Heading South - Lake Michigan

 

Dateline: August 16,2022 – time to turn this boat around and start heading south! Heading out of the marina and past the ferries and the Mackinaw Ice Breaker, we actually still had to head northwest for a few miles to pass through the Mackinaw Straits and under the Mackinaw Bridge that connects the “mitten” of Michigan to the Upper Peninsula or UP as the locals call it. We then turned our nose southwest onto Lake Michigan.  Like all of the Great Lakes, Michigan can be a fickle body of water ready to throw you squalls and waves with hardly any notice. Just like the Lake Huron side of Michigan, the Lake Michigan side also has harbors of refuge approximately every 30 miles for boaters to seek shelter from storms. Fortunately, the morning was beautiful and the seas were quite calm as we headed to our first stop in Petoskey. Along the way our electronic compass was acting up so I had to do a couple of “Crazy Ivans” driving the boat through a couple of 360 degree turns to re-calibrate the compass. I got on the radio to warn the boats around us I would be doing that lest they thought we were driving stoned. But…check out this segway…. Speaking of stones, Petoskey is known for having unusual stones which are actually formed from fossilized corals. These smooth stones are pebble to potato in size and quite smooth. When wet, they have a very distinctive hexagon pattern on their surface. When dry, the pattern disappears until the stone is polished. The best way to find these stones is by wading in the clear waters along the shore. We did try this but the only Petoskey stones we found were in gift shops. Maybe next time, if there is a next time, we will be luckier in our search.

Sunset in Petoskey

Crystal clear waters of northern Lake Michigan

Looking for Petoskey Stones

Our good friend from home, Doug, grew up in Michigan and his brother, Gordon, still lives there. Lucky for us, Gordon loves to show off his little slice of heaven. Gordy picked Karen and me up to give us a tour around the area. Upper Michigan is absolutely beautiful in the summer. We started by driving 20 minutes south to the picturesque town of Charlevoix. Karen and I had wanted to take Off Leash there but the marinas were full. We started with a drive past the “mushroom houses.” These unique homes were built by a local designer, Earl Young, starting in the 1920’s. These homes look like they could have been built by Hobbits in the Shire. Over 30 were built, 28 of which are still standing. Many of these can be rented as vacation homes. We then walked around the cute harbor front town and the marinas. Upper Michigan is known for its cherries and Gordan led us to Cherry Republic, a store that sold everything cherry. We came away with some cherry jam, granola, salsa and even sausages. Leaving Charlevoix, Gordy drove us around Lake Charlevoix where we took a small chain driven ferry across the south arm. We had a nice dinner and then made plans to tour again with Gordy in the morning. The next morning Gordy took us to see the local ski hills, Boyne Mountain and Gordy’s favorite, Nubs Nob. The lodge at Nubs Nob reminded me of my early days of skiing in the 60s. The runs on these hills, with total verticals of only 420 or so feet were a far cry from the runs I am  used to skiing at Mammoth but the resorts had their own charm. My friend Doug and many of our other friends from the Midwest grew up skiing on these little hills. I am amazed that these guys became the phenomenal skiers they are when their roots were on little ant hills. We finished the day back at the boat with potato chips and dip from Quality Dairy. This is one of Doug’s favorite comfort foods and so we documented our munchies with a photo to make Doug jealous.

Charlevoix Mushroom houses

Charlevoix Town and Lake

Ironton Chain Ferry

Nub's Nob

Thanks Gordy - You're right Doug - This stuff is good!

Stop two on Lake Michigan was Leland Harbor and Fishtown. We had some conflicting weather reports that morning and some sporty conditions on the way but nothing Off Leash couldn’t handle. Our slip space was tucked into a corner and was the tightest spot yet that I had to back our floating home into. But Karen says I did it like a pro and we even impressed the dock staff – so what the heck – I’ll toot my own horn! Fishtown is a tiny waterfront village with some cute shops and a couple of restaurants. This area is known for its smoked fish so we had to stop by the fish market for some smoked white fish and a fish pate. Both were quite yummy.

Another 40 miles south we docked in Frankfort. On our voyage that day we passed Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. According to legend, a massive wildfire on the western shore of Lake Michigan drove a mother bear to lead her two cubs into the lake for shelter, determined to reach the opposite shore. The mother bear reached the shore but the exhausted cubs lagged behind and eventually drowned. The mother continued to lay by the shore in hopes the cubs would reappear. Impressed by the bears determination and faith, the Great Spirit created two islands to commemorate the cubs, and the winds buried the sleeping bear under sands where she continues to wait to this day.  The seas had again been sporty and, arriving in Frankfort, we were glad to be tied up as the skies turned quite threatening. A little later a very nice Canadian couple, Bernie and Connie came in on their small houseboat… a boat many would say is too small for the loop. They had gotten caught in some weather and seas that came behind us and really got beat up that day. All of their dishes were broken and their dinghy broke loose and damaged its prop. We have since run into this couple many times and they are hanging in there and doing well on their loop. That afternoon we relaxed by the pool where there was a great band playing and after dinner went out for the obligatory ice cream. The next day we packed a picnic lunch and together with Chrissy and Roger from “Egret” and Pam and Mike from “Carolina Can” we took a bike ride to Crystal Lake.

Sleeping Bear Dunes

Chrissy and Roger (Egret) do a lot of anchoring and we arranged for our next stop to be anchoring with them in Portage Lake. This ended up being a simple and safe anchorage and we had a pleasant night on the hook. This was only our fourth overnight anchorage and our first since Lake Erie.

Our next stop was Ludington. The big thrill here was The Badger. A National Historic Landmark, The SS Badger is the last coal-fired passenger steamship/ferry in operation in the US.  This 410 foot ship, first commissioned in 1953 can carry 600 passengers and 180 vehicles across Lake Michigan from Ludington to Milwaukee. Ferries had been in use to transport goods across the lake since the late 1800s. Originally cargo was unloaded from rail cars at the dock, transported across the lake on the ferries and reloaded onto rail cars on the other side. In the early 1900s car ferries went into operation and by the 50’s 7 ships were in operation transporting full rail cars, freight and passengers. As railroad efficiency around the lakes improved it was no longer profitable to transport rail cars by ship. In 1990, the SS Badger and her sister ship the SS Spartan ceased operation. In 1992 a local Ludington entrepreneur bought the ships and brought the Badger back to life transporting passengers, cars and trucks.  We were docked very close to the Badger’s terminal. She is amazing to watch. With no modern thrusters she has limited maneuverability. It was amazing watching her come into port. As she nears her dock, she drops her starboard anchor which catches on the bottom and allows her to pivot around so her stern slides perfectly into the dock. AMAZING. She also keeps her coal fired boilers operating 24 hours a day. It would take too long to shut them down and fire them up between trips and I imagine the constant stress of cooling and heating would damage the boilers…. So they stay alive and hot and, unfortunately, spew soot through the smokestacks 24/7. I guess that’s the price to pay for keeping history alive.

Encouraged by our nice night on the hook a few days ago, we set out to anchor again the next night at White Lake. Unfortunately, a new dock was being built right next to the anchorage we had picked leaving very little space for us to swing on an anchor so we aborted the attempt and tied up for the night further back in the lake. We met Lyle and Susan on “Change of Pace” and were invited to a “Crossing the Wake” party for Ron and Cathy who had just completed their loop on “Third Swan”

Our next port, Grand Haven was one of the largest cities we had been to since Detroit. It would prove to be a great stop but not without its share of issues. The entrance to the harbor is a long channel between two large concrete piers. Being a weekend, the channel was full of sailboats tacking back and forth that we had to avoid. And worse than that were the myriad of fishing boats trolling lines in and out of the channel. Dodging all of this in a 50 ft boat kept us on our toes. We tied up our first night there on a free wall adjacent to a crowded park and river walk. Grand Haven is known for its Musical Fountain and this weekend was the 60^th birthday celebration for the fountain.

With its inaugural show in 1962, the Musical Fountain was the largest musical, light and water display in the world and it held this title until 1998 when the fountains at the Las Vegas Bellagio Casino went on display. The shows are 25-30 minutes in length and are put on every night from Memorial day through Labor day drawing large crowds of spectators on foot and in boats. Being the birthday celebration, there was a live band and festivities and the harbor was packed with boaters that night.

 

The next morning we moved from the free wall into the municipal marina which was already loaded with many Looper boats – many we already knew and some we met for the first time there. As windy weather and rough seas were predicted, we would end up staying here for 5 days. On the positive side of this stop, we had a lot of fun mingling with other Loopers, there was a local farmer’s market, a free shuttle to take us into town for supplies, many restaurants and nice paths to walk out onto the jetties/piers. One of the restaurants, The Paisley Pig, was unique in that it had robots to help support the waiters.  

On the not so nice side, there were very strong winds and waves much of the time we were there and the layout of the harbor channel was situated such that the waves and swells poured right in through the channel and into the harbor. Our first night at the marina was so rough I was up much of the night monitoring our lines and fenders as we were being rocked and slammed into the docks. It was a long night. The rough seas did make for some good sight-seeing walks along the jetty and beach. Who knew you could surf on a lake? 

And watching boats head in and out of the channel was like watching youtube videos of boats at Haulover Inlet near Miami. We continued to be entertained by the Musical Fountain each night and also got to watch large cargo ships as they made their way into and out of the harbor. Being a narrow channel, there was no room for the ships to turn around so they had to back out the same way they came in. Watching large ships back out of a harbor is not something you commonly get to see. (No-the video of this is not being played backwards!)It was almost as impressive as watching the Badger come into port. We also had a nice visit in Grand Haven with Marie and Steve Botchie, friends from home who moved back to Michigan. 

With the weather finally settling down it was time to move on down the coast to Saugatuck and tie up for the Labor Day weekend. Unlike Grand Haven, this picturesque town located on the shore of Lake Kalamazoo is very protected from Lake Michigan by a two mile, narrow and windy river. This artsy resort town is known for its shops, galleries, restaurants and is also home to Karen’s ex-sister-in-law and Delta Gamma Sister, Nancy, and Karen’s niece, Courtney, and her family live close by as well. Nancy is a kick. She picked us up daily, toured us around and kept us entertained with near non-stop banter. She loves her beautiful town and enjoyed showing it off. Nancy loves the beach and loves to swim so naturally, that was our destination for one day. It was nice to relax on the beach, swim in the admittedly chilly water and listen to Nancy’s stories. The other highlight of our time in Saugatuck was spending time with Courtney and her family. They invited us over for dinner, probably not even realizing how enticing a home cooked meal is after living on a boat for 5 months. Gary fired up his grill (egg) for some perfectly cooked filets and we all enjoyed having an extended family meal.

With the Labor Day weekend winding down and all the crazy boaters heading off the lake, we continued on south to St. Joseph, our last port in Michigan. Linda and Ron, from Gypsy Soul were already at the marina and it was great to catch up with them. This would be the last time we would see them for a couple of months as they were heading south down the rivers ahead of us. While here, we also met Heather and Cam on Sea Clef. We invited them to our boat to go over trip planning notes. If I have not mentioned this before, Karen is quite the planner. Cam was thoroughly impressed with her Excel spreadsheets with all of the harbors, anchorages and mileages plotted out. Although newer to the loop, Heather and Cam have many years of experience boating and anchoring in large cruisers. We hit it off right away and figured that with their boating skills, Karen’s attention to planning details and our common goals in our travels, we would make good buddy boats. We arranged to meet up in Chicago and head down the rivers together. We had not had a buddy boat for a few months. We were very happy to have made these new friends….and, as I’m writing this very belatedly, it proved to be a great relationship that kept us buddied up through the rest of our loop. I know that Cam and Heather, and Ron and Linda are two couples we will continue to remain friends with.

Said goodbye to Ron and Linda

Cam and Heather and Sea Clef (Not taken at St Joseph)

Our last stop before Chicago was Michigan City, Indiana. Not much to say here other than the combination of their unprotected metal docks and gusty winds left Off Leash with a small boo-boo we will need to repair. Our one and only boo-boo of the trip.

You must be tired of reading this by now and my fingers are tired of typing.  Time to add a few pictures and post this baby!

Lake Huron and Mackinac Island

 

On August 4, after two nights in Detroit, we pulled out of our slip back onto the Detroit River heading north. The current in this river is fairly strong at 2-2.5 mph and we had to weave around a couple of very large freighters anchored in the middle of the river. For a little geographical reference, the Detroit River connects Lake Erie to Lake St. Clair which in turn is connected to Lake Huron by the St. Clair River.  The western shores of the waterways are Michigan and the eastern shores are Ontario, Canada. Lake St. Clair is relatively small and very shallow with an average depth of only 11 feet. Our initial plan called for us to tie up at a state park on the shore of Lake St. Clair but at the height of the summer boating season it was getting difficult to find dock space for a boat of our size, especially on the weekends.  So we had to alter our plans and cruised across the lake to Algonac, Mi. Algonac sits at the southern end of the St. Clair River where its junction with the lake forms the largest fresh water delta in the world! Rich in boating history, Algonac was the home of Chris Craft boats and Gar Woods boats. Although no longer a family owned business, Chris Craft is still a well-known and respected brand and was the world’s largest producer of mahogany boats. Gar Wood boats closed in the 1940s but Gar Wood, who made his initial fortune by inventing a hydraulic lift for coal trucks, produced some of the most respected and fastest race boats of his day. Our stay in Algonac was unremarkable and included dinner at a restaurant whose old Chris Craft memorabilia collection was far better than its prime rib special.

Moving north from Algonac our next stop would be at Lexington, MI on Lake Huron. To get there we traveled upstream on the St. Clair River. The elevation of Lake Huron at the north end of the river is 577’ whereas the elevation of Lake Erie to the south is 569’.  This means a lot of water has to flow downstream through this river producing a significant current. The northern end of the river is bordered by Port Huron on the Michigan side and Sarnia on the Canadian side. Traversing this area, I was more than a little surprised to see more greenery on the US side of the river and more industrial blight on the Canadian side. At the narrowest part of the river the two sides are connected by the Blue Water Bridge. The current as we were passing under this bridge was 5-6 mph against us. Many loop boats are only capable of speeds around 7-8 mph which means they are barely moving as they traverse this section of river. Fortunately, or actually –by design, Off Leash has plenty of power. I was able to punch up her diesels and maintain a 12 mph headway as we made our way onto Lake Huron. BTW… Lake Huron took its name from the Native American tribe, the Hurons. Its shores were also home to the Chippewa and Odawa all of whom became avid fur traders with the French.

Port Huron - Michigan

Sarnia, Ontario

Blue Water Bridge

Lexington Harbor was our first stay in a Michigan State Park Marina which can be found along much of the coast of Michigan, both on the Lake Huron and Lake Michigan sides. Most of these are also referred to as harbors of refuge. With the Great Lakes reputation for nasty winds and rapidly building seas, these harbors must offer boaters refuge when needed. They usually keep a couple of slips open for emergency refuge or can tie up boats on their fuel dock overnight. The docks are kept in excellent condition and are usually accessible even through the winter. While there we enjoyed chatting with local boaters and that night there was a concert in the adjacent park with a great band featuring a phenomenal female vocalist.

We woke up the next day hoping to get an early start on our next 42 mile leg to Harbor Beach. When we woke up that morning, we were shrouded in our first exposure to fog. It was thick. We could just barely make out the entrance to the harbor. I had faith in our electronics and wanted to get underway but Karen was convinced it was too dangerous and wanted to wait. Well, to support her point of view, a sailboat that ventured out that morning made a wrong turn and got stuck on the bottom in shallow water. So we waited for the fog to lift and had a nice cruise. All was good until we arrived at the marina. Just as we rounded the dock towards our slip the winds suddenly made an appearance and blew us all around as we tried to back into the slip. Fortunately the slip next to ours was also open and we were able to slide in and tie up…. No harm, no foul.  The highlight of our day at Harbor Beach was a visit from our friends, John and Lucy, the couple we met and toured with back on the Hudson River. They had finished their loop and were driving near the area after a visit to Canada. It was great to catch up with them over lunch and they brought us some peaches from a farmers market that were the best we have had in a long time….Thanks John and Lucy!

Michiganders like to refer to Michigan as looking like a mitten. If you hold up your left hand, keep your fingers together but extend out your thumb, when you look at the back of your hand you are looking at Michigan. Harbor Beach is on the outside of your thumb. Our next stop at Harrisville would be a little past your knuckle of your index finger. To get there, we would have to travel up the rest of the thumb and then cross the space between the thumb and the fingers, a body of water called Saginaw Bay. Crossing past this bay meant roughly 40 miles of open water in an area known to whip up easily. We also had conflicting reports that day for thunderstorms. So, we were a bit nervous as we set off that morning. We decided to throttle up for an hour to get ahead of the storms and the plan paid off. We made it with relatively calm seas and no trauma. It’s nice to have the power to speed up to avoid potentially bad weather. Unfortunately, speed does come with added cost as we burn over twice as much fuel per mile going 18 mph than we do at 9 mph. We harvested our fair share of dinosaurs that day but we got in safely.

There was not much to do or see in Harrisville but this stop did become memorable. A marina staff member drove us as well as our friends Jim and Cheryl from Classea and Bob and Mary-Kay from Pilar to a brewery for lunch. The lunch itself was unremarkable but….. the coconut cream pie was absolutely incredible. We all agreed it was the best pie any of us had ever had!

Our next two travel days took us to Alpena and then Presque Isle State Harbor. As we made our way up the coast of Michigan we noticed then water got much clearer. By the time we got to Presque Isle it was almost perfectly clear. We took the dinghy out from the marina for a ride to a beach where we hung out for a few hours and swam in the rather frigid water. We also took a rather long walk to see both the old and the new light houses.

The 1800s saw an ever increasing amount of maritime traffic on Lake Huron. With the opening of the Erie Canal in 1825 boats could navigate from New York City to Cleveland, Detroit, Chicago, St. Louis and New Orleans. Lighthouses became very instrumental at guiding ships through violent storms, thick fog, shifting sand bars and rocky reefs. Presque Isle (French for “almost an island) was the largest natural harbor between Detroit and Mackinac and was therefore used by many ships to take on wood for fuel. The original 30’ lighthouse on Presque Isle was built in 1840. In 1870 a new 133’ lighthouse was built. An entry in its logbook dated July 1, 1878 noted that from July 1, 1877 to June 30, 1878, 8,942 vessels or steamers passed by this lighthouse! Each lighthouse has an accompanying home for the keeper and his/her family. The automation of the lighthouses in 1970 made the position of keeper obsolete but the homes at the Presque Isle lighthouses have been preserved as museums. Patrick Garrity lit the lamp of the new lighthouse for the first time in 1871 and remained its keeper until 1885. His wife, daughter and three sons all served as keepers of lighthouses in this area. We climbed to the top of both lighthouses and enjoyed the views.

Our next voyage would take us to the northernmost point of our loop at Mackinaw City. This area is a huge vacation destination and has quite a lot to offer. Fudge seems to be one of the first things on anyone’s mind as they venture into the city. Fudge shops are everywhere and they all seem to make some claim to be the original fudge maker for Mackinaw. The fudge is made in the storefronts on large marble or stone tables. I wish I could say we had the self-control to resist the chocolaty temptation but, alas, we could not. Northern Michigan is also one of the few places in the US where you can find pasties. No, not the kind strippers wear. Pasties are  meat and potato filled pastries that were made as an easily hand held lunch for miners, fishermen and other workers. Many folks in the area find them to be a comfort food. Karen and I each tried one for lunch one day….they were ok but for true comfort food I’d rather have a good mac and cheese or my mom’s parmesan baked chicken!

Mackinaw City is also the home to the US Coast Guard Icebreaker Mackinaw. Also known as “Queen of the Great Lakes”, at 290’ this beauty is the largest of the Great Lakes icebreakers. Her construction was authorized by congress December 7, 1941, ten days after the attack on Pearl Harbor as part of the war effort to keep the shipping lanes open for movement of steel and other supplies. Commissioned December 30, 1944 she plied the waters of the great lakes until her retirement in 2006. She is now open as a museum and our tour of her was a highlight of our time there. With 10,000 HP diesel electric engines and an addition bow propeller to help move broken ice away she is a formidable beast. She has now been replaced by smaller more economical ice breakers but she will always hold a special place in the hearts of Great Lakes mariners.

Seven miles from the docks of Mackinaw City lies Mackinac Island. Don’t ask me why but despite the different spellings they are both pronounced “Mackinaw”. Well, I’ll try to explain it anyway.  The island was originally named Michilimackinaac (the place of the great turtle – based on the shape of the island). It was pronounced with the “aw” sound at the end. This name was eventually shortened to Mackinac. It is said that the founders of the city on the mainland chose the spelling with the “aw” as a way to distinguish itself from the island and provide less confusion for postal carriers. High speed ferries run continually throughout the day taking tourists to and from the island. Despite the fact that the island waterfront is packed with tourists and the bars, restaurants, souvenir shops and fudge stores that cater to them, the island is a magical place that transports you back in time.  Motorized vehicles are not allowed on the island. The only exceptions to this are two ambulances which are hidden from view until they are needed. All other transportation and work vehicles, including street cleaners and plows are horse drawn. We toured the island by horse drawn carriage with new looper friends, Cheryl and Chris, from “Nautic Venture”. The tour took us past old homes and forts, natural rock windows, the massive horse stables and a building housing an incredible collection of carriages that have been used on the island through the years. We did not bring our bikes with us but there are miles of bike trails through and around the island that we would love to go back and take advantage of someday.

No visit to Mackinac Island would be complete without a visit to the Grand Hotel. First opened in 1887, the hotel was built in 93 days by a consortium of railroad and steamship companies. Yes… you heard me right… 93 days! Although it is a spectacular hotel, the demands for it to be completed on time did lead to some irregularities such as hallways that slant up and down. There are 388 guest rooms and no two are the same. At 660’ long, the front patio overlooking the grounds and the Straits of Mackinac is known as the longest patio in the world and one of the iconic images of the island. Life just doesn’t get much better than sitting in one of the many white rocking chairs on the patio and gazing out over the hundreds of red geraniums in planter boxes to the views of the grounds and the Straits of Mackinac. The dining room of the hotel is also an incredible sight with seating for over 750 guests and views overlooking the patio terrace. Dinner in the main dining room still requires a coat and tie for men. Fortunately, we were there for lunch when the dress coat is not so stringent. Lunch is buffet style and the variety and quality of the offered foods were like no other buffet I had ever seen. The hotel is on the US National Register of Historic Places, a US National Historic Landmark and a Michigan State Historic Site. The hotel also has also served as the setting for the 1947 musical comedy The Time for Keeps with Jimmy Durante and Esther Williams. And, of course, our generation, especially the ladies, remember the hotel as the backdrop for Somewhere in Time with Christopher Reeve and Jane Seymour. Knowing this, I watched and Karen re-watched the movie the night before we went. All I can say is …. Guys… don’t waste your time… aside from a little eye candy, one of the worst movies I have ever seen!

Being the northernmost point of our loop, I consider Mackinaw City to be our halfway point.  We started our loop on April 2, 2022 and arrived in Mackinaw four months later on Aug 12. We have had 74 separate voyaging days and have travelled 2,922 miles and run our engines for over 400 hours. More importantly, Karen and I are still talking to each other despite living on a boat together for over five months. So far so good. It should be all downhill from here.