Back in the U.S.A.
We crossed the Canadian - United States Border in the North Channel, on Lake Huron on Sunday August 12, around 1:00 in the afternoon. It was pretty exciting for the two of us. I could feel the difference, and interestingly enough, both of our phones redirected to AT&T, my data plan returned to my IPad and the sky, the air and the scenery changed. I had told Jim in the morning that I must jump in the Lake, because I hadn’t done that yet. He waited until we were right at the water Border, shut the engines down, and in I went. 200 feet of water under me, I swam in my second Great Lake - Huron! I took a few strokes left, and a few strokes right, just so I felt that I had swam both in Canadian water and USA water. It was so bitchen, and I felt like a real badass! Like really, Who gets to do this!
Cruising through Canada was beautiful, and I will remember my adventures there with great fondness. The sights we saw, the beauty, that was around every corner, the lessons we learned, and the people we met, will always be in my memories for now. I hope one day to return. There was so much more to be seen and explored.
We cleared customs in De Tour Village, Michigan. A tiny little town, that only had a few homes and one grocery market that was closed at 3:00 in the afternoon. Checking in with customs was much easier here than back in Kingston. There’s actually an app called ROAM, that we used. We filled in our information right on Jim’s IPad, submitted the information, and 10 minutes later a Customs Agent called us and did a phone interview right on the boat. Easy, peasy. She welcomed us home and I think both Jim and I were relieved that we made it through 28 days in Canada with only two marks on our boat. One, where we scraped the stern on a lock wall in the wind, and two, where Jim punched a small hole in the fiberglass with a boat hook in a lock. God damn locks!
De Tour Village, Michigan. 🇺🇸
Monday, we set our sights on a Lake Huron crossing to Mackinaw Island and our destination for a few days, Mackinaw City. This was a big water day on Lake Huron. The water here is so blue! In certain places near land it has an iridescent aquamarine emerald color.
Second to Lake Superior in size, Lake Huron is the 5th most massive fresh-water lake on earth. Its deepest point is 750 feet down, and averages a depth of 195 feet.
We chose to stay in the city because we heard that docking at the Island could be a bit crowded, and because Ferry Boats come in all day long, we would probably bob like a cork most all day from their wakes. We checked into Straits State Marina in Mackinaw City and settled in. We wandered into the city itself, with dinner in mind, because we had nothing but tomato soup on board! We had not been to a grocery store in several days and the faire on board was slim to none. Provisioning for on board is a science. Our refrigerator is not that big and you don’t want to buy a whole lot of stuff because it will go bad, fast. Plus, whatever you do buy, you have to carry back to the boat. 10 bags and a flat of waters is a bit much, and Uber doesn’t exist here. So Pizza it was! And was it good! We haven’t had a pizza since We were in New York!
The town of Mackinaw City is adorable. Jim had been thwarting off his compulsion to buy fudge in Canada until we arrived here in Mackinaw. This city and it’s Island is world famous for its fudge and other confections. There is a fudge shop at every other storefront here. As we walked the street, the sweet smell of chocolates and popcorn filled the air. Jim picked the store we were to buy our fudge from, by the smell omitting from the front door. Joann’s Fudge Shop, was the store we bought Jim his Mackinaw fudge.
Because we stayed in the city and not on the island, we caught a Star-line Ferry, and took a 15 minute ride back across the straits to Mackinac Island. There are two spellings for Mackinaw. The Island is spelled Mackinac Island and the city, Mackinaw. Jim has had to correct me a hundred times because I kept saying Mack-e-nac, instead of Mackinaw. The French occupied the territory before the British, and spelled the name Mackinac but pronounced it Mackinaw. The British just spelled it the way it sounded, hence the two different spellings. Over time the city retained the “aw” spelling while the bridge, straights and island clung to the “ac” spelling. No matter how it is spelled, however, it is always pronounced Mackinaw! Anyway it’s pronounced, it’s a really cool place.
There are no automobiles here except for a fire truck and an ambulance. Horse drawn carriages can be seen everywhere and are used for trash pickup, cabs, funerals and weddings. There, people ride bikes, they skate, and they walk. I’m not a big fan of bike riding, I’m kind of clumsy on a bike, and I’m not a hiker! This is a huge island and if you want to explore you must do one of these two things. Or, you can do what we did. A horse drawn carriage tour of the downtown area of the island and through the state park itself. It was very informative and I feel like we got to see what we needed to, and learned a lot about the history of the island. The carriage took us up to the high point of the island where we were able to disembark for a few minutes and witness one of the most beautiful sights I have seen on this entire Great Loop Adventure. Arch Rock.
Arch Rock is a geologic formation on Mackinac Island. It is a natural limestone arch. To this day Arch Rock stands on the Lake Huron shoreline 146 feet above the water. The water was aquamarine in color, and even from that high up, it appears that you can see the sandy bottom. It was stunning.
I think we both enjoyed our visit to Mackinac Island, but to be honest, it’s still summer here, and tourist season is still in full bloom. There were thousands of people here this day, and it kind of felt like I was at Disneyland. It was pricey, and lines for food and drink were long. We waited two hours for the carriage ride. I live on a boat. With Jim. Just us two. Busy places, and too many people make me anxious. I was glad to get home to the Happy Destiny!
When we returned to the city, we went grocery shopping and had to jack the shopping cart to get the groceries back to our boat. We found a fresh fish store also. This made us happy and we enjoyed some fresh lake trout on the grill for dinner. We mapped out our next days trip and called it a very long day.
Wednesday, the 15th, took us under the Mackinac Bridge and into Great Lake Michigan. A new lake to jump in! Our friends that we met way back in Deleware City, Keith and Kay, on Sea Tiger, were traveling on this day too. They shot this picture and sent it to me.
We had a 52 mile crossing and arrived in Harbor Springs, Michigan. As I write, we are at Irish Boat Works Marina and enjoying our time here. We went to a meeting last night at the City Hall. Again, always good to get to a meeting. Restores my faith, and feels like home. Harbor Springs is a gorgeous community. Beautiful homes and great shops. I went to the city beach today and relaxed while Jim did some boat maintenance and took care of some paperwork. When I returned, I tackled some work of my own. The forward berth of the boat is an area in our boat where we store the things we couldn’t live without when we left California. I store things on the bed and cover said things, with pillows. It’s not that much stuff, but it was time to go through it and throw some things away that we just don’t need or use. I’ve come to find out that I probably brought too many clothes, and I definitely have too many hangers. We chucked a small table, some old maps, a few pan lids, and a whole bunch of papers from the previous boat owner. It felt good to downsize one more time. It is a good day when you know that you just don’t need a whole bunch of stuff cluttering up your life.
Friday morning took us to Charlevoix, Michigan. It was not a long trip. We are trying to head South, but found it difficult to secure a slip. The boating season here for local boaters is coming to an end, which means there are lots of boats out enjoying the water and more boats probably in their home slips preparing to winterize. So, marinas, at least this weekend are booked solid and have no room for transient boaters like us. We inquired in the office at Irish Boat Works, where we stayed the last few days, about hooking us up at their other marina in Charlevoix. They were able to get us in at the last minute, which was great. So, I’ve always wanted to go to Charlevoix. I just love the name!
We had to wait a few minutes for the bridge opening. Once we went through, we were in Charlevoix Lake. We got settled in the marina, took the dingy to the office to pay, and I went to the beach, which was a 5 minute walk. Sandy, a looper friend joined me and we both cooled off in the lake. It was so nice and refreshing!
August 18-
We were able to secure a slip in Leland, Michigan, so we caught the bridge opening at 10:00, and off we went for a 31 mile Lake Michigan tour. The weather was overcast and the waves were a bit lumpy, but, nevertheless, we enjoyed the ride and finished listening to a Steven King audiobook that we started back in Virginia. As we got closer to our destination, the sun came out, the sweatshirts came off, and we entered the most gorgeous waters I think we’ve seen since the Gulf of Mexico. Lake Michigan is beautiful!
Leland Township is known for its “Fishtown”. It is the cutest little town, with lots of little shops. Jim and I did the walking tour, and bought some fresh salmon to barbecue. Life is good on the Lake.
So, the picture above, of the cute little red car? I got to take a ride in it! It is an Amphicar! A car and a boat in one! I went for a spin with Larry, the owner. It was super, duper cool!
Leland, Michigan Sunset
Today is Sunday. A good day to end this. We traveled to Frankfort, Michigan today. 41 miles. We are trying to get another 50 miles in tomorrow. There is a storm coming and we will probably have to stay put for a few days and wait it out. We have reservations at two marinas tomorrow, in case it gets snotty. The nice thing about boating South on Lake Michigan, is that there is a safe harbor every 30 miles or so.
We passed a pretty cool area today. Sleeping Bear Dunes National Park. Miles of sand beach, and bluffs that tower 450 feet above Lake Michigan. This would be a place I’d like to investigate more thoroughly. From the water, with binoculars, I could see people on the beach, and a few people on a steep sand dune going down towards the water. I read about this place, and found out that once you make your way down the dunes, it can take up to two hours to climb back up the sand dunes. I don’t know about all that, but it was pretty through very overcast skies.
We have been back in the US for a week now. Lake Michigan is beautiful, and all the little towns we have ventured through, have been lovely. We are getting closer to Chicago. Another couple hundred miles. We are on target to arrive there by the first of September. We also are looking forward to Jennifer visiting us on the Happy Destiny for a week, and Jim and I will be flying to Anaheim on the 17th, so Jim can attend the Western States Opioid Summit that Social Model is hosting. I, for one, am looking forward to seeing my kids, my grandchildren, and our friends for a bit.
Thank you for peeking in on our week. It’s been a good one. Jim and I are doing great. We are happy and healthy. We still, at times, pinch ourselves, just to make sure this is for real.
Until next time, please take care.
Peace and our love.
❤️
