Pentwater Lake and a day at rest...if only...

The idiot boaters would GO AWAY and leave us alone. We got sooooo sick and tired of the rocking and rolling due to the wakes of inconsiderate fast boaters and with jet skiers too.

Sunday morning dawned windy and grey. We were overjoyed, as this meant the casual boater would stay off the water. The water was very choppy, but it didn't matter to us, we were going the same way the waves were! Dinghying into the township was easy...this lake is small! and we found the town dinghy dock to tie up to.
Finding a REAL coffee shop wasn't too hard, and we chatted with the owner of the store while selecting some goodies for Christmas parcels.  We enjoyed our hot latte and walked to the end of the block of shops which had, at it's corner, a fabulous Children's book and toy store. Oh joy!
I had been told, on Saturday afternoon, that I am to become a grandmother. My son who lives on Maui, and his partner, are to become parents in February. So, guess what I did!???  I only purchased one gift...I have to be sensible, you know;)

This is the most amazing kids shop...which the owner calls The Grandparents Shop:) He was born in Honolulu, just after the war, we learned...coz I was telling him about my upcoming grandchild on Maui...and his wife has dedicated her life to children, as an educator and now as a store owner. You should have seen the Story Time room! WOW! Fabulous! I didn't take photos, sorry!
Leaving the Baby to go into town.

 At the town Dinghy dock.

 Condos on the waterfront

 Little Marinas for little boats.

 The main drag

 It says...Village of Pentwick Fish Cleaning Station. I love these places:)

 and here is the fish cleaning station.0

 This sign got my attention and made me giggle...

 as did this cook book!

 Pretty parks seem to be a theme in Michigan, in these small towns.

 Very clean and orderly!

We returned to the boat in time to make some lunch which we enjoyed on the fly deck.

As the sun cleared the air and the water calmed somewhat, out came the idiot boaters again.
I try not to stress about this, but the constant whumping of water under the duck board puts a huge amount of stress on the whole boat. Wake waves come up under us and make the whole boat shudder. It is very stressful, I can tell you.

Waz had various jobs to do in the afternoon, and also tried to distress. I spent time on the book I am writing about our journey. Well, I should say I spent time on Vol. 3 of the book...this volume is all Canada! It is good to write while the journey is fresh in our minds. So easy to forget where we have been...we have been to so many different places....and moving each day.
Another hot and restless night. I had so many thoughts rushing around in my head. Waz  slept like a log , of course.
We are hoping the weather will be fine for our trip south the White Lake, tomorrow.

Boat Maintenance and Moving On.

We had paid for two nights in the Marina at Ludington, so we made the most of them. Too bad the anchorages in Ludington are a long way from the town, or we might have been tempted to stay longer. There was so much we wanted to do, but couldn't because there is no Rental Car agency in town:( A visit to the Big Sable Light House and dunes was something we wanted very much to do, but again, no transport thwarted that idea.

Satruday morning dawned overcast, which for me signaled the perfect time to clean the outside of our dirty boat. The cemetery of bugs all over the boat was getting unbearable. Spiders and their poop are driving me crazy, trying to keep the stain off the gelcoat. Grrrr!

Wz had oil changes to do on both engines, so he disappeared below decks to do that, while I prepared hot soapy water, long handled brush and some clothes and went up front to begin scrubbing.

We were up so early, this morning, I even got some sunrise photos! woohoo! I guess I was motivated to get the boat cleaned. Somehow things run better when they are clean! Don't you think so?
At least the neighbors in the marina thought I was industrious:) They all get their boats detailed weekly at their home ports, so they couldn't tell me what they use to get the spider poop off the gelcoat...someone else does that for them! nice! Yes, I'm jealous!:)

 Having scrubbed and wiped and gotten very wet in the process, I finished the clean up in time to make lunch. It was 11.30am. Waz had just finished the Oil change, and we were ready to move. We had decided the night before that we would move to our next destination on Saturday, and noon is move out time at the Marina. We were on time...well, almost! I wasn't going to leave before eating.

Everything put away, tied down, put down (in the event that the waves get rough) and finally on the fly deck ready for untying the lines. With very little wind, it was an easy issue moving out of the dock and back out into the Lake proper, just around the corner from the Channel out to Lake Michigan.
The marina looks a bit bare, now that all the boats have gone! It was a perfect day for a sail with winds 20 knots.

 

Just one sail boat to take into consideration as we entered the channel at right, to go out to Lake Michigan.

 Looking back at the Marina entrance. Not the widest!

 Thank goodness the channel is a wide one and there is plenty of room for everyone.

We have seen photographs of the waves crashing into this light house, and over the top. Can you imagine that? We cant! But winter waves can be vicious, the locals tell us. It is also hard to believe that the lake (Michigan) was frozen over, for the most part, this past Winter. Aieeee!

 Lots of people walk out to the end of the breakwater, each day, and this group of seniors were no exception. The all had their walking gear on.

 And...goodbye to Ludington.

 The fine day turned overcast the further south we went, unfortunately. It makes for some dull photogaphs:(
The Sand Dunes are all along the coastline  of Lake Michigan, in these parts. Some are as high as 600ft +. We saw lots of long ladders and stairwells leading down to the water from homes high on the dunes. None of them looked very safe. I would never want to own a cliff-top property. Apart from the fantastic view, I imagine that the cliff is being eroded constantly.

 It was a short two hour trip down to Pentwater, from Ludington. This is why we left just after noon, on Saturday. The sun came out again as we neared the breakwater to Pentwater. This is just a little lake and we really only have one choice of anchorage.

 

 We couldn't believe the number of people on the beach to the left of the lighthouse, and the people fishing off the breakwater. This light house is rather unoriginal, don't you think? I guess they cant all be good looking?

 Every other man, woman, dog, child, watercraft etc were in the water.

 There is just a short breakwater into Pentwater, but not a wide one as you can see.

 One way to get your fish up the steel breakwater...get your kid to climb down and get it!

Some lovely homes and gardens along the breakwater leading into Pentwater. Many freighters used to ply these waters...and from Ludington also.

 The Pentwater Yacht Club was busy hosting a Wooden Boat Festival, when we went past. It was now VERY warm and humid.

 The downtown area of Pentwater is in the background, behind all the boats and the marina.

 There is a NO WAKE zone from the entrance to the channel to well past the marina in front of the retail district. Apparently it is the holiday makers from Chicago who don't observe the signs and go hell for leather all over the little lake without thought for anyone else.

 Entering the Lake

 and making our way down to the far eastern end of it to anchor in 15 feet of water.

 about here!

Parking outside of a No Wake zone has it's drawbacks, which soon became evident. With the gorgeous weather came the idiots in boats. We were a bit (maybe a lot) of a curiosity at the far end of the lake, and lots of small FAST boats came by...or should I say, circled us at great speed leaving us rocking in their wakes. It drove me nearly spare! People just don't think how their actions affect others!!!

We decided not to go dinghying into town today, be would do that tomorrow. We hoped the easterly wind wouldn't un stick us in the mid we had anchored in, and we had no problems.
We would have thought the dark would bring peace on the water, but it was very late before all the boat traffic ceases. Phew!

It was a hot and humid night, and even a cooling shower off the back deck did little to help with the humidity. We slept fitfully!

A Day out in Ludington with Friends

We were blissfully unaware of what was going on around us when we got up this morning. A nice state to be in, when you are docked in a marina. All is well, and you are safely tied up! Nothing can go wrong, for all intents and purposes, so we can relax. THEN we heard the Badger POOOOOOOOOP! I just made it to the fly deck to see her leave her dock and enter the channel out to the Lake, on her way to Wisconsin.

 

Another thing we noticed this morning...the leaves are starting their Fall colors. Uh oh! Summer is on the way out:(

We did some laundry, as we do when in a Marina (Water is on mains, and we are tied to the dock electrically), and were on our way out, around 11am to put it in the Marina dryer, when who should come walking down the dock, but this pair:) Our friends Dean and Katie, from Houston, who otherwise call Ludington 'Home'. Katie had surgery yesterday, so she is a 'leftie' for about 6 weeks.

 

As friends do, they visited, swapped yarns, enjoyed a cuppa on the boat and called the local dentist for me. Just as we were all leaving the boat, the dentist called us back to say that my Monday, noon appointment was now void, if I wanted to come immediately, as the Dentist had a cancellation!!! YES! We trotted right over to what was only a block away.

Waz and the Calkins waited for me to be x-rayed (well, the teeth were) and be seen by the dentist. What I thought must surely be a cracked tooth or otherwise a needed filling, has turned out to be a  Root Canal in the making. The extreme sensitivity et al is indicative of this in the works. Im not sure how long I will last with things the way they are, but it might be necessary within the next month, to go get a root canal! bummer!

The dentist said he would do it for me if we had two weeks up our sleeves. We don't! But he did give me a prescription for antibiotics in case there is an infection in there, and as an insurance policy.

While there, Dean got himself an appointment for Monday to see about a crown that he has swallowed....the second time! well, he didn't swallow it the first time, and managed to glue it back in, but the second time it came out he did! These folks proudly showed me their crown making machine! I love it. I also enjoyed the dentist and his modern technology:)

 

That done, we walked to a favorite Restaurant of D and K, The Grand, which is home cooking at it's best. I didn't take a photo of the HUGE open faced Burrito that the others ordered...I ordered the bean soup with Brats..yum!...but I should have. I also ordered a small helping (that's all that was needed!!!) of their Turtle Pie dessert. Kind of like a cheesecake...with choc. and caramel sauce. WOW! so much sugar, lol. Waz had a sample, but the other three were so full, from their huge lunch.

 

The four of us walked back to the main street of old Ludington, where we went back to the Photographic Gallery of Todd and Brad Reed. They are a father/son photo duo who document their home state of Michigan. The photos are fantastic! All four seasons are represented, and I admire how they get some of them in totally adverse conditions! As I have said before, the weather in these parts can be brutal!

Of course we had to go for Ice-cream ...yes, after those HUGE burrito, they all said they had room..ha! Even the single scoops are huge, but we had to do it, obviously!:)

 

 

 

We walked back to the car finishing the IC's and D and K took us out to Autozone for Oil for the Engine oil change which is scheduled while we are here, and Meijers (Meyers), west of town, along the highway, where we did some food shopping and had my prescription filled. Waz also found a new TV cable. The other one isn't long enough to reach from the boat to the connection box at most of the Marinas we visit.

 

 

 On the way back to the boat, with the trunk of the car jam packed with D and K's travelling stuff, our oil and groceries  et al, Dean drove us on a quick Tiki-Tour of the beach and beach side homes. It was a hot day!

By the time we got back to the boat it was time for refreshments. D and K had things to do for their Class Reunion tomorrow (Saturday) and Waz and I had things to finish up, on the boat.
After Dinner we felt the need for more exercise and walked the lovely waterfront park again. Of course the Badger was due to sail at 8.30pm again, so we sat and enjoyed the warm evening, the people around us, and the lovely location. Kudos to the city fathers and mothers who have had the foresight to make this place so special.

 I love the late afternoon light...although this was now well after 8pm!

 Lots of places to sit, cook, eat and just enjoy the waterfront.

 Right next to the Marina, in the park, are these large apple trees.. covered in apples. Not ready to eat yet, but they wont be long.

 We loved this sculpture....all of the sculpture in the park is interactive. Notice the vacant sea on the right! This is dedicated to all the Grandparents who might teach their grandies to fish. Lovely:)

 The detail is fantastic!

 You can tell that I am very taken with this sculpture which is dedicated to mariners past, present and future. Perfect!

 The setting sun is gorgeous! Looking out past the harbor entry channel.

 Three young people were fishing, in front of our seat. The other fellow is obviously not in the photo.

 And as we left to go home, we went around the corner and found yet MORE sculpture.:)

 Delightful!

We tend to like walking, as the daylight fades. We knew where we could find a Latte...a bookshop on a corner that we had passed a number of times, now. They are open until 9pm, and it was 8.45pm!

The two young women made an excellent Latte, for which we were very grateful, and we took to the streets again with our hot milky concoctions in hand. The light was fading fast now, but we happened upon this scene, which I had to snap, of course.:)

It is the outside wall of a second hand stuff store. Too bad I didn't get to go inside there!!!! Good thing! says Waz! :)

It was well and truly dark when we arrived back at the marina and home. We were tired, after our long day and all the activity.
D and K have a busy weekend ahead of them, and we have boat maintenance to do tomorrow.

We might not see them again before we leave, but we will catch up with them in Florida, again.