Friendly Frankfort

We spent a couple for days in Frankfort hanging around with our new cruising buddies MV His Idea ( Her Command.) John and Ria are doing the loop in a 34 foot PDQ , a very nice boat!

John and Ria

The weather has been strange... last year we were here it was HOT and this year it is rather coolish and therefore there are not as many people in the streets or on the beaches.


Frankfort from the South Shore

An old ironworks

Names carved in the boardwalk



Overcast but still beautiful

Frankfort is however, one of my favourite stops on Lake Michigan. They have free wifi that reaches all the way to the boat at anchor. This might not sound like a big deal to others but to have access to the internet to check weather and mail and update blogs is priceless! The town also boasts a famous Moomers Ice-cream parlour called Scoops. We have been encouraged by one of our friends in particular to sample this wonderful treat, once voted the best ice-cream in the USA!

This one is for you Ralph!!

In the evenings and early mornings the anchorage is a little rocky-rolley from all the fishing boats that come and go at those times. Betsie Lake is a no-wake zone but if there is no one to see you , why should you obey the rules hey??  So we get woken up early by the boats as they go past us but what can you do?

Today we waited out some high winds but going for a walk on the beach and a nice stroll though town. It is always fun to explore places and it is so much more fun to do it with friends.

Last night we got hit by a major storm, winds in excess of 80mph screamed through the anchorage , straight in from the west. We had little protection and got dragged 200 feet before our anchor reset itself and when we finally fetched up we had moved about 300 feet from our original anchored spot.
As soon as the storm passed things calmed down so we went to bed and then we heard a strange thumping on the hull. We had moved next to a mooring ball and it was hitting us on the side. So we got up again and re anchored and by the time we finally got back to bed it was time for the fishing boats to start heading out into the lake so we got rocked some more...Doesn't boating sound like fun??.

Strange thing. Josie was acting very weirdly during the night, more weird than usual. I am sure she can sense bad weather. I know this sounds a little far fetched but we have noticed if she is acting foolish, running around and making those cat chirping sounds that usually means a storm or high winds are going to hit us. I am going to make a point of paying more attention to her behaviour and see if there is any pattern to notice.. Does this now officially make me a weird cat lady??

The next few days are looking very good for doing some major travelling on the Lake. Tomorrow night we will stop somewhere just to over night and on Friday we hope to make it all the way to Grand Haven. It is a long way to go but unless the forecast changes ( it is always a possibility) we should have no problem getting there. Alas, Grand Haven does not have city wide free wifi so I will have to find a place to get connected to update the blog.


..............to be continued

Lake Michigan Part 2

When the weather controls your life! or Where are the O’Flannigans?

So we got stuck in Charlevoix a little longer than we thought we would be.

We tried to leave twice and each time my big eyes and white knuckles made Gary turn the boat around back to the anchorage. As I always say:” if it isn’t a pleasure, I ain’t boating ,cause I am a PLEASURE BOATER!!”



I call Gary The Duck Whisperer.



A wreck of an old schooner , the water is so clear Gary took this picture from our flybridge



Both morning we tried to leave and had to turn back , we left very early. As you
can see some of us were not amused

One of the mornings we tried leaving. The sun is just coming up but when we got to
the end of the break wall the waves were too nasty, so we turned around and went back to bed.

 The weather has been the pits. And if anyone of you who reads this knows a weather forecaster, please go and give him/her a swift kick in the a$$ from me. Do these people actually know what they are doing??

The last time we tried leaving the seas were forecasted to be 1 foot or less, when we got out there they were a good 4-6 feet!

So we made the most of the situation and spent some time doing laundry and shopping for groceries in town before settling in at anchor to wait for a good weather day.

On Sunday our friends Jim and Ann (MV Wild Goose) Gold Loopers, who are currently doing some land travelling in the camper, came for a visit. We showed them around Charlevoix a little and went for a walk on the beach to look for Petoskey rocks.

The lovely Miss Ann, a true Southern Belle

Waving bye-bye as we leave Charlevoix

There we go...

Petoskey Rocks dry (unpolished)

Petoskey Rocks wet ( and guess who is going to have to spend hours polishing
rocks with sandpaper to get them to stay that way??!!)

 

Sidenote: Petoskey Rocks are actually fossilized coral. It has a unique honeycomb pattern and is found on the shores of Lake Michigan and Lake Huron. It is the official rock of Michigan. Last year I looked everywhere and couldn’t find any, this year I was luckier.

ANYHOW, as we are walking on the beach we looked out at the lake and it was getting calmer and calmer ( the forecast called for 3-4 foot waves) And after making sure it was ok with Jim and Ann ( they are boaters and know the value of a good weather window) we set out for the long trip to Frankfort.

 

We got in our dingy, rushed back to the anchorage, lifted the dingy on to the boat and off we went. The seas were never higher than a foot.

Sleeping Bear Sand Dunes

Sun setting over Lake Michigan



Point Betsie lighthouse

Feelin blue?

With our doggy bags in hand after an excellent
 lunch at Dingys in Frankfort

Frankfort Lighthouse

Lake Michigan sand dunes - Frankfort

Starboard marker entrance into Frankfort

Oh how we miss them ....

 

Seven and a half hours later we arrived in Frankfort in the dark. It was a great travelling day and we are so glad we took that opportunity to go. After a good night sleep we took care of some business in town and met up with Jim and Ann again. This time we were able to go to lunch and spend a good few hours together before saying goodbye again.

Josie and a swan checking each other out.

 

 

To be continued……………..

Lake Michigan Part 1 - Never a dull moment.....and a hobbitt or two.

Never a dull moment....and a hobbit or two.

So the last time I posted an update we were sitting at Drummond Yacht Haven using their wifi, just after clearing customs. ( I noticed from your comments we are not alone in our customs woes)

We headed out to a nice little anchorage just outside the marina and while we were dropping the anchor Gary asked me if I heard a weird noise from the engines……of course I didn’t. Sad but true, as soon as we got securely anchored, Gary checked and there it was….a busted waterpump.

Now, if any of you are loyal followers of this blog, you might remember reading that we have had a problem with a water pump not a mere 6 months ago. And, as Gary tells me, they do wear and tear and need replacing from time to time but 6 months is way too soon to pack it up! So we contacted the company who we got it from and they said we had to return it and if it falls under warranty it will be rebuilt and returned to us…..This is all very easy if you are on a boat anchored in the middle of nowhere!!!!!!!

Fortunately we had a spare so Gary replaced it and we are good to go.

The trip to St Ignas was lovely. The waters of Lake Huron were smooth and calm till we hit Mackinaw Island.
 

Smooth waters of Lake Huron in the early morning

 The straits of Mackinaw is a notoriously bad piece of water, we took one look at it and decided to rather anchor off St Ignas for the night, nice and protected from the waves and winds on Lake Michigan.The next day the weather forecast was so-so but if we didn’t move we would be stuck there for more than a week, so we moved. The straits were ok but as soon as we turned south to head down Lake Michigan we knew we were in for a rough ride. The waves were hitting us on our bow and some of them rocked us really good, for about a 1/3 of the trip we were able to use Autopilot but then Gary had to steer through the rough waters. Even though it was bad, we had been in worse ….all I could think was that at least it was only a 4 hour trip and not a 30 hour one.

Sun trying to peak through



Mackinaw Bridge in the back as the sun rises on a windy day

Charlevoix Light house

Charlevoix - mini Fort Lauderdale

Charlevoix canal and across the street is the famous
Weathervane Restaurant also designed by Earl Young (see below)

A very smart young man selling hotdogs to boaters in Round Lake

At last we arrived in Charlevoix -which the Canadians pronounce with a “wa” sound at the end and the Americans pronounce with a “voy” sound at the end. We anchored in Oyster Bay waiting for a good weather day to head further south.

 

As the weather gave us an extra day in Charlevoix we decided to check out the town. I am so glad we did. We were lucky to be here for the farmers market, so we stocked up on fresh fruit and veggies. We had a delicious burger at Roquette Burger Bistro, we walked Park Avenue and checked out the Earl Young houses and on the way back to our anchorage took a detour behind the Coast guard station and found a lovely little brook , deep enough for  a great dingy ride.

Mommy and Jacob watching the duckies

 



A nasty storm blew through , look closely you will see the little sailboat dragging
it's anchor - Oyster Bay ( Gary just told me it is a 37 Foot sailboat doing the Danforth Suffle not
a small boat by any means)



 

 

Scenes from a beach

 

 

This plaque caught my attention. It mentioned that a
Magdalena  Beers bought the house in 1869 - won't mean
anything to most of you but my family might get a kick out of it.
 

 

Designed by Earl Young -
beginning in the late 1930s to the 1950s he built and redesigned houses
His designs are often refer to as Mushroom house or Hobbit houses 

 

308 Park Avenue, called “Betide” by Young, was built in 1943.
 It is three times larger than it look.
 

 

 

A little hobbit picking some wild black berries and eating them too!!

 

The “Mushroom House,” is the most photographed residence in Charlevoix. 
It is considered to be Young’s most beautiful home, built in 1951 and 1952. 
Some of the walls are three feet thick. 
The leaded pane windows are originally from a Polish castle,
then a lumber baron’s mansion that was demolished. 
The rooms are so irregular that an exact square footage has never been determined. 

 

The rock walls around some of the properties

 

Game of Rock Throne?

 

A "new" Earl Young house built on the banks of Round Lake in Charlevoix

 

We were fortunate to hit Charlevoix on Farmers market day
This area is well know for their cherries. Delicious!!!

 



Gary went for a snorkel in Oyster Bay on an old schooner shipwreck about a
100 feet in length
It is clearly marked on the charts and well worth checking out..
Afterwards he coaxed the ducks into eating out of his hand

So tomorrow we hope to hit the road again and see how far we can make it this time. We are aiming for Frankfort but if the weather turns sour we will head into an anchorage in North Port. Keep your fingers crossed for smooth seas and calm winds.

I appreciate you reading this, but just for your information: I have noticed some spammers leaving comments on the blog. I or Gary, in no way use this blog to advertise or sell anything. I do it for my own pleasure and for some of you out there that might get a kick of reading about our woes, laughs and life. Thank you for all your comments, it means so much to us, everytime I read onw I am again surprised that someone out there is actually reading what I write. I am honoured and flattered.

Christelle

 

 

.................to be continued