Yes, that is a very rational option! It could even save a day if he skipped Beaver Island and headed directly down the east side of the lake from Mack City. I do like the idea of visiting Beaver Island, though.
Great Lakes Maiden Voyage Help
- Thread starter Dustin7
- Start date
This is great, I really appreciate
Thanks, I havent decided whether to take the Green Bay side of the Lake michigan side back to Stugeon bay. Prefer to come in from Lake Michigan but planning on leaving it up to the wind and water conditions.I like the easy trip from Mackinaw City to Beaver Island (easy in length - but make sure the weather is favorable as it could be a long stretch of heavy weather if you have a SW blow). Beaver Island would be a fantastic stop over. The northern end of Lake Michigan is rather devoid of safe harbors, so it would seem that you need to make the jump to Door County from Beaver Island. Manistique would be closer but it is out of the way. So the first logical stop would be Washington Island. Not noting any protected harbors on the east side, Washington Harbor (not a marina - an anchorage) looks like a beautiful safe harbor - protected on all sides except open to the north. If you have a north wind blowing on that leg, it would make sense to run for the south end of the island. Hopefully, somebody has local knowledge of Washington Island for better guidance, but that would be my target from Beaver Island.
I assume that @Dustin7 has local knowledge in Door County. I know that Fish Creek is a hugely popular destination and not to be missed if you are traveling through. But if Dustin's destination is Sturgeon Bay, Fish Creek is going to be within his local cruising grounds so by that time, it's time to get home probably!
From Beaver Island, Dustin could stay in Lake Michigan and make Bailey's Harbor but that is about 100 miles, which might be a little long. But it wouldn't be bad way to go with favorable conditions. To get into Sturgeon Bay, that's a trip through the canal. I would probably head for the Green Bay side of Door County.
met up with dustin today at his boat here in toledo. what a sweet find. ultra clean. a very nice design.
dustin is a very nice guy. i liked him. we talk about the delivery between my home town of toledo and my home town of sturgeon bay. i suggested sailing by weather cycles, not day/night cycles. that's just me. talked running the rivers. talked sailing the lakes.
he has some people lined up. i also hooked him up with a crew member of mine that is very skilled. might work out.
the boat is in top condition from what i could see. one owner boat.
dustin is a very nice guy. i liked him. we talk about the delivery between my home town of toledo and my home town of sturgeon bay. i suggested sailing by weather cycles, not day/night cycles. that's just me. talked running the rivers. talked sailing the lakes.
he has some people lined up. i also hooked him up with a crew member of mine that is very skilled. might work out.
the boat is in top condition from what i could see. one owner boat.
So much good info already - I’ll just make a few short points from our 22 years sailing our ‘77 h27 on Lakes Erie, St. Clair, and Huron:
- Your 2005 h27 is a great boat for this trip - go for it!
- with an 18 horse engine, I’d be comfortable planning 5-5.5 knots sailing or motor-sailing.
- as already mentioned, the prevailing winds are SW, ideal for this trip until the Beaver Island to Green Bay leg. I’d handle that by waiting for a calm, or wind north of west to make it.
Bon voyage!
- Your 2005 h27 is a great boat for this trip - go for it!
- with an 18 horse engine, I’d be comfortable planning 5-5.5 knots sailing or motor-sailing.
- as already mentioned, the prevailing winds are SW, ideal for this trip until the Beaver Island to Green Bay leg. I’d handle that by waiting for a calm, or wind north of west to make it.
Bon voyage!
A couple more possible stops on your trip. Presque Isle has already been mentioned. The anchorage area there is nice. Just drop the hook near where the anchorage is located in navionics (active captain). If you need a place to anchor before you make it up quite that far, False Presque Island has a nice spot to anchor. Again find it in Navionics. Also, if you need a spot to anchor not far from the Mackinac bridge, and the weather is good, St. Helena Island has a nice spot on the north side. If the lighthouse people are there, you can dinghy around to the lighthouse on the other side of the island and get a tour. Great people there. Beaver Island has a great anchorage, as well.
One other warning about Lake St. Clair. Make sure your travel plans don't coincide with the Jobbie Nooner weekend. That is a real sh*tfest and will likely make you hate Lake St. Clair long before you manage to get out of it.
One other warning about Lake St. Clair. Make sure your travel plans don't coincide with the Jobbie Nooner weekend. That is a real sh*tfest and will likely make you hate Lake St. Clair long before you manage to get out of it.
Good Luck! Exciting month to be on Lake Huron and Lake Michigan.
BYC Mackinac Race starts in Port Huron on the 16th, 179-ish boats heading up Lake Huron. Expect Mackinac Island and Mack City (Straits Harbor) to be busy 17-20th... and CYC Race to Mackinac will have 200+ sailboats going up Lake Michigan from Chicago on the 23rd... lots of sailboats racing/moving around Michigan this month!
Port Huron will be packed the 13-16th... so don't expect slips there in that range either.
Final note, some state harbors may have limited hours for certain services... saw this in a BYC Mack update:
"Straits Harbor Fuel Dock
The DNR has asked us to inform our competitors that the Straits Harbor Fuel Dock will only be open from 9 – 11 a.m. and 1 – 3 p.m. due to staffing shortages. "
BYC Mackinac Race starts in Port Huron on the 16th, 179-ish boats heading up Lake Huron. Expect Mackinac Island and Mack City (Straits Harbor) to be busy 17-20th... and CYC Race to Mackinac will have 200+ sailboats going up Lake Michigan from Chicago on the 23rd... lots of sailboats racing/moving around Michigan this month!
Port Huron will be packed the 13-16th... so don't expect slips there in that range either.
Final note, some state harbors may have limited hours for certain services... saw this in a BYC Mack update:
"Straits Harbor Fuel Dock
The DNR has asked us to inform our competitors that the Straits Harbor Fuel Dock will only be open from 9 – 11 a.m. and 1 – 3 p.m. due to staffing shortages. "
He is off and running. was up in detroit last evening. today, 15-18 winds from the w n/w. that's abeam reach all the way to huron. prolly got to sail the whole way up. more good weather tomorrow i'm thinking.
sw winds at 12 to 14 going up the lake tomorrow. high 80 on shore
sw winds at 12 to 14 going up the lake tomorrow. high 80 on shore
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Thank you every one for all the insights and information. It was all very helpful in completing this voyage!
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I hope these photos are just a teaser! We want details! Give us a full report of all the good, the bad, and the fantastic! 
I’ve made the trip up Lake Michigan across Huron to Honey Harbour Ontario delivering my own boat twice. Michigan ports are awesome. The SeaRay dealer in Holland saved our boat some pain. Both were power boats. Then I delivered my own sailboat 12 years later. Was totally intimidated and talked a real sailor to come with us. Glad I did.
I read the entire thread you had a great team here. Thanks for sharing
I read the entire thread you had a great team here. Thanks for sharing