Great Loop Overall Statistics to date:
Statute Miles: 2961.6
Average Miles/Day: 49.4
Total Hours Underway: 402.9
Average speed (mph): 7.4
States Transited: 12
Total Days: 137
Travel Days: 60
Locks: 43
Fuel Purchased: 680.5
Miles / Gallon: 3.5
Nights at Extra Days
Marinas: 34 70
Anchor: 16 4
City dock: 3 0
Free Wall: 8 4
Mooring: 0 0
Travel Day 59 Leaving Harrisville
We left Harrisville just before first light. Winds light from the south, but expected to get stronger and come around from the SE. We are planning to be up and around the top corner of the "mitten" at Presque Isle, heading more westerly, around midday before the winds turn more from the east - this will protect us from higher waves from the east on our beam. The South-East swell from yesterday turned more southerly partway out and is now just off our stern, giving us a little push north. We arrived in Rogers City without incident and on schedule.
Travel Day 60 Leaving Roger's City
Our destination today was Les Cheneaux Islands. The forecast swell was from the south, so making a straight line to the islands would have meant some beam seas. Instead, we stayed on the southern protected shoreline of Lake Huron until we could make a more Northerly track across to the islands -- more inline with the swell. The lake was glassy calm for the first two hours in the morning. Then the southerly and southwest winds came up giving us a moderate 1 foot chop along the shore. By mid-morning there was a 1 knot current running along the shore against us. So we made our northerly turn a little early -- heading northwest towards the islands -- and still had favorable seas off the stern quarter. Arrived early afternoon at Boot Island anchorage. This small anchorage is only big enough for a couple of boats - luckily no one was there already. The anchor set in the grass/mud bottom on the first attempt. A severe thunderstorm came through with 40-50kn winds a few hours after our arrival. The anchor and 150ft of chain we had out held fast.
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Great Loop Travel Days (GLTD):
059: Rogers City MI from Harrisville MI
060: Les Cheneaux Islands MI from Rogers City MI
Map of our Overall Great Loop travel:
GLTD059 Rogers City MI (from Harrisville MI): We had previously planned to cruise 6 hours to a locally recommended anchorage, Presque Isle.
However, since we still need to provision groceries before anchoring for several days in the Les Cheneaux Islands (and the store in Harrisville was closed on Sunday), we had decided to make a long run to Rogers City, where there is at least one grocery.
We left early and followed the flashing reds and greens (buoys) of the curvy channel out of the harbor.
Seas were a little rolly, with swell directly from starboard (right) for the first 20 minutes - until we turned to port a little to head more north to round the Thunder Bay Lighthouse.
đ Same-day marina planning: I tried to reserve a slip online via Michigan DNR site.
đˇ Boater Tip: Michigan DNR system does not allow same-day reservations.
Even though slips appeared to be available, DNR system would not allow same-day reservations. I found the harbormaster email address using Waterway Guide and sent an email request with boat details. I will follow up with a phone call shortly after the marina opens.
Early morning, we lost cell coverage (right after I called the marina). Fortunately, we regained cell coverage within the hour. The marina called me back to confirm slip availability. â
đ Future stay marina planning: I continued to check DNR site for cancellations/availability to add a day to our Mackinac Island stay, as well as an earlier stay at Charlevoix. Still no luck --- but I will not give up! After all, I have a little case of OCD. đ
By mid-morning, we noticed we were now in some deep water â over 100-feet! đŽ
And, at this point we were not far offshore.
đˇ Boater Tip: Be creative when communicating location to your float support team.
Especially when venturing âoffshoreâ, I keep track of our cell coverage. As I see coverage dropping to 1 bar, I provide more frequent updates of our position. Iâve found the best way to communicate the water position is through a screen shot of our position on a Maps app (like this one).
The risk is that your coverage may not allow transmission of photos. If your photo message does not go through, also send a text-only message (just in case).
Thunder Bay Island Lighthouse, c.1832. Ray captured a great photo of the lighthouse from quite a distance away (on slightly rolly seas).
Thunder Bay has been a refuge for mariners over the years, but âthe surrounding reefs and islands snagged many a vessel.â
In 1831, "Congress appropriated $5,000 [...] for building a light-house on the outer Thunder Bay Island. The [first] tower was nearly complete when a gale spawned a tremendous sea that swept across the outer part of the island. After being awash for some time, the tower toppled over." A 40-foot lighthouse was finally constructed farther from the lake, using some of the material from the first attempt.
"Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary was formed in 2000 largely to protect one of the countryâs best-preserved and historically significant collections of shipwrecks. Ranging from an 1844 side-wheel steamer to a modern, 500-foot-long freighter, the sanctuaryâs shipwrecks are a microcosm of maritime commerce on the Great Lakes."
Mid-afternoon, we arrived and docked at Rogers City Marina, where 2 dockhands met us to help tie up. Ray hosed off some bugs while I checked in.
This was yet another nice state-supported marina in a well-protected harbor, with coin laundry and courtesy shuttle (ride). It is also beside a nice park with a beach.
We relaxed and had dinner on the boat.
Provisioning: The next day, one of the dock hands gave us a ride to and from Save A Lot. Although itâs only 0.2 mi from the marina â close enough to walk, we needed quite a few bulky/heavy items and opted for the convenience of a âchauffeuredâ ride.
Most of the Save A Lot items are store brands, but they had Layâs-brand Lightly Salted chips. Score! â
đ Life Afloat Tip: Cash on hand: As you are in town to provision, keep an eye out for ATMs.
đ Life Afloat Tip: Keep a supply of $5 bills for tips (dock hands, shuttle drivers, taxi drivers). As you shop, politely ask if you can exchange $20 bills for $5 bills. Even small places will usually exchange $20 worth; large chains will usually exchange even more.
Not to miss: Food: After stowing the groceries, we walked uptown for lunch at Nowicki's Sausage Shoppe. Our plan was to sample 2 varieties for lunch and choose one to buy for the freezer. Rayâs Italian sausage was a little spicy (not the sweet Italian that we like) and my Hawaiian sausage (with pineapple) was delicious. Since we mostly eat out and didnât want to buy TOO much, we ended up buying something totally different to compromise â Greek chicken sausage. And we couldnât resist buying a vacuum-pack of curry chicken wings too!
NOTE: Plath's Meats, right across the street, also sells sausages, as well as other meats. After buying the sausages, we didnât even go in at Plathâs, so we canât comment on which place is better.
Sightseeing: On the walk back to the marina, we stopped to view some history at the crossroads.
An emergency steering wheel like this would have been found on steam-powered freighters operated by the Rogers City-based Bradley Transportation Line, which carried limestone from the Port of Calcite to locations throughout the Great Lakes from 1912-2000. This wheel [...] was located on the stern of the ship and for use if the primary steering wheel in the pilothouse became inoperable.
Ref: Signage on site.
Rogers City Sailorâs Memorial overlooks the marina. The anchor and propellor from Great Lakes freighters, and the list of names that accompany them, are here to honor and remember those sailors who lost their lives and are an important part of Rogers Cityâs unique, and sometimes tragic, nautical history.
The Calcite quarry nearby opened in 1912 and is the worldâs largest limestone mine. Since then, many Rogers City residents have earned their living on the freighters delivering stone to throughout the Great Lakes.
The greatest tragedy to involve sailors from the Rogers City area was the sinking of the S.S. Carl D. Bradley on November 18, 1958. The ship was on its way to Calcite to pick up its final load of the season before going to a shipyard for major repairs when it was caught in a violent storm. [âŚ] the Bradley broke up and sank. Of the 35 men in the crew, 33 perished.
Ref: Signage on site.
After realizing I had forgotten eggs, I walked back to the store.
Along the way, I saw this old hearse carriage at Beck Funeral Home. Wow! I havenât even seen one of those on the PBS Masterpiece Theatre shows Iâve watched.
I couldnât find official facts about this carriage, but one blog post from 2011 suggests that it was once used on Mackinac Island MI.
Ref: https://michigan1001dailyphoto.blogspot.com/2011/07/beck-funeral-home-hearse-in-rogers-city.html
Another blog gives an interesting account (and beautiful pictures) of a Mackinac Island funeral.
I then noticed the local laundry and stopped in -- not to do laundry -- to cash in $20 for quarters.
đ Life Afloat Tip: If you will need to use coin laundries, keep quarters on hand for 2 or 3 trips. (Sometimes, coin laundry is available - without change machines.) Another option for quarters is larger stores with a service desk; they will often exchange $20 worth of quarters for you.
Not to miss: Food: On the way back to the boat, I stopped at The Pavilion Grill for ice cream. The new flavor I tried was awesome--Jacked Up Tennessee Toffee from Baremanâs Ice Cream. Yum! I (and Ray) liked it so much, I walked back up for a triple scoop, packaged with a lid, to put in the freezer. Future Yum! đ
Chores: Back aboard the boat, I prepped frozen fruit for smoothies and boiled eggs for breakfasts (in the Instant Pot), and Ray filled water tanks -- readying for a week of anchoring.
Mid-afternoon, fog rolled into the area, so we walked out to the breakwater trail looking out over Lake Huron â an ominous view.
Then, about as quickly as it appeared, the fog cleared.
GLTD060 Les Cheneaux Islands, Cedarville MI (from Rogers City MI): We departed at 6:30 am and followed the red and green "runway lights" out to Lake Huron. The sun rose beneath a thick blanket of clouds.
Ray was in awe: "Gorgeous day. Flat seas. Calm. It doesn't get any better than this." I hope he didn't jinx us since we're expecting some rain/thunder showers later today. đ¤
For just a few minutes, Lake Huron was VERY glassy. Apparently Great Lakes "glass" is a rarity.
Our destination was an archipelago (group of islands) named Les Cheneaux. What does âLes Cheneauxâ mean?
The name "Les Cheneaux" is French in origin meaning "the channels." Our series of 36 islands along 12 miles of Lake Huron shoreline afford many channels throughout the area. The sheltered bays, channels and quiet coves make for ideal sailing and boating as small crafts are protected from the Great Lake's winds.
We planned to anchor in the curve beside Boot Island (just west of the east entrance).
Before entering the channels of the islands, Lake Huron was nearly 300 feet deep!
As we neared Boot Island, depth was down to 42 feet.
âAnchored. Thankfully, we anchored in just 15 feet water â a little more than usual, for us, but certainly something we can handle at 7:1 scope with one of our 200-foot anchor chains.
We relaxed for about an hour before a severe storm rolled through. (Note the boat house to Rayâs left â at our bow.)
Calm before the storm.
Within 10 minutes, we had sustained winds of 40 mph, with peaks at 46!
There were white-caps in the shallow anchorage, and then a whiteout!
SCOUT had spun almost 180 degrees; the boat house mentioned above was now on our stern.
The storm lasted about an hour and the setting sun afterwards seemed to shed a spotlight on the various colors of foliage on the shores.
Post-storm Assessment: We think, when the boat turned around, the anchor broke loose temporarily before resetting itself. We kept a close eye on our position in the harbor.
We relaxed in this quiet anchorage for 2 nights.
Island-hop to Cedarville: After breakfast, Ray spent about 30 minutes clearing grass from the anchor. (I think there would have been less grass if the storm hadnât spun us around 180 degrees.)
We traveled only about 1/2 hour to anchor across from the town of Cedarville, where we would take the dinghy over to look at the annual antique and classic car show the next day.
We saw a lot of boat houses protecting beautiful old wooden boats.
I guess fresh water and short lake seasons help keep the boats looking glassy new.
And several boaters were out cruising their âwoodiesâ.
âAnchored. We were anchored by mid-morning. Unlike the last anchorage, where SCOUT was the only boat, this anchorage has a few boats already there. You can see SCOUT and some of the other boats behind us as we dinghied 5 miles, round-trip, to the classic car show.
Cedarville is an unincorporated community [âŚ] north of the Les Cheneaux Islands, about two miles east of Hessel, and about 35 miles due south of Sault Ste. Marie. It began as a lumber settlement on the Lake Huron shore in 1884.
The car show had a wide variety of classic cars. Some of the âclassicâ cars (from more recent years) made me realize just how classic I may be. đ
Two 1927 models: Chevrolet Capital and Chrysler â50â
Tow 1950âs models: 1953 Ford Customline (1960 BMW Isetta, behind) and 1955 Ford Sunliner
A line of Corvettes and a 1970 VW Karmann Ghia
Not to miss: Food: After browsing the car show, we had a late lunch at Les Cheneaux Distillers, âdistillers who brewâ. I thoroughly enjoyed my espresso martini. The beer selection and the food was awesome!
Back at the anchorage, a storm rolled in. Mainly heavy rains -- thankfully, no strong winds, it moved through quickly.
Island-hop to Hessel: The next morning, we took another short âhopâ to anchor across from the town of Hessel, to attend the annual Les Cheneaux Antique Wooden Boat Show, founded in 1978 and held every year on the second Saturday in August. Ref: https://www.lciboatshow.com/event-schedule---brochure.html
Along the way, we saw this simple wood sailboat standing proudly at anchor.
This colorful, whimsical estate is Dollar Island. The government sold the 0.6 acre island for a dollar. The structures were originally built in 1913. I think it is for sale now, and you could own it for a mere $850,000. đ
Ref: https://theoldhouselife.com/2020/03/30/dollar-island-circa-1913-in-michigan-sure-is-unique-850000/
We saw so many beautiful wooden boats in boathouses along our short trip. Below are just two of the boats.
And we saw a few woodies cruising the lake.
âAnchored. By mid-morning, SCOUT was anchored across from the boat show, along with several other boats. More boats continued to arrive at the anchorage throughout the day.
After lunch, we hailed the free ferry for a ride to the boat show at the marina.
Both the boat show and the crowd were huge! There were literally HUNDREDS of wood boats in the water.
The Les Cheneaux Islands Antique Wooden Boat Show is one of the largest shows featuring antique and classic wooden boats. Mertaugh Boat Works, which is included at the [âŚ] boat show, had the first Chris-Craft franchise in the United States and continues to thrive. Ref: https://www.lciboatshow.com/about-the-show.html
We are sharing just a FEW of the gorgeous classics.
Back at the anchorage that evening, we saw a gorgeous sunset.
We stayed âon the hookâ here for 3 nights. During that time, we saw several more classic boats on the lake.
We got the kayaks out for the first time in a LONG while and paddled along the shoreline in the crystal clear water.
Ray took advantage of the clear water dove under the boat to get a check of the bottom paint, zincs and props.
Then, he scrubbed the boot stripe with vinegar, taking it from nasty âcanal-brownâ to bright white!
đ Future stay marina planning: I continued checking daily and finally found a Mackinac Island slip for both days of our requested stay. I also found and exchanged our Charlevoix slip reservation for an earlier stay. My persistence (OCD đ) paid off.
đˇ Boater Tip: The Michigan DNR system allows for reservation changes and cancellations. While the original reservation fee of $8 was not refundable, I was not charged an additional fee to change a reservation.
Ray had a chance to take some drone video of several locations we stayed in the beautiful Les Cheneaux Islands.
Below is the youtube video:
On the last day in the anchorage, we got up enough nerve take the plunge into the COLD (to us) 69-degree water!
We spent almost the whole week at anchor, and both Ray and I appreciated the relaxing and beautiful break from sightseeing.
Whatâs next? We will visit two of the most popular âlooperâ stops in northern Michigan â Mackinac Island and Charlevoix, where we were able to secure slips.