BAR-B-Q Adventures

 8/23 & 8/24  Sault Ste. Marie to Whitefish State Harbor. Traveled 43 miles to this Harbor, which has no  services but a free dock.  What we did find ,1 mile down the road, was the Whitefish Point Lighthouse. They had multiple buildings housing Lighthouse keepers and their families and an early Coast Guard Museum. It was nice to see people come out to enjoy a nice sunny day. We walked back to our boat via the beach which was a very long afternoon. Found some sea  glass, interesting rocks, and drift wood washed up on the beach. I wasn't allowed to use my metal detector.                                  The recovered bell from the wreak The next morning after leaving this somewhat deserted harbor we traveled to the spot where the Edmund Fitzgerald sank. They say there was to be a marker there but was long gone. With some navigation skills, John and I passed over the spot wher...

                                                 Valley Camp Ship & George Kemp Marina  Sault Ste Marie,8/21 & 8/22  We traveled 50 miles today from DeTour. Weather was excellent and water stayed calm all the way. Arriving at 3:30 pm we settled in and  walked to  Zorba's Greek restaurant, which is owned by the parents of our dock hand. Very tasty and different. Met a couple, Ned & Kathy from WI . They are just starting out on their journey leaving Lake Superior.  We toured the  Valley Camp Laker Museum,which had many interesting facts and photos of ships that traveled through here. One very interesting display was the Edmund Fitzgerald disaster of 1975. They recovered 2 lifeboats, 1 in half and 1 whole, along with 1 lifejacket. The Tower was our next stop. It featured life about the Indians who lived here and helped settle...

  Day 77  8/20/21   Mackinac Island to DeTour, MI.        Hello family,friends,fellow loopers,this is my first attempt at trying to inform everyone about our journey by water. It is a known fact (as my family will tell you), that I have little technical skills.  After fueling up and getting a pump out,we headed into this small Village to find the local bar. There are very nice people here but they are  short handed with staff. Everywhere we go the work atmosphere is very weak. Summer here is much warmer  then it should be as told by the locals.  

This is an update. I write this at Mackinac Island. We got lucky  and have a slip for a few nights here on the island. It also so happens that twelve other loopers are here at this marina.. This island has been a tourist destination for many years. No automobiles are allowed.  Horse, bicycle,  or foot power are the only options. Tourist arrive all day by ferry boats. Some stay overnight in the Grand Hotel or other inns or b&b's. They say the are more fudge shops here than any other place in the world.  So to update the blog I'll begin where I last wrote.. We left the crowds at Cedar Point and headed for the islands. Yes, there are islands in Lake Erie. Along the way we passed by River Ranger. We would meet them again in a few days. Put-In Bay was a place to see according  to all the locals we spoke to. It is filled with history, but it's also a big party time destination. The young Admiral Perry defeated the British Navy near here. A tall monument symbolize...

The lake was calm and our trip to Ashtabula was enjoyable. Hundreds of small fishing boats were on the lake. We bought fuel and anchored, one of the few boats to ever anchor in Ashtabula. We got up early to catch the 530am bridge opening. A parade of fishing boats mostly single file, led the way. We were at the end of the line. As soon as they passed the breakwall, they throttled  down and created huge wakes. We were happy to see them gone.                                          Our next stop was Cleveland.                                          Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Our marina was next to this iconic building. What a great spot to dock. We toured the Hall and a science hands on museum next door. It was a funfill day. Later, I took the dingy up the Cuyahoga, the rive...

  Black Rock Lock, say that three times, is an federal Army Corps of Engineers lock on the Niagara  River. Its only a five foot lift that bypasses the fast flowing river. This is our last lock until Chicago. BUFFALO LIGHT The lake this day was rolling. With Buffalo behind us, we entered our first Great Lake unprepared  for the conditions that we were about to experience.  All that time traveling across the Canal  in slack water made us complacent and we paid the price. At first we were rolling then we took a pounding. Loose gear went flying all over. Pans flew out of the oven. Instant pot went crashing. Nancy was pissed. I was disappointed that I didn't  ensure everything was stowed stowed before we left..Not a typo. Anything  that's  not secured in the cabin will become flying objects in pounding seas. Our destination was Dunkirk but our patience was long used up. I saw on our navigation system a duck in spot called  Cattaraugus Creek with ...

 I look where we are and wonder where the time went by.  Weeks went by since an update, as you all know. This could be the laziest blog writing on the net. After leaving Fairport, we followed a fun loving couple doing the loop on a sailboat without a mast. It was removed before they bought the boat. Their boat gets great fuel mileage. Mark and Cheryl leading the way to 15 Lift bridges and the final lock on the Erie Canal. Yes, Mark is driving with his feet and Cheryl is taking thousands of pictures. They have been doing this since they left the west coast of Florida. Liberte is the boat and "Just Us" is the dink they have been towing thousands of miles.                                             BAR-B-Q clearing one of many lift bridges Thanks Cheryl.  Lockport, NY  Final series of locks, in fact, the only double lock on the system. an enjoyable 50ft ri...