Great Loop Cruisers

A “Biting” Situation on the Great Loop

It felt good to be on the water again after being at dockside in Midland, Ontario for several days waiting out the weather, and although it was cool, it was also bright and sunny. There were many boats out with us in beautiful Georgian Bay. We had to watch our GPS, charts, and visible buoys closely because the rocks were everywhere! Occasionally, we would see white bottles floating in the water to mark another newly discovered rock

The scenery was almost otherworldly with homes built on rock boulders in the middle of the water. We speculated that building materials for these houses must have been delivered in the winter when trucks would be able to drive across the ice. The water there was so clear that you could see how close we sometimes came to the rock ledges along the channels.

We attempted to go into one anchorage, but though it was beautiful, the large amount of boats did not give us a safe feeling, so we traveled on to lovely Longuissa Bay, where we were sheltered and a little farther off the beaten track. Even in this spot, there were nine other boats with us, but at least they were well spread out.

After dinner we turned in, feeling secure in the quiet place, but around about midnight, I heard a buzzing sound in my ear. We had mosquitoes in our cabin! I can sleep through cold, heat, and even loud noises, but not mosquitoes. In a vain attempt to kill the little devils, I began swatting them in the dark around my head and eventually wound up slapping myself in the ear. Then, I had ringing in my ears in addition to mosquito bites. I decided to take the battle up a notch, got out of bed, and went into the head, where I turned on the light to lure them into my trap. My idea was that the light would attract them into the head where I could see them against the light-colored walls. The concept worked – sort of. I was able to kill a few of them by slapping them against the wall, but soon after, the Admiral (my wife Pat) woke up and asked me what I was doing. I said I was killing mosquitoes, and she said she had not heard a thing. I swear, that woman could sleep through a nuclear explosion!

The stalking and killing went on for some time. The Admiral by then was immune to the pounding sounds coming from the head and stayed asleep (she says that’s one of her secrets to our long marriage!). After several more successful swats, I once more felt victorious, but after a few minutes back in bed, I once again found out I was wrong. The battle between man and mosquito went on most of the night, and the next morning I was exhausted. Despite being sleep deprived, I inspected our window screens, looking for gaps in our defense, and found several places where the invaders got in. Repairs began immediately because I was determined not to go through another night like the previous one. Later, we found out that everyone in that area had experienced the same problem, and it did not matter if their boats were in a marina or at anchor. I guess it was just the “Night of the Mosquito”, and it never happened again.

George and Pat Hospodar, authors of “Reflection on America’s Great Loop” published by Atlantic Publishing.

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