March/April 2008
  Too dang cold and snowy for anything related to boating . . .

May 2008
  A very cold and miserable spring so far. The usual bottom touch-up and some varnish repair has begun on the brightwork. Cover off and boat splashed on the last weekend in May - considerably later than last year but who would want to go cruising in this? It's good to be floating. We are hoping June will bring some summer heat to warm the water and provide some pleasant sailing soon.

June 2008
  More varnish on the brightwork. The weather has been pretty ugly so very little boating. It's the coldest and most miserable June we remember for quite a spell. But a silver lining - we received a lot of rain which brought the level of Lake Superior up to near normal levels - it was over 18" low last year.
  The Army Corps of Engineers has both our channel and harbor scheduled for dredging this summer as well, so no more bumping bottom soon we hope. Sailed west to Knife River Marina for a weekend to visit Janet's sister and watch the Grandma's Marathon race along the north shore.

July 2008
  Finally some warm weather! We've had a few good weekend trips out and the guests keep on coming. There have been some strong winds and storms this month and lots of sand blowing around. We met Roger and Glenis from Stratfordshire, England who came all the way to Cornucopia to buy a boat. They told us their tale of hitting a dock so hard that they moved the coast of Wisconsin and they have a dent in their steel hull to prove it.
  The Forth of July celebration was great as usual with a couple of nights at anchor mixed in.
  In mid-July Jesse (Jake's brother) and Akiko from New York City came to Minnesota for their wedding and joined us along with Liz and Jake for a weekend. A 50+ knot westerly blew a very stong seiche into the harbor - barely a foot from flooding the marina. We went out the next day and the engine died in the channel in 20+ knots across the bow - fire drill ! We limped out and got the sails up - managed to have great sail and got the engine problem fixed, but then we proceeded to get blown away by a big gust right as we were turning into the slip on return. Another fire drill - it was our day to be the harbor entertainment.
  We're preparing for another fast-approaching two-week cruise in August. Made a folding screen door for the companionway - to match the main folding door - a nice improvement in air circulation.

August 2008
  Here we go on vacation - again heading to Isle Royale and where ever the wind blows us. Saturday morning we installed the Monitor self-steering wind vane after it sat in our storage shed for several years. Early afternoon departure and we don't get to try the Monitor - once again we motor for 20 hours at 053 degrees. A technical glitch prevented us from using our GPS with our Mac laptop software. During the middle of the night the lake was so smooth - like a sheet of glass, that the stars reflections looked as if they were performing an underwater ballet. Some spectacular meteors entertained during the long night crossing as well as a fireworks display at Grand Marais. Arrived at Grace Harbor just after sunrise and the anchor was down around 9:00 a.m. After a brief recovery and a shot of tequila, we checked in at Windigo in Washington Harbor. The outboard started after sitting unused since last year.
  We awoke to the calmest anchorage we can remember, no wind, no animal noises, nothing. We headed for Malone Island the next day. We tested and named "George" the wind vane. It got the best of us at first but eventually we figured it out and managed a bit of hands-free sailing. Sailed to Siskiwit Bay's west end and back to Crow Point where Janet guided us through Wright Is. passage. Malone Island was serene again - this time we were alone and there was no fog. While exploring Ross & Hat islands in the dinghy, we found a blueberry motherload in a rocky meadow within 75 feet of shore on the main island. Mmmm. Very peaceful anchorage. We both noticed the lack of boat traffic. Janet broke the coffee pot in the morning - this will put a crimp in the vacation.
  On to Chippewa Harbor for a night and in the absence of last year's heavy fog we could see the entrance this time. We were alone in our favorite CH cove on the east end of the inner harbor - the island is surprisingly vacant of humans. Janet found a lure in the creek and tried to catch a Northern Pike with her bare hands. Milton the begging seagull joined us for the evening. The mosquito netting we made to cover the bimini and dodger made for a grand evening in the cockpit while laughing at the buzzing outside.
  We waived our planned hike in lieu of a sail to Passage Island - a new exploration for us. This beautiful protected anchorage/bay is difficult to enter but worth the effort provided the wind is not strong from the south or west. There is a rock shoal directly outside the entry so you have to hug the island's rocky shoreline until you are perpendicular to the narrow entrance to the channel, then swing hard to port. Inside the entrance channel there is a sloping solid rock shore which continues underwater reaching out for your hull on both sides, very close together. Once inside, the harbor is completely protected from all directions and deep with a shoreline that varies from rock cliff faces to lowland. The rock cliffs in one area look eerily like many huge sculptured faces. The only place to anchor is at the opposite end from the entrance due to depth and holding ground. The bottom comes up very quickly, we found out, as you near the back of the harbor - we put a keel-shaped dent in the sand. We reset the anchor several times to get a spot where our stern wasn't dangerously close to the rather rocky bottom. A storm with a spectacular cloud blew in which swung us a full 360 degrees in 15 minutes with 30-40 knot gusts. We settled in and along with eagles and ducks, we watched a family of beavers eating, talking and adding to their nest next to shore. We both saw a large mystery animal head into the woods from shore - Moose on Passage Island ? We don't know. The next morning we dinghied to the abandoned boat house owned by the Coast Guard. It is off limits to docking. We hiked to the lighthouse where you can watch the freighters pass between Passage Is. and Isle Royale. The lighthouse was built beautifully and skillfully in 1881 and has a wooden helicopter landing pad which is probably now used in lieu of the boathouse at the edge of our harbor. We changed places with another sailboat that arrived an hour or so before we got underway. We love Passage Island and will definitely return someday soon.
Once out on the lake we stood by waiting for a Canadian freighter to pass through the gap.
  We sailed to Duncan Narrows and crept through the entrance with a trailing wind, another one of Isle Royale's tricky entrances. We anchored in a lagoon off the main bay and watched numerous moose coming down to the water for a drink. Milton the beggar-seagull is back. Again this evening we imagined ourselves as the African Queen with the mosquito netting protecting us. While we were charging our batteries, a ranger stopped in and checked our permits. Later we dinghied to the other side if the bay and went for hike over the steep (glad we weren't carrying a canoe) portage trail. A tree fell in our path while we were on the other side. Good luck? Bad luck? We got the mosquito net down just in time to be hit by another brewing thunderstorm with a 180 degree wind shift. Changed the fuel filter for tomorrow's crossing to Copper Harbor and next week's planned extended motoring in the Keweenaw waterway. Rain and wind overnight with such darkness that we could not tell which direction we were facing with the shore only a hundred feet away.
  A strong northeaster was blowing right down the channel the next morning as we struggled through Duncan Narrows and out on to the open lake. Once we were able to clear Isle Royale and turn toward Copper Harbor the motion settled a bit with seas just aft of the port beam. But once away from the lee of Passage Island the seas continued to build and we buried the bow several times. We had too much sail up but didn't want to go on deck to reef the main and hoist the staysail. We watched a couple of very large steep waves tops break over themselves in deep water and a 45 foot power cruiser launching itself nearly completely airborne over each wave as they tried to go out fishing or heading somewhere - they gave up and headed toward Rock Harbor. We were now in long underwear and heavy jackets as the temperature had dropped considerably. NOAA predicted tomorrow's wind was to shift to the north so we opted to wait this one out rather than spend the next 10 hours getting beat up.
  We turned to starboard surfing downwind on waves at eight to nine knots and 22 miles later we dropped the hook again in Chippewa Harbor. Discovered a mystery stainless steel nut on deck and some torn reinforcement tape on the top of the genny. Decided it was nothing serious on the sail after staring with binoculars for a while and we tracked down the nut's origin.
  Sunday we left Chippewa Harbor with the weather forecast still predicting 15-20 knots northerly, perfect for our south bound trip. Again in long underwear, heavy layers and foulies, we battened everything down - we were ready for anything. But the wind didn't cooperate - it remained NE and became very light. There were some swells remaining so we hoisted sails just to help steady the boat and motorsailed. Eight relatively uneventful hours later we were tied to the dock in Copper Harbor, Michigan state marina. Cleaned ourselves, the boat and walked the half-mile to town for dinner. Copper Harbor has several restaurants and is an active little town.
  Next day we motored and sailed 12 miles west along the coast to Eagle Harbor, a tiny town with a lighthouse and a state-run marina with no services or amenities. The entrance to the harbor is hazardous with a pair of rock-pile cribs 100 feet apart on both sides and range markers to guide you in. But it was a very pleasant spot to tie up and FREE. We dinghied to town but alas, the only general store had closed a year before - no bread for us. By evening the entire seawall/dock was nearly filled up. Chatted with a professor from Mich Tech - we have concluded that the most prevalent occupation among sailor on Lake Superior is teaching or school related - summers off makes it practical we guess.
  Left the next morning for Houghton where we saw a very strange temple on the shore with gold cupolas seemingly in the middle of nowhere. We have since learned it is a monastery. We shared the Keweenaw Waterway with some hot-rod boats with high-tech sails arriving from Thunder Bay, participants in the "International Race". Janet imagined herself as Mark Twain while she piloted us down the waterway and under the Houghton lift bridge. We fueled up and took a slip at the Houghton County Marina in Hancock. Vicki & Loren who we had met a week earlier in Corny joined us for dinner at the Library restaurant and brewery. Dave bought 3 growlers for the kids back home.
  Up early, under the bridge, and out through the mist blanketed canal, we motored the whole way to Ontonagan where several eagles flew overhead while we called the bridge several times for a lift, only to find the bridge had been removed two years earlier. Took a slip and a rest. The marina feels a bit industrial and is next to a paper/pulp mill that runs 24 hours a day but it is well cared for and clean including the restrooms/showers. It is a bit noisy but not noticable down below. We dinghied across the river for supplies and a walk through town. Ontonagan is a large enough town to get most anything you want. Met Dave & Irene who have sailed twice from Lake Superior to the Bahamas. Quiet night . . .
  Off to Black River Harbor, the most westerly harbor in Michigan, in very light conditions - motoring again. With more calm conditions forecast for tomorrow we made the decision to skip Black River Harbor and continue on. It had been many years since our last visit to Madeline Island so we decided as long as we were frequenting marinas to spend a night there adding another 25 miles and a minor course change. The wind began to build from the NE 15 then into the 20s and before long we were surfing on the seas at over eight knots. With seas on the starboard quarter we set George and didn't touch the wheel all day. It was a blast and a great fast sail. This is what we will remember in February when we are frozen-in and sick of winter.
  We arrived at Madeline Island Marina around 6 pm and after dinner we walked into La Pointe to the famous Tom's Burned Down Bar & Cafe. Here is a description I found of Tom's. . . . No serious tourist should be able to sleep at night till they have drunk in the BEAUTY of Tom’s Burned Down, Blown Down, Grudge Mongered, Train Wrecked, Froze Out, Insurance Challenged, Foreclosed, Zoning Challenged, Highway Encroached, Bankrupted, Financially Examined, Shut Down, Banned in LaPointe, Third World, Trucked In, Up next to the Wormhole, Beyond Thunderdome, Death Row, Duct Taped, Water World, Tree Fort, Pirate House, Pan Handled, Lost & Found, Noise Rattled, Noise Ordained, Ferry Grudged, Tent Shredded, Anti – “MADELINE ISLAND FERRY LAND”, Phoenix CAFE’ of Love . . . whew!
  We toasted our very dear friend Steve Matthews who died way too young of a heart attack last year. He spoke frequently of Tom's and we had to stop in again on Steve's behalf. Tonight we watched the counter-culture crowd in action as this was the birthday celebration for Winona LaDuke, Ralph Nader's former V.P. running mate.
  Vacation is winding down but we are not winding up - sailing along at only 2.7 knots toward Oak Island, we are relaxed and happy. The Apostle Island anchorages are getting very crowded compared to when we started coming here. Anchored on the NE side of Oak Island where we used to be the only boat, there were 11 boats by sunset and more arrived after dark. Every time we have come to the islands in the past several years, we have experienced the same increase in traffic. 28 boats here 40+ boats there. It feels like the crowded areas in the Caribbean. But the islands are still beautiful and uninhabited. So we just have to find more remote and less used areas. After a refreshing dip, a great dinner and star gazing we turned in - Janet spent the first half of the night snoozing in the cockpit.
  We departed for home port from a slightly rolling anchorage with a building west wind. Knowing that the waves would be considerably larger once exposed to the 60 mile fetch from the west end, we stopped behind York Island to hoist and deflate the dinghy - a good choice. Back in port mid afternoon . . . it was an excellent vacation - maybe we'll make it three weeks next year.
  We had a couple more outings in August to the islands for overnight anchorages.

September 2008
  Enjoyed a couple of late season sails and anchorages, but the summer is fading. My brothers, Mike and Dan spent a weekend onboard and out for a day. Haulout and winterizing came early after a great but too short summer.
  Drilled a hole in the side of the keel at the floor level for a garboard plug. No more worries about freezing water in the bilge.

Next year - 2009