The old-growth forests that once fed the mills lining Ontario's North
Channel have long since disappeared. The shores no longer echo the whistles of
steam tugs and the clank of log boom chains. But signs of the logging activity remain, and
provide artifacts that can instruct the amateur historian.
And as I found one summer, they also amuse boaters on quiet days in an anchorage. We discovered a surprisingly captivating challenge in the area of Spanish Mills, near the Little Detroit passage that joins the McBean and Whalesback channels.
Our three sailboats, anchored close to shore in deep-water Shoepack Bay, were enjoying a quiet day in pleasant weather, protected from the stronger winds to the west by smooth rock faces covered in pine and cedar. Maybe too quiet. In the afternoon, crews were in dinghies and kayaks, looking for something to do.
I happened to pass along an observation from yet another sailor concerning the number of iron rings and U-bolts in the rock all around the bay. Over a hundred years ago these had secured log booms to hold thousands of logs destined for the sawmills. I said I had been told there were six or seven of these historical remnants waiting to be located.
Well! The hunt was on, and very quickly the tally mounted to nine, and then eleven, as crews reported their findings from the northern, southern and eastern shores. Everyone got in the act as each new find added to the tally and challenged the others.
In the end, the eleven iron pieces found to date were photographed, geo-located and documented for chart plotter display. When their locations were plotted, it was easy to imagine great log booms segmenting the bay to organize the logs for the steam tugs to tow away.
It may not be a certified 'Pokemon Go' experience, but the Rings of Shoepack provide a voyage of discovery that can obviously captivate and amuse young and old.
And as I found one summer, they also amuse boaters on quiet days in an anchorage. We discovered a surprisingly captivating challenge in the area of Spanish Mills, near the Little Detroit passage that joins the McBean and Whalesback channels.
Our three sailboats, anchored close to shore in deep-water Shoepack Bay, were enjoying a quiet day in pleasant weather, protected from the stronger winds to the west by smooth rock faces covered in pine and cedar. Maybe too quiet. In the afternoon, crews were in dinghies and kayaks, looking for something to do.
I happened to pass along an observation from yet another sailor concerning the number of iron rings and U-bolts in the rock all around the bay. Over a hundred years ago these had secured log booms to hold thousands of logs destined for the sawmills. I said I had been told there were six or seven of these historical remnants waiting to be located.
Well! The hunt was on, and very quickly the tally mounted to nine, and then eleven, as crews reported their findings from the northern, southern and eastern shores. Everyone got in the act as each new find added to the tally and challenged the others.
In the end, the eleven iron pieces found to date were photographed, geo-located and documented for chart plotter display. When their locations were plotted, it was easy to imagine great log booms segmenting the bay to organize the logs for the steam tugs to tow away.
It may not be a certified 'Pokemon Go' experience, but the Rings of Shoepack provide a voyage of discovery that can obviously captivate and amuse young and old.
If you go:
Locate Shoepack Bay, not far from Spanish, ON, just east of the Little Detroit passage. Use this chart plotter display showing all known rings.
The two pictures that follow give examples of what you are looking for.
Happy discovering!
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