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!
