A Woman Has a Right to Change Her Mind

Monday:  We had a great {motor} from Beaver Island to Mackinaw City. It's always a thrill going under the bridge.  Also, looking up that mast at any stationary bridge, you have that little pea of doubt, (are we really going to make it??).  But of course, we did.  It's the perspective of looking up at it.  We arrived in Mackinaw City at the DNR docks.  New marina, really fantastic facility. You do have to push the button in the shower to get water every minute or so, which made me feel a little like I was in prison.  But still, lots of hot water.  They power the place with wind.  There weren't many boats, and it was quiet for the most part.  The sunset was one of the best I've seen, and the sunrise was beautiful too!

Tuesday:  Left Mackinaw City for Rogers City.  I had never been between Round Island and the mainland, or Bois Blanc Island and the mainland.  Really pretty.  {Motoring} once again because there was no wind.  I got some tanning in and some naps.  Ahh, the life of a cruiser with two cabin boys, can't be beat!  We arrived in Rogers City at 3:00 and Andy got fuel.  Very nice marina here also.  The staff was very helpful and very friendly.  We walked uptown to the Chinese-Thai restaurant and had a good meal.  Just enough walking to walk it off to get back to the boat.  Another quiet night.

Wednesday:  Left Rogers City for Alpena, and we finally got a chance to SAIL!!  It was beautiful.  Quiet.  Sunny.  Just the right amount of wind, if there is such a thing.

So, then I had a great idea:  Let's sail all the way to Port Sanilac!  No, not in a couple of days, TONIGHT!  Yes, overnight.  We were going to do this on Lake Michigan, but didn't get the opportunity.  AND it's on my bucket list!  Sail overnight on Lake Huron.

The guys said, OKAY, and off we went.  The wind was out of the south-southwest, so we had to tack out into the lake.  About 20 miles.  Then, it got rough.  Water over the bow.  When we tacked back, we hadn't made much forward progress.  So we decided if we were going to get anywhere, we had to {motor}.  Ugh.

Great sunset.  The moon came out.  It was glorious, but very rough.  Wind gusts up to 25K.  Lots of water over the bow.  And we've been having some problems with leaky windows.  Not serious, just need to replace some gaskets and things.  We took shifts napping, but I couldn't sleep much.  Lots of freighters.  On one of Andy's watches, he had the radar set to alarm if anything came into a zone right in front of us.  Then he happened to look behind the boat, and there was a ginormous freighter coming up from behind passing us!!  He woke me up to see that one.  Huge, lots of lights.  Pretty sight.

At 2:00 AM on Thursday we spotted the Port Austin light.  The sun came up as predicted, and by 9:00 am and 160 miles later, we were in a slip in my beloved Port Sanilac.  Same Harbormaster, Dave.  Such a nice guy.  We secured the boat, then marched up to Mary's Diner for breakfast.  Delicious as ever.  Back to the boat, in my jammies, and we all took a snooze.  Laundry, showers, dinner at Mary's, a walk around town, and a beautiful night.

Today, as the guys do some research into the halyard (which is another whole story in and of itself), and the windows, and other odds and ends they need to repair before they continue on, I can sit and ponder, and enjoy the silence and the peace.  So far we've traveled about 450 miles since leaving Muskegon.  I get off here, but not before a few more days of rest and relaxation!  I'll be posting some pictures!
Deb