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July 27th, 2010 | Author:

We left Drummond Island  at 7ish for the trip to St. Ignace. The weather was beautiful and Lake Huron was flat, so flat and uneventful, that Kelley was bored. We took the Government Cut and enjoyed the scenery. This is a spot filled with cottages and very narrow channels. 20 feet wide often and 7 feet deep….What surprises us the most is that there is no speed limit. We are watchful of the small boats fishing and really went slowly through the area, however, smaller boats zipped by us and anchored fishing (small) boats. Amazing.

This is the first time that we have come into St. Ignace and it wasn’t raining. We got arrived at 2ish, got fuel and after tying up at the slip we walked to Douds Market to pick up a few things. The next few places we are planning to be do not have markets close by. We enjoy St. Ignace. Our evening was quiet…

Category: 2010, Michigan  | Comments off
July 27th, 2010 | Author:

We left St. Ignace early for the run to Harbor Springs. When Kelley had called the night before they “thought” they would have a spot for us for a couple of days – but it turned out to be for only one.

The Straits were flat and we were gifted with watching the sailboats heading towards Mackinac Island finishing their run from Chicago. We turned south and the lake continued to bless us with a flat run. Leaving early (7 am) helped and we arrived here at 12:30 pm.

We tried to get into Harbor Springs last year but they were booked. Turns out it was Regatta Week, the only time they take reservations, and we were out of luck. Of course, this is Regatta Week!

The town is so charming. Bud and Fredi had told us about it a few years ago when we started this journey. There are many shops, filled with high end clothes. There is the fudge shop, but only one. It is a beautiful spot.

We ate at Bar Harbor which was purported to have the BEST burgers. We were not disappointed. In the evening the local band played in the park and we were treated to a concert. This would be the best spot to have a summer home. It is quaint, although filled with tourists, the shops and businesses are well supplied for the cottagers that reside. (I am sure that there is a market within driving range).

This stop gets an A+.

Category: 2010, Cruising, Michigan  | Comments off
July 16th, 2010 | Author:

We woke to sun shine and Kelley being another year older! (Now we are the same age!)

After coffee we pulled up the anchor and cruised to Little Current. We were surprised how much breeze there was once we lad left the cove. Our trip was pleasant and we are now docked in Little Current at the town marina. It was so great to go for a walk. Tonight there will be dinner out.

Category: 2010, Cruising, North Channel  | Comments off
July 16th, 2010 | Author:

We left on the morning of the 13th. The weather again was cooperating with us.  The lake was calm and not a boat in sight. We did have a OMG moment. I pointed out a rock below the surface; I knew it was there because the water swirled over it. This rock was not marked on the GPS. We were not near it but it is in such a place that a boat could hit it.

We wound our way through Hogs and Sows and entered Benjamin Island. I was so surprised that there were so few boats. The weather was warm and the island provides a great playing ground. It is protected from winds coming from many directions, has places to explore on foot and dinghy and it is perfect for boat campling that we have seen through Cananda. By that I mean that groups gather on the large boulders and sit there watching the sun set, build campfires and cook or just hang. The boats there were doing some of that, but there were so few boats. Of course, this makes it the ideal anchorage for us.

Once again, Kelley found the perfect spot. We were tucked in, in fact, we were almost in the same spot as we had been last year, last year in the rain!

We took dingy rides over to Coaker Island and also around the Benjamins. The granite here is pink. It is stunning.

In Croaker Island Cove there were 2 boats that had the cutest anchor markers. Ours is a white float; oneof theirs was a frog floating on an inner tube and the other was an alligator with a woman in its mouth.

I want the frog. So darling. In fact, Kelley and I are surprised that more boats up here do not use anchor markers. The boats here, particularly the sailboats, anchor very closely to one another, and us. Having a marker lets others know where your anchor is…with any luck when the other boat approaches, your boat is not near your anchor. (In Wittings Cove, a sailboat came in very close to us, but we thought it would be alright. Then at dinner they pulled in their line and went very far up to their anchor. Not much line out. After dinner they were close to hitting us. We had 50 feet of chain out based on the depth of our spot; this gentleman got angry that he had to move. I might also say, that there wasn’t any wind at this point and we were sitting almost on top of our anchor).

We once again stayed because of a storm passing through.

Category: 2010, Cruising, North Channel, Ontario  | Comments off