From Beaver Island, we headed back across the lake to the eastern shore and Harbor Springs. This time the water was flat but the fog was pretty thick the entire trip. We haven't had siginficant fog since the trip up the coast of New Jersey to New York harbor in May. Luckily, the radar worked fine and there was little traffic, so the trip was uneventful.
Harbor Springs is one of the many "harbors of refuge" that the state of Michigan has built along the coast. There is usually a port every 25 to 30 miles or so along the coast, so if the weather turns bad you don't have to go very far before you can duck in off the lake. There were four other "Loopers" at the marina. We'll probably see these boats off and on down the rivers.
From Harbor Springs we continued south on to Charlevoix, another wonderful little town. When we stopped here in 2007, the marina was undergoing renovation. The town has done a great job with the waterfront. The marina is downtown with a lot of green areas to take the Boyz out for a walk. We arrived just in time for the farmers market which was about 100 yards away. The first afternoon we were the guest of John Winn and his wife at their lovely home on the lake. The Winn's had recently completed the loop and were very gracious in allowing us to see their home which included his boat house and collection of antique boats. (Mr. Winn is the president of the Four Winn boat company). The city has some unique houses which were designed by architect Earl Young in the early 1900's. They are called "mushroom houses" and when you see the pictures you will understand. From Charlevoix, we will continue down the east coast of Michigan (west coast of Lake Michigan) for the next week or so, working our way to arrive in Chicago a little after Labor Day.
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| The Mackinaw Bridge over the Mackinaw Straits connecting the Michigan mainland to the northern neck |
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| A farewell view of the Grand Hotel |
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| Mufasa is "locked on" with this duck |
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| Bonnie and Charlie Burke on SONATA arriving at Beaver Island |
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| In this photo, I am trying to show the clarity of the water. This is alongside the pier at Beaver Island in about 12-15 feet of water. No problem seeing the bottom. The clarity is partially an affect of the zebra mussel that has invaded Lake Michigan. Although the water is very clear, the drawback is that it is much more weed invested and the mussels eat the plankton that many smaller gamefish rely on for food substance. |
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| The Beaver Island Marina |
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| This ferry runs from Beaver Island to Charlevoix twice a day |
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| Another view of the marina from across the harbor |
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| An abandoned lighthouse on Beaver Island |
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| Looking out on Lake Michigan |
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| A native of the Island |
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| The Boyz do not appear to worried about the fog |
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| Morning fog leaving Harbor Springs |
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| The entrance breakwater to Charlevoix |
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| Charlevoix Municipal Marina |
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| Lovely lady with lovely flowers in the background |
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| The Winn's house as seen from our boat |
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| This is a Stephens wooden boat; very old and in magnificant condition |
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| Part of the Winn's collection |
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| More wonderful antique boats in this amazing boathouse |
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| Another classic |
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| Mr. Winn purchased this boat from Disney after it was used in a film about Mr. Magoo |
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| Looking at Charlevoix harbor from the Winn's house |
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| GREAT ESCAPE |
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| A butterfly sculpture outside the Charlevoix public library |
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| Two "Buds" among the flowers |
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| Although this was taken from land, this great American Flag can be used as a landmark to entering Charlevoix form the Lake |
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| One of the mushroom houses |
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| Another mushroom house |
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| Fellow Loopers, Joe and Pat Apicella from East Falmouth, MA |
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| Some of the houses in Charlevoix |
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| This dwelling was part of "Boulder Park" |
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| What a good looking dog !!! |
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| Overlooking the Charlevoix harbor from the marina office |
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| This group had just arrived and wanted to feed some of the local ducks |
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