Petoskey and Lake Michigan

As we crossed under the "Might Mac", we

The Mighty Mac

went from Lake Huron to Lake Michigan. We have decided to go down the Michigan side of the Lake so our next stop after Mackinaw was Petoskey, MI. Steve read about the Petoskey stones in the guide book. A Petoskey stone is a rock and a fossil, often pebble-shaped, that is composed of a fossilized rugose coral. These stones were formed as a result of glacial activity where the stones were lifted from the bedrock and deposited along the northwestern (and some in the northeastern) portion of Michigan's lower peninsula. Steve went out in search of the stones. He found a beach near by and some kids were wading out into the water to get some, but he said he didn't need to find one that bad (the water is quite cool). The next day he went out and found some along the beach. He said the trick is to get out before

A sample of Petoskey Stones
I "borrowed" from the internet

the kids get to the beach. I think he plans to have one all polished up and maybe made into a piece of jewelry by the time we get to KY.

We stayed a couple of nights in Petoskey. We were invited to our first "Docktails" with fellow Loopers who were also staying in Petoskey. The people you meet on the Loop have such varied backgrounds. We met the crew of Bad Habit, The Lower Place, Tranquilo II, and another boat that I can't recall the name. Loopers find each other by the AGLCA flag flying on the front of the boat. It was great to share some food and drink (and tales) with these fellow Loopers, I guess we need to hang around the boat more often when we pull into a port. I only wished I would have collected cards from them.

Docktails or Docktales , you decide

We left Petoskey and headed for South Manitou Island, its protective little cove looked great for an anchorage. The cove was once a fuel dock for the steamships that traveled the Great Lakes. The cove at South Manitou was the only natural deep water harbor between Chicago and the Erie Canal. Cord wood was sold to the ship from the fuel dock. South Manitou has some old growth pines that are estimated to be over 500 years old. I guess it's a good thing the ships didn't burn pine.

Sandstone Cliffs of Western Michigan

We hauled anchor the next morning and headed to Ludington. The cliffs along this stretch of Michigan are very interesting, big sandstone cliffs and sand dunes. We had a great sailing day on the way to Ludington, the sails were out and full most of the day. Full sails are as great as anchoring out. When we were about an hour from the Ludington channel, We heard on the radio, "securite, securite, securite, Badger car ferry approaching the Ludington pass in one hour". We made it to the Ludington channel just ahead of the beast. It passed the marina entrance as we were tying up to our slip. I found a great ice cream shop in Ludington, House of Flavors. The marina area is really well maintained. A great little town.

Badger Car Ferry- Milwaukee to Ludington
Hauls RV's to Motorcycles across Lake Michigan

The maintenance dock. Flat steel plate on a metal truss
It looks like a saw when you are staring down this slip
trying to get in without damaging the boat.

The next day it was off to Muskegeon, MI. I have been to Muskegeon several years ago when I was in search of my first sailboat. We drove up from Bowling Green on an October weekend to look at a couple of boats at Torrenson Marine. It was early October it was really cold as the sales person patiently showed us a few boats. But then it snowed on us as we headed back home, maybe October is not the time to look at boats in Michigan. This time the weather was much better and the staff at Torrenson Marine was just as friendly. But the docks..... Well they told me, we really don't have anything, but we can put you in one of our maintenance slips if that's okay. Sure I said, how bad can it be. I made my way into the marina and through the phone instructions and looking on google maps, I knew exactly what slip I was heading for. I got the boat turned to head into the slip and a small panic set in. Facing me was a plate metal dock that looked like a razors edge designed to cut boat into. Thankfully I had honed my docking skills on slips that were much more boat friendly than this one. We are still floating, so my practice of trying to always get into the slip without having to use reverse paid off.

Next is South Haven, Michigan. We plan to spend a couple of nights there so we can explore a bit.

Lesson Learned; Always practice your skills, even on the easy docking situations, so when the dock may chew up your boat, you can slide it in without damage.