Superior to Erie #4

[rfrance0718]

Monday was our 3rd day of the trip. The first 2 days were successful, in that we reached each destination, but there was little wind and a lot of smoke. Yesterday morning we were in Ontonagon looking at a 45 nautical mile (nm) sail to Houghton Hancock. These are twin cities on the Keweenaw Peninsula. They are separated by a 25 mile waterway that transverses the peninsula. We were looking at a 37 nm sail to the entrance to the waterway, and an 8 mile motor passage to the cities.  This was a long hop, with no place to duck in along the way. At 9:00 AM when we wanted to leave, the weather forecast was problematic. There were thunderstorms predicted all along the route, including a whopper at the entrance to the waterway. Winds were predicted to be SW (right behind us) at 16 to 20 nauts, with gusts to 30. That's a lot of wind, but Stolen Moments is built for it. Unfortunately,  the forecasts warned of 50 naut gusts in the storms, and that did not fit our plans. 
There was nothing to do but sit tight and watch the forecasts for any change. The trip would take about 7 hours to get into the waterway, and another hour and a quarter of motoring to the town docks. Since the sun wouldn't set until 9:45, we figured that we could leave as late as 2:30 and make the waterway with enough light to reach the docks. The forecasts did change during the morning, and we took a final look at 2:00 PM. Sure enough, the chance of storms had diminished, and the big breeze would make for fast sailing, so we shoved off right at 2:30.
As soon as we cleared the harbor and unfurled the jib and pointed the boat towards the West entrance to the Keweenaw waterway, 37 miles to the Northeast. Even with the one sail we immediately started to see 6 to 8 nauts on the meter, with 4-foot rollers pushing us along with the wind. With an average speed of at least 7, the lighthouse would make by 9:00 PM, a full 45 minutes before sunset. It was an exhilarating ride, and by 8:00 PM we could see the entrance  in the distance. An hour later we rode the 4-foot rollers into entrance and began the 8 mile motor passage to Houghton. I had been through this passage on a ship when I was 9 years old, and I always remembered its stunning beauty.  Sometimes, places remembered don't quite live up to what one's youthful eyes observed, but this one place didn't disappoint. We reached the wall in Houghton right at nightfall. It had been our first real day of sailing and Stolen Moments had met most of our expectations. The only deficit was that our steering cables seem loose, creating excess play in the wheel. This in turn negatively affected the auto helm's performance. We have taken an extra day in Houghton and I'm working on tightening the cables. It's not super easy, but I think I have it solved. Today, Wednesdaay,  we are heading East another 45 miles to Big Bay. Winds look to be moderate.
Pictures include a photo hanging at the restaurant we ate at last night. It is a shot of the North American passing through the Keweenaw Waterway in the 1950s. I came through on its sister ship, the identical South American, in 1963. When the lift bridge opened for this passage, I told the operator that I had been under the bridge once before, in 1963. He radioed back that he hoped we wouldn't wait quite as long until our next trip.

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[Captain Kidd]

Nice!

I would suggest keeping the journal in one thread. Just my thought.

[Wolverine]

Looks like a beautiful trip. Following along on google earth.