16 - 31 July 2005
Parry Sound Canada to Frankfort, MI.
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| Date | Destination | Log and Pictures | |||||
| At eighty nine days into the trip, almost 3 months, we've traveled 2000 miles and are on our way to the North Channel that will take us to Lake Michigan. | |||||||
| 7/16 | Pointe Au Baril | Up early and underway at 8 am for Pointe Au Baril, a small town on the Bay having their local lobster and steak festival. We were hungry for lobster. The local Lion's Club catered the event. A great time talking to the local residents in a beautiful little harbor town where we anchored and enjoyed the festivities. |
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| 7/17 | Killarney, Canada | Light rain falling this morning so we quickly dinghied into town for a walk, then got underway at 10 am for Killarney. There is more to see of the Georgian Bay but so much of the rest of the small craft channel is shallow so we opted to head across the open water of the Bay for Killarney and the west end of the Georgian Bay. We had an open water run for 60 miles to Sportsman's Marina where we tied up for the night. An uneventful and relaxing day on the water. Tomorrow we start the North Channel that is 138 miles long and takes us to De Tour Village Michigan, back in the US. | |||||
| 7/18 | Covered Portage, Anchorage | Rain woke us up, but quickly cleared. After washing the boat and fueling with 120 gallons headed for our first anchorage in the North Channel. Diesel is $3.64 per gallon up here. Ouch! Small craft warnings proved correct as we bounced around in the North Channel until we entered the Covered Portage anchorage, a beautiful crowded spot with rocks and high cliffs to protect us from the wind. By sunset we were joined by two dozen boats who were also there to enjoy the spot. | |||||
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| 7/19 | Little Current, Canada | Woke this morning to absolute quiet. The Covered Portage anchorage, even with two dozen anchored boats, is the most quiet anchorage we've experienced. So much so, we did not start the generator as it would have spoiled the atmosphere. Durango has developed an eye infection so we modified our schedule and got underway at 10 am for Little Current, Canada the only major Town, although quit small, on the North Channel route we've planned. Got in early but had a bumpy ride in 4 foot seas. Barny made an appointment with the vet for Wednesday morning. The Town waterfront is all dock for boaters and the main street of the Town caters to the boaters. It is a very busy boating town. | |||||
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| 7/20 | Benjamin Island, Canada | Easy underway and transit to Benjamin Island anchorage, now the top anchorage we've experienced. 43 boats were anchored here and we understand why! Absolutely beautiful and the boats were not intrusive. We felt like we were enjoying nature at its best. Starting the generator noticed that the impellor failed. Not a problem I said as I had a spare. Some drunk system engineer put the impellor casing in an impossible to work position but finally determined that my spare was the incorrect impellor, and it was not even out of the casing yet. We enjoyed the evening anyway using the batteries and the last of the scotch! | |||||
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| 7/21 | Blind River Town Docks, Canada | Seven o'clock and we're up ready to move on the Blind River and fix the generator. The anchorage was quiet even with the 42 boats. Transit to Blind River was easy but a long one for us at 50 miles. | |||||
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The dinghy at left gets little mention but is used daily at anchorage. It has proved reliable and great for getting around shallow areas. At right you see one more picture of the Benjamin Island Anchorage areas that we walked after getting ashore by dinghy. |
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| 7/22 | Thessalon, Canada | The Marina that promised the generator part this morning failed to deliver. Without the part we left and headed for Thessalon, a small town that looked more like the New York and New Jersey small towns than the vibrant towns we've seen in Canada. Many empty store fronts and some homes that really needed tender loving care. The town docks were nice, the people friendly, and we saw a very unique boat that was plying the waterway as we were heading out to have a nice steak dinner at a local diner. | |||||
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| 7/23 24 | Drummond Island Yacht Haven, Michigan | Pleasant morning at Thessalon, then underway for open water run to Drummond Island, Michigan ... back in the U.S! Water was deep and seas were flat, a very easy run. Only confusion was lack of markers near Drummond Island with lots of rocks near the Yacht Haven. We watched a small cruiser drive near the rocks but could not raise it to warn of its peril. Luckily it made it through a very narrow and shallow channel. After tying up, worked for two hours to remove the bad impellor from the generator, as we should pick up the replacement in Mackinaw City tomorrow. Finally got it out ... a drunk system's engineer designed the placement on the engine ... and it was easy to see why the water was not flowing. We stayed a second day as the weather on Lake Huron was predicted to be bad; 6 foot seas. | |||||
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Impellor at right should have 6 vanes all pushing water ... you can see why it was not working. Replacement I had on board was for similar but different model. Hopefully generator will be up and running tomorrow. |
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| 7/25 | Mackinaw City, MI | Underway Monday morning for the 56 mile trip to Mackinaw City. Marina was full and the town was steaming with tourists. A recent $25 million make over for the town proved beneficial as the town was decked out for all the tourists that would drive through. The part we needed for the generator was waiting at the local marine store and just one hour ago the generator was repaired ... up and running. | |||||
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| 7/26 | Mackinaw City, MI | We are out of the protected waterways that have been the norm for the trip and now moving in the Lake Michigan; a weather day will become more common. The North Channel and Georgian Bay are the upper part of Lake Huron and very protected. This morning's weather report predicted 8 foot seas on Lake Michigan. We decided that was not to our liking so we stayed put, along with 100 other boats in the marina, watching the weather build. One boat tried the waters and experienced 3 footers just outside the breakwater of the marina. Tomorrow is predicted to be nice and we'll move into Lake Michigan then. | |||||
| 7/27 | Charlevoix, MI | Cloudy skies this morning but the wind was predicted to be just 15 knots so we headed out for Charlevoix, a 64 mile trip down the east coast of Michigan. The trip down this lake to Chicago will take us 380 miles along its east coast. If our first stop, Charlevoix, is any indication we will enjoy the travel. A nice anchorage inside Round Lake gives us good protection, an easy dinghy ride to the "shopping dock," and beautiful scenery. The seas for this first day on Lake Michigan started out about 4 foot, but decreased during the day to 1-2 feet. | |||||
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| 7/28 | Charlevoix, MI | It's good we planned on weather days for Lake Michigan as they are happening. This morning woke to windy conditions and reported 4-6 foot seas on the Lake. We stayed put in a protected anchorage and enjoyed exploring the town and its amazing waterfront. Sure were some nice boats moving in and out of the area. |
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| 7/29 | Leland, MI | Quiet morning. After a dinghy trip into town for a quick walk we headed for Leland. Lake Michigan is different than the Chesapeake I'm used to cruising. When the wind dies on the Chesapeake the seas quiet down. Not so on Lake Michigan. The seas from yesterdays wind were still present as we rolled in 2 to 3 foot beam seas toward Leland. The town of Leland is worth the rough weather to get there though. This is the #1 town on the trip so far. It has a "fish town" tourist area, a great marina, and the small town is vibrant and alive with a well groomed look. | |||||
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The dam, upper left, connects Lake Michigan to an inland lake that had a lot of small boats enjoying the summer. I guess the fishing boat above, in "fish town" was made for the cold weather. |
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| 7/30 | Frankfort, MI | Finally a relatively calm day on Lake Michigan. We traveled just over 40 miles to Frankfort, MI, named after the town's founder, Frank, who built a wall around his home to keep the snow away ... thus Frank's Fort and finally Frankfort. The town was having a sidewalk sale and celebration of some sort. A great afternoon in the Town. We are really impressed with the town's we've seen in Michigan. Inexpensive state marinas are available in every port so far, with nice spots to anchor. We are anchoring so far and loving it. | |||||
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The town had a beautiful Lake front beach and the harbor was filled with boats, both at anchor and in the marinas. |
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| 7/31 | Frankfort, MI | Up in the morning to 6-8 foot seas on the Lake. We decided to brew a second cup of coffee and stay put. An early afternoon trip to town was interrupted after we tied the dinghy up and noticed Apolonia moving slowly toward the town docks ... the anchor was dragging with a shift in the winds and increase in their intensity. We hurried back to the boat, re-anchored and put out more scope of chain. The rest of the day was uneventful and we prepared for underway early Monday. | |||||
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