We’re in trouble. Now what? Ask a GLCC friend

By Kelly Hillman

My husband, Rob, and I love sailing our S/V Windshadow and were excited to share the beauty of the North Channel, specifically Bear Drop Harbour, with our son Jim following the 2025 Rendezvous.

Unfortunately, unexpected “Murphy” events (what can go wrong will go wrong) occurred at the anchorage. While backing down on the anchor, the floating tow line was sucked into the prop. We felt a bump and the engine stalled. Rob dove in and extricated the line, but poor visibility didn’t give him the full picture. The next morning, we three began slowly motor-sailing to Gore Bay where the damage could be assessed.

As we were heading there, the propulsion quit, and so did the wind. Becalmed near the Cousins Islands, I called BoatUS only to find no tows were available as we were in Canadian waters. Much later, a call came in from Drummond, but they would be hours before arriving at our location.

So, Rob made a Pan-Pan call on VHF 16. No response was received from Canadian authorities. But GLCC members Dave and Anne Bannister responded immediately. They were near Bear Drop, had our position via AIS, and offered their 32-foot Nordic tug M/V Unsalted to tow us to Gore Bay, the closest boatyard with a lift.

Dave and Anne’s expertise was evident. Since acquiring Unsalted last year, they have towed several vessels to safety on the lakes, but we were their first 40-footer, a boat that was significantly larger than Unsalted. They sidled up to Windshadow with their huge fenders, passed their tow line and instructions, and towed us more than 18 miles to the G dock in Gore Bay.

Before we could utter a proper thank you and propose dinner plans, they motored away to pick up where they had left off on their day.

The Gore Bay crew had us in the slings by 0900 the next morning. The bad news: strut, shaft and stuffing box would need replacing. We were many nautical miles from our car in Presque Isle. How to get home?

GLCC members Paul and Carolyn O’Grady (on M/V Final Draw), whose company we

had enjoyed just days before at the Commodore’s dinner at the 2025 Rendezvous, had friends Pat and LeAnn Eustice that were scheduled to arrive at Gore Bay that day. Pat and LeAnne already planned their next destination to be Detour. They offered us a ride to Detour Village in their fast 41-foot SeaRay. 

We left at 0900 the next day on M/V Square Yard and covered the 65 miles to Detour in just four hours. Rob’s brother, Dave, met us in DeTour and drove us to Presque Isle where our car was parked. Once having our own transportation, we figured the logistics to get home and coordinate the S/V Windshadow repairs.

Feeling grateful and humble. Thank you all.