Big Waves & Big Dunes

Lake Michigan was quite cantankerous this past week, we ended up spending 3 nights in Leland waiting for the waves to settle down. The beaches on this shore of the Lake continue to amaze us, with their fine sand and turquoise water. Here's the beach just north of Leland.

Five Looper boats had come in that day and all reported that they had gotten pretty whipped around. We had a Looper gathering that evening and the next day they all headed south. The predictions didn't seem that bad and we were getting anxious to go ... so off we went. We passed by Sleeping Bear National Lakeshore, with its huge pristine sand dunes.

The waves were 2-3 feet, some larger, and that is about as big as we care to be in. After hearing the wave height reports from the Looper boats ahead of us, Eschaton turned back, but we went on. It was a pretty uncomfortable ride, hanging on with both hands, but the sun was out and Shingebiss handled it well. We passed by Betsie Point Lighthouse ...

... and these humongous sand cliffs just before our destination of Frankfort.

We were happy to enter the breakwater and the short man made cut into protected Betsie Lake.

The City Marina was full so we dropped the anchor just a short distance away in hopes of getting into the marina today. But no one left the marina and the few boats that ventured out from the other marinas (including a 60+' tour boat) almost all turned back as the seas were higher today. We took the dinghy out to (but not through) the breakwater this morning, where I snapped dozens of pictures just to get this perfect shot of the waves breaking over the wall.

On the north side of the breakwater are the dunes in the panoramic above with this beach at the base. The folks in the water look tiny in the big waves.

Even in the protected basin, the boat has been bouncing around since we got here. It's late afternoon and its finally settling down. Predictions for the coming week are for the waves to be 1-2 feet on some of the weather web sites that we monitor and less than 1 foot on others. We like to see that !!! Frankfort has a lovely park adjacent to the marina and we're getting ready to take the dinghy in for a Looper dinner gathering this evening and plan to move on tomorrow. We're sure Eschaton will catch up in a day or two.

NE Lake Michigan

We're about one third of the way down the east coast of Lake Michigan and so far, it's been a great place to cruise. This arial shows the three connected bodies of water that make Charlevoix a unique place for boating. At the very bottom of the photo is a sliver of Lake Michigan, then the short canal that takes you into Round Lake, which is ringed with marinas and private docks. The next canal leads to Lake Charlevoix, about 14 miles long. We anchored for one night in the narrow cove in the lower left corner of Lake Charlevoix while we were waiting for our slip to become available.

Reservations can be made at the majority of the Michigan Harbors, but it costs $8 extra to reserve and if you cancel for any reason, another $10 ... or you can take your chances on one of the "drop in" slips. Charlevoix is the second most popular stop on the circuit, so we thought we'd better reserve. It was worth it. The building below is the new marina building, with the play fountain in front of it, beautifully landscaped and the main street of the town just steps away.

We biked up the walking path next to the canal to visit the beach on the Lake Michigan side...

... and then through the pretty town to this beach on Lake Charlevioux. This is definitely a vacation town.

Here's a view of Round Lake.

Adjacent to the marina is the amphitheater where we were treated to a Charlevoix City Band concert ... we thought the best seat in the house was right on our flybridge.

With waves about 1-2 feet we left early the next day for Leland Township Marina, where they do not take reservations. It's all first come, first serve ... they won't assign you a slip until your boat enters the harbor. We had called and been told that many boats were leaving and we should try to get there between 11 and noon. As we approached the harbor, three huge cruisers were roaring up behind us, but we all made it in and all got slips. By afternoon, they were rafting up boats all over the place, they never turn anyone away. The marina is all brand new and their marina building is also gorgeous, with a big covered porch lined with Adirondack rockers.

Leland has a long history of fishing and is still home to a large charter fleet and a few commercial fishing boats. Where the Leland River meets Lake Michigan (right next to the marina) we discovered Fishtown. This marvelous collection of old fishing shanties, previously used by the commercial fishermen in the early 1900's, has been revitalized by the Fishtown Preservation Society and houses shops and restaurants, along with the Carlson Fish Company.

Here's one of the shanties close up. On the other side of the river, some shanties have been fixed up as vacation rentals.

This device, I think, is called a net roller.

Leland has it all ... beaches, groceries, fabulous bakery all within walking distance. Last night this string quintet performed a lovely concert in town.

The Leland Harbor is on the main coast with only this breakwater between us and Lake Michigan. The ferry to Manitou Island takes campers daily over to this popular camping destination. The island can be seen in the distance in this sunset picture.

Like Minnesota, it's a short boating and vacation season in Northern Michigan and people are all squeezing in as much fun as possible. The docks are full of boats and boater (lots of big performance cruisers and sailboats) and vacationers walking the docks. Lucy sits on the front deck and soon a crowd gathers, they seem amazed to see a cat on a boat. Today, it is blowing hard (10-20 knots) and waves of 3-5 feet are being reported, so not too many boats are leaving today and it's rocking even in the slip. Since they don't accept reservations here, they won't kick us out as long as we pay our modest $39 slip fee each morning. We're very impressed with Lake Michigan boating !!

Mackinac Island

The DeTour Lighthouse has guided ships from Lake Huron to the mouth of the St. Mary's River leading to Lake Superior since 1847. No longer an active lighthouse, it is preserved and open for tours and overnight stays.

We had another sunny, warm, calm day as we headed for the Mackinac Straights and the Mackinaw City Marina. We saw a couple of "lakers" ...

The Mackinac Straights connect Lake Huron to Lake Michigan and Mackinac Island is right in the middle of the Straights. There are three ferry companies each running boatloads of tourists out to the Island and back every half hour. We felt like a turtle crossing the highway dodging them and their large wakes.

The marina at the Island has a reputation for being very wavy because of the ferry wakes and they were full anyway, so we opted to stay at Mackinaw City Marina (just 7 miles away) on the mainland. We walked around the perimeter of the shoreline of this very touristy town and visited several small city parks scattered along the shoreline among the homes.

We got great views of the famous Mackinac Bridge. Yes, the water is really that color, these pictures are unaltered. The bridge was the longest suspension bridge in the world when it was built in 1957, connecting lower Michigan with the Upper Peninsula. The deer hunters were happy because every fall they waited for hours in lines stretching miles to cross to the UP. Seriously, they were instrumental in the drive to get it built.

The next day we took our bikes and rode the ferry to Mackinac Island. 500 people live on the island year round, but about a million visit each year, most of them from June to August. We went up to the Fort which has been immaculately preserved and rebuilt. There are costumed soldiers who shoot off the cannon and the rifles, conduct court marshalls, and even provide musical concerts. We enjoyed a great lunch at the Fort Cafe where we had this view of the harbor.

The Cafe is where you see the yellow umbrellas.

After lunch, we rode our bikes around the eight mile road that runs along the perimeter of the island. No cars are allowed on the island, but there are hundreds of horses (mostly pulling carriages) and thousands of bicycles. As we left the town, we passed by many meticulously maintained and beautifully landscaped homes. This one happens to belong to the Mackinac Island Yacht Club.

We stopped to hike up the hill to Arch Rock.

The views along the road were wonderful, one of the best bike rides ever and so nice to not have to worry about cars coming. It was overcast, but that kept us cool.

We stopped at the ice cream and snack stand that is strategically placed at the four mile mark. As we came back into town, we turned up the hill to see the Grand Hotel. The hotel and gardens are spectacular, but alas, it costs $10 to walk the grounds, so this was a close as we got.

A parting shot of the main street where the carriages, bikes and pedestrians all manage to move without running into each other. It's very entertaining to just sit and watch it all happen.

Today, we had another perfect day as we went under the Mackinac Bridge and entered Lake Michigan.

We are at the Municipal Marina in Petoskey tonight where we scored the last two available slips. Took a tough uphill ride to a "real American supermarket" ... fabulous ... and are now planning our next move.

DeTour Village

Waiting out the weather in Little Current paid off as the next three days brought us calm waters and sunny skies. We anchored in the Benjamin Islands, a North Channel favorite. The sparkling blue water, pink granite rocks and wind swept pines were picture perfect.

We found a tiny secluded cove and had it all to ourselves.

The wind had kicked up in the afternoon, as it often does here, so we restricted our dinghy exploring to the immediate area. The water was incredibly clear as you can see here.

We found a rocky beach, took a stroll and collected a few rocks.

The small rock island across from the boats was beautifully reflected in the water the next morning.

Leaving the Benjamins, we passed the "Sow and Pigs" rock formations at the entry.

The next day we cruised through Whaleback Channel, off the northern side of the North Channel. Again, spectacular beauty ...

and pristine shoreline.

This is Whaleback Island.

There are hundreds of anchorages in the North Channel and we only got to sample a few, but after one more night's stay in Canada, we set off to re-enter the US. The water was totally calm for our 45 mile crossing of the North Channel, which brought us through islands on the American side. The water had turquoise hues that didn't really show up on the camera. Looks like a palm tree on the shore of this island.

Boats returning from Canada are required to report in at the US Customs Office at the Drummond Island Yacht Haven. Our papers were all in order, so they let us back in ...

... and as we cruised away, I took down the Canadian courtesy flag.

We anchored for the night in a large cove on Harbor Island, part of the UP (upper penisula) of Michigan. It felt good to be back in the USA and in the midwest.

A big blow came through in the night and our anchor, holding both Shingebiss and Eschaton, dragged us back a ways during the night. Good thing there was plenty of room and no boats anchored behind us. After a night of banging and bouncing, we were ready for some quiet at DeTour Village Marina. The marina is located in the DeTour Passage, which connects the North Channel to Lake Huron proper. The Michigan DNR harbor system runs 83 marinas that span all 3000 miles of Michigan Great Lake shoreline. Our slip here was only $35, and that included everything, so we think it's a pretty good deal they have going here in Michigan.

We've toured the entire town, it's small, but charming and hospitable. We've met all sorts of other cruisers here, including this creative bunch of locals who built their craft, powered it with an outboat, and included a wood fired hot tub to provide maximum comfort for the crew. It was dusk when they came by last night, so the picture is fuzzy, but you can clearly see the heads and shoulders of the four in the hot tub. American ingenuity at its best.

Little Current - North Channel

From Killarney we entered the famed North Channel of Lake Huron. Here's a picture of us cruising, taken by Eschaton. We had a short cruise that day into Covered Portage Cove for our first North Channel anchorage. Note the mountains in the background.

The hills have gotten much higher and have turned to white, we are told they are quartz. Covered Portage Cove is one of the most beautiful anchorages we've ever been in. Because the water is deep to the shore and the anchorages are sometimes crowded, we anchored the boats using the med mooring style. After dropping the bow anchor, Steve brought a long stern line to the shore with the dinghy and tied it to a tree. This was the view from our bow.
Later in the day, we dinghy'd to shore and hiked up a well marked trail to the top. We were rewarded with this spectacular view of the cove.

The next day we were headed for an anchorage at Baie Fine, a 10 mile long "fiord" like gorge. After hearing the wind prediction, we decided to give Baie Fine a "drive by" and then head for a marina. A few miles up the Baie, we dropped the anchor in a small cove with this view across from us.

We hopped into the dinghy and went up the to "the pool" at the end of the Baie where we had this view. Looks like snow capped mountains, eh?
The North Channel, bordered by the mainland of Ontario on the north and Manitoulin Island (the largest fresh water island in the world) on the south, is about 140 miles long and 30 miles wide. The open water makes for great sailing and, like Georgian Bay, the beautiful anchorages are limitless. We are currently spending 3 nights at Little Current Town Marina on Manitoulin Island. Little Current is the largest town on the island and is situated in a narrow passage between the east and west parts of the North Channel. There are hundreds of boats here, all occupied by cruisers who roam the docks meeting, talking and eating ice cream all day long. The marina has a long wide boardwalk along the shore, with picnic tables, big rocks, a party shelter, yacht club, and gardens behind the boardwalk. Here's a couple of shots of the marina.

The main street is just steps away with one of the more interesting shops I've been in. Turners is one of those small town merchandise stores that sells just about everything you can think of, including quality local arts and crafts upstairs. It's been owned by five generations of Turners. I had the pleasure of talking with Debby Turner, who told me more about the history of the family, especially Barney Turner, her father-in-law. It seems that American companies have several times made attempts to cut into and mine the beautiful granite and quartz hills of the area. Thoughout his lifetime, Barney was a leader in the battle to preserve this pristine wilderness, opposing the industry and then lobbying for legislation to ensure its preservation for generations to come. He was a well loved man in the North Channel.

There's always something happening in Little Current. The Yacht Club features a Happy Hour with free snackies every day at the Anchor Inn, the Pantry offeres $5 breakfast and today there's the Mackinaw - Manitoulin sailboat race that will finish right in front of the marina ... should be exciting. Weather permitting, we should be back in the USA in a week at the most.