready to go. The bonus downpour probably speeded things up a bit!

Given that it was 1:45 when we set off we knew that we would not get far, maybe ten kilometers or so. It would all depend on the wind and the waves.  The NW wind pushed us down the G’ Bay side of Philip Edward Island after we rounded South Point and we zig-zagged our way through the maze of islands along the coast.

The water would be a bit choppy as we made our way east along Philip Edward Island. As the map shows, we made major use of the islands as wind blockers. Happy just to be on the water, we were not obsessing about the distance covered on this first day.   We would make a couple of stops – one for lunch and another to stretch our legs and check out the views. The stretch of water above Le Hayes Island would be about the most turbulent we would see during the entire trip!

It was about 4:30 when we passed by what looked to be a possible campsite.  I thought I recognized the island from the hill behind the camp area. The previous summer my brother and I had stopped for lunch on the south side of an island and then gone for a ramble up the hill behind us for fine views all the way east to Big Rock.  This looked like it – but, then again, it was not quite the same!

While Ken and Rick landed their kayaks I paddled around the point to the south side, thinking I would see something that fit in better with what I remembered.

Unsuccessful, I turned back and checked out the spot that we decided would be our home for the night.  It was only when I got home and took a look at the GPS track on my computer screen that it became clear that the Used-To-Be Island that I had convinced myself we had camped on was actually Solomons Island.  Both islands do have fine viewpoints – as the snippet of Jeff’s Killarney map makes clear!

Both Rick and Ken, pros at Georgian Bay kayaking and camping,  pitched their tents on flat rock surfaces.  I chose a more sheltered spot tucked in among the trees on the left where I was able to make use of my tent pegs.

Day 1 – in spite of the bad weather in the morning – had been a great start to our trip down the Georgian Bay coast.  We had covered about 8 kilometers.

Day 2 would add another 20+ and have us paddling through more of that Bay “eye candy” that makes kayaking there so incredibly rewarding.

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Day 2: Solomons Island to the East Side of Point Grondine 

Given the myriad of possible routes of a trip down the Georgian Bay coast,  the map above illustrates just one thing – what we were comfortable with on Day 2 given the lack of wind and waves.  Another day and the route would be adapted to suit the different conditions.  Thanks to an almost windless day and calm water, we paddled long stretches across open water, not feeling a need to stay really close to the shore or use islands to break the wind.

Rick and Ken have done several trips down the Bay coast over the years so it was fantastic to be able to tag along and benefit from their experience – and their collection of great places to stop and have a break, have lunch, have a swim, or set up camp. It was all there on Rick’s heavily annotated map! As we passed by the above rock face I recognized – just a tad late – a photo-op. Out came the little point and shoot and a view that did not quite capture what I had wanted to.

Luckily the spot – Family Island – was on Rock’s list of special places so as we rounded the corner – just over an hour into the day! – we beached our kayaks and made ourselves at home.  I even got out my Helinox chair! I’ll admit, though, that I spent most of the next hour rambling around the island with my camera and lenses. While I never did get that shot that had originally drawn my eye to the island, I got a bunch of others from an equally enchanting perspective!

Back to the kayaks and there was Rick studying his map and a horizontal Ken taking in some of the warmth of the sun.

By 11 we were approaching Beaverstone Bay, passing some cottages on the way. South of Popham Point is a collection of islands and rocks known as The Chickens with Hen Island to the south-east looking over them!  We found a flat rock to beach our kayaks and then hopped over some rocks to find a  spot sheltered from the wind that had picked up a bit since our start at 8:30.

Some canoe tripping parties make a rushed affair out of lunch. It was Day 2 and I was liking what I was seeing – these guys took their time and even let their engines idle for a bit after lunch.  My brother and I have always spent an hour or so on our midday break; Rick and Ken were doing the same!

After lunch, we rounded Point Grondine and headed up to some islands north of Horseshoe Bay.  (Jeff’s Killarney map does show a couple of island campsites just north of the point but we were headed a bit further up.)  Since the mainland (Point Grondine Reserve #3) is a part of Wikwemikong First Nations territory, no camping is allowed. We made sure that we were indeed on an island before we called it a day!

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Ongoing Wikwemikong Land Claims Negotiations

Still in the category of Crown Land are the islands offshore of the reserve – i.e. the Chickens and the islands on the east side of Point Grondine where we were looking for a campsite.

Current negotiations may change the status of those islands, as well as Philip Edward Island (P.E.I.) and the Foxes and the Hawks island groups south of P.E.I. The map above shows the proposed settlement to the land claims issue with pink and yellow indicating lands under discussion.

Our campsite choice was not on Jeff’s Killarney map but it more than fit the bill as an excellent stop thanks to its flat tenting spots and fine views.

Day 2 – another great day on the water and on the rocks and islands!   This Georgian Bay kayak tripping is easy to like.  This canoe tripper,  used to rapids and beaver dams and sweepers on the rivers of the interior boreal forest,  was not missing the portages! Coming up – two very satisfying days where we covered almost 60 kilometers in more great paddling weather.

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Days 3 & 4  Point Grondine To The Bustards’ Tanvat Island To S of Byng Inlet