Close-To-Home Cruising
Lake Michigan whitefish is a renowned dining
delicacy in this region. While in Traverse, we had
purchased from Burritt’s market two fresh pin-boned
fillets netted by Carlson Fisheries. Being a third-generation restaurant brat, I put the propane oven to
good use and served up an epicurean entrée of baked
whitefish accompanied by a chilled bottle of local
Château Chantal chardonnay. Life is good.
DAY V: RETURN TO CHARLEVOIX
Our wake-up call at daybreak was initiated by a flock
of honking Canadian geese that had commandeered
our nearly deserted anchorage. Geese fly at night, but
they do not fly in fog. You’d honk, too, if you were
grounded, and these feathered migrants were settled
in, waiting for the pea soup to burn off. But fog it
was—all day.
Fog can be daunting to mariners, but capable reliance
on GPS, radar, and local knowledge is rewarding. The
departure from Bowers Harbor through the passage
north of Marion Island was not too challenging, and we
were soon cautiously logging 6 knots northerly on the
open waters of West Bay. Little wind was evident; seas
were docile. The course plots to the Charlevoix pier
totaled approximately 33 nautical miles. It was not
complicated, and two navaids along the way provided
radar fixes.
We had purposely gotten under way at 0830.
Our plan was to arrive at the pier head at 1320; an
approximate five-hour transit would coincide our arrival
with one of the Beaver Island ferries bound for the 1330
bridge opening. Having programmed a route into our
Garmin 2010C GPS, I periodically adjusted our engine
rpm in order to be at a nearby offset waypoint at
precisely 1320.
As planned, at approximately 1300 a substantial radar
target appeared north of our position. I radioed Beaver
Island Ferry, and Emerald Isle replied. We confirmed our
respective radar positions. Visual contact with Emerald
Isle was established approximately 1/2 nautical mile
north of the pier head, and I queued up just aft of the
ferry, visually following her through the bridge opening
onto Round Lake.
While steaming on ahead to Lake Charlevoix, the
shroud of fog lifted. (The lake has its own microclimate,
in spite of its proximity to Lake Michigan.) We motored
the final 5 miles back to our harbor under clear skies—a
fitting ending to a fabulous close-to-home mini cruise.
