We're out of the dock and on our way by 8 a.m. Another cloudy, overcast day in the harbor. Waterford lead the way under the lift bridge and into Lake Superior.
Day Dreams following us out.
It was out of the harbor and into the FOG!
We had hoped to see the beautiful cliffs of the shore line and the Split Rock Lighthouse along our way ---- not today. The fog was relentless!
Captains Garry and Doug moved us safely along using all the tools available and frequently checking with each other by radio as the day progressed.
The two pictures on the left represent how we navigate in good -- and especially bad weather. The top photo is an electronic version of a paper chart (or map). This operates on our HP All-in-One PC. As Waterford moves along, the chart moves too. Here you can see we are less than a half mile off shore and it's 600 feet deep. Yet there is a significant 'bump' to the left that is only 11 feet deep (yes rky stands for ROCKY). The volcanos and glaciers did amazing things 1.2 billion years ago when this Lake was formed!
The lower photo is our radar. 24 mile maximum range, and it is very effective for detecting rain and storms. But the real value is detecting other boats and land in the zero or poor visibility. The "gain" can be adjusted so we can even detect flying birds VS boats or land.
Captain Doug made a terrific discovery the other day -- the radar "zoom box". In the lower left you can see a square box. We put a sticky note on Waterford and just below that Day Dreams. We generally lead / follow about 1/2 to 1 mile apart. If there is ANYTHING else in that square box ... not good. So the zoom box feature simply magnifies what is normally in the center ring of the radar. The radar range can be adjusted from 330 ft. per ring to 6 miles per ring depending on the need. And boy did we need it set on CLOSE range coming into Silver Bay, MN!
This is a fairly new marina and does not show up in detail on the electronic charts. In fact, all we knew for sure was that there were 3 red buoys (on the right) and three green ones on the left at the harbor entrance (per other reference material we had). Dialing the radar down as low as it goes we inched our way to the estimated position of the first green ... could not see it by eye -- but radar showed it was there (about 100 to 120 feet away).
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| Safe in the harbor. |
We never did actually see the harbor break-wall (entrance) or the island connected to it. In fact it was a day later that we even saw the little island that has been joined by this beautiful black granite stone that forms the protective harbor (so big that dump trucks could only haul 4 rocks at a time).
After a pump out, we were tied up safely side by side for the evening. After dinner we were treated to the sounds of a saxophone from the Nordhaven trawler at the end of the next dock. From the Beatles to Jazz to Clair d Lune, the "concert" continued for over an hour. A lovely end of the day!
Tuesday, July 16
The harbor office/shower facility with a little morning fog quickly departing.
We all spent the morning doing chores --- so we could play in the afternoon. Off to Beaver Bay Sports to rent ATV's for a tour through some of the many trails in the area.
As Garry says, "always an adventure"!
Here we are 15 miles up the trail at 2000 ft. elevation on our trek through the "Minnesota Wilderness".
This was the turn around point -- time to head back.
Gramps and Mimi on our "red hot machine". What a hoot!
On the way back we took a little side trip to Bean Lake. Inland the water was actually warm enough to cool off in!
It was such a beautiful evening, we decided to do a beach fire complete with hotdogs and s'mores ---- within sight of the boats!
Wednesday, July 17
The day got off to a sunny start, so we decided to deploy the dinghies for a cruise to the Split Rock Lighthouse --- that's the one we missed completely in the fog on Monday. So off we went for the 5 mile ride to the lighthouse. It was well worth the trip.....
This is the most photographed lighthouse in Minnesota, several hundred feet off the water. The building materials were lifted off a barge because there was no road at the time.
There was a pair of Loons in the little bay as we approached -- loons and lighthouses...........
Time to head back to the dock as the fog began to roll in once again.
The return trip was quite a challenge. Fog, a 180 degree wind shift, some rain --- we had it all!
By the time we made it back, the sky was really threatening. Thunder was rumbling as we loaded bikes and dinghies. We just got everything secured when the storms began --- thunder, lightning, fog, continuing for most of the night. A great night for a murder mystery movie! Doug and Jan brought the popcorn and we enjoyed "Anatomy of a Murder". This was the 1959 movie that had been filmed in Big Bay, MI. What fun to see the scenes shot in places we had visited. For you old movie buffs, it's classic Jimmy Stewart.
Thursday, July 18
FOGGED IN! Plans to move on today were definitely not going to happen. The fog was so dense at times, we couldn't see the office/shower building. It was a good day to get some chores done. Garry changed oil in the engine while I defrosted the frig/freezer and did a general cleaning. The fog finally cleared in time for cocktail hour where the evening's entertainment was watching the volunteer fire and rescue folks go through their paces in preparation for the big fishing tournament here this weekend. Weather permitting, we'll be out of here by then!
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