Lake Michigan (and Huron) Delivery Cruise

[john6206]

Hey Everyone -

After 25 or more years of trailer sailing, we are in the purchase process of a Catalina 320 - and getting pretty excited.

The boat (in Manitowoc) is something close to 400 nm from our slip (in Tawas). Being trailer sailers, that sounds like BOTH the vacation of a lifetime, AND just . . . a lot of miles. I'm convinced we can do this without homicide or divorce, but I'd like to bounce the first draft of my itinerary off of you for your input.

We are after more of a vacation than an endurance challenge, but the balance is that we have miles to cover. I'm shooting for something like 50 nm / day. I'm thinking 9 sailing days over a two week period (weather dependent of course). We are in a position where we can extend our two weeks if the weather is not conducive - but it's good to have a goal.

My first draft itinerary:
Delivery Cruise

Starting point Manitowoc WI

Day one Manistee 56 nm

Day two Frankfort 36 nm

Day three Lealand 36 nm

Day four Beaver Island 46 nm

Day 5 Macinac Island 40 nm

Day 6 Rogers City 50 nm

Day 6 Alpena 55 nm

Day 8 Harrisville 32 nm

Day 9 TBYC 35 nm

Open to any suggestions.

Thanks -

John

 

[kappykaplan]

John, I don't know if it's possible, but I'd go for a much shorter first day (or two) on your new-to-you boat. Congratulations on your new boat.

 

[Tally Ho]

Congrats John. Should be a fun delivery cruise.

Your harbor hops seem reasonable, and if you can get 4 or 5 knots on average, most of the hops should be reasonable. That first leg may be a long day if you can only get 4 knots.

Worse, if the winds are contrary, you will have to motor or tack...

I would be prepared to stay in a harbor waiting for favorable weather.
I would make sure the engine runs well, that you have spare fuel filters, etc as motoring may play a big part in the trip.

I brought 2 boats home when I bought them…once from Milwaukee and once from Holland Michigan. Neither trip went totally smooth…the Milwaukee trip in April, terrible weather, and my 2 sons as crew. Should have sat that weekend out, but one of the boys was home from Notre Dame for a long weekend… and he really wanted to help deliver the boat. Took 2 days to get the boat home and the first day was one I won’t forget (or thank God we got into a harbor safely).

The Holland delivery wasn’t that bad, but day one, just out on the Lake, pounding into 4-foot seas with the wind on our nose. Motoring only, never even took the sail cover off. All of a sudden, an engine alarm goes off. I can’t see which warning light was on, but pulled back on the throttle a bit and discussed with my boat partner what we would do if the engine died or seized up…thankfully, the alarm stopped and we limper her into the next harbor. Got a slip for the night, figured out why the engine temp was hot and solved tha.. Next day, another long motor across the south end of the lake, and we were home.

That will illustrate the potential for lots of motoring and for waiting out the weather.


But your plan seems pretty reasonable.

Greg

 

[Tally Ho]

John, I don't know if it's possible, but I'd go for a much shorter first day (or two) on your new-to-you boat. Congratulations on your new boat.

That is a good point….or spend a few days at the marina you are taking delivery from, and day sail for a while to get used to the new boat.

 

[john6206]

Thanks for the responses @Tally Ho and @kappykaplan

the first week we own the boat we plan to take some sailing lessons and do some day sails Before we start the journey. The “sailing lessons,” are mostly system stuff. I understand the sailing, I need to learn how to change an impeller, pump out a holding tank, etc. Also, I need to learn rigging sail handling on the bigger boat. I’ve sailed a 30’ before, but it’s been years - gotta know How to reef before I need to know how to reef.

my original plan was to sail up the Wisconsin coast a bit before I make the crossing. That adds miles to the trip, and also to the crossing, but it might have other advantages. Sturgeon Bay is only a short hop up from Manitowoc.

either way, we are certainly going to wait for a favorable forecast for the crossing.

 

[smokey73]

I'd make sure there that the fuel tank is clean and there is no "gunk" in the bottom of the tank. Depending on how much the boat was used and the age of the fuel in the tank and what precautions were taken with regard to keeping biological growth at bay you want to make sure that the fuel system won't give you problems. I'd take a few extra fuel filters (primary and secondary) along and know how to change them. If you don't need them on the trip you'll have them for later.

 

[jssailem]

Great info from all.
Congrats John..
I concur that you should plan for 4-5 knots speed and approximately 30-35nm per day. If you go faster you get to your destination quicker. Plan for alternate stopping points. Places you can land if you have an issue. On my recent 156nm trip (a sea trial after my engine rebuild) 10nm out of the marina, the engine died. Fuel starvation. Junk in the fuel filter. Mother Nature took pity on me and provided wind. I did not make the planned 32nm trip. I ended it at 21nm by slipping into my secondary marina under sail. Fixed the fuel issue and was problem-free the rest of the time. I have completed 10 hour sailing days starting at daybreak and ending at sunset. They are tiring and feel more like work than a relaxing event.

I believe it was Captain Ron that said.

This will be a memory-making experience.
Safe sailing.

 

[dLj]

I'd put a couple days just enjoying being at a couple of those different locations. For example when you get to Beaver Island, why not plan a day just enjoying the island? Pick some other location that you would enjoy staying a day just enjoying the boat, the anchorage, and where you are.

Have you identified where you can refuel? Get some provisions? I don't know enough about all those spots to give suggestions.

dj

 

[john6206]

@dLj
yup, that’s the plan.
We’re hopping we can do it in 9 sailing days spread out over two weeks. We have the luxury of adding days if we want, but probably not too many. Hoping to spend a day on Beaver island, maybe some other places.

 

[Apex]

@john6206 I might also recommend staying along the coast, opting for a crossing at opportune weather and after spending some time familiarizing yourself. but i am less familiar with wisconsin coast. I have done2 deliveries to TVC from muskegon, 1 non-stop the other in 4 days: Muskegon to Pentwater, Pentwater to Ludington, Frankfort then Elk Rapids. Head of the jib parted on day 2, and the last leg was a long day, but preferred to non-stop

 

[dlochner]

50 mile days are very long and tiring. When planning a route I estimate boat speed at 5 kts. Often we go faster closer to 6 knots and sometimes we struggle to make 5. After 6 hours on the water you'll be asking "Are we there yet?" Remember it is easier to slow down if necessary, however, it is difficult to make up time by going faster.

With some experience you'll be able to fine tune your speed and time estimates, now it is better to be conservative. Being on a moving boat all day is tiring especially if you are hand steering. Taking a nap and getting rest below is helpful. Be prepared for weather delays. This year the weather seems to be particularly uncooperative with good travel days limited in numbers.

Good luck and enjoy the trip.
Safe Travels.

 

[john6206]

@Apex
the alternative version of this route includes going north in Wisconsin, taking the channel at sturgeon bay, sailing inside the more protected waters of Green Bay and then crossing from Washington island to beaver island.

advantages include protected waters of Green Bay, short stops on the first two legs (sturgeon bay and egg harbor), and my wife has always wanted to go to door county.

disadvantage is that the actual crossing is considerably longer. I’m pretty sure Manitowoc to Ludington is the shortest crossing. Going a bit north to manistee only adds a couple miles.

i Reached out to some friends who have a boat in Escanaba. They have made the Washington island to beaver island crossing a few times.

of course my Catalina 320 has little resemblance to their 35 ton trawler.

YES - picking a a day for the crossing based on weather is in the plan.

 

[john6206]

Manitowoc to sturgeon Bay; Sturgeon Bay to Frankfort is the smaller crossing at something like 45 miles.

 

[Stu Jackson]

Being on a moving boat all day is tiring especially if you are hand steering.

john, nice boat.
Do you have an autopilot? Because Dave's right. Our AP died halfway up the coast from SF to BC in 2016. it was NOT fun.

 

[john6206]

@Stu Jackson

No auto pilot.

it seems in better condition than other boats we looked at, but the trade off is less electronics.
thinking about a chart plotter before we make the delivery. Our handheld Garmin and iPad and compass have done us pretty well so far.

 

[jssailem]

John
I like your current thinking. Once you have had a few days/nights with your boat on the short hops you will be building confidence in handling her.

 

[dLj]

@Stu Jackson

No auto pilot.

it seems in better condition than other boats we looked at, but the trade off is less electronics.
thinking about a chart plotter before we make the delivery. Our handheld Garmin and iPad and compass have done us pretty well so far.

In my opinion. The first thing I would buy and install is an autopilot. Get a good one and don't get one close to max capability, go a size up.

As I'm thinking about it, you have a wheel, not a tiller, correct? And excellent inexpensive wheel drive is made by CPT. It doesn't have all the bells and whistles, but is a very robust and not overly expensive, as good autopilots go ..

dj

 

[dlochner]

@Stu Jackson

No auto pilot.

it seems in better condition than other boats we looked at, but the trade off is less electronics.
thinking about a chart plotter before we make the delivery. Our handheld Garmin and iPad and compass have done us pretty well so far.

An autopilot will make a world of difference in your cruising plans. Recently it was necessary to hand steer my boat because the conditions were such the AP could not keep up (20 + knots, gusts to 30, 6+ seas on the beam with a short period). After hand steering for several hours I went below when things settled down. Immediately fell asleep and did not wake when a squall hit with wind to 29knots and driving rain. My wife handled the conditions with aplomb and then woke me.

With that said, rushing into buy an AP and a chart plotter are not necessarily a good idea. A full suite of electronics is not cheap. Spend some time researching the choices and make a decision you can live with. Each of the major brands, Garmin, B&G, and Raymarine have their pros and cons as well as outspoken supporters and detractors.

In autopilot world, the first decision is below decks AP or wheel based AP. Depending on your plans one may be better than the other.

The iPad will do fine if you are already used to navigating by it. The 2 big drawbacks of a tablet are poor readability in sunlight and short battery life. The latter drawback can be solved with a spare battery pack for the iPad.

 

[BarryL]

Hi,

Congratulations on the new boat. As I have never sailed in the great lakes I can't offer any advice on your route. I can make some suggestions on deliveries, new boats, and that sort of stuff.

If you plan on making 40-50 miles a day you are NOT on a vacation but on a delivery. You will be sailing / motoring for 6-12 hours a day. Sometimes in favorable conditions, probably not in favorable conditions for most of the time.

I have some experience with the 320 but not lots and lots. I would expect you could easily average 6 jts boat speed. That assumes you are willing to motor or motor sail if you can't sail at at least 5 kts directly towards your destination.

So if you really plan on making 50 miles a day that means departing at 0800, sailing / motoring for 8-10 hours, then pulling into a marina or anchoring. You will then need to eat, plan the next' days trip and get some sleep. That doesn't sound very much like a vacation.

Back in 2022 I took a 2 week sailing vacation from my home port in NY to Portland Maine. The trip there was done non stop wit my and took 40 hours or so. The trip home was more of a cruise and took about a week. Overall it was fun and I really enjoyed it but there was not much time to see the sites in the places we stopped. It was more like take a walk to stretch your legs, find a place for dinner, see a little of the town and then get back to the boat. I was fortunate in that I had sailed my boat for one season so I knew (mostly) how it worked. We had no mechanical or other problems on my trip and the boat performed perfectly. Still I felt like the return trip was more of a delivery and less of a vacation.

Good luck,
Barry

 

[john6206]

@BarryL

Thanks Barry -
The distances we picked are partly based on harbor availability.
The “vacation” part is that we won’t be sailing every day. First draft itinerary is 9 sailing days, we have 2 -3 weeks earmarked for the trip, depending on a number of factors. That gives us days we stay put because the forecast looks bad, and hopefully days we spend places like Egg Harbor and Beaver Island just because they are cool places that we haven’t been before. Hopefully not too many days spent doing repairs!

But - 9 days spread over 14 to 21 days.
we are kind of hoping it’s closer to 14, but we ain’t as young as we used to be and if we need a day off, we are taking a day off.

Like everyone, we’d like to be on vacation all summer, but we do have lives ashore.
Daughter has already reminded us that we had promised to babysit grandchild #1 while they have prenatal appt for grandchild #2…. sigh.

We are trying to balance getting it home as quickly as reasonable, with enjoying the trip.