Marquette to De Tour Village

Tuesday, 9/9, we left Marquette at 7am with hopes of getting to Grand Marais MI but that was not to be. The forecast predicted a possible small craft advisory for the afternoon but we hoped that we could make some distance before that. We proceeded eastward into the sun and a 1 foot chop on the lake. About 11 am the wind was more from the NW which gave it distance to build-up 3-4 foot waves off our stern. We were surfing and hit speeds of 11knts. Still had good control of the boat but decided to duck behind Grand Island to anchor to see if the anticipated lull by 3pm would occur. It did not but we had a wonderful afternoon anchorage which reminded us of our favorite anchorage in the Apostle Islands—Big Bay. We even had a chance to raise our riding sail and it kept us very comfortable at anchor.
We proceeded to Munising for the night and passed Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. Bob was a NYC boy of 12 when he came here for his first camping experience with his Aunt Joan and Uncle Tom and their kids, Maura and Tommy. They must have really gotten into the experience and looked kind of scruffy as another tourist offered to give them money as they stood in line for the scenic boat ride. I think Bob took it.
Munising is a delightful small town with very helpful marina staff. We were fortunate to get here for the Farmer’s Market and Fish Boil. 3 sisters decided that Munising needed more of a sense of community and so petitioned the town to invest in a brick oven for the marina park. Their motto was the town that eats together, comes together. We certainly saw that spirit on Tuesday night. The fish boil was delicious and the brick oven cranked out wonderful apple pies, blueberry pinwheels and fresh bread.


Wednesday, 9/10, we again left early at 7am after a calm night and great sleep. South wind on the lake with 1 foot waves and plan is to go to Grand Marais MI and it looks doable today. 5 hour journey today and passed Grand Sable Light and Au Sable dunes which run for miles along the shore. Grand Marais is a picturesque little harbor and we were welcomed with the noon day bells. Sightseeing around town to the beach, the Pickle Barrel house built for the Teenie Weenie cartoonist, and I was even able to purchase some pool time at the North Shore Lodge. Last time we were here was in 2005 when we had some bad diesel and had to change the primary and secondary filters—this time was way more fun.

Thursday, 9/11, we had some decisions to make. A small craft advisory for Whitefish Bay for late afternoon was forecast but the Friday forecast was even worse. Decisions…decisions. We had one more long leg to make to exit Lake Superior at the Soo and she was not going to make this easy. The deciding factor was that the wind was forecast from the S so we would not have beam seas. We cast-off at 7am and arrived at the Kemp Marina after doing the Soo lock at 7pm. It was a pretty calm journey until the afternoon when we turned into Whitefish Bay and there to greet us were 3=4 foot seas that sometimes built to 6 footers. Bob did a masterful job of piloting and our boat was tested and passed with flying colors—not that we want to do that too much.

Friday, 9/12, we decided to get a later start and take a long walk around Sault Ste Marie. It’s a working port with all types of boats and services everywhere but there are also attractions along the waterfront. The Kemp museum, Baraga house, Elmwood and Johnson house overlook the Kemp marina and offer a look back into earlier times here. The Soo Lock park is interesting and offers an interpretive center, walking trails, observation deck, fountains and a Japanese Torii arch. The Soo locks were completed in 1855 in order to scale the St. Mary’s River rapids and link Lake Huron and Lake Superior. Prior to the locks, boats traveled up the river but then were portaged 1 mile on land to bypass the rapids and this could take 2-3 months to complete.
We set out for Detour Village at around 10:30 with overcast skies but were soon greeted with sun and blue skies as well as ore boats up close and personal. We went down the St. Mary’s river with the Walter McCarthy and took turns being in the lead. Docked at Detour at 3:30 and we look forward to more relaxing boating days like today. Walked around town for 2 hours along the paths by shore and also went out to the botanic garden. Full moon is rising now and we look forward to meeting some fellow boaters along the dock. Life is good.

Why I Love Cruising

Why do I love cruising—it’s the little things like seagulls perched on a breakwall as the sun is rising through the fog; the last rays of the sun glinting on a lighthouse; the quietness of a secluded anchorage after riding the sea all day long--there are so many little moments like these everyday.

I like that my day is not planned and that every day is different. We might have a destination, but especially on the Great Lakes, the weather and sea conditions change often so plans get altered. I like the challenge of that-most of the time. The electronic chartplotter and the paper charts show us the sea, land masses and navigational markers and it is up to us to make sense of these so that we can find a safe home for the night.

I love the rhythm of the sea, the hypnotic rise and fall of the waves and how your body echoes these movements back and forth. There is a rhythm that we have as a couple on our boat as we are more interdependent and literally can not leave the dock unless we are working as a team. It brings out the best in each of us.

We are now embarking on a year long cruise instead of a 2-3 week boat vacation. We have more freedom to explore and discover instead of being sandwiched into a tight time itinerary. There will be more of a natural time line as the sea and weather will be the deciding factors.

I like being open to new possibilities, to discover new places and meet new people. It’s the chance encounter and taking the less traveled route that makes life more interesting and adds spice.

Some wonder how we can live on a 32 foot boat for a year and it would not be for everyone. We have been simplifying our lives the past 5 years and downsizing, downsizing and downsizing some more. We have upgraded Baby Grand electronically and mechanically to make her a safe and comfortable home, and with the refurbished interior and brightwork, she is looking grand. We have everything we need aboard and the rest is up to us.

September 5 to September 8,2008

We cast off from our home port in the beautiful Apostle Islands in Bayfield WI on Lake Superior at 7am on Friday, September 5th. So much planning and work has gone into this day since we decided to move up our Loop trip to 9/08. We remodeled our house in St. Paul and sold it in 3/08, downsized all our belongings and moved them to a condo in Denver while we continued to live in an apt. in St. Paul until we retired on 9/2/08. We also spent the summer outfitting Baby Grand, our 32 foot Grand Banks trawler, to be our home for the next year. We are overjoyed and thankful to begin our Loop adventure together.

We had choppy seas with 2-3 foot waves and wind from the NE as we journeyed to Ontonagon 72 miles away. We have been on Lake Superior for 28 years and it is an inland ocean which must be respected. When we brought our trawler back here from the Chesapeake in 2005, we encountered 4-6 foot seas and 40 knot gusts which kept us in port for 3 days. Today was much more forgiving. The old lift bridge is gone now replaced by a highway bridge and although it makes entering and leaving the harbor easier, some of the nautical charm is missing. Helpful marina staff and hot showers awaited and luckily the exhaust from the paper plant was not blowing our way.

Since we are starting the Loop relatively late from this area, our plan is do longer distances on Lake Superior, weather permitting. We left Ontonagon for the lower entry on the Keeweenaw Waterway on Saturday, 9/6. Last weekend, we were lugging all our provisions onto the boat and it was wonderful to be out on LS today with calm seas even if the skies were overcast, temps were in the high 50's and it rained intermittently. We stopped in the Houghton-Hancock area and tied up to the City Marina to stretch our legs after a 6 1/2 hour trip. We were just about to leave when a bridal party and their photographer asked us if they could use our boat for nautical wedding photos. How can you refuse true love! The bride and her attendants all attired in long gowns and stiletto heels gamely climbed onboard with the able assist of the groomsmen.

After goodbyes, we proceeded down the Waterway to the lower entry and recalled an earlier sailing trip here in 1990 with our boat Cabernet and a fleet from the Bayfield Yacht Club sailing wing-on-wing gracefully through the water. We docked this night with the lower entry Light off our bow and the sun shining through the clouds finally and felt very thankful to be here.
Sunday, September 6th was very foggy and drizzley as we departed at 7:15. With some Southwest wind it was a little bumpy traveling to Marquette where we arrived at 3:15. We will stay here until Tuesday as the winds are expected to be 20-30.