Day 5 & 6 - Getting Weathered In

When we went to bed on Monday night we knew we needed to move on from Gladstone. As Susan and I woke we went off the boat to start getting ready to leave. I wiped down the boat and she went to the harbor house to let them know we were going to move on and let the dog do her business. She returned with a phone number to call as there was no one in attendance at the harbor house. We thought we would just keep working as getting ready and call later to pay for our slip. There was the fuel situation, however, we needed to fill up before we left and decided we would just go down to Escanaba and check out there marina and get fuel there as they were a bit bigger and probably open.

When arriving in Escanaba we were greeted by two young people who were very nice and pumped us out and fill up the tanks. Escanaba has the nicest pump out equipment I have seen on the great lakes. It almost did not fit under my rail as the waste port is positioned in as tight spot on our boat and this nozzle was very large. It had a fresh water rinse line and valve attached with the waste separated by a couple of 90 degree elbows and a few ball valves. it was bulky ,however, this set up insures you get a good rinse and is a whole lot less messing around.

We decided on Menominee MI as our destination after much debate. It was going to be a stay of at least two days as we were about to get some very high winds and rain for at least a day or two. Once we were all settled in we did some exploring and had a nice dinner at Table Six, "Ta6le". Menominee is doing some great things in there little downtown. There are a few buildings that have been completely renovated and there are plans for some additional ones. The town really understands the economic impact from the boating community and provide some very nice incentives in coupons and other niceties.

As it turned out we only saw the rain through the night into the early morning ending around 8 am. The first half of the second day was cold and windy as by evening the sun came out and temperatures came up. Mission for the day two was to check out the border town Marinette WI. We crossed the Menominee river to the south of the marina you are in WI. Our first intended stop was the Nest Egg Marina in Marinette to see there ship store which they claim is the largest north of Milwaukee (this is not true). Before we made it there Susan and the kids wanted to stop for lunch and we found Ironworks which is a bar restaurant that was nice.

When riding back we stopped at the lighthouse and break wall of the river to watch the waves come in from the high winds we received though out the night.

Day 4 - Washington Island & Gladstone

Since riding the bikes with Pierce had been so challenging I asked Susan if she would mind if I went out in the morning on my own. When I awoke I wiped down the dew on the boat and went on for my ride. A friend of mine Scott Spanbauer had a property on the island and asked me to go check it out if I was near by. This was my first thought of a destination. I thought it would be a fun little adventure to see more of the island. I also wanted to go around and see the other harbor, Jackson Harbor on the north east side of the island. I was gone on my ride for about 1.5 hours and saw most of the places I did not see the day before.

Jackson Harbor

Spanbauer's Property

When I returned to the boat I made some coffee showered and got ready to move on. We had planned on spending more days on the island, however, there just was not a ton to see and do so we moved on. There was also some low pressure weather coming that was going to arrive Monday night into Tuesday and we had more to do in the north and did not want to get stuck in a very remote place. Our plans originally included Fayette, but with the weather and potential of sitting in the next marina for a few days we wanted to skip that because it does not have many services or infrastructure.

Our plan now was either Escanaba or Gladstone, aka Happyrock. As we continued up Little Bay da Noc we decided to do Gladstone first. This decision was made based on temperature. Even though Gladstone is 8 miles north on the bay the temps were and forecast to be warmer than Escanaba. The marina and lake shore was nice. However, the town was not so appealing. We have found that we like a balance of both marina and towns. Susan loves the shops and restaurants. She had a mission to find a new swim suit or at least a new pair of sunglasses on this trip and we have not even found a store yet that sold anything like this. The lake shore had a very nice park for little kids and we all had fun play there for a bit. Susan and I even ran around a bit and played on the equipment. Dinner was downtown at a pizza chain in the UP Main Street Pizza. It was good and we all ate until we were stuffed and brought back the leftovers. 

Before bed we end up walking over to the Gladstone Yacht Club. They claimed to be "the friendliest on the lakes". They were great let us have a drink and were very social.

Day 3 - Washington Island

We woke in the morning and decided to go to Al Johnson's for breakfast.  Their trademark "The place with the goats on the roof" always leaves the kids astounded. We went early as the place fills up quickly and had a great breakfast.  From there we decided to travel North to Washington Island.  We have never been there before and planned to spend 2 days. The water was beautiful and calm as we headed to Shipyard Island Marina.  Lou, the harbormaster helped us into a nice slip that was across the street from "The Red Barn" and next to a small public beach.

We decided we were going to head to the downtown area to see what Washington Island was all about.  I must be honest, it was not what I expected and was underwhelmed with what I found.  We rode our bikes down the county roads all 4 of us on our own bike which in the beginning seemed like a huge mistake.  Pierce learned to ride a bike (barely) last summer, but has been getting better and better, so we thought why not bring his bike along as opposed to the tag along.  Well, after much whining, crying and a whole lotta "I CAN'T!" we made it to the downtown area (about 3 miles from our slip.)  We were going to stop for lunch but Paul encourages us to keep pushing on to the rock beach.  His rationale was that it was only 1 more mile and there was food close by.  So we kept on treading... up hill and made it to the famous rock beach called School House Beach.  Apparently it is one of 5 in the world with smooth stones.  We are having so much luck on our annual vacations that we have now seen 2 of the 5 over the last 4 years. Determined Peyton even managed to find sand after digging through the rocks.

I was disheartened when I saw that there was not any restaurants near the beach so after a little while there we decided to trek back to the downtown and stopped at a roadside restaurant for a quick lunch and then started back to the marina.  Overall, Pierce managed to make it 8 miles, which ended up being a great opportunity for him to get more comfortable on his bike.

We swam at the nearby beach for a little while in the afternoon and then ate at a wonderful restaurant that was right next to the marina.  The food was absolutely fantastic at Sailors Pub!  Hard to believe there is a 4 star restaurant on Washington island, and while a bit pricey, was definitely delicious.  When we arrived at the marina we noticed people working in the restaurant starting at around 11AM but the restaurant did not open until 5pm.  Come to find out they are only open to 8pm, after a nice waitress informed us that "this wasn't Chicago!"

Boys Doing Flips on the Beach!

Beautiful Sunset at Dinner at Sailor's Pub!

Day 2- Horseshoe Island

When we woke up in the morning everything was very quiet. The night was still and calm my only complaint was the heat. We did not run the generator be cause all week it had been getting very cool at night, but this night did not seem to get as cool. I had woke up through-out the night a bit uncomfortable from the stuffiness, but all and all was not that bad. It may have been the fact Scott and I stayed up late with the fire scavenging for fire wood and make bad decisions with both the fire and consumption of adult beverages...

The next morning we picked the bottles and cans out of the fire that we thought was a good idea to put in there the night before, took a few ibuprofen for the other bad decisions and went for a hike around the island. Grace and Peyton stayed back for some fishing. Grace forgot her tennis shoes so all she had was flip flops not the best for hiking. Plus, Peyton and Pierce just made the hike the day before. There is a trail on the island that is 1k around the entire island. It was a fun little walk and allowed us all to see the sights from the entire island.

After our walk we decided to go to Little Sister Bay to Fred and Fuzzy's resort for lunch. In order to get this done we had to get showered and ready for the day. Scott and I soaped up and did a lake bath. Jill showered on the swim platform as she was not going for the cool morning dip! It was decided to leave Liming (Scott and Jill's boat) on the island and take one boat over due to the shortage of space at Fred and Fussy's, so we all jumped on Always Starboard and were on our way to get some famous fried green beans (our favorite item on the menu).

Upon our return we parted ways with the Derosier's and started our way to Sister Bay as our first port of call on our trip for Friday night. We thought we had never been there before by water, but then quickly remembered being there with our 248 fourwinns and getting stranded with engine problems. Maybe that was why we removed this port from our memory.

The boys had fun at the little beach just next to the marina where they jumped of the break-wall and played in the sand even though the sand was filled with some larger stones. After some beach time we went to dinner, some ice cream and came back to the boat for the night.

Summer 2014 Summer Boat Trip -

This year for our annual vacation we decided to keep it a bit local. Our plan was to have our boat in Sturgeon Bay for the remainder of the season starting at the beginning of August. In the past few years we have left our boat in Sturgeon Bay for an extended time after our trip due to the water conditions on Winnebago after the end of July. 

Our destination was our favorite marina in Sturgeon Bay, Centerpointe Marina. The boat had been there for a couple of weeks prior to our trip. When we arrived at Centerpointe around 10am Thursday Morning we had to do some last min provisioning. Along with that the canvas had a few bad seams so I had it fixed at one of the local shops that morning as well. 

After last years big water trip where the family swore not to do another trip due to the wind and weather, we were tweaking our plan. For the first night the plan was to go stay on the hook at Nicolet Bay or Horseshoe island. Our friends the Derosier's went with us up to our first spot. We swam at Nicolet Bay and took t he dinghy to the beach and enjoyed the afternoon. Weather and waves were not an issue on this day it was beautiful. 

As the day was winding down Peyton and Grace swam to the boat and got some money to buy all the kids ice cream from the beach concession stand. After that we all went back to the boat and went across the bay to horseshoe island for the night. 

The kids gathered wood while the adults made a nice dock side steak dinner. During that time both Peyton and Pierce walked all over the island and had a great little adventure in the woods on their own. 

So Close

The boat is officially out of storage and having some gelcoat work done in Sturgeon Bay. We had noticed some cracking around the porthole window below windshield on the starboard side of the boat. When a survey was done a few years ago the surveyor notice a tiny amount of bubbling around the window and said it was the first sign of a leak and it should be addressed. I let it go a bit with the intention of taking care of it myself, however, time continued to slip by and never officially took care of it. So it was decided last fall before we put it in the water it would be taken care of professionally.

I am familiar with this work as I did fiberglass repair and finish work for my Dad's business for a few years.  The skills and equipment have come in handy over the years.  The older I get and the time stretched with work and family it is difficult to allocate time to these things. Especially if you want time to relax and enjoy the boat in our limited season.

Our spring season this year is a stark contrast to last year. Last year we had many days that were over 80 degrees by now. This year I think we have only been to 70 once otherwise we have been in the 30s and 40s for most of our spring.  May is just around the corner and we still are getting snow in the state. Hopefully next week it is done and we can put her in the water and start enjoying the boat!

Memories and Cold Winters

Today we have had record low temperatures...Susan and I are relaxing next to the fire; Christmas tree and decor are all aglow as our light source for the evening. Tonight we decided to update the screen saver on our Apple TV. We changed it from our RV trip we took with my parents in 2008 to our pictures from our most current summer boating trip. For the last 4 hours we have been watching our photos stream by. Actually, there are a lot! 537 pictures were taken between the four of us! As we sat all night watching them go by laughing an commenting on them, we really were taken aback. (Pierce even got into determining what picture he took and Peyton took.)

We have sat here and contemplated our life and how blessed we are. So many photos and so many memories. We now look back and really love the memories and think about how frustrating the time was and blame ourselves for a lot of the frustration, we both need to relax and enjoy. The pictures are moments in time that always seem so fun and relaxing. Tonight we are both planning the cities and marinas we want to got back to. Even though it was such a rough trip last year it was worth it as we suspected. There would be much regret if we did not take the risk in going. Yeah, we kind of got screwed by the weather and the this caused so much stress, but in the end we love it.  The best is when while watching the pictures stream by Pierce says "I love the boat". When a 5 year old is in love with our passion we know we are doing the right stuff.

A little update on life...As I feared after our trip I did end up losing my job. However, because of my wonderful, beautiful, intelligent wife and her stable job and income we were able to survive without a hiccup. It took about nine weeks for me to find employment. I was off for the end of August through October. During that time I was able to get the boat waxed and ready for storage along with a long list of honey do's. We have been blessed and are able to continue with our lifestyle. My job is perfect and I look forward to the future. We can't wait for April to get the boat out and enjoy her for another season. Once again making these wonderful family memories! (sweatshirts in late July should not be a thing!!!)

Crossing Back Home, day 10 & 11

The near shore forecast for the day was wave 2-3 feet and winds at times 20kts. Susan got up early and went for a walk down to the beach to look at the lake. When she returned she said it is time to go. She said the waves were not as bad as the day before, so I agreed lets go for it. After getting out on the lake I asked her if she really thought this was better.  In my estimation the wave heights were more like 3-5 feet. She then told me that the open water forecast was for 3-5 footers with occasional 6 to 8 foot waves. Yup it was all of that. Again these waves were coming at us so again it was a long ride. There were larger swells that were fairly steep that were quartering our bow and causing me to drive the boat more north then I would have liked. We ended up going off course by 5-6 miles to accommodate the wave and swell action. Luckily, this time we thought ahead and before we left the boys both took motion sickness pills so they did not get sea sick as yesterday they both were vomiting when we arrived in Frankfort. The crossing took us over 3 hrs due to having to go slow and steady due to the seas.

When we where about 20 miles out it began to settle down. By 5 miles out we were able to run the boat at our normal cruising speed. We were so glad to see the big red buoy at the entrance to Sturgeon Bay and were greeted by a large rain cloud when we finally tied up at Centerpointe Marina. The intention was to get the boat on the trailer and go home, but the rain stopped us from doing that. It was actually a good thing as we were all just exhausted from the ride and needed some time to relax. The plan was now to relax and pull the boat in the morning and go home.  It was a good feeling once we got home to unpack get everything put away and take the boat down to the launch to put it back in it home port slip in Neenah. When I came under the bridge and saw our little city and the docks it was almost a sigh of relief to be done with this vacation.

Susan and I both discussed if this was going to be our last trip across the lake for awhile. Although the adventure is fun and exhilarating we just were unable to enjoy it. There was only one day that we "enjoyed" ourselves. It was the day in Suttons Bay when we road from Frankfort to Suttons bay. We did not get a good week of weather and when we can not get the boys off the boat for that long of a period it is just not that enjoyable.

Next years plan is to just put the boat in Door County for a month and take some long weekends rather than push for a big trip.

Frankfort, Day 9

On Saturday we decided to try to get home to Sturgeon Bay. The forecast again was not great. We ended up making our way down to Frankfort and the waves were again brutal. With the exception of Mondays ride we have had wind and waves directly on our bow. We left Leland with the waves at our bow and when we went south to Frankfort they were quartering us. About 10 minutes from the break wall both Pierce and Peyton were vomiting from sea sickness. These can be the toughest waves as they are steep and pound the nose of the boat repeatedly. Then when we went south they still pounded us but also were rolling us. All you can do is go slow and make your way trough them. After about 3 hours we were again back at Jacobson Marina in Frankfort. They accommodated us with a slip and we were greeted with a rainy day.

Once we were situated I got the kids off the boat and went up to there boaters lounge. They have a big screen television, pool table, books and board games to relax and rejuvenate. We played a game of Sorry with Pierce and Peyton watched a Harry Potter marathon that was playing on ABC Family. The staff also made us a nice breakfast from the leftovers they had from the Grand Banks Lake MI Rendezvous that was at the Marina the last few days.

After Breakfast Susan did some shopping as they were having a sidewalk sale and bought Peyton a raincoat and some other items that caught her eye. When she returned we were all still relaxing up in the lounge when we saw some bigger Sea Rays coming into the harbor. Susan and I were both wondering if these boats possibly came across the lake from Sturgeon Bay and wanted to see if they had a report on how the lake was. I guess the day before this area saw 12-14 foot waves and said it was more like October weather than late July weather.

Turns out the boats were from Sturgeon Bay and we actually knew them. I stopped to talk to them and they said the waves were OK as they had following seas and it did not get really bad until they were about 15-20 miles out. With this news Susan and I figured tomorrow would be the day to attempt to go back.

Later in the afternoon I went to the downtown to get some tools at the hardware store to replace some allen wrenches that were dropped in the lake on accident. When walking downtown I noticed their little theater in town was playing the Despicable Me II movie, so when I returned to the boat I told everyone that I had a plan. We did dinner at a brew pub next to the movie theater and went to the show at 8 pm. This was the best thing we could do on such a rainy crumby day. The rain clouds ended up lifting in the afternoon and we did actually see some sun but for the most part it was still too cold to go to the beach and spend the day on the water. While at the brew pub the boys decided to play a game of tag while waiting for the food.

Making the best of a rainy day... Day 8

Although we were stuck in Leland, MI for a couple of nights we made the best of it.  After all, I could think of worse places to be stuck.  Leland is a beautiful little town with infamously named “Fishtown” due to the history of the quaint fishing village that borders the shore of Lake Michigan.  The weather was quite windy so we decided we would find a bike trail and try to make our way to Sleeping Bear Dunes, recently named the most scenic area in the United States.   According to Paul’s calculation the park entrance was a short 4 mile jaunt.  So on our way we went…unfortunately the path took us on M22, a very busy highway with barely any shoulder for riding a bike.  After 4 miles Paul “recalculated” and found we were still a couple of miles out, and I was getting nervous with the 55 mph traffic zooming by.   We decided to scratch the bike ride and turned around. 

Due to the fun looking waves crashing on the beach, we decided to pack lunch and make it a beach day for the kids.  The town has a beautiful beach that is not too rocky yet has some decent depth to it for swimming.   The kids had a blast chasing the waves and it gave Paul and I an opportunity to relax a bit and strategize on how we were going to get home with Mother Nature not cooperating. 

Mother Nature continued putting a damper on our vacation by sending rain on our beach day.  We quickly had to pack up the kids and make our way back to the boat.  Paul took the kids to the boat while I stopped by the local store to pick up a few needed items.  Paul was able to beat the rain, I however, was not so lucky.  On my 2 block walk back, it down poured, causing me to resemble a drenched rat...

We dried off, pulled out the rain gear and decided to have dinner at the Blue Pelican.  Paul and I enjoyed some pecan encrusted walleye and a nice glass of wine prior to heading back to the boat and turning in.  We decided before bed that we were going to try to make our way to Frankfort in the morning.  Hopefully the waves won't be too bad!!

[Paul edits] after dinner we did not turn in right away.  We all went the the boater lounge and attempted to download a movie that we were going to watch after the kids went to bed. While the movie was downloading we did a puzzle that was there. 

The bike ride was also the day before. When on vacation the days tend to blend together....

The weather is not cooperating, day 7

It was decided that we should try to get back home as the forecast for not only weather, but the winds and waves were getting worse as the weekend went on. We knew if we did not make it across today there was a good chance we would be stuck for a while. Talking with many veteran lake MI vacationers many have not been stuck across the lake like this in late July early August. This time of year is usually good and does not have repeated days of bad weather and high winds.

When we left Elk Rapids the winds were from the south west which provided us a quartering following sea. This was pleasant and we were cruising along quite nice out of Grand Traverse Bay. Once we turned the corner we now headed into them. this was a much different ride. I needed to slow down as the waves continued to build. We had planned to stop in Leland for fuel and check the forecast again. 

Once we got there and filled up we decided to try to see if we could continue across. Needless to say we did not. We got ten miles out and turned back. It was way to wavy and the worst part was the were crashing square on the bow. I was only able to comfortably go 15 mph.  It would have been a long day had we kept going and the fact the longer we were out there the larger the waves were forecasted to get. The other thought we had was if it was too bad we would head down to Frankfort. The more I contemplated this the more I thought I'd rather just turn around. We were still 25-30 miles away from Frankfort and only 10 from Leland. Heading back in following seas is the best in this wave condition anyway.

When we arrived back at Leland Harbor we checked in and went for breakfast at the Early Bird restaurant. After breakfast we hit the farmers market and a winery (yup for breakfast). By this time Susan and I were doing all we could to not stress-out on the boys. Susan thought it would be nice to take them to the Leland Toy Shop and buy them something to keep them occupied on the boat. After the toys became more of an issue than they were solving Susan decided it was time for her to go to the downtown on her own for a bit.  When she returned we ended up going for a bike ride which ended like most we have done on these trips. Me determining a route based on a nearby attraction that is further away than I estimated. The terrain too challenging for everyone and eventually after pushing everyone too much I get frustrated or give-in and we turn back.  After we got back we ate lunch/dinner (it was already 4:30) at Rick's Cafe below The Cove restaurant in the little historical fish town. 

With little sleep from an early start and stress from not being able to go across and the waves, the day quickly turned into a crabby crew members kind of day. It was a early bed time for all. Hoping tomorrow brings a better day. 

Elk Rapids, Day 6

Sleep was hard to come by due to the perfect wind and wave angle happening all day Tuesday. The rolling and lapping kept Susan and I both awake for awhile, however, upon waking up it was all done blowing. Once everyone was up, I got the bikes down from the bow and we trekked out to find a grocery store to resupply the food on board. I found fresh wild caught MI lake trout, some great marinade as well as a local wine. Susan grabbed some sweet potatoes and broccoli, along with various other items.

When we got back to the boat we decided to go down the famous dam slide that is in Elk Rapids. Peyton was the first to go down it and did great. Then it was Pierce's turn which meant it was also mine. Susan said it was much too cold for her. Once I had taken Pierce down he and Peyton went together. After about 10 min Susan decided to give it a try and join in the fun. After all the rapids fun we moved down to the beach. The beach is nice, but not great. The shore is full of zebra mussels so you have to be careful where you step. It is also very rocky and shallow. The shallow part is nice and it was much like Suttons Bay with regards to the shallowness but was much more rocky. The kids had fun moving all the rocks around and collecting ones to take home. Peyton dug the biggest hole in the beach. He said he was trying to make a hot tub...

After relaxing on the beach it was time to get back to the boat and start our dinner. We were all looking forward to our fresh fish dinner. Of course everything turned out great and everyone over ate. While cooking we met a couple who are part of the High Cliff Yacht Club from back home. They were sailors and trailered their Hunter 25 to Grand Traverse Bay.

After dinner we thought we would go downtown to see what was going
on. We had seen children coming back to the dock with fire hats and thought there must be something interesting downtown. Since we were all very full from dinner we thought it was time for a walk and check it out. It turns out on Wednesdays in the summer downtown Elk Rapids have a block party and close the street for different storefronts and vendors.  They even had many fundraising activities and games for kids. I was at this point a bit disappointed we ate so much at the boat.  There was all kinds of great food to try, but we were all too full!

The forecast for crossing is not looking great. We either need to go on Thursday or may have to wait until Monday.

Small Craft Advisory, Day 5

The first lesson in boating is safety, the second lesson is safety and the third..... well you get the point.  Boating really is about safety first and fun only after you ensure you are having fun safely.  I learned a great lesson on Day 5 of our trip, make sure that you check the forecast for wave heights BEFORE you leave to your next destination. 

We were scheduled to leave to go to Elk Rapids, where a slip reservation was awaiting.  It was windy in the morning and we knew the waves would be building and thought we would be ok if we left early enough.  And needless to say, we were ok, but WOW, did I gain more respect for this lake.  When leaving Suttons Bay I checked out the wave forecast on my phone and saw that the Grand Traverse Bay was under a small craft advisory, with 4-6 foot waves.  Paul assured me that there was no need to worry, as the waves would be at our back once we rounded the center.  I thought, how bad could they be after all, we were in the bay not in the middle of the lake, and we have hit some pretty bad waves on Lake Winnebago (our home lake) so I felt we could handle it.  Well, in the end we were able to handle it, thanks to Paul's patience and skill driving the boat, but oh man I will say I was praying along the way.  Once we reached Elk Rapids and was comfortably in our slip, Paul learned from the Harbormaster that they were watching us come in to the harbor through binoculars.  They said that at some points while coming in the hull of our boat was at a 45 degree angle, and that they were surprised to "see the captain smiling."   All, I can say to that is ugh!!!

Once situated we walked around the town and stopped for lunch at the Liquor Club, which actually does serve food.  It was a fairly interesting place with an old fashioned bowling game. Throughout our walk around town Peyton was taking pictures with his camera (thank you Grandma and Grandpa) and I let Pierce take pictures with mine.  The shot to the left is from Pierce.  Once we were back to the boat we took a look at all the kids pictures and they are actually pretty good and interesting.  Their perspective definitely gives you appreciation for what they see.  We continued our trek through downtown just to check it out and then went back to the boat.   The day was exceptionally windy and cool, so we took the opportunity to do some laundry, clean the boat and just hang out.   Paul took the boys fishing and made some very interesting catches. 

For dinner we grilled out and enjoyed a beautiful sunset.  Tomorrow is scheduled to be less windy.... thank you Jesus!

Suttons Bay, Day 4

After getting our friends in Frankfort situated it was time to move on to Suttons Bay. We had a brisk south wind which created a nice following sea and was able to run at a good rate even though it was a bit rough out. We ran very close to sleeping bear dunes national park and Susan was able to get some nice pictures.

Point Betsy light house

Once we turned the corner after the sleeping bear dunes things flattened out. It was beautiful! We were able to take many pictures while running and passed many boats through this area before reaching Grand Traverse Bay.

This was the Yacht Tresor that parked behind us the night before



The trail on Sleeping Bear Dunes (look closely you can see people)

We headed south into the bay and were expecting some rough water considering we had south winds at the start of the day, but everything was great. There is nothing like the water up here. We just love it! As soon as we got situated in the bay it took everything we had in keeping Peyton from just jumping in right away. I wanted to get the dingy down so we could get to the ladder before anyone got off the boat.

This little gem of a town is great. The marina is a municipal with limited amenities. No pool or cable, but we did not miss that. We really did have a wonderful day swimming and playing on the beach. The only downside is the town is not very pedestrian friendly. It has no traffic controlled intersections and cars really zoom through. It is hard with little ones to get across the street. The other downer is the sunset is not the traditional Lake MI sunset were you watch the sun disappear into the lake. The bay is on the west shore so the trees and bluff block the sunset we have become accustomed to.


Our view of the beach from our slip

Picnic tables and grills

 

There was one thing we wanted to do while here, but did not due to spending so much time at the beach; this area is known for its wine. There are many wineries very near by. Oh well possibly next time. Tomorrow we move on to Elk Rapids. Looking forward to it, but forecast is for more wind tomorrow, however, we are fairly protected traversing throughout Grand Traverse Bay.

We had one other surprise here in Sutton's, Greg and Sue from our home dock were here and we shared stories in the evening of our trips past and present.