Sail Far Live Free

A Wave's Canvas (by K. Walters, Hunting Island, S. Carolina)

"The annals of this voracious beach! Who could write them, unless it were a shipwrecked sailor? How many who have seen it only in the midst of danger and distress, the last strip of earth which their mortal eyes beheld." -Henry David Thoreau from Cape Cod , 1865 As much as I look forward to future sailing adventures and use planning them as a means of mentally surviving the long Great Lakes winter, I also use the offseason to slow down and savor the rich history of my home waters. Part of that rich history is now protected by the West Michigan Underwater Preserve . We often look astern to see where we've sailed, look forward to see what's ahead of the bow, and look aloft to check the sky, sails, or wind indicator. But how often do we look below the water's surface? Do you ever think about the history that you're literally sailing right over the top of? I do, and I have to admit, sometimes it's spooky. The West Michigan Underwater Preserve (WMUP) beg...

The Fallout from Haul Out  by K. Walters The day has come (again), the season is escaping; Boatyards are bustling, hulls need scraping. The sun sets sooner, the air grows cold; There are sails to furl, clean and fold. Leaves fall to the water, gales begin to blow; Time to offload, clean, repair, and sew. Flush, fill and drain to winterize; Close her up tight and release long sighs. Summer is short, winter so long; Sailing thoughts play inside me like a song. There are warm memories now to reap; Our favorite little ship   is ready to sleep.

"How inappropriate to call this planet Earth when it is quite clearly Ocean." -Arthur C. Clarke Picture This: A Planet Called Ocean (photo: K. Walters)

Heron Starin'

"Long voyages - any voyages - in a small sailing craft are most complex operations when they are carried out properly, in a seamanlike manner. The idea of escaping the problems of life by sailing away is a fable. -Tristan Jones from Yarns , 1983. The above point is well taken and quickly understood once the shoreline disappears. You'd better have your ship together and know how to react to any "problems of life" rather instinctively when running to a safe harbor isn't an option. While crossing Lake Michigan (or any of the Great Lakes) isn't quite the same as a bluewater ocean passage, there are some similarities in how you prepare and the safety equipment you should carry. Since I get a lot questions here on the blog about crossing Lake Michigan and keeping young children safe on such a passage, I thought I'd share our recipe for safety on a crossing. On our ~72 nautical mile crossing of Lake Michigan this summer, we used the following safety gear: 1...

Ketching a Sunset

"It is better to light a candle than curse the darkness." -Eleanor Roosevelt Light directly from something other than the sun is one of the many, many things that is easily taken for granted. I've been using a couple of solar powered LED lights from SolLight to provide some evening lighting our cockpit for most of the summer. I have to say, I'm impressed. RailLight Premium from SolLight While there are a lot of very cheap solar powered LED yard lights available at Walmart and other large retailers, RailLights from SolLight are a step above in quality and brightness and were purpose-built for use on a boat. I have both a RailLight Premium and a RailLight Mini . Both are a great addition to our cruising repertoire. The RailLight Premium comes with a 200 mA solar panel, LEDs providing 0.5 watts of brightness, 8 hours of light on a full charge, a waterproof pushbutton switch to control brightness level, and 304 stainless steel construction (no plastic!). It...

The Life Aquatic

There are several Great Lakes cruising destinations that are truly world class. Lake Huron's North Channel, Lake Superior's Apostle Islands, and Lake Michigan's Door County Peninsula are three of the most well known, both in the region and in the larger cruising community as a whole. This summer my family and I had the good fortune of taking an 11 day cruise to Door County from our home port in Muskegon, Michigan. While the weather didn't allow us to circumnavigate the entire peninsula during our short cruise window, we did enjoy a couple of excellent Lake Michigan crossings and a bit of time exploring a few Door County ports. If you plan to take a similar cruise, you'll have to make a few logisitcal decisions. First, you'll need to decide which port to depart from in Michigan and where to arrive in Wisconsin when you cross Lake Michigan. You'll also need to decide which ports to visit in Door County. What follows is a summary of our experience and a few...