WEARY AND WORN OUT

It was difficult finding a good weather window for leaving St.Joseph /Benton Harbor.  We spent 3 nights there. While there, 2 people were swept off the breakwater. One survived, one was never found. 8' waves that day. We finally picked a so so but doable day. We rocked and rolled to the Cal Sag canal 50miles with 2-4'waves. Then we had to go through a huge industrial area and one lock for 20 miles more. We stayed at Marine Services in Dolton...very quiet in the middle of nowhere.

Next morning we had a long day going through 2 locks, rain, and terrifying narrow passages with barges and tugs, especially through Lemont, IL. We pulled up to the fuel dock at Harborside Marina, Wilmington, in pouring rain and lots of current. We did hit the dock on the starboard stern, but no damage. We were only allowed to stay there one night, as it was their fuel dock.

As John was checking the engine, as he always does, he noticed the water pump to the engine was leaking. What to do ???? We worried all night, used some rescue tape and prayed a lot. We had the Dresden Lock to go through and 20 miles to go to our final destination. We made it!! Tomorrow the Cummins guy is coming to check the engine and fix the water pump.

We are storing KNOTUGAL in Seneca, Il . at SpringBrook Haarbor. It has heated indoor storage. It's a very nice, well run marina on the Illinois River. 

Last night Seneca was hit with torrential rain. They had the worst flash flooding in over 50 years. It washed out a nearby bridge and water was gushing all around us. Fortunately we are on a floating dock. We had no damage, but there was a lot of damage in the area.

We'll now leave the boat, drive to Brewerton,NY to pick up our car and drive back home. We'll come back to KNOTUGAL next Spring.

 My niece, Julie, and her hubby Bill Lictenberg came to see us in Seneca. 

BEAUTIFUL SUNSET IN BENTON 

HARBOR

 

PRECIOUS RUSTY DEALING WITH THE WILD RIDE

TO KEEP THE ASIAN CARP OUT OF LAKE MICHIGAN...VERY INVASIVE

                                      A BRIDGE OPERATOR TOOK THIS GREAT PICTURE

                  

                                               FINALLY, THE CHICAGO SKYLINE

PECKING OUR WAY SOUTH ON LAKE MICHIGAN

 Having to really watch our weather windows as we head down the lake. Our next stop after lovely Pentwater was Horrible Holland. We arrived mid afternoon on the 4th of July. As we entered the channel, we were faced with a hundred boats of all shapes and sizes coming out to the channel. Evidently it was an informal parade of boats. Needless to say, it was overwhelming after such a calm cruise down. We had to be on high alert as we entered the harbor. When we got to our marina, Eldean Shipyard, we both called and radioed them on the VHF. We got no answer. Next thing was to find their fuel dock for a much needed pump out. It was nowhere to be seen. I yelled to another boat as to where it might be. It was down a fairway, again, difficult to navigate with all the boat traffic. We finally made it to our slip after being sent to the wrong one the first time. I could go on and on. We had to spend 2 nights there, due to weather conditions.

We left there and had a rocky rolly trip to Benton Harbor, West Basin Marina. It is truly a delight being here. Very nice marina with all the amenities, clean, friendly and a fabulous area to walk Rusty. We will spend 3 nights here. The winds and waves for the next 2 days are going to be rough. We have a large open lake crossing to make to Chicago. For fun, John will replace our water pump today. The old one has been acting up for a couple weeks. Stay tuned.

FRANKFORT, LUDINGTON, PENTWATER MICHIGAN

LUDINGTON CAR FERRY EMERGING FROM DENSE FOG INTO THE HARBOR

YUP...BEACHES IN MICHIGAN

ME AND MY BOY ON HIS NIGHTLY WALK THROUGH THE TOWN

BEAUTIFUL MORNING TO HEAD OUT TO SEA

THIS IS THE MESS WE CRUISED IN FOR 2 DAYS,THANK HEAVEN FOR GOOD ELECTRONICS

Pentwater....great stop for a 4 day layover due to weather on 4th of July wknd.  Had laundry and groceries steps away. Adorable town with fun restaurants.

MILES OF GORGEOUS SAND BEACHES IN MICHIGAN...WHO KNEW???

THERE WERE 29 MUSHROOM HOUSES IN CHARLEVOIX...EACH ONE DIFFERENT

YUMMY PLANKED WHITE FISH

MY TREASURES FROM FARMERS MARKET IN PENTWATER

MACKINAW ISLAND TO CHARLEVOIX

 We spent 3 nights on Mackinaw...a fantastic destination that I would recommend to anyone!

Yesterday we left Mackinaw for Charlevoix. It took 6 hours, 5 of which were in dense fog on Lake Michigan.  It was horrific. We had no visibility. Thank Heaven for our great GPS electronics. It showed us the entire journey. That along with AIS and my marine traffic app, we arrived safely. Normally, we would not have been able to get a slip in Charlevoix. They book ahead 6 months,  but because of a rainy forecast, we got one due to cancelations.

                                                                  ARCH ROCK

                                                              MACKINAW FERRY

MACKINAW BRIDGE

                                              GRAND HOTEL