A summer of sailing

 

As we were looking for summer activities for the kids sailing came up as an option.  We called North Cape Yacht club (the club closest to us that runs a Jr Sailing program) and they made it sound like an easy fun thing to do.  Little did I know what we had gotten ourselves into.  Turns out the team practices 2 days a week all summer.  Ok no problem.. But also races at least 2 days a week and we would be required to plan and host a dinner for somewhere between 20-100 sailers on 2 different nights after the club races were done.  Usually the kids races are on a Wed and Saturday.  Holly cow our entire summer was booked with sailing.  Normally not a bad thing when its me or our family sailing but this was the boy.  Well turns out he loved sailing this summer.  He had been to sail camp a few times and had pretty limited experience but was old enough to get his own boat.  So he sailed a Laser all summer and I think learned quite a bit.  Even though he had some tough days he launched for every race that the coach would let him go out in.  A few days there was a lot of wind and even some of the most experienced kids had troubles those days.  He always finished and towards the end of the season he was even moving up the rankings a bit.  I think he learned a lot and is really looking forward to coming back to it next year when we return.

Per my last post we were on our way to Put-in-Bay for Max's Jr Sailing championships.  For an entire week the kids get the run of the island during the evenings and get to sail all day.  How cool is that.  We grabbed a mooring ball and settled in for the week.  This was my first time attempting to grab a ball with this boat.  Annabelle got on the swim platform and grabbed the first ball we found.  In retrospect this was a bad idea as we had two nights of storms and were quite uncomfortable on the boat.  If we had grabbed one closer to Gibraltar Island it still would have been uncomfortable but I probably would not have woken up floating in the air nearly as much.

Anyway it was a good week and we figured out our propane was not working correctly and that having a generator was fantastic!  No more power worries and if we wanted to run AC at night before quite hours we could be quite comfortable while also keeping our batteries topped up!  I'm a big fan of the generator right now.  

While Max was certainly not winning any races he certainly had a really positive experience at the event and is looking forward to going again next year.  Heck why not its pretty much a week long summer camp with well over 100 kids, they get to sail every day, ride go carts at night, get to stay at the hotel and have very little parent involvement.  Pretty much like summer camp.

Off to Jr. Bay Week

 We got out of Vermillion without much issue and were having a nice cruise over to Put-in-Bay.  The weather was great and was one of those warm but not to hot summer days.  I had called Amy on our way past Kellys Island to let her know we were close and would be there in about 45 min.  This when the engine decided to die.  Luckily we were right between Kelly's Island and Put-in-Bay so we were close to some sort of civilization and help but for now we were adrift and I really know very little about engines in general.  After looking around we were not in much danger of hitting anything soon so I ventured down into the engine room.  I didn't see anything out of the ordinary but wondered if maybe we had run out of fuel as the tanks felt pretty empty when I tapped on them.  I decided not to drop anchor and called Tow Boat US.  In about 45 minutes they came out and towed us into Marblehead.  We filled up the tanks putting in 443 gallons in a two tanks that are supposed to hold 450 gallons.  I think it was safe to say we ran out of fuel.  Now I got the opportunity to figure out how to prime the engine.  Unfortunately this engine has a thumb pump.  I'm not sure why.  My little engines in my sailboats had electric pumps that make this process really easy.  Seems today was not to be my day.  I spent about 2hrs in the engine room pumping that dumb pump until my thumbs would do no more and I had tried anything else I might have to use as leverage against it to continue pumping.  After about 2hrs and a lot of sweating in a hot engine room I got the thing going and we were off again!

Luckily the rest of our trip over was uneventful but both Annabelle and I were looking forward to a swim when we got there.  This would be our first time trying to pick up a mooring ball and I knew there was no way anyone was going to pull the chain 12 ft up to the bow of the boat to run a line though it so we planned to have Annabelle on the swim platform and I would try to drive up to the ball while she ran a long line from the front of the boat though the ring on the ball.  Luckily it worked on our first attempt!  After we got the first line on she jumped in and swam up front allowing me to drop the second line down to her run it through and pulled it up.  We were both really happy to make it into the island that night and were craving pizza from our favorite spot.. Unfortunately they were closed.  We took that as a sign this was not our day.  Found Amy and headed back to the boat for the night.

Time for a shake down cruise with the new boat

We dropped the girls at the airport and the next day our family was to shove off the dock for our sailing clubs mid summer cruise.  The schedule was planned for everyone to meet at Kelly's Island, then sail over to Loran, on to Mentor, then to Geneva on the Lake for a couple days.  We would then work our way back to Cleveland and Vermillion then the club would head home and we would go back to Put-in-Bay for Jr Bay week.  Well everyone got to Kelly's ok unfortunately it seemed the weather gods were not with us.  The lake was way too rough to head out in the next day so we all sat down to replan the trip.  It seemed that Loran was the only marina that would not credit back folks reservations so we decided to head there for a night then on to Cleveland for a couple days back to Vermillion and on to Put-in-Bay.  Because we can't do anything simply we had left Max with another friend to take him to a Jr Olympics sailing seminar.  We were supposed to pick him up in Loran on Sunday.  Unfortunately this was not going to happen.  Luckily the family he was with was happy to drop in off at the ferry dock allowing him to join us on Kelly's Island Sunday night.  Seemed the water was even to rough for the ferries so they were down to one boat instead of their usual three.  This had really messed up car traffic but did not turn out to be a problem with passenger traffic. 

For once we had some good sailing weather on the way to Loran.  We were the last boat to leave but was able to easily catch up with the fleet of 7 boats ahead of us allowing us to snap some nice sailing pictures of everyone's boats.  It had been a while since we had been to Loran and it was a nice marina.  They were close to a parts store and we were able to get a new bulb for our outboards fuel line.  Once I got that installed in Vermillion I was able to start the outboard right up with no problems.

Next stop was Edgewater Yacht Club in Cleveland for 2 nights.  We had good weather which made for a nice trip and some boats even got to sail a bit.  The first day having a power boat was fun but at this point I was starting to miss being able to sail.  The folks in Cleveland gave us someone's dock that was doing the Mackinaw race and while it was not hard to get in it was our most challenging yet as we drove by the dock and I got to do the 180 degree turn in a fairly tight fairway.  Unfortunately we didn't do much in Cleveland other than hang out in their pool and relax the next day.

After a quick two nights in Cleveland we were on to Vermillion.  We have been here a number of times and while its a pretty area with all the home owner association mandates to ensure everyone keeps their house looking just like everyone else's I don't get very excited about it.  Our first night there turned out to be a small business night.  They had three bands and lots going on.  Our timing was great and the next day Max was able to participate in a regatta that one of the local clubs was having we didn't think we would make.  Turned out to be a good day for Max and it was the first time we took the boat our on the course to watch him race.  I was really impressed how much effort the club put into getting the course exactly right for each of his four races that day.  Unfortunately it rained quite a bit that night.  The marina is on a river which is not something we have much experience with.  It seemed that the river runs over 200 miles up and Vermillion is where all the water gets dumped into Lake Erie.  Well we were stuck and could not leave due to the current.  If I were to untie my boat I surly would have smashed into another boat before I could have even got out of the slip.  If I could have made it out of the slip I would then get to execute a 270 degree turn in the river going against the current due to the fact that we have a single engine and our boat backs to starboard.  Needless to say the port authority came and closed the marina and told no one to leave as there was a ton of logs and other things floating down the river.  Luckily we were closer to the middle of the dock in the river then the end where all the crud was floating down so we had a couple of bigger boats that stuck out further to do some blocking for us.  We decided to get off the boat and head up for the Corvette show and some groceries.  When we got back just before 5 things got really exciting.  The city had been working to clear a bunch of junk that had blocked up one of the bridges up the river.  Once they got the log jam broken up it all came directly toward us and took out a 50+ foot boat on the end of the dock.  He ended up breaking four or five of his dock posts and almost floated off.  In a effort to gain control of his boat he jumped on started up the engines and quickly sucked up a garden hose he had on his swim platform in one engine and a dock line in another to find himself quickly disabled and wedged into another boat on the dock.  A number of us made a lot of effort to help but eventually after consulting with tow boat us the fire department/police department told everyone to get off the boats.  It was a big scene and I can't due the drama involved justice but let's just say the owner was not very happy with that idea.  After a few hours went by and everyone left the scene a number of us made a few more attempts to help him with no success.  The next morning we had the idea of trying to use his windless again to pull the boat  back over to the dock and that worked where everyone got to wait out yet another day of crazy current.  Unfortunately at this point we needed to have Max a Put-in-Bay to join his sailing team.  So once again we found a kind stranger to take he and Amy to the ferry dock with the plan of Annabelle and I meeting them as soon as we could.  Amazing we woke up the next day to a much more normal type of current.  Unfortunately the four boats before us in the river had a huge log stuck under them.  It was in one of their pod drives, under another's rudder, and just in the way of the props to two more.  I was the next boat in line and figured we better make our attempt to get out of there before they figured out how to free that thing and send it my way.  We were the first boat off of that dock and everyone was eager to see how it worked out for us.  I'm happy to say Annabelle and I did quite well and even managed the 270 degree turn in the current fairly well.  We were now off to Put-in-Bay and just had to hope not to run into any kind of log jam at the sea wall on the way out.

Its a sad day!

 Our exchange students both left us today.  They both extended their stay as long as they could but we all knew this day had to come sometime.  Sara was the first to head home on a 12pm flight with Maria scheduled for a 3pm flight the same day.  Unfortunately Sara's flight was canceled from DTW to Newark which meant she would not make her flight to Rome.  The airlines solution was too route her though Dallas adding almost 10hrs to her trip home.  Luckily she had a good host mom that jumped in to help convincing the airlines folks this was a bad idea.  They moved her to Maria's flight and they got to sit together all the way to Germany at which point they then went their own ways.  We are really going to miss those kids.  Its been a fun year but I know they were really disappointed in that they only got to go to school for a total of 4 days this year and unfortunately did not make any American friends outside of our family.  I know our entire family is looking forward to seeing them again soon.  Hopefully the borders will open soon and we can fly over to visit all three of our bonus kids soon!

Time to move the boat...

 

The day after we got back from Mackinac Island we gathered up some snacks and basic sleeping supplies and headed up to Port Huron with the intent to bring the boat down to Lake Erie and park it at Toledo Beach for a few days until we needed to leave to join our boat clubs summer cruise.  We are the cruising fleet captains this year so it would be bad form to miss it :).  Guess this will be the first shake down cruise to ensure everything seems good with the boat before heading out for the two week cruise we are planning next week.

We piled everyone in the truck with a fair amount of stuff loaded up the boat and decided to head out.  Unfortunately Port Huron is about 2hrs from our house but luckily Annabelle had other plans the next day and was willing to drive the car home and come pick us up the next day.  Right after she left I realized I forgot to give her the keys for the truck.  When I called to tell her to come back for the car keys she was a couple miles away and decided she might not be able to find us again and didn't want to turn back.  You have to love fancy cars with keyless ignitions these days that will let you start the car and walk away from it.  Anyway this was probably her longest drive on her own to date with the added excitement of getting to drive though Detroit during rush hour in a car she could not turn off as it would not start again without a key she did not have.  I was pretty proud of her for successfully accomplishing this on her own and making it home safely.

After Annabelle was off we called the bridge to request an opening and shoved off the wall we had been tied up on for the last few days since buying the boat.  This was my first experience at trying to hold the boat in place on a river with a current pushing us from behind while we waited for the bridge to open.  Needless to say this did not go very well and there were a lot of small boats constantly heading out that did not need to the bridge to open.  Every time I gave the boat power in reverse it would only back to starboard, I ended up pretty close to the wall and some other boats.  With all the traffic I was a bit worried about turning around and kept being pushed closer to the draw bridge.  Lucky at the last moment (honestly it might have been past the last moment) the bridge started opening and we were able to make it through without having to figure out how to turn the boat around in this crazy little river.  We headed over to the fuel dock again with lots of little boats zipping in and out added 100 gallons of fuel and headed out towards Lake St Clair.  The kids explored the boat a bit and quickly realized that boating was not all that exciting and settled in.  We decided to stay at Metro Beach that night and were one of about 4 boats in there that night.  Docking seemed to go pretty well considering it was my first time with this boat and it seemed we would have lots of room to back out easily in the morning.  By the time we got there everyone was hungry and hot.  We made a light dinner, headed over to find some ice cream, and explore the park a bit.  Over all it turned out to be a really nice first day.  Everyone slept well and it seemed that we made a good choice picking this boat for our Great Loop adventure.

We got up early the next morning to head out to Toledo Beach marina.  The girls were still sleeping when we left and we had to wake them up so they could see Detroit on our way by.  We got another really nice day.  The current gave us a lot of extra speed and I think everyone enjoyed the ride.  We ended up making it to Toledo Beach in about 5-6hrs which was much much quicker then we expected.  Everything went smoothly with the boats systems and seemed to work as expected other than the propane tank which appeared to be low or empty.  We had planned for something like that and it just meant we got to eat sandwiches instead of pasta for dinner.  Remarkably I don't think I have anything to fix before we head out for our extended cruise in a few days!

Its been a whirlwind around here..

As I mentioned as soon as we closed on the boat we were told it needed a new home as they planned to have the dock rented for the 4th of July weekend.  After some begging they let us stay a few more days if we moved it to a less desirable spot.  Once we got it parked, Max and I headed home to cook for 87 hungry sailors that night.  When we signed Max up for the Jr sailing team we were told that we had to plan and cook dinner for the racers when they come back from the weekly Wednesday night races as part of the fund raising for the team so with almost no help in planning or cooking from the club we found a few basic meal calculators online and bought the stuff to serve taco's, beans, salad, and cupcakes.  Lucky our two exchange students were still with us and everyone got to participate in the process!  Dinner went well and we ended up raising over $300 for the sailing team that night.

The next morning Max had to make a quick trip to practice with his goat that he bought almost two years ago to show at the county fair as part of 4H but still had not yet shown due to COVID.  This process usually involves cleaning up after the goats a bit and then putting a leash on Shadow (his goat) and practicing walking around a bit.  Showing in Pack is sort of like a dog agility contest where the animal and the person have to learn the course and be able to work together.  Its an interesting idea for a farm animal that I'm sure would much prefer to be out grazing in the field rather then running obstacles with a 13yr old boy.  None the less the goat seems to put up with it and seems to really like treats which helps quite a bit!

About lunch time we were headed to Mackinac Island in an attempt to get one more trip in with the girls before they would head home the next week.  We decided to make it a quick trip.  We drove up that day to a near by camp ground where we would spend the night then head to the island the next day to take in all the tourist things before heading home the next day.  Once we got to the camp ground we got the girls tent set up with no problems but it seemed when our kids had used the tent last fall for a school camping trip they had managed to knock the tent over broke at least 3 of the poles then didn't bother to tell anyone and just packed it back up.  Needless to say the tent Amy, Max, and I were saying in was a bit janky now and was barely wanting to stand up.  With the help of our neighbors and their tape and some interesting lashings we got it stood up with the rain fly sort of on it.  It was a pretty night and we all enjoyed some time on the beach and walking around the camp grounds a bit that night.

The next day was fantastic.  We got up and caught the 930 ferry over to the island.  I think Amy and the girls sampled fudge at every single shop on the strip :).  We rented bikes and did the 8 mile ride around the island.  Treked our way up to pictured rock?  Not sure if that's the right name but there were a lot of steps involved which really reminded me how out of shape I was.  The girls took the horse and carriage ride to get this historical tour while Amy, Max and I hike up the hill to the fort to check out the changes to the Scout cabin up there and check out skull cave which Max had high hopes for.  Unfortunately Skull cave was nothing like Max imagined from the Goonies and he soon lost interest in exploring the other cool sounding locations at the top of the hill there.  After lunch and a bit more exploring we headed back to the mainland where the girls did some shopping before heading back to our campsite.  Unfortunately for us with the janky tent it rained that night.  When I say rained it really rained a lot to the point I was not sure the rain fly was really even there.  The three of us got soaked, attempted moving to the truck where some sleep happened but not very much before Amy gave up and went back to the wet tent and sleeping bag in a effort to stretch out a bit more.  I'm not sure any of us got much sleep that night.  But the girls seemed to weather it well and stayed dry and warm.  From there we headed in to a big breakfast at the local buffet place.  It was fantastic and I probably ate for at least 3 people.  After that it was time to head home.  

On our way home Amy and I talked and decided if we drove back up to the boat the next day maybe we could move it to Toledo Beach where they said they had room for us for a few days before leaving to join our cruising club on the summer cruise.  But of course the 4th of July was coming up and we needed to find some fireworks for the girls to take in first!