Dennis at Sacre Bleu Helm |
Editor's Note: Dennis Dudley is bringing his newly acquired Ericson 35, "Sacre Bleu", to Port Huron from Waukeegan, IL. This report from Dennis comes after the leg of this journey that took him to Harbor Springs.
I "sailed" with Ken Zielinski from Cheybogan to Harbor Beach in one week end. We motored the whole way. Love that diesel engine! Ken and I left Cheybogan about 6 pm. The original goal was Rogers City. The winds were light with no waves. My wife had expressed a desire to get the voyage finished, so she didn't want to have to continue to spend her week ends picking up grubby sailors.
As we approached Rogers City we decided to just keep going through out the night. Ken brought his winter Navy style Pea Coat this time. It kept him warm, the Navy designed that coat right. We had a down sleeping bag that is good to zero. So one slept in the cock pit while the other steered. We stayed well off shore to avoid islands in the Thunder Bay area. Saw two frieghters anchored off shore waiting to pick up a load of limestone off Stone Port (clever name). That was the only sign of life besides ourselves.
When the sun came up we were off Harrisville but only 60 miles from Port Austin across the mouth of Saginaw Bay. We decided to head for there, the tip of the thumb. The weather stayed calm with no waves --- ideal for motoring. Arrived in Port Austin about 4:30 pm after 23 hours on the water. The 22 1/2 gal. fuel tank took 17 gal. Spent the night at the state docks there. They were the cleanest of all the docks that we had visited. They even had a cob web crew out in the morning.
Left at 7 am for Harbor Beach. Again there was no wind, the water suface had an oily look. The weather was warm. Later as we approached Harbor Beach things cooled down and fog closed in. My trusty GPS guided us right to the harbor entrance.
Distance from Cheybogan to Port Austin 132 mi.
Distance to Harbor Beach 32 mi.
Total 166 mi. at about 7 mph. |
