28 AUGUST 2021 ESCANABA, MI (On the Upper Peninsula aka The U.P.)
We’ve learned a lot since beginning our cruising journey on August 3 and
officially beginning America’s Great Loop on August 23 from Mackinac Island.
- “Island Time” occurs in many places including Mackinac Island, where we
enjoyed hundreds of live butterflies at The Butterfly House and thought we’d be
late to rent our own horse and carriage. But the message was, “No worries!
Everyone’s on Island Time.” Ahhh….it’s all about S.L.O.-ing down. We love it! - Boaters help each other! We’ve now docked in 10 marinas and we’ve had
help arriving and leaving each one. At first we were quite surprised when two
boaters nearby helped us load the boxes we’d shipped from home onto our boat.
Our new boating friend Reed explained with a shrug and a smile, “That’s what
boaters do!” And so it is! - There is more than one definition of “FETCH.” Lake Michigan is about 307
miles long and roughly 100 miles wide. The greater the distance the wind moves
across the water, the greater the “fetch.” When we crossed the northern part of
the Lake, from Beaver Island, MI to Washington Island, WI (85 miles), we had
quite the rock, roll and pitch adventure as the fetch from the south (having
crossed about 200 miles of lake water) met the fetch from the west (crossing
about 50 miles) creating what Michiganders call “the washing machine” effect.
We did fine and the boat is very seaworthy, but I think I’d rather play fetch with
our next door neighbor’s dog! - Always keep one hand for the boat! Even during smooth cruising (which has
been most of the time so far), a sudden roll or lurching can happen from a seen
or unseen boat’s wake. It can really toss you around. Fortunately there are sturdy
handholds and rails throughout the boat, inside and out. - Being thankful is an important practice. I am so grateful for Gary’s boating,
chart reading and other navigation skills, together with the way he is teaching me
to be the best “first mate” possible. I’m getting pretty good at working the lines
when we arrive and leave a dock as well as wielding the very heavy 50’ power
cord. I’m very grateful for my strong legs and arms! We are also extremely
grateful for the latest versions of our “Navionics” and “Boat Beacon” apps that
allow us to see other boats nearby plus every light, channel marker, underwater
rock and other hazards to avoid. We are also oh so grateful we have both air
conditioning (it’s been quite warm and humid) and autopilot. Some boats we
considered did not. This allows us to take turns at the helm, where one of us is
always on watch and the other can snooze a bit nearby. We are deeply grateful for each other and are happy to report we are dancing along very well together! Yay!
Tomorrow we’ll head down the Wisconsin and Illinois (west) side of Lake Michigan, with planned stops in Menominee (2 nights), Egg Harbor (1), SturgeonBay (2), Kewaunee, Manitowoc (2), Sheboygan, Port Washington (2), Milwaukee, Kenosha, Wi plus Waukegan and Chicago, IL (2). The S.L.O. dance continues!
Cruising with Gary & Annie 