M/V Serenity: 20-24 July, 2021. Boat maintenance and tourist stuff

20 July. Weather decent, not too hot or cold as we remain tied to the city marina wall. Decent place, folks friendly. Completed boat projects; house battery bank distilled water top off and refreshed the composting toilet. Early morning walk across the Cheboygan river to a large marine repair and haul-out/storage facility who happened to have Yanmar engine oil and fuel filters to replenish the ones used. While there asked if they had distilled water. Nope, but were headed out to get some soon and they would call me when it came in this morning. About an hour later the marine ship store called and had the distilled water. Another brisk walk and for $1.00 I had my distilled water and was back on the boat. POC walked 1.5 miles to the Wal-mart area and visited a couple of thrift stores and got a few items. She caught the county bus back to Serenity. I had completed the boat projects when she arrived. We both stowed gear and cleaned the inside of the boat. Peaceful day in Cheboyan.

21July. Relocation day. Clear and crisp this morning; 50 degrees.

3/4 SM and 0.4 hours. Very short move

Called the nearby lift bridge and confirmed their scheduled opening and provided our location. We are about 100 yards from the bridge so once we untie and ease into the river we will be there pretty quick. Reviewing our checklists, removing shore power cord and untying the lines, we cast off and proceeded toward the rising lift bridge. We had secured a slip at the Cheboyan county marina, a state harbor of refuge with state park rates. We desired a bit more security for Serenity as we planned to spend several long days away from the boat. Additionally, severe weather was approaching this weekend. A quick trip down the river to the marina located just inside the breakwater off Lake Huron. Quickly secured, Serenity and crew would remain for a few days. Marina has excellent laundry facilities on site so we washed and dried clothes. Also, a decent marina grill, so we grilled some hamburger beef for supper.

Finalized our planning for the next few days. Winds and weather certainly make journeying problematic this weekend but look better by Sunday and into the follow week. Tomorrow we will take a ferry to Bois Blanc island with the crew off of Sea Moor and spend the day. We have a car reserved for two days; Friday we will go to Mackinaw City and ride the ferry to Mackinic Island and spend the day. Saturday we will drive to Sault St Marie and meet our Florida friends who live in Marquette, MI and visit a maritime museum, the SOO locks and have lunch.

22 July. Ferry ride to Bois Blanc Island

Native people, French, British and USA

The island is very rural, dirt roads and limited services other than electric, wells and septic systems. There is a small marina for the ferry service and a small airport for air service mainly during the winter months when the ferry stops. We packed lunch and took rain gear in our backpacks. Quick ferry ride and we were on the island. We had coordinated with a local islander who rents bikes. We got two OK mountain bikes and we rode probably 12-15 miles. Our bottoms were pretty sore at the end of the day. Great outdoor exposure as we rode around and through the island. Pretty and fresh. We returned our bikes at lunch time and walked a bit more here and there.

Island lake..very beautiful

Gravel roads on the island

Ferry landing

A cloudy day with occasional drizzle but cool. Great bike riding weather. We caught the late afternoon ferry back to Cheboygan. A short walk back to Serenity completed the day. A few nibbles for supper and we were soon asleep, pooped from the day’s activity.

23 July. Early morning go. Taking the rental car to Mackinaw City to catch the early ferry to Mackinaw City, then the high speed ferry to Mackinac Island. Both the city and island are pronounced the same, just different spellings. MAC-IN-AW. Ferry was 5 times faster than Serenity and we were dock to dock in 16 minutes. What an amazing contrast to Bois Blanc Island. Mackinac Island

1400 rental bikes on island

Our tandem ride around island

Beautiful homes, B&Bs and Inns

Fort is impressive and worth the long climb up the hill

Looking down on village

Only legs, bikes or horses allowed on island

Harbor view from fort hill top

We hiked, walked, climbed and rode till we were completely wore out. Beautiful day, sunny clear skies. Grand Hotel the largest front porch in the world; but to sit on it you have to pay! But we walked the hill to see it and the most beautiful flowers and gardens I have ever seen. Near the end of the day we caught the ferry back to Mackinaw City and drove the rental car back to Cheboygan and Serenity. A quick bite to eat, showers, then sleep came quick and easy.

24 July. Up early and rain gear packed. We are headed to Sault St. Marie, to visit the maritime museum with the Edmund Fitzgerald artifacts. While we have been lifted up and down by many locks, the “SOO Locks” are massive with four chambers, three able to handle 1000 foot Great Lake freighters. Also, there is a great visitor center and observation platform to watch the big freighters lock up/down. Finally, our friends from Florida live in Marquette Mi and will drive over to see us and have lunch.

It was mostly a rainy and stormy day with drizzle, lightening and heavy rain off and on all day. But we had fun. We drove over twice the Straits of Mackinaw bridge which we have to go under once we head into Lake Michigan. The maritime museum was Ok but would not recommend. The locks were great and there was a freighter locking down at 1300 and it was nice to watch a 750 foot long, 75 feet wide ship enter and exit the locks. We had a great dinner with our friends Mike and Ann from Marquette and Naples. We broke down and bought fudge—seems to be a thing in Michigan. Not quite a two hour drive back to Serenity with rain showers off an on. But around 1900 the sun began to peak around the clouds and by sunset the sky was clearing. Another fun day exploring but we are pooped again.