Grand Haven - Day 6

We woke up around 8:30 and decided it would be fun to have the kids try the waffles from the food truck in town.  So we made some coffee/chai and headed that way.

Seemed like everyone enjoyed the meal!  We walked back along the docks and ran into one of the boats (Grand Finale) that we docked near in South Haven.  

We really enjoyed the visit(s) to Saugatuck.  The marina is close to EVERYTHING but is tucked out of the way so the nights are quiet.  There’s lots of shops and ice cream and a variety of restaurants to choose from.  Plus those bathrooms are top notch.  I was really impressed.

We headed out around 10:30 am.  It takes appx 30 minutes to navigate the channel and meet the lighthouse.  Its a nice ride with lots to see along the way.  The winds were ESE and only 4 mph so the lake was like glass.  Its beautiful to see the Lake in all its forms… and reminds us of God’s power and creativity.  He is so good!

 

 

We cruised at 32 mph the entire way and pulled into Grand Haven at 11:58 am. We pulled into the slip around 12:30 pm.  

Its been a great trip.  We visited three new ports and enjoyed every minute of our time together!  Looking forward to coming back out with friends tomorrow!

Back to Saugatuck - Day 5

We were up around 8:30 am for another cereal breakfast.  We weren’t sure what to expect from the lake today given a north wind.  But because we knew the wind was only going to increase throughout the day so we wanted to get going earlier than usual.

We pulled out of the slip around 9:20 am and after passing the pier, headed North.  

To start, we faced 2-3’ waves but the timing was really sporadic so Scott steered us closer into shore and we were able to maintain 28 mph for the entire trip.  The further north we got, the smoother the ride became.

Honestly, I spilled my chai twice, but it was still a lovely ride up.  It was 11:30 am, when we pulled into Saugatuck and found slip 22 ready for us again!  It was a quick tie up to get settled in as this is our third visit this week.  

We decided to eat out for lunch so we left Coco behind and walked into town to find Earl’s Meats… an excellent BBQ / Smokehouse where we enjoyed our fill of pulled pork, brisket, and burnt ends.

We took it easy this afternoon.  Scott took some time to rest as he had some sinus pressure again today.  I did my quiet time on the back of the boat.  The kids did their own thing and spent some time playing a video game together.  

Jen took a cab up to Holland for an appointment this afternoon.  While I was gone, the family visited Kilwin’s once more for an afternoon treat.

Once I returned, it was time for supper so we decided to grill out and enjoyed eating our brats on the back of the boat.  

Scott and Jen took Coco a short walk on the boardwalk and relaxed on a bench for a bit.  Then came back to the boat for some TV time with Tyler.

Another, fabulous day today! 

St Joseph - Day 4

Check out was at 11:00 am so we decided to sleep in and have a bigger breakfast.  Sammy and I hit the locker room for showers while the boys started the bacon.  We wrapped up and pulled out of our slip just after 11:00!

Today’s forecast is just gorgeous.  Western winds at 6mph… Lake Michigan has 1’ chop at best.  We decided to take our time heading the 20 miles south and enjoy the ride.

It looks like the marina at St Joe is a bit far to walk to town so we’ll likely have to Uber.  We’ll plan to check out the shops and restaurants closer to supper so instead of heading in to the marina right away, we decided to anchor out in the lake for some time in the water!

We checked in to the West Basin Marina.  Slip 100 is the end of a dock so we are a side tie for easy off/on and have the entire 70 ft to ourselves.  The dock master was super helpful explaining the best places to visit and easiest ways to get around St Joe.  There is a train track that runs close by… its been lots of fun to watch the bridge swing as the trains go through and luckily, we cannot even hear the sounds from inside the boat!

Town is across the river from the marina so we called a man the dock master recommended to come and pick us up.  We had him bring us to a pizza place called Silver Beach Pizza which had come highly recommended and he was eager to repeat!  The pizza shop sits in and above the Amtrak station but has a really fun atmosphere.  There was about an hour wait for a table (on a Wednesday night!) so we ordered it to go.  While we waited, we checked out the compass fountain which was a huge splash pad area right down by the beach.  

The city of St Joseph sits up on a bluff overlooking the lake.  The fountain, pizza place and Amtrak station are all down by the beach.  So once the pizzas were ready, we climbed like 100 steps to get up on the bluff where we found a quiet shaded picnic table to enjoy our meal with an amazing view.

After dinner, we walked down State Street and enjoyed yet another stop at Kilwin’s.  Then we walked down to a park by the channel and took a slow walk back to the beach.  Once more we climbed the 100 stairs and waited for Mike to pick us back up.

Coco was glad to see us when we got home!  We settled in for the night.  Tyler and I watched a show while Sammy and Scott cleaned up the dishes.

It was a wonderful day… but we are sure to sleep well!

South Haven - Day 3

Given the weather situation yesterday and the forecast for easier seas this morning, we decided to set the alarm clocks and enjoy a quick cereal breakfast.  Once we gassed up / pumped out with the dock master we left the harbor around 10 am.

The lake was much more comfortable today.  Still 3’ swells from the north but the timing and direction of the waves made for a comfortable ride.  

We pulled into the South Haven Channel around 11:30 am.  

The municipal marina here is lovely.  Close to all the amenities of town, bikes to use, a nice lounge area and a great view of the channel / harbor.  We backed into slip 9 and headed into town to explore a bit and find some lunch. 

After a quick walk around town to scope out all of our options for an afternoon treat, we decided to eat at the Black River Tavern (came recommended from a friend).  We ended up using the patio seating on the front sidewalk as Coco was with us, which ended up being a lot of fun to people watch and enjoy the view of the channel from the hill.

After lunch, we headed back to the boat for some rest time.  Scott’s had some sinus pressure all day so it was good for him to have some down time.  The internet connections in Saugatuck were spotty at best so Tyler was eager to catch up on some YouTube videos while Sammy continued writing her script.  

We ordered pizza for supper so Scott walked up the hill to pick it up.  Then we took a walk into town for ice cream.  Instead of Kilwin’s three days in a row, we opted to change it up with some Dairy Queen instead.

Then we extended our walk out onto the pier to the lighthouse.

The rest of the evening, we just relaxed in our slip. 

I was pretty tired from a big day and decided watched a movie in bed (well almost, I didn’t even make it halfway).  I did wake up in time to catch a picture of the beautiful evening sky.

 

Change of Plans - Day 2

 It was a quiet morning in Saugatuck.  Many of the shops were closed, I assume because of the weather forecast.  So, Scott and I took a walk to check out a breakfast option that caught his eye yesterday.  A small trailer / food truck in a very small corner park.  “Coffee and Waffles” is all they advertised… so of course Scott was eager to visit.

By the time we got back to the boat, the kids were up and almost finished with their cereal.  We finished a movie from last night and then Sammy and I headed to the showers.  Seriously, the best shower facilities I’ve seen at a marina.  It was excellent!

The weather is not looking good with a storm moving through late morning.  Plus southern winds have been increasing the wave size all day.  The forecast says that later in the afternoon, the wind will shift to the north which should knock down the waves by tomorrow morning.  So we decided to leave as late as possible and see what the lake looked like.  Check out was noon, so we made our exit around 11:50 am.  

 

 

OK.  So the pics don’t do it justice but the national weather service reported 4-6’ waves, and it was all of that.  We spent about 20-25 mins on the lake… adjusting speed and direction to see if we could find a good rhythm to make the trip south, but we just couldn’t get the timing down to handle the swells.  It was a really rough ride.  

We went back to Saugatuck into a small harbor just at the start of the channel.  (Note, the trip back was much better because we were riding with the waves). We anchored there in the harbor for a bit over an hour, hoping to wait out the shift in the wind.  As we waited we had a charcuterie for lunch and enjoyed watching the other boats head out and then turn around at the pier head. 

The National Weather Service updated that another storm is possible this afternoon and that the winds won’t shift til late afternoon to calm those waves overnight.  Tomorrow morning’s forecast looks much better with 1-2’ waves and sun. So its back to Saugatuck for another night. 

Kyle, the Dockmaster at Sergeant’s Marina put us in slip 22 which is privately owned.  Its the only slip in the marina that has a dock on both sides making tying off much easier.  

Ours is a great spot and we are super comfortable for another night here.  I reached out to the harbor master at South Haven as well to bump our reservation a day.  We’ll likely continue with our plan but skip the night in Michigan City.  More on that as we go!

We got tied up and Scott had just turned off the key when Tyler mentioned having a hankering for some Kilwin’s ice cream again.  We all agreed and took the walk up to town for a late afternoon treat. We spent the afternoon relaxing onboard and had tacos for supper.  Tyler finished a book, Sammy worked on her script and Scott and I just relaxed with the dog.  

The temps have dropped to the low 70s making it very comfortable!  So we headed out for another walk to explore.  We stopped back at our breakfast spot to try the grilled cheese sandwiches and tots.  While we waited for our meal (Er.. snack?) Scott and Sammy played some beanbags.  It was a fun way to spend the evening.  

 

Once back onboard, we relaxed til bedtime.  Scott and I sat on the back of the boat til dark.  I had forgotten how calming it can be to sit in the marina and listen to the water lap on the side of the boat.  Although our plans changed, its been a very relaxing and enjoyable trip so far! 

SIDE STORY:

While we were out today on Lake Michigan in the rough seas, there was a very loud noise overhead.  It sounded like something rolling around on the roof of the boat.  It was very concerning so I climbed up to inspect and everything looked in tact.  We tried everything to identify the source of the noise and finally gave up.  Fast forward to mid-afternoon, sitting in the slip in Saugatuck, Scott opens the sun roof to investigate further… only to find a Philips Screw Driver wedged in the gap as the top rolls backward.  Who knows how long that’s been in there.  Hehe.  So glad to solve the mystery!