Hurry Up and Wait

As so often happens on the homeward trek, we are encountering contrary winds. After leaving DeTour we motored into a chop all the way to the East Entrance to Les Cheneaux. We had hoped to make it to the West Entrance and anchor in Wilderness Bay, but by the time we reached the channel leading up to Government Bay, we'd had enough. And it was nice to be anchored in time to enjoy a leisurely dinner in the cockpit before enjoying yet another of the beautiful sunsets we've come to expect every time we stop here. Yesterday's forecast included more of the same (west winds and waves on our nose), so we decided to take the inside passage through Les Cheneaux, passing by the towns of Cedarville and Hessel as well as numerous cottages along the way. Our plan was to duck back in and anchor at the west end if we found conditions outside too rough.

The passage is narrow and shallow, but by staying in the channel marked by red and green buoys, we were guaranteed at least seven feet of depth the whole way. It's been probably ten years since we last came through that way, and we were surprised how many changes we found. The area used to be dotted with small cottages designed to blend in with the surroundings, each with a boat house containing a classic mahogany runabout. Now most of the powerboats are plastic, and the "cottages" border on McMansions with nothing to conceal them from the view of passing boaters.

When we were nearing the West Entrance we put up sail, as winds were an ideal speed (around 15 knots) to sail by. Unfortunately, they were on our nose, which meant we had to tack, adding considerably to the distance of our trip. This meant we were approaching Mackinac Island just as the afternoon winds were reaching their peak. Even double-reefed we were over-canvassed (apparent wind was consistently over 30 knots), so we took in sail and slogged the rest of the way to St. Ignace.

After two relatively short days of slogging (each trip was around 25 miles), we decided we weren't up for more of the same on the 40-mile trip to Beaver Island, our next planned stop. So here we are in St. Ignace, waiting for a favorable forecast. Meanwhile, there's lots to do, some fun, some not so much. Laundry, waxing cabin sides, and possibly visiting Mackinac Island via ferry, are at the top of the list.