August 5, 2005 Detour State Harbor, De Tour Village, MI. to Les Cheneaux Islands, Government Bay Anchorage 21.4 NM, 2:45 h, 8.6 kn. Well, here we are! Anchoring one last time on the loop just for fun, along with our buddy boats, Decompressing and Livin’ It. A fellow looper, Jeff on Big Wave, who we met at the Port of Orillia, invited us during docktails one evening to visit his family cottage/homestead in the Les Cheneaux Islands and so we all decided we would take him up on his offer. Dave and his daughter were on their dock waving to greet us as we passed their property on the way to the anchorage. We anchored near Big Wave (named in honor of Jeff’s Dad, a surfer called Big Wave Dave) in Government Bay and after settling in and confirming our anchor was holding, we hopped in our dinghy and headed ashore for a tour of their family camp. We had a lovely tour and visit, hearing the stories and seeing pictures of their little slice of heaven over the years. The property has been in the family for 5 generations! Next up, Doug joined Bob & Robin for a hike on Government Island and they came back with tales of a giant rabbit…no pictures though so did they really see it?! We enjoyed happy hour on Decompressing and then dinner on our boat and a calm evening on the hook. On Wednesday, we dinghied to Cedarville (about 3 miles each way?) to see the Les Cheneaux Maritime Museum and have lunch. The museum was fun, lunch was delicious and we were enjoying ice cream until the anchor alarm went off and we realized that 3 miles away, back in Government Bay our anchor was dragging in the winds. We hopped back in our dinghy to head back to pull up our anchor and reset it. It turned out to be a little more challenging than expected with winds, weeds wrapped around our anchor, chain and bridle and heavy mud. Fortunately, Decompressing had already reset their anchor and Livin’ It wasn’t dragging so Steve and Bob arrived via dinghy to help us out just as I was feeling a little overwhelmed by the task at hand. Our friends joined us on the flybridge for happy hour and my specialty, Old Fashioneds, which was as always, a hoot, the winds calmed down, we grilled some pork chops on the boat for dinner and it turned out to be another wonderful night on the hook. Proving once again that, it’s all going to be fine in the end and if it’s not fine yet, it’s not the end 😊

August 7, 2025 Les Cheneaux Islands, Government Bay Anchorage to Straits State Harbor, Mackinaw City 23.5 NM, 2:57 h, 8.8 kn. After pulling up our anchor with way less difficulty than the day before (I called captain and drove the boat while Doug pulled up the anchor), we departed Government Bay with Jeff (Big Wave) waving goodbye to us as we cruised by. We had a nice cruise, a little rocky and rolly, here and there, to Straits State Harbor in Mackinaw City. After docking safely, we walked to lunch with our friends on Decompressing and Livin’ It and enjoyed the Keyhole Bay & Grill. We walked about the town which was much more touristy and crowded than any place else we’ve been on the loop, not exactly what we expected. Dinner at The Chippewa Room was delightful (our server, Volkan, from Istanbul was a hoot and the bananas foster was amazing!) and the manager was kind enough to give us a ride back to the marina as there are no Ubers or taxis here. Friday morning we caught the 9:30 AM ferry to Mackinac Island and thoroughly enjoyed the day. We started our visit with a private (Robin, Bob and Doug & I) carriage tour with our driver, Hannah and her horses, Bubbles and Julian, followed by a visit to Joann’s for some fudge sampling, a climb to Fort Mackinac, lunch at Millie’s on Main, and a walk to the Grand Hotel for afternoon cocktails in the Cupola Bar. After our cocktails, we walked back to town with a stop for Doug to take a dip in the lake to cool off along the way, some shopping, a visit to the Pink Pony for live music (way too crowded) and finally a nice dinner at the Yankee Rebel to complete our day on the island. We caught the 7:30 PM ferry back to Mackinaw City and once we were back on the boat, we enjoyed our air conditioning and watching “Somewhere in Time” with Christopher Reeve and Jane Seymour which was filmed on the island. Saturday and Sunday, we enjoyed biking on the North Central State Trail and the North Western State Trail, and a stop at the Old Mackinac Point Lighthouse and the Mackinac Bridge. It was really nice slowing down and just enjoying life, almost like being on vacation! On Saturday night there were fireworks in celebration of International Ironworker’s Day here in Mackinaw City. They were awesome, even better than 4th of July!

August 11, 2025 Straits State Harbor, Mackinaw City to Petoskey Municipal Marina 49.1 NM, 3:36 h, 14.7 kn. We had a bumpy cruise through the straits and around the tip of the mitten of Michigan. There were 3-4 foot waves most of the way, fortunately they were on our bow, but it was still a little rougher than I’d like. We beat the rain (as hoped) with only a few sprinkles along the way. After tying up and settling in we enjoyed lunch in town with our friends on Livin’ It and Decompressing while it rained. Then we took a walk around town and didn’t get far before stopping for ice cream at Murdick’s where I had the “Petoskey Stone” flavor, peppermint ice cream with chocolate flakes and oreos, Yum! Next we visited the Hemingway landmarks around and local hardware store. We had 3 lovely dinners during our stay, Leto’s Osteria, Chandlers (where we had our farewell dinner with Decompressing as they are moving on to finish their loop) and Spring & Porter, all excellent food and service. The bike trails around Petoskey are awesome and we biked to Harbor Springs where we ordered a new mattress for the boat. Harbor Springs Mattress Company is the best! When earlier than expected rains/storms popped up the owner put our bikes in the back of his SUV and gave us a ride back to the marina, even stopping at Toski Sands Market, a wine shop and deli, we wanted to go to along the way. He went above and beyond and even made sure that our mattress would be finished and delivered two weeks later in Leland. Armen is a truly awesome and generous gentleman! On our last day in Petoskey, we took the bike trail northwest to Bay Harbor for lunch and enjoyed beautiful views of the lake, visiting the hotel which resembles the Hotel del Coronado in California, and doing some shopping. We had docktails with Robin & Bob, Jimi & Fawn (likely the last time we’ll see them), as well as some new to us loopers, Mike & Debbie on 2nd Time Around and Doug & Debbie on Morning Sun. Another great visit to another lovely little town on Lake Michigan.

August 14, 2025 Petoskey Municipal Marina to Sommerset Pointe Yacht Club, Boyne City, Lake Charlevoix 25.6 NM, 3:37 h, 8.1 kn. We departed Petoskey about 8:30 AM with glassy, calm waters and cool temperatures. It was a beautiful morning to cruise to Charlevoix, first Round Lake (after waiting 30 minutes for the bridge, oops! we forgot to time that right!) then down Lake Charlevoix to Sommerset Pointe where we spent a few nights until we could get a slip in Charlevoix on Round Lake. Our friends from home, Karen & Dave picked us up at the marina and took us to their cottage on Lake Charlevoix for a wonderful evening and dinner with more Middletown friends, Cindy, Jack and Linda. It was a blast seeing our old Wildwood and South Carolina vacation friends from back in the day. Stories were told, good times were remembered and we caught up on our kiddos who had grown up over the years. We even had the special treat of taking the Ironton Ferry to and from their cottage. Friday, we dinghyed to Boyne City with Robin and Bob and walked about shopping and seeing the town, Robin talked me in to some new clothes from Lulu B, and we had a great lunch at Cafe Santé. Later, we enjoyed the hot summer sun in the pool back at the marina and dinner at The Pointe Fish & Grille. While we were enjoying a nightcap on our boat, Doug invited 3 random strangers walking the dock aboard to join us (as he often does) and of course they accepted the invitation. Next thing I knew, Doug was singing the them song from Green Acres with our new friend, Lulu. He did the Eddie Albert part and she did Eva Gabor. It was a hoot! And of course, Lulu and her friends, Nils and Rachel are from Cincinnati. It really is a small, small world. Saturday morning we hopped back in the dinghy for a trip to Boyne City (about 3 miles away) for the Farmer’s market. It was a great market with lots of produce. We got blueberries, raspberries, tomatoes, corn on the cob, fresh sourdough bread and porkchops. All were delicious! Later after we got back to the marina, our Middletown friends came to visit and see the boat. We joined them for wine tasting at Mackinaw Trails and Petoskey Farms Wineries and dinner at the Village Inn in Charlevoix. Another great time with great friends! We had one last visit with Robin and Bob as they are moving on to Traverse City tomorrow and it’s likely we will not see them again on this loop, we will miss them!

August 17, 2025 Sommerset Pointe Yacht Club, Lake Charlevoix to Ward Marina, Charlevoix, Round Lake 10.3 NM, 1:30 h, 8.2 kn. After sleeping in a bit and enjoying blueberry pancakes made with our farmers market blueberries, we cruised up Lake Charlevoix to Ward Marina. After settling in at Ward, we walked to the Weathervane for a delightful lunch on the patio overlooking the inlet and bridge to Round Lake. After lunch, we walked out on the pier to the lighthouse and watched as the boats cruised in and out and got tossed and rocked like crazy by the wind and the waves. Karen and Dave came over later in the afternoon for docktails on our boat and then we walked to Terry’s for dinner. It was a perfect ending to a wonderful stop along the loop.

August 18, 2025 Ward Marina, Charlevoix to Duncan L. Clinch Marina, Traverse City 39.3 NM, 4:07 h, 10.9 kn. We departed the marina in time to get our fenders and lines switched and secured before the 8 AM bridge opening back out into Lake Michigan. We had smooth cruising until we got to Grand Traverse Bay. Once we turned into the bay, the waves grew and it was choppy and rocky until we got in to the west arm of the bay and the middle peninsula blocked some of the wind and waves. It was so windy for a while that we almost lost our looper flag that has been with us since we started! We arrived at the marina and docked safely. The first person we saw at the marina was Bob, our friend from Livin’ It. They had extended their Traverse City stay and we had arrived a day early due to forecasted winds so here we are together again! Our friend, Kevin, from Kingdom stopped by to say hi and we were tickled to see him again. Kingdom’s loop is currently on pause and we hadn’t seen him since Key West in February. We enjoyed walking about seeing the town, dinners with Robin and Bob, the beautiful bike trails and the Wednesday Farmers Market. Robin and Bob joined us on our last night in Traverse City for farewell docktails (it really is unlikely we’ll see them again on our loop as they’re going to Frankfort tomorrow and we’re stopping in Leland) and got to meet Kevin and Jolie. Kevin and Jolie treated us to a fun Mexican dinner after docktails and it was hard to say goodbye again after just catching up for a few hours. We’re looking forward to catching up with them again this winter in the keys. It was a great evening with some of our best looper friends.

August 21, 2025 Duncan L. Clinch Marina, Traverse City to Leland Municipal Marina 43.8 NM, 4:37 h, 10 kn. We departed Traverse City around 8:30 AM after pumping out our holding tank (one of the least glamorous chores of living aboard) and topping off our diesel (still under budget!) for what will hopefully be the last time of our loop! We had smooth cruising all the way to Leland, easy dockage with no wind or cuurent and a beautiful day. We had lunch at The Cove, tasted wine at Verterra Winery and walked around Historic Fishtown. Friday morning our new mattress arrived from Harbor Springs, we took a nice long walk out to the golf course and around the town and I had a couple of MCF meetings that I joined remotely in the afternoon. Exciting things are happening back home in Middletown, Ohio! Saturday morning we enjoyed a delicious breakfast at Great Lakes Chocolate Café and a beautiful walk on the beach watching windsurfers and looking for rocks. There are some pretty high winds and waves so we’re sitting tight until they calm down a bit before heading to Frankfort to cross our wake. The sunsets here are spectacular and we have seen the green flash twice, the only times we’ve seen it during our loop.

August 26, 2025 Leland Township Marina to Jacobson’s Resort Marina, Frankfort, MI. 37.4 NM, 3:00 h, 13.6 kn. We departed Leland about 8 AM for what we knew would be a rock and rolly cruise to Frankfort. We cruised a little faster than usual to help with the wind and waves but still ended up rocking and corkscrewing into my discomfort zone. Doug zigzagged along to handle the waves a little more comfortably and our route looked like a sailboat tacking and jibing by the time we arrived in Frankfort. We docked a little easier at Jacobson’s than we had 352 days earlier when we arrived there on the first day of our loop. It was an incredible moment, crossing our wake and becoming Gold Loopers! After we tied up, we meandered about town, got some lunch and washed the boat. Our awesome looper friends, Jolie and Kevin drove down to Frankfort to celebrate with us and it was a wonderful evening with docktails then dinner at VitaBella where we celebrated Doug’s birthday our first night of our loop. Wow! It’s hard to believe we did it but here we are!

August 27, 2025 Jacobson’s Marina Resort, Frankfort to Bay Marine Yacht Harbor, Strgeon Bay, WI. 50.4 NM, 4:14 h, 12.7 kn. As the sun rose in Frankfort, we departed on our last cruise of this loop, across Lake Michigan to Sturgeon Bay, with NOAA promising us 0-1 foot waves. Well let me just say, NOAA lied. We saw 3-5 foot waves the first half of our cruise calming to 1-2 foot waves the second half. Fortunately, the waves were pretty much on our bow and we were just up and down rather than rolling from side to side, still in the discomfort zone though and we were pretty worn out by the time we arrived in Sturgeon Bay. After docking and checking in, we walked to Greystone Castle (which is really a cinderblock dive bar) for an awesome celebratory lunch of cheese curds, cheeseburgers and crinkle fries. We rested and relaxed the rest of the day and pretty much reveled in the fact that we didn’t have to worry about weather or plan and prepare for moving on or cruising far for a while as this is where Hiatus Too will spend her winter in heated storage.