A week-long sojourn at an island cottage they'd rented on Georgian Bay was supposed to be a relaxing getaway for Hanmer resident Kevin Shanahan and friend Chris Ransom.
Shanahan describes the cottage — located about a 45-minute boat ride from the Key River Marina — as “heaven on earth.”
The island, located about 500 metres from shore, is also the perfect place for Ransom's three dogs to swim and enjoy a little freedom.
But thanks to the large, out-of-control forest fire known as Parry Sound 33 — the fire reached 4,841 hectares Saturday — their vacation came to an abrupt end Friday evening.
Along with others staying at boat-access-only cottages in the Key River area, they were evacuated.
Shanahan said they first saw the forest fire Wednesday, but the water bombers seemed to be doing a good job of putting it out.
“But it really flared up Friday morning, and it went fast,” he said. “That's when I started getting worried.”
They received a visit from two MNRF officials in a boat at around 10 a.m. Friday morning, who informed them they may have to evacuate, and asked for their cell number.
Shanahan said they did have a small motorboat at the island that they could have used to escape the forest fire should they need to, but it wouldn't have been much use out on the big water.
Navigating the area is also tricky, and best left to those familiar with the waterways.
At around 4 p.m., hydro on the island went out, so Shanahan was cooking some dinner on the barbecue when they received a call from the MNRF say they were going to evacuate them shortly, and to pack only the essentials.
Fortunately, taking the dogs with them on the boat wasn't a problem, but Shanahan's health did pose a challenge, as they would be travelling through two kilometres of heavy smoke.
Shanahan, a 73-year-old cancer survivor, only has one lung, and that lung has chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
So the MNRF officials phoned the fire department, who met the group in another boat before they got into the heavy smoke.
A firefighter fitted Shanahan with an oxygen mask and kept a close eye on his breathing until they got safely to shore.
“Once I got into the smoke, I knew if I didn't have that mask on, I would be in a lot of trouble,” he said.
Both sides of the river had been burned, although there weren't any large flames — only small flare-ups in bushes. The water bombers were roaring overhead, coming so close you could almost touch them if you reached up.
Shanahan is philosophical about the experience.
He said he's been “to hell and back” this past year — his wife passed away in December and he's had some health challenges — so if he could survive all that, he knew he could survive this experience too.
Shanahan said he does want to thank all of the officials involved in the evacuations as a result of the Parry Sound 33 forest fire, as well as those fighting the blaze.
“They are angels of mercy,” he said. “They made us feel comfortable, they made us feel confident.”
