By design we left the Cheboygan City Marina at 11:00 am with the Admiral at the helm for the undocking. BTW she did a fine job handling both the river current and a light breeze! Our trip today was only 16.5 miles to Mackinaw City. With the "late" start the ladies went out to breakfast while the Captain chose to sleep in... Then Ann had a little time for shopping before we left. Somewhere in all this we passed this dingy with a very anxious dog hanging over the bow (picture at right).We made the 11:15 am bridge opening while the ferry to Bois Blanc Island waited on the other side for us to pass through first.
On the way out of the harbor we stopped at the Cheboygan County Marina for just over 204 gallons of diesel fuel and a pump out. On the way here yesterday we listened over the VHF radio as another boat called and asked for their diesel fuel price. When I heard $3.999 per gallon, I decided that we would "top off" the fuel tanks on our way out. The young lady at the fuel dock seems quite happy as she waved goodbye in the photo (at left). Indeed she was happy since both the Admiral and I had tipped her... Anyway, we did get both a pump out and fuel, and she was quite helpful with the pumpout as was our extra crew member Ann (while the Admiral and I focused on the fuel).
As you can see in the picture at the right, it was a bit hazy, but we keep getting closer to the Mackinac Straits Bridge. We have been able to see it in the distance since before Cheboygan, but in Mackinaw City we are now within a few miles of the bridge.
Okay, I know that I am a poor speller, but there are two spellings for Mackinac/Mackinaw. The Straits of Mackinac and the bridge over it are "Mackinac", and Mackinaw City (our destination today) and Mackinaw Island are "Mackinaw". However, some people and maps use all one spelling using either the "C" or the "W" version. Go figure??? The good news is that whatever the spelling, it is all pronounced as if it were the "W" spelling...
Speaking of our destination of Mackinaw City, we were lucky to get some great views of the USCG ice breaker Mackinaw, which was retired in 2006. I can remember seeing and hearing about her as a kid in high school over 50 years ago. In fact, one of my classmates had a relative who was her Captain at some point. You can get a feel for her shallow bow that would ride up and over the ice to break it.
In the picture at the right you also can see how wide she is as well. She is open for tours, and if time permits, I would really like to go aboard her.
The Mackinaw City Marina is busy due to its close proximity to Mackinaw Island about 8 miles away, and the largest ferry company operates out of one side of the marina. The picture at the left shows the Admiral directing me and getting ready to try to read the slip numbers. Every marina always says that their slip numbers are "easy to read", but most of the people saying this have probably never had to find a slip in a boat... You can see her headphones and mouth piece that we use for communications.
We were near the outside end of the pier in front of the Admiral, and most of our neighbors were privately owned tugs from Canada. There were 6 of them, and they ranged from about 40 to 50 feet in length. The people on board seemed to be having a good time. At night they played loud country (?) music. I had been expecting to hear sea (if not tug) chanteys... All appeared to have been real working tugs, but now they were having a lot of loving care and restoration.
After short naps, we headed into town, which is only about 100 yards from the end of our pier. Just after getting off the pier, we passed this lady (picture at left) who had just returned from Mackinaw Island on the ferry. I guess that this is a taste of what is to come tomorrow... There are a LOT of shops, including a lot of fudge shops. When we go to Mackinaw Island tomorrow, we have been told/warned to expect almost as many fudge shops as restaurant/bars... "Four Out of Five Great Lakes Prefer Michigan" seems to be a popular theme on shirts, etc. in the stores. We decided on pizza for dinner and got an excellent recommendation from one of the store clerks. By 8:30 pm it was a very tired group that returned to Lucky Us for some much needed sleep. FYI We did pass a 6 screen movie theater so no doubt we will make time to see a movie (or three?).
Tomorrow, we are off on the first ferry to Mackinaw Island...
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