Lady Royal: September 2010

Saturday, September 25, 2010

Michigan City, IN and Chicago, IL

Michigan City was a nice stop – with an outlet center and casino nearby. Rob shopped for a short while, and I shopped a little bit longer. Although the casino was nearby, transportation was provided. The Blue Chip Casino was located at “2 Easy Street!” How cute. We went with Bob and Pam, had a nice dinner, then gambled for a while. It's always more fun to win! The next morning, we left for Chicago.

Bob and Pam at Blue Chip

Leaving Blue Trip

The trip to Chicago was not fun. OK, maybe there were a few times when we said “wheeee” and it was a little bit of fun. Pam even got on the radio and said, hee haw, or gidday-yup, or something like that! It was a long ride, and we were all happy when to see Chicago's skyline and pull into the harbor. We docked in downtown Chicago, next to the Navy Pier, and just took in the scenery around us.

Linda, thanks again for the champaign! After a long, rocky ride, it was the perfect time to crack open the bottle! We then went to dinner at Berghoff's, which has long been a Chicago landmark. The Berghoff brothers started brewing Berghoff beer in Fort Wayne, Indiana, in 1887. When they decided to expand their market, they sold beer at the Chicago World's Fair of 1893, and opened their Chicago restaurant in 1896. After the prohibition was repealed in 1933, The Berghoff was issued Liquor Licence No. 1. Although I didn't think the food was great, its history was interesting.

The next two days were packed with a lot of walking and sight seeing. The flowers and parks throughout the city are awesome. The waterfront is beautiful, as is Grant Park, which also includes the Art Institute of Chicago and Millennium Park. The Chicago Marathon starts and ends at Grant Park, and it is also where President Obama delivered his election day victory speech. Millennium Park is an award-winning center for art, music, architecture and landscape design. It features the Frank Gehry designed Jay Pritzker Pavilion, the most sophisticated outdoor concert venue of its kind in the United States; the Crown Fountain; and the popular Cloud Gate sculpture, also known as “the bean.” We met Aimee Golub at the bean, had a great lunch at Hot Wok Cold Sushi, and spent the afternoon at the museum, which was awesome. See how good you are in identifying the following art! After walking the Miracle Mile, we headed back to the marina.

The next day, we took down the mast and bridge. When entering the river, we will pass through about 40 bridges in about 5 miles, and have to be under 17 feet to make it through. We probably could have made it without taking down the bridge, but it was easier to take it down than to stress out about how close we were cutting it! We enjoyed an architectural river tour; went to the Signature Room on the 95^th floor of the John Hancock Building, where “the sky's the limit;” and then went for deep-dish pizza at Gino's East.

Pulling into Chicago... Mint Julep front center.

Beautiful flowers everywhere!

A Dom toast! Thanks Lin!!!!

Downtown from the river.

Grant Park... Buckingham Fountain

With Amy Golub at the Bean

Rob at the Art Museum

Guess the artist and painting!

Guess again!

I don't get it!

John Hancock Building

Chicago from the John Hancock Building

Monday, September 20, 2010

From Ludington, MI to Michigan City, IN

Ludington

September 11,12

Like many other towns, Ludington was a nice stop with downtown nearby. There was also a beautiful park right next to the marina, with many sculptures that depicted the town's history. One sculpture, Reflections, was a symbol of Ludington's past when schooners carried lumber from Ludington to other Great Lakes ports. It was also a symbol of the present, representing the pleasures of boating on the waters; and a symbol of the future, moving Ludington forward. This sculpture, one of many, was made by Cleveland artist Irina Koukhavona. Another sculpture, created by Cleveland artist Ron Dewey, represented Ludington's lumbering era and the role it played on Ludington's development.

This park was a great way to learn about the history of the area, without going to museums which often cause museum fatigue!

Ludington is home of the Badger, a coal-fired car ferry that makes daily runs from Ludington, MI to Manitowac, WI. It is the largest and last coal-fired steamship built in the United States that, due to environmental concerns, will soon be converted to diesel. The ship is massive, and watching it dock was impressive. It drops a huge anchor off its bow, and pivots around to dock.

There were a lot of cute stores in town, the best of which was Todd and Brad Reed's photography store. The father-son team puts a new meaning to the term scenic photography. If you want to see amazing photos of Ludington, visit toddandbradreed.com.

We have been having a really nice time with our friends on Mint Julep, General Delivery and Ladybug, meeting for occasional happy hours and dinners, and sharing stories about our adventures. We have been told, and have read about, how gracious people are as you travel the loop. People are genuinely kind, and go out of their way to be helpful. Here's an example. We needed oil, which was hard to find. Rob found a transmission store, and told the owner, Clyde, what he needed. Not having it in stock, Clyde arranged for it to be delivered from Bear Lake, to Manistee, to Ludington. When we went to get it, he knew we had walked there, and without hesitation, had someone from his office drive us back to the Marina. We heard that this is common, especially when traveling down the rivers. As a matter of fact, we were told that it's common for people to just toss over their keys to loopers if they have somewhere to go!

Ladybug, Lady Royal and Mint Julep Docked

Ludington Light House

Louise and Louie

Pam, Bob, Linda and Jim

Russ and Cindy

Russ Watching the Badger Dock

Reflections

Sunset on the Beach

Sunset Behind the Clouds

When in Doubt – Walk It!

Grand Haven

September 13,14

Grand Haven's history is also in lumber. Back in the 1800s, it was nicknamed “Furniture City” because it was one of the largest furniture manufacturers in the United States. We stayed at Grand Haven Muicipal Marina, which was right in town. Shopping, restaurants, and a farmers market were all nearby. And that's not all they have! Right in town was an Eagles Club! Being members, we were very excited about visiting. We had never visited a guest club, and we found out that as a welcome gift, the second drink is on the house! The people were really nice, and the club was huge. We later found out that this is the third largest club in the country. One of the highlights at Grand Haven is their nightly, choreographed music show called Musical Fountains, but we didn't have a chance to see it since the season ended a few weeks ago. We had a great dinner at Kirby's Grill Room, with Bob, Pam, Jim and Linda. I had the best salmon ever and Rob had amazing scallops.

Say No More!

Bob, Jim, Debby, Rob, Linda and Pam

Sunrise

Saugatuck

September 15,16

Saugatuck is a great town. It's an artsy community with many galleries, restaurants, great clothes stores, and specialty stores, including one that sells spices and another that sells oils and vinegars. Our very favorite gallery was Bruce Baughman Studios and Galleries. His new works were awesome. He paints in the reverse on plexiglass, creating abstract images of elements in nature. His works can be viewed at www.brucebaughmangallery.com (David and Ivy.... you would love these!) Saugatuck's history went back to lumbering, and was later turned into a resort town area. We stayed at Singapore Yacht Club, right in the heart of town, where we met a couple who offered us their keys if we wanted to go somewhere out of the area. We had great italian food at Marro's, with Bob, Pam, Louie, Louise, Russ and Cindy.

Pam, Bob, Louise, Debby, Louie, Rob, Cindy and Russ at Marro's

Lighthouse

Shopping!

Saugatuck Ferry

Rob and Britto at Saugatuck

South Haven

September 17,18

When settling in at South Haven, I stayed onboard and worked, and Rob ventured off to check out the town and pick up some groceries. While shopping, he struck up a conversation with Betty, who then gave him a ride back to the marina. (To any kids reading this blog, we don't condone this behavior!) Still with the same boat buddies, we got together at the marina's gazebo for cocktails and appetizers. We've learned something about appetizers: "KISS"... or Keep it Simple, Sweetie! Some mixed nuts, potato chips, or cheese and crackers suffice. The marina was on the north side of the Black River, and town was on the south side, so we walked over the bridge and had dinner at Clementine's. The next day, we walked around, visited the farmer's market, and hopped on a loop bus to go to Walmart, the perfect rainy-day activity! After a long day fasting, we had cocktail hour on Lady Royal, breaking our fast with some wine, chips, made-from-scratch salsa, guacamole, cheese and crackers. Dan and Ellen, It didn't meet up to your break-fast spread, but it was still pretty good! Off to Michigan City!

Beating the Storm

Leaving the Harbor

Sunday, September 12, 2010

Leland/Frankfort

September 10

We woke up to blue skies, sunshine and a flat lake. What a nice change! We left the Charlevoix marina in time to make it through the 7:30 a.m. bridge, and it was a picture-perfect day. Our original plans were to cruise to Leland, and stay overnight. After pulling into the harbor to refuel, the harbormaster told us that as much as he would like for us to stay, we should probably continue south since it was a perfect travel day. Leland's historical district, Fishtown, is just a few steps from the dock. It features rustic shanties, reminiscent of life and commercial fishing one hundred years ago. Today, it is filled with galleries, shops, and boats for charter fishing trips. It also houses the famous Carlson's Fisheries shop, where they sell fresh and smoked fish, as well as beef and turkey jerky. Thanks for the tip, Dan!

After a short stop, we headed toward Frankfort. The whole day was picture perfect. We cruised by Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, a park that covers a 35-mile stretch along the coast. The park includes forests, beaches, dune formations and ancient glacial phenomena. The rolling sand dunes, some of which reached a height of 400 feet, ranged in color from pale champagne to burnt sienna.

We reached Frankfort around 5 p.m. where we met up Sylvia and Mark (Heavenly Ours), Pam and Bob with Linda and Jim (Mint Julip), Louise and Louie (General Delivery), Cindy and Russ (Ladybug) and Ruth and Wayne (High Spirits). We walked around town, and to an amazing beach around the corner, before meeting for dinner at Dingy's.

What we learned: Michigan beaches are beautiful. When the weather is nice, keep moving! Loopers are a great group of people.

Leaving Charlevoix

Lake Michigan

Leland Fishermen

Leland Dam

Dam Candy Store

Shopping at Fishtown

Leland Harbor

Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore

Frankfort Beach

Thursday, September 9, 2010

Charlevoix, Michigan

September 7

Our last lesson learned was, “when the waves roll in, the boat stays put.” Our new lesson is, "if waves are SUPPOSED TO roll in, the boat stays put.” Waters were calm when leaving Mackinaw City. That changed. Our plan was to go to Petoskey, in Little Traverse Bay, which was supposed to be a 7-hour cruise. When we left Mackinaw, the lake was calm. After a few hours, the waves began building and didn't slow down. It was too rough to enter the bay, so we re-routed, crossed the bay, and came to Charlevoix instead.

The Charlevoix City Marina is on Round Lake, just off the Pine River Channel. It's a protected marina that is just a few steps from town. Fellow loopers, Linda and Ray Corrette, were docked right next to us. After settling in, we were happy to accept their invitation for cocktails and appetizers on their boat, Summertime. The Corrette's have been cruising for four years, and they are now doing the loop for the second time.

While walking around, we saw some of the “mushroom houses” that were developed by Earl Young. They are compared to the digs of Hansel and Gretel, Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, or Little Red Riding Hood's grandmother's house. Buyers snap them up as soon as they go on the market, and tourists seek them out when visiting. Young's favorite building materials were ice-age boulders of the Great Lakes region. The boulders, along with wavy, overhanging shingled roofs, give these homes their signature look. Young created the houses without plans. He would pace off the rooms and explain to the builder how he wanted them built.

Our second night, we played Mexican Train Dominos with the Correttes, and the following day, we went rented a car and went with them to Petoskey, which has a nice downtown area and a casino. I was the instigator who wanted to go to the casino, and although I lost a few dollars, I had some fun!

We cooked a nice dinner for Rosh Hashanah, and it was good to Skype with our family back home. If anyone reading this uses Skype, please send us your Skype name!

This morning, We woke up to find a farmers' market set up on the streets. We shopped, walked around, and enjoyed the sunshine – something we had not seen since arriving in Charlevoix. According to the weather now, we plan to head down to Leland in the morning, which should take about four hours. Dan, we look forward to the beef jerky!

L'Shana Tova to all. Wishing you good health and happiness throughout the year.