Jeez! You’re STILL behind, aren’t you.

 So, stop dawdling.   Get up and keep up, will you?

Shaking the dust of Port Clinton, OH from our sandals, we headed 14 miles (thru summer Sunday boat traffic)  across to South Bass Island and the port of Put In Bay, OH.  Historic site of Commodore Perry’s final victory over the British in the War of 1812, Put In Bay has re-purposed itself as Lake Erie’s ultimate vacation destination.  Known by some as the Key West of the North, it caters to visiting boaters and ferry passengers with marinas, hotels, vacation homes, restaurants, beaches, wineries, and gift emporiums.   

And golf carts. 

THOUSANDS of golf carts. 

Golf carts in all colors, shapes, and sizes.

Golf carts you can rent for $12/hr or $90/day.

All dutifully licensed and taxed by the state of Ohio for road use.

The guy who fixes golf carts is like the Godfather of the entire island.  

After a small shuffle with a marina that lost our reservation, we happily found moorage in the center of town, right in front of the Put In Bay Winery.   And we discovered our Looper friends Cliff and Maryjane aboard Lady Jane at anchor in the bay.   And, by arriving on Sunday, we watched the party crowd fire up their overpowered  Sea Ray’s and center consoles and head back to the mainland.   Just a whole series of happy accidents.  

We enjoyed a relaxing 2-night stay; shopping, touring the island by golf cart and dinghy, dinner with Cliff and Maryjane, and taking Admiral Maggie swimming.  We were also visited by Sgt Mike Wheeler of the Put In Bay Police Department,  who appeared on our dock in full uniform asking for us.  Turns out he is an aspiring Looper and tries to meet as many visiting Loopers as possible.  To see their boats and pick their brains about the Loop.  (Whew!)

Tuesday morning, we set off NW across Lake Erie for the mouth of the Detroit River and the Motor City.   The Lake was a bit roll-y, with swells off the starboard quarter giving us a “busy” ride.  We extended our course further west so that when we turned into the ship channel for the Detroit River, we had seas on the starboard bow, rather than on the beam.

The Detroit River offers three channels to northbound boaters.  The west channel hugs the populated Michigan coast and offers lots of boater services (but was impassible due to bridge repairs at Grosse Isle.   The east channel follows the forbidden Canadian side.  This left us the center ship channel, with offers consistent depth and navigation aids, but a nasty current (The river drops 5 feet in 28 miles) and the chance to encounter 750’+ cargo ships.   But its fun to try new things, isn’t it?  So up the middle we went.  

The current cost us 2 knots of speed and we did pass a couple of BIG bulk carrier ships and barges.  Once we entered the main channel near Detroit, we found the water calm and enjoyed the contrast between the US side (Detroit) and the Canadian side (Windsor, Ontario).  But the voyage was largely uneventful and we arrived at our Michigan State DNR marina just north of downtown Detroit in good order. 

Detroit’s River Walk offers a delightful place to stroll along the water’s edge, with many new and resorted older buildings (although the neighborhood starts to get sketchy just a few blocks off the river.)  We had a nice view of GM’s Renaissance  Center headquarters but did not venture int the downtown district.  Instead, we hosted Docktails for the 4 or 5 other Looper boats present, including LadyJane, Sea Cottage, and Liberty Call.

Heading north the next morning, we quickly exited the Detroit River Lake St. Clair.   A smaller, shallower cousin to the Great Lakes, St Clair provides the linkage between Erie and Huron.  More importantly, it provides the scenic shoreline for the lovely (and affluent) communities of Grosse Pointe, Grosse Pointe Shores, Grosse Pointe Farms, and St Clair Shores, where the Motor City’s movers and shakers have made their homes since the late 1800s.    At Jefferson Beach Marina, we met Wade’s cousin Reid Kurvink and his lovely wife Julie, who hosted us for dinner ashore.   Furthermore, they offered us the use of a car (YAY!) for three days so that we could do some serious reprovisioning.

From Jefferson Beach, we scooted 12 miles north the St Clair MetroBeach Park, which operates a fine transient marina in the middle of an absolutely gorgeous public park space.   Busy, clean, and well-staffed, the park offers something for everyone. Pool, mini-golf, a nature center, beach, walking and cycling trails, playgrounds, picnic areas, you name it.    But for us, it was the site of two other special activities.

First, we took advantage of Reid’s and Julie’s largesse and made trips to Costco, Krogers,  Walmart, Home Depot, McDonald’s, and Best Buy.   Wine, liquor, groceries, meat, bug repellant, Quarter Pounders w/cheese, dog food, dog treats, dog grooming, and a replacement TV for Irish Lass’s main cabin.   Thanks, Reid and Julie!  (To Loopers, the best come-on line in the world is, “I have a car….”)

Our second special activity involved four VERY special guests aboard Irish Lass.  But that will have to wait until next time……

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