On Monday we left Charlevoix Marina early to make the 7:30 am bridge opening. We travelled 35 miles to Leland in calm seas. We were all settled in by noon. We are so glad that we decided to make this one of our stops! Leland is a picturesque village, home to the historic "Fish Town". Commercial fishing began here in 1870. Today it is one of the few remaining fishing complexes left on the Great Lakes. The fish tugs are icons on the waterfront...one of the shops even specializes in art, clothing and accessories with the green and white tug "logo". All the waterfront shops and galleries and many of the restaurants are housed inside the rustic shanties which date back over 100 years...The opportunity to take photographs was unbelievable...at every turn another postcard! While on the docks we watched a fishing boat come in with salmon-after the captain filleted them, he tossed the carcasses over, and we were privy to a wonderful show put on by the local river otters who came out from under the docks to gather up the bones and scales...we watched them swim back and forth and finally they made their way to a group of rocks across the river where they feasted on their "catch"! By far, this was one of our favorite stops along the loop. (I will download photos as soon as I get to a place where my aircard gets a stronger signal)...
We got up early on Tuesday and headed to Manistee at first light. It was a glorious day to be on lake Michigan~a gentle breeze right out of the east; we enjoyed an entire day underway. We passed by Sleeping Bear National Park where for miles honey colored sand is swept up along the shore in dunes as high as 500 feet! We began to notice quite a few monarch butterflies...it seemed unusual as we were about 4 miles offshore, so later that night I decided to "google" Monarch Butterfly migration routes...Sure enough, we were right in the flight pattern for those which leave the Great lakes and head to Mexico this time of year. Unlike most other insects, Monarchs cannot survive a long cold winter so they spend their winter in roosting spots. Daylight and temperature changes influence their movement. In all the world, no butterfly migrates like the monarch of North America...up to 3000 miles. Amazingly they fly to the same winter roosts, often the exact same tree! They only make the round trip once. It is an unsolved mystery how they find their way each year...somehow they just know their way even though the butterflies returning south are the great-great grandchildren of those who returned north the previous spring. We arrived in Manistee in time to walk up and down the main street along the waterfront, eat a fabulous dinner out at the Tuscan Grill (reason alone to make this a stop)...and went back to Ithaka to call it an early night. Right beside us on the dock was a looper from Ft. Myers, Florida!
On Wednesday morning again we decided to take off early...and even though it was a beautiful day to be out on the water we wanted to stop to see the charming town of Pentwater. In fact, it was so charming, we stayed two nights! Pentwater welcomes you the moment you enter the harbor...ginger-bread trimmed cottages, brightly colored umbrellas and wind socks, and a dozen or more wonderful art galleries are just a few of the reasons we loved this town...a sparkling lake dotted with sail boats at anchor was our view from the top deck of Ithaka. We spent the afternoon at the beach where we found miles of soft sand, crystal clear water and more breathtaking dunes sculpted by the ever persistent winds off the big lake. We got back onboard around 8 pm...just in time to watch a perfect sunset...we sat upstairs drinking wine, listening to soft music and watched swans swim by...It could have been a scene from a movie. By the way, we are docked at Snug Harbor Marina and I highly recommend it! Our second day in Pentwater was a catch up day...cleaning and laundry, organizing and charting out the course for this, our last few days on Ithaka for the summer...We are going to live it to the fullest and enjoy Lake Michigan right down to the last drop!
We got up early on Tuesday and headed to Manistee at first light. It was a glorious day to be on lake Michigan~a gentle breeze right out of the east; we enjoyed an entire day underway. We passed by Sleeping Bear National Park where for miles honey colored sand is swept up along the shore in dunes as high as 500 feet! We began to notice quite a few monarch butterflies...it seemed unusual as we were about 4 miles offshore, so later that night I decided to "google" Monarch Butterfly migration routes...Sure enough, we were right in the flight pattern for those which leave the Great lakes and head to Mexico this time of year. Unlike most other insects, Monarchs cannot survive a long cold winter so they spend their winter in roosting spots. Daylight and temperature changes influence their movement. In all the world, no butterfly migrates like the monarch of North America...up to 3000 miles. Amazingly they fly to the same winter roosts, often the exact same tree! They only make the round trip once. It is an unsolved mystery how they find their way each year...somehow they just know their way even though the butterflies returning south are the great-great grandchildren of those who returned north the previous spring. We arrived in Manistee in time to walk up and down the main street along the waterfront, eat a fabulous dinner out at the Tuscan Grill (reason alone to make this a stop)...and went back to Ithaka to call it an early night. Right beside us on the dock was a looper from Ft. Myers, Florida!
On Wednesday morning again we decided to take off early...and even though it was a beautiful day to be out on the water we wanted to stop to see the charming town of Pentwater. In fact, it was so charming, we stayed two nights! Pentwater welcomes you the moment you enter the harbor...ginger-bread trimmed cottages, brightly colored umbrellas and wind socks, and a dozen or more wonderful art galleries are just a few of the reasons we loved this town...a sparkling lake dotted with sail boats at anchor was our view from the top deck of Ithaka. We spent the afternoon at the beach where we found miles of soft sand, crystal clear water and more breathtaking dunes sculpted by the ever persistent winds off the big lake. We got back onboard around 8 pm...just in time to watch a perfect sunset...we sat upstairs drinking wine, listening to soft music and watched swans swim by...It could have been a scene from a movie. By the way, we are docked at Snug Harbor Marina and I highly recommend it! Our second day in Pentwater was a catch up day...cleaning and laundry, organizing and charting out the course for this, our last few days on Ithaka for the summer...We are going to live it to the fullest and enjoy Lake Michigan right down to the last drop!
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