It's all about the wind - Charlevoix to Leland, MI

We departed today (Monday 8/27 at 9:30AM) for Leland, MI after spending five lovely days in Charlevoix, our favorite port on Lake Michigan.  Thanks to 5 to 10 MPH winds from the west, the 36 mile four hour run was made on seas less than 1 foot.  What a difference from our first run on Lake Michigan six days ago.

Leland is an artificial "harbor of refuge" build by the Federal Government circa 1965 that sits between Charlevoix to the north and Frankfort some 30 miles to the south.  It is provides a safe harbor for small boats in stormy weather in the center of a 70 mile stretch of water.  With Leland, the eastern shore of Lake Michigan has ports approximately 30 miles apart for almost 300 miles.

The town itself is small and the commercial district sits adjacent to the harbor.  Despite its size, the shops are very together.  There is also a small but very well stocked grocery store right by the harbor.  Best of al,l within walking distance, there are no less than five very nice restaurants. 

Historic Fishtown

The major attraction is Historic Fishtown, a group of charming rustic shops at the south end of the harbor.  Fishtown looks like a shanty town for the 19th century.  The dam at the head of the harbor allows water from Lake Leelanau to flow into Lake Michigan. 

lake Leelanau Dam looking toward Lake Michigan

Lake Leelanau is a large inland lake less than half a mile east of Lake Michigan, which is not accessible from the big lake.  It has 41 miles of shoreline.  We have in past years rode our bikes around Leelanau.

We've stopped at Leland many times in our years of cruising Lake Michigan.

Side story: In 2006, less than a month after taking delivery of our new 48, we were starting our trip back to Chicago after visiting our favorite ports on Little Travis Bay.  The water was calm and we were running at 30 MHP when all of a sudden we heard an engine alarm.  We immediately shut down the engines and looked into the engine room.  Big problem.  The port engine was covered with black oil.  It was obvious we had incurred a major oil system failure.

Fortunately, we were about 10 miles north of Leland when the failure occured.  After determining that the port engine was not operational, we proceeded to Leland on the starboard engine.  We called the harbor and notified them that we were in trouble and they told us they would be waiting for us at their the gas dock.  Enroute we also called the dealership, Skipper Buds, to report the problem.  We were fortunate to reach Denny Ellerbrock, the Sr VP.

This story has an amazingly happy ending to what could have been a nightmare (a major breakdown in a small town miles from any big city).  Skipper Buds (Denny) was amazing.  He arranged for one of their delivery captains at the dock before we arrived, arranged to have the oil cleaned up (10 hours work for two men - $1,000) the next day and arranged to have Cummins, the engine manufacturer, have a technician on the job the day after the cleanup. 

Failed Oil Cooler Housing

The problem was diagnosed as a hairline crack between two bolts on the oil cooler housing caused by a faulty casting.  The three inch fracture caused approximately 3 gallons (of 6 in the crankcase) to spray out under intense pressure  Hence the awful mess in the engine room.  Two days later the boat was repaired and we were on our way.  Kudo to Skipper Buds.

Look close and you can see the crack between the two bolts

Back to the present.  We took a nice hour walk, took Kodi swimming in Lake Leelanau, had a delicious dinner at the Bluebird and facinated a bunch of kids and adults with Kodi's wide range of behaviors.

Kodi swimming 60 yards from the shore on Lake Leelanau

Written by Les.